Neglected Agents: Elucidating Chinese Social Actors’ Role in Thai-Sino Smart City Diplomacy

Abstract

This paper argues that Chinese social actors play a crucial role in advancing Thai-Sino diplomacy through Chiang Mai’s smart city initiatives. As an initiative, a focus group workshop involving transnational Chinese from People’s Republic of China (PRC) has been organized. From the inputs of Chinese participants who have been residing in Chiang Mai as students, investors, parents and entrepreneurs, this paper elucidates Chinse contributions as multifaceted covering technological, socio-cultural, economic and soft power dimensions for both Thailand and PRC. Against a delimiting scope and research scarcity of social actors in smart city diplomacy within an intra-Asian context, this paper seeks to recover the significant role of Chinese as neglected agents. Situated in-between dual-embeddedness, Chinese social actors transcend the fixation of single sovereign state’s interests. With growing protectionism and
precarious global landscapes, this paper proffers states’ engagement of Chinese social actors in creative platforms to facilitate positive win outcomes.