We all know that there are urgent problems which are caused by demographic changes, one of which is the rapidly growing aging population. Currently 11.6% of the population is the old; however, around 2050 that figure will rise to 31%. When I listened to the speaker in “Building The Social Systems That Will Ensure Sustainability” say that, I was astonished.

Imagine that when we, who are 20-year-old youngsters currently, are more than 60, one in three people we see on the street will be old people, just like us! I suppose that when we do the shopping at that time, we will see numerous shops and stores opened, and there will also be some fashion magazines just for the old, which will be really a large group! So how to deal with the aging population should also be our concern, because everyone is in the process of aging!

One of the speakers, Li Bao Ku, mentioned that there is a traditional Chinese Culture of Xiao Dao, which means people should raise their parents, respect them, make suggestions to them and also do that to others’ parents. However, this kind of culture is dying away. I think that no matter what people in other countries are doing, we should stick to this kind of culture, which is a very important virtue in history--a tradition that has been passed from generation to generation. Globalization and change doesn’t mean losing our style!