Transformations  in
Business & Economics

THE BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: CHINA AND LITHUANIA
Joseph Pilotta, Zivile Sedereviciute-Paciauskiene

ABSTRACT. This study links three important global governance issues: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, China-Lithuania (EU) relations and The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Our orientation to sustainability as it relates to China and Lithuania is both methodological and analytical. We view the impact of the Brundtland Report as an approach to temporal planning. It is also a solution to the problem of political legitimation for China and Lithuania, as time horizons differ according to differing sectors of the social system. There are layerings of horizons along local, national, and global development. Within the context of sustainability, the focus on development centres economic objectives and priorities of which government, business, and policy organizations must be mindful in their decision-making. All decisions create time horizon constraints. In the case of China and Lithuania, sustainability developments emanate from recent totalitarian regimes under a command organizational structure. Both now embark upon market economies, creating challenges for each in their efforts to maintain stability in transition. A typology of time horizons and an example of their possible impacts are discussed.

KEYWORDS:  sustainable development, sustainability, China, European Union, Belt and Road Initiative.

JEL classification:  M14, M19, P2.