Acknowledgements
Now I am sitting in an apartment in Shenzhen with a view of a street and park, similar to my room in Ghent. Time passes quickly, and the academic journey is still full of busyness and uncertainty. Yet I would console myself by reminding myself: Walk slowly, but make every step count. Writing this book has taught me that I cannot force constant optimism – it is crucial to accept my feelings, including moments of melancholy.
I still remember that morning after my private defence – the air smelled sweeter and my footsteps felt lighter as I walked home. About a month later, when I finally wore the doctoral cap after my public defence, friends asked if I was happy. ‘Not particularly happy,’ I replied, ‘I just feel like it all came naturally.’ Maybe the Ph. D. just felt inevitable after such a long endeavour. Even if doing a Ph. D. does not go as smoothly as I initially thought, the academic views and any people I have met along the way are worth it. What matters is that I am learning to grow up, no matter my age, and dare to face future challenges. Today is the end and the beginning.
Writing and revising this book felt less like fulfilling the Ph.D. requirements and more like having a silent companion through days we understood without any words. It became a testimony to my personal growth. Therefore, I thank myself first for my perseverance and this wordless spiritual partner. Together we have shared these humble insights with the readers.
To My Family
My deepest gratitude goes to my mother, father, and grandmother. The pride of being their child far surpasses earning a Ph.D. You have always cared for my mental wellbeing and given me exactly any support I needed. During my doctoral studies, we were physically separated for years due to the pandemic, but I always felt your presence – you were the invisible co-authors of my dissertation. After two years, as I have grown a little bit older, my appreciation for family has deepened once again. The opportunity to visit my family regularly or to connect with them via more video calls – this mutual companionship remains life’s most precious gift.
To My Supervisors
I say to my family: ‘What greater happiness could there be than to have met such kind souls as you?’ Without your initial attention to my research proposal and subsequent guidance in my work on ‘ecological restoration,’ none of what followed would have been possible. Thank you, Professor Dr. An Cliquet. For me, you are not only an ideal supervisor, but also an academic role model. Your attentive patience and timely guidance have been invaluable. I would never forget your analogy: ‘Each piece of writing is like a building block – put them together patiently until you have built a whole house.’ Professor Dr. Hendrik Schoukens, thank you for your constant encouragement, even when I met you by chance in the Royal Park in Brussels, where I was supposedly looking for ‘inspiration for my dissertation.’ When I look back at the first drafts of each chapter, I realise how badly I wrote at that time, but both of you kept encouraging me. Most of all, I am grateful to you for redirecting me when my Ph.D. trajectory veered off course and then patiently guiding me back on track.
To My Guidance Committee Members and Jury Members
Many thanks to the members of my guidance committee, Professor Dr. Miao He and Professor Dr. Louis Kotzé – I truly had the most exemplary guidance committee! Miao, you were like an elder sister. After my public defence, our long conversation and your sincere, ‘I am genuinely happy for you.’ You helped me with more than just doing the research. Thank you, Louis. I still remember your words, ‘Doing a Ph. D. is like telling a big story,’ which inspired me to think about how to tell a story about ecological restoration and the public trust principle.
Big thanks to my jury members, Prof. Dr. Geert Van Hoorick Prof. Dr. Tianbao Qin, and Dr. Anemoon Soete. Thank you for reading my Ph.D. dissertation and giving me feedback.
To My Colleagues and Friends
Dr. Yang Liu and Dr. Ting Chen – my most important colleagues and friends during this journey. When fear made me bury my head like an ostrich before the obstacles of research, you pulled me up and pushed me forward with invaluable advice.
I was never alone; so many generous souls accompanied me. A big hug to all the colleagues and friends who have shared a part of this journey with me. To all who have accompanied me on this journey – you have filled it with warmth:
Alex Gardner, Alexandra Hofer, Allan Kanner, Caroline and Ludo, Debora Amoah, Eleonora Ciscato, Felipe Rodríguez Silvestre, Frank Maes, Lei Guo, Huanyu Zhao, Jay R. Kraemer, Jingtao Kang, Jun Wang, Klaas Willaert, Kristien Ballegeer, Wei Liu, Louis Galo McDonough Monroy, Luca Ferro, Mary Wood, Peng Wu, Sebastiaan Van Severen, Shuwen Wu, Sien Devriendt, Sijie Liao, Tom Ruys, Toshio Hase, Waleed Mahmoud, Xi Wang, Xiangyu Xue, Meng Zhang.
Funding Acknowledgement
I would like to thank the China Scholarship Council for financing my doctoral research.
Finally, this book incorporates and expands the ideas explored in my earlier work on international and Chinese restoration law in 2023. In particular, I would like to thank the following publication, which is in some ways a part of this book:
Zhenzhen
This work is stated as of May 2025
References Zhenzhen Rong, ‘Using environmental litigation to advance ecological restoration under the Convention on Biological Diversity in China’ (2023) 7 Chinese Journal of Environmental Law 100