On September 15th it brought two actions against China at the World Trade Organisation (WTO): one contesting Chinese duties on American exports of a special type of steel used in power generation, and another over discrimination against foreign providers of payment-card transactions.
The goal is clear, but getting there, finding a way through the murk and smog that hangs over cities like Wuhan, and forging a future based not on steel but a different type of economy - that's the hard part.
We also looked at several groundbreaking building systems that stand to make our cities stronger and more sustainable, starting with a new type of flexible superglass that is stronger than steel.