A recent survey I conducted found that if the middle school students in Shanghai were given the chance to choose their own nationalities, quite a number of them would prefer to be Americans or people from other foreign countries. When I later asked a US Consulate-General official about the answers American teenagers might give, he said confidently that none would choose to be non-American.

I¡¯m afraid that such findings provide no reason for celebration. Obviously, what we see here is the students¡¯ lack of identity with their motherland, rather than a ¡°globalization mindset¡±.

The national spirit is important because it can arouse young people¡¯s gratitude towards their families, hometowns and motherland, and thus encourage them to serve their country folks and motherland. Devotion to one¡¯s fellow countrymen and homeland is a lofty idea that can easily ignite individuals¡¯ passion and motivate their creativity. It is also a basic need of mankind to share a common lifestyle, and when such a need is not satisfied, one will feel ¡°lost¡±.

The environment surely has an important role to play in cultivating patriotism among young people. While we feel a sense of belonging in a familiar environment rich in its own characteristics, we may feel uneasy and lost in an environment full of wrong images.

The above-mentioned survey also found that as many as one fifth of the nearly 200 shops in some business districts in Shanghai have only English shop signs. It is almost inevitable that young people¡¯s identity with their mother tongue is put to the test in such an environment where foreign languages prevail and the Chinese language is marginalized. The language in public places is more than a matter of simple signs, but rather is one part of the environment that is pertinent to the cultivation of young people¡¯s national spirit.

Systematic and comprehensive efforts are needed to create an environment that can help young people cultivate an identity with China¡¯s national spirit. Firstly, no public places should allow information that weakens the public¡¯s identity with the nation, their confidence in the home culture and morals. The government should have special laws on the use of languages in neighbourhoods and communities to prevent the Chinese language from being marginalized.

Since each environment has its own characteristics, special attention should be paid to its different functions in bringing up a generation valuing Chinese national spirit. For example, communities should provide an environment where safe, colourful and healthy activities can be carried out targeting young people, while old neighbourhoods should better protect and utilize local resources and work to develop the public¡¯s identity with the culture their buildings embody.

Open-mindedness and creativity are needed to make an environment with educational purposes capable of encouraging participation from young people. We have been advocating that Shanghai¡¯s young people should be allowed free access to museums and famous people¡¯s former residences, hoping that frequent visits to these places can incorporate their rich historical meaning and value into the personality of the city¡¯s young people.

Shanghai¡¯s history is China¡¯s contemporary and modern history in a nutshell, and the city boasts numerous historical sites. It is important that we should discover the useful resources in the city and help young people cultivate a sound personality.

(The author is a sociology professor of Fudan University)