How to pronounce “serge” in English

And please welcome our speakers. Thank you very much for coming.Serge Michel: Hello. So do you hear as well? Yeah?So my name is Serge Michel, and I'm a writer from Switzerland working mostly for European newspapers and magazines. I've been based in Zurich, in Tehran, in Belgrade,

This one was to Afghanistan.Serge Michel: So why did we do the book called China Safari?When I was correspondent in West Africa for Le Monde, I felt that there was a new phenomenon taking place, one that would change the face of Africa.

Chinese were there, what were they doing there, what were the specific issues in each country.Serge Michel: The man under the umbrella is called Jacob Wood.And -- I'm sorry to say it here -- but, before we interviewed him in Lagos, Nigeria, in April 2007, he did not exist on Google. But he ought to, because this man is one of

What you might notice as well is, that the Chinese supervisor is wearing protective shoes, while the Nigerian worker is just wearing flip-flops.Serge Michel: So still, the relationship -- the working relationship -- can be tough, but there is also a real proximity. Look at this supervisor here teaching a Nigerianworker in the heat of the same steel factory. If he was a westerner, he would just sit in the office with air conditioning and checking the production figures on the computer, and

So this engineer is explaining to the workers some of the workings of the factory.Serge Michel: There is a club in Lagos for Chinese entrepreneurs with about 200 members.And some of them are in their early 20's and but all very successful.

a banquet for the president of the Nigerian senate, who's celebrating here his 70th birthday with 300 guests.Serge Michel: Let's go now to Congo. This picture, which is also the cover of the book -- it's a dam under construction and a dam for which the western aid agencies -- theIMF, the World Bank -- constantly refused to finance because of the lack of transparency,

come before the necessity of good governance, democracy, in any case, in the Chinese vision.Serge Michel: Ministers in Africa have the reputation of not doing many things for theirown people, and that is often the case. But China now helps African governments to achieve more and to get so easily reelected. Alphonse Nsilou here -- you see him -- is

raise more capital for investment in Africa.Serge Michel: One of the problems in the working sites in Africa with the Chinese is that they don't share any common language, so the only way to communicate is by gestures and notalways very friendly ones.

immediately. So there is a very strong, anti-Chinese sentiment growing in the lower sections of the population.Serge Michel: But still, the Chinese language and Chinese themselves remain very attractive.And here, we are in the high school at Brazzaville, with students passing their exams in Chinese language. These classes had to be doubled every year,

aluminum window frames. And in the years, she has brought eighty members of her family to Congo, of which you will see some of them here.Serge Michel: And here we witnessed the very animated discussion between Phillip -- who is Jessica's brother -- and the former owner of her restaurant that Phillip has just bought.The Congolese man came to claim the money for the restaurant and the Chinese man was trying to delay the payment.

news agency, but now has gone into the private and is working on that.Serge Michel: And the Ye family has managed to get the largest concession in Congo, which consists of 800,000 hectares in the Congo Basin Forest.And you know, the Congolese forest is the second largest rain forest in the world after the Amazon. And to our astonishment, actually part of

Paolo Woods: Here's another case. Another worker showing off his night catch which then will become his lunch.Serge Michel: So the law in Congo says that 80 percent of the wood must be processed therein Congo, but the reality is more close to ten to 15 percent.

What we have to understand today is that, when we see on something written, "Made in China", more and more that actually means, "Extracted in Africa."Serge Michel: So we see here, Phillip -- he was just on the picture before on the logs in the harbor of Pointe-Noire. We see him now in a different setting.He's here in his hometown in China called Wenzhou, south of Shanghai.

going to bring to Congo, and he's also starting a business where he's importing spare car parts to Congo.Serge Michel: So while we were in China, we also wanted to see who are the simple workers who get ready to leave to Africa. So we went to Sichuan Province, and we foundthis man called Peng Shu Lin. It was actually the very day of his departure to Nigeria for three years. You see on his bed, the small bag is the only

built by a Chinese company to relieve Algeria of the very big housing crisis they have.Serge Michel: Algeria has gone through a terrible decade of terrorism, and after that, the country found itself with a terrible housing crisis. So the Chinese were asked to build 55,000housing units around Abuja. You can see some of them here.

And a lot of misunderstandings and uncomprehension between the two communities has been growing.Serge Michel: Here, it's the working site of the highway they are building.So you should imagine it's a thousand kilometers highway, stretching from Morocco to Tunisia all across Algeria. And the Chinese had only 14 months to do the

tried everything to refuse us to go in, because they considered this as Chinese territory like if it was an embassy.Serge Michel: So now we just move to Angola. Angola had experienced 27 years of civil war.The country is at its knees. And after the war, the country asked the western

company or a British company or a French one would send workers to Africa -- engineers to Africa -- and live and work in such conditions.Serge Michel: We just had an interview with this man's boss in the office just behindthe wall that you see here, and the company is building hotels in the south of Angola.

they buy more land around them.Serge Michel: Here, the main reason why China is in Zambia is for the copper.There is a province called "Copper Belt" full of mines, and China has bought a few of these mines. And you see now here the official meeting

The Chinese pay very little, do not observe security regulations, and there have been big incidents in Zambia, killing a lot of workers.Serge Michel: Well, getting access to copper mines -- Chinese copper mines -- in Zambia has been tremendously difficult for us. And they believe that journalists are allspies or anti-Chinese agents. So soon after the previous picture of the boss on his copper, we've been expelled from the Chinese vicinities, and we were left outside

by both communities, the African community, the Zambian community, and the Chinese community.Serge Michel: In this final image of our presentation here today, you see another case of a child born from a Zambian mother and a Chinese father. The father disappeared soon after his birth,and for the time being, these children are not well-accepted.

