From November 11 to November 17, 2023, world leaders assembled in downtown San Francisco to discuss the global economy at the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Conference (APEC). APEC is an economy-centered forum where international leaders work towards reducing trade barriers, promoting sustainability and advocating for technical cooperation. Each year, the conference revolves around a few core themes; this year, those themes included sustainability, innovation and the future of technology and artificial intelligence.
APEC was first pitched by former Australian prime minister Bob Hawke in 1989 to open a dialogue between nations surrounding economic engagement and trade. It quickly grew to be a globally recognized conference, with over 20 economies participating in November. This year, San Francisco hosted the six-day conference in its very own Downtown district. The majority of the conference took place in San Francisco’s Nob Hill and South of Market neighborhoods, with some exceptions, like a dinner held at an estate in the South Bay.
Prominent global figures like President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Chinese President Xi Jinping all attended. They were joined by roughly 1,200 global CEOs.
The Bay Area was chosen to host the 2023 conference this year based on its values reflecting those of APEC 2023. “San Francisco was selected because of its long history as a gateway to the Pacific Rim, its commitment to sustainability and inclusivity, its diverse community including several consulates from member economies, its leadership in innovation, and its natural beauty,” Priya Clemens, Press Ambassador for the APEC San Francisco Host Committee, said.
Furthermore, San Francisco’s ties to the Asia-Pacific region run deep. According to 2022 census data, Asian Americans represent roughly 33 percent of San Francisco’s total population. The local Chinatown is also the first and oldest in North America, hosting one of the largest Chinese communities outside of Asia.
Hosting APEC is a coveted task since the event draws global attention to the city and has lasting effects like increased tourism and boosted investments. In the past, the conference has been hosted by Bangkok in 2022, Auckland in 2021 and Kuala Lumpur in 2020. According to the APEC official website, Ambassador Matt Murray, United States’ Senior Official for APEC made an announcement to the APEC team a few days before the conference. In his address, Murray highlighted the positive impacts of being the APEC host city that not only benefit the Bay Area, but the greater United States. As the host country, the United States is given the unique power to shape policies regarding trade and control economic growth in the vibrant Asia-Pacific region.
photo by Thijs Simonian
The conference also creates opportunities for locals and students to get involved with international relations through volunteering positions.
Lick-Wilmerding High School student Justin Ma ’25, was one of many volunteers at this year’s APEC, working with the Asia Society of Northern California, helping speakers on and off the stage and assisting the cameraman.
Ma explained that one of the major milestones in the conference was the beginning of resolution between Xi Jinping and Joe Biden. “It’s the first time Biden and Xi have met on either of their territories, so it’s a big step in international relations.”
Relations between China and the U.S. have been unsteady in the two years leading up to the conference due to economic and military differences. Therefore, the agreements made regarding fentanyl policies and collaborating on the rapidly growing industry of generative AI were groundbreaking.
While APEC’s projected impacts were an increase in tourism in San Francisco, making sound investments and creating productive policy, some locals saw it as an opportunity to have the attention of influential leaders who were in town. Protests for a variety of causes, including a ceasefire in Gaza, took place over the weeklong conference; thousands marched through the city’s streets, climbing the walls of buildings and shutting down all westward bound lanes of the Bay Bridge.
LWHS commuter students, like Sora Fitzpatrick ’24, happened to be on the bridge when it shutdown. “The time on the bridge felt never ending, I think we were there for around four hours,” Fitzpatrick said. The closed bridge interrupted an entire day of school and caused any student on the bridge to miss all classes because of the special PPP schedule.
The assemblies did not cause further harm beyond the disruption. “The protests were peaceful, and people were able to share their thoughts and opinions,” Clemens said.
As the event culminated, two superpower countries walked away with alleviated tensions, nearly 50 billion dollars were invested in the participating economies and financial moves had been made to drive home the values of innovation and sustainability.
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