Dr. Yang is the deputy director of the Center for Global Governance and Development. He received his Ph.D. in comparative politics from Beijing University. He was a visiting research fellow at Tuebingen University (2010); the Public Affairs Center in Bangalore (2009); and the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard (2001-2002). He has also served as a consultant for the Financial Ministry of China on global governance (2006). He has authored or co-authored several books and numerous articles about Chinese local politics and governance, globalization, and risk society, which include Globalization and Global Issues; Risk Society and Reconstructing Order; and Globalization Theories.