Sorry, I apologize for that.Serge Michel: You can guess from my terrible "Frenchy" accent that, no, I'm Swiss.But, the fact that I work for French media, and France had colonies in Africa.

difference. But that does not mean that there are a lot of elements that are not problematic of the Chinese expansion there.Serge Michel: For instance, the fact that they take from Africa raw materials, they process it in China, and re-export it in Africa as finished product is a colonial scheme.And the French, the British, do the same. So, in this way, Africans must be aware that they should ask more of the Chinese. Because, the more Africans will request, the

I bought it in Korean.Serge Michel: Okay. Paolo Woods: We've been very lucky the book has been translated in ten different languages.And one of the things I'm particularly proud about is the fact that it's been translated in Chinese -- which is not expected, you know. And a lot of people have felt that maybe there

But do you think like, all this money and all this interaction will eventually help the continent grow economically?Serge Michel: If we start maybe from the second part, I mean, yes, I think it will help -- not only because China is actually leaving good things behind her in Africa like infrastructures.You know, in the past, the West would buy or extract African oil, and pay it with money to local governments, and that would fill their pockets and never reach the simple people.

They're pushing for infrastructure, and they're pushing for their own interest of raw materials.Serge Michel: Sure. Paolo Woods: If there's going to be competition, I mean, Africa was a place for ideological competition in the 60's and 70's between the two blocks during the cold war.

They're pushing for infrastructure, and they're pushing for their own interest of raw materials.Serge Michel: You know, many countries in Africa were, after independence, locked in a close relationship with their former colonial power.

They're pushing for infrastructure, and they're pushing for their own interest of raw materials.Serge Michel: It's very difficult. I mean, in Africa, cynicism has been a way to govern and a real -- and a characteristic of ministers, so.

They're pushing for infrastructure, and they're pushing for their own interest of raw materials.Serge Michel: Yeah. The thing is that the Chinese companies are not sensitive to public opinion. If you take any western company like, even

They're pushing for infrastructure, and they're pushing for their own interest of raw materials.Serge Michel: Well, the number of Africans in China is very difficult to say.

very special person and of course uh we all are are completely dazzled by SergeSerge Bren and Larry Paige uh for their Brilliance and taking us to a new placeLarry Sergey and Eric Schmidt in our democracy I will talk about the Innovation agenda because it's something

And that's a reoccurring theme, a reoccurring answer.Sergei got here in '88.

And the one marketing thing we did-- this is another funny story.Sergey at this time-- I don't know who's been here for how long.Sergey was really interested in Zeppelins, you know, blimps.

Sergey at this time-- I don't know who's been here for how long.Sergey was really interested in Zeppelins, you know, blimps.And so there was a Zeppelin for a while.

Hey, I think you guys should maybe give me $20?Sergei can give her $20.But she-- and what am I saying?

So I found myself in my barracks room later that night, once again in front of the computer, but this time it wasn't for online sex.Sergeant Norman, as creepy and terrifying as he was to me, had provided an opportunity that I had never really been awareof until now. I type Hide and Seek Colorado Springs into the Google search bar, and anxiously clicked on the web site.

As I walked deeper into the labyrinth of the dark club, I found myself further away from all the stresses that dominated my life at the base.Sergeant Norman's harassment, the constant fear and worry that someone would figure out my sexual orientation, and the new promise and threat of war,were all relegated to a place far away as I explored this dark and mysterious new world of Hide and Seek.

That's an admirable trait.Sergey. Sergey, nice to meet you.

humans I mean we are all not perfect we all have some some sort of drillsergeant in us we have some sort of repressive Charlie in us right we havesome sort of um pleasing Nancy inside of

when you are adaptable things can definitely change if you are a drillsergeant you all know that nothing is actually going to get done there is absolutely noway absolutely no way and you can even see this in your body image right so

circumstances some of the stressful things that have happenedSergeant the ugliest parts of yourself that can really change your

for talented youth don't even know what I'm talking about cty okay so it's a very unusual summer camp that Lady Gaga Mark Zuckerberg andSergey Brin actually went to when they were kids um I attended the camp in the summer of 2005 11 years ago and on thevery first day I happened to sit next to the greatest Rubik Cube solver on the planet I had no idea that's what he was

How many of you are familiar with the movement that she started?Sergey Brin and Larry Page were both there as well.

And there's carnage throughout the mess hall.Sergeant Montoya is quick enough to get under a table.But when he emerges, it's a mess.

My first thought when I here Google is that I have this sort of connection to Google.Sergey Brin is actually from Maryland, and briefly we've attended the same high school, actually, and in the same magnet program.I'll tell you a little bit more about that when I tell you my story.

But you can buy bigger salt packed anchovies from Italy, you can buy the ones like these, which are salt packed and thenSergey was like, we need meat slicers, we're doing a whole room of meat slicers.

Here comes the embarrassing part.Sergeant Stubner was awarded the Silver Star Medal for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action while serving as a squad leader during combat operations in supportof and in this operation that I mentioned called Anaconda.

So they may not be the right place, but they're the right country.Sergeant Stubner. On 9/11, the night before we had a training exercise.

Sergey in particular, doing GoogleGoogle .