Harry Harding is presently a University Professor and Professor of Public Policy at UVA and Visiting Professor of Social Science at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. He was previously on the faculty of Stanford University, a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, dean of the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University, and the founding dean of the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy at the University of Virginia. His major publications include Organizing China: The Problem of Bureaucracy, 1949-1976; China’s Second Revolution: Reform after Mao; A Fragile Relationship: The United States and China since 1972; and the chapter on the Cultural Revolution in the Cambridge History of China. He is currently working on a new book, tentatively titled What Went Wrong? The U.S. and China from Partners to Competitors.

Shirley Lin is a member of the founding faculty of the master's program in global political economy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and teaches political science at the University of Virginia. Her book on cross-Strait relations was published by Stanford University Press in 2016. She graduated from Harvard College and earned her masters and Ph.D. from the University of Hong Kong. Before starting her academic career, she was a partner at Goldman Sachs, where she spearheaded the firm's investments in many technology companies and start-ups. Professor Lin’s present board service includes Goldman Sachs Asia Bank, Langham Hospitality Investments and Mercuries Life Insurance. She is also a member of the Hong Kong Committee for Pacific Economic Cooperation. Her current research is focused on the high income trap and the backlash against globalization.