China Today, China Tomorrow

Domestic Politics, Economy, and Society

Edited by Joseph Fewsmith

Publication date:

16 August 2010

Length of book:

344 pages

Publisher

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

ISBN-13: 9780742567078

In this timely book, a group of leading scholars provides a comprehensive assessment of China's polity, economy, and society. Taking the thirtieth anniversary of Beijing's adoption of reform and opening as an occasion to reflect on the course of development over the past three decades, the contributors consider where the country may be going in the future. Just as China has had enormous success in developing its economy, it continues to face equally enormous challenges across a wide variety of issues, including inequality, social protest, energy, the environment, and a resurgence of religion. As a polity, China has tried to build a modern legal system while balancing center-local relations, sustaining a viable ideological framework, and maintaining stable politics at the elite level. At the same time, the current global economic crisis poses a major obstacle to China's model of development. Authoritative, accessible, and current, this book will be an invaluable resource for all readers interested in the fate of a rising global power.

Contributions by: Edward A. Cunningham, Joseph Fewsmith, Sebastian Heilmann, Jamie Horsley, Joanna Lewis, Yawei Liu, Barry Naughton, Elizabeth J. Perry, Ren Jiantao, Carl Riskin, Sun Yanfei, Robert Weller, Min Ye, and Yongnian Zheng.

Introduction: Three Decades of Reform and Opening
Part I: Social Order
Chapter 1: Popular Protest: Playing by the Rules
Chapter 2: Religion: The Dynamics of Religious Growth and Change
Chapter 3: The Rule of Law: Pushing the Limits of Party Rule
Part II: Economics
Chapter 4: Economic Growth: From High-Speed to High-Quality
Chapter 5: Inequality: Overcoming the Great Divide
Chapter 6: Economic Governance: Authoritarian Upgrading and Innovative Potential
Part III: Politics
Chapter 7: Foreign Direct Investment: Diaspora Networks and Economic Reform
Chapter 8: Elite Politics: The Struggle for Normality
Chapter 9: Local Elections: The Elusive Quest for Choice
Chapter 10: Ideology: Its Role in Reform and Opening
Part IV: Systemic Constraints
Chapter 11: Central-Local Relations: The Power to Dominate
Chapter 12: Energy Governance: Fueling the Miracle
Chapter 13: Environmental Challenges: From the Local to the Global
Conclusion: China's Next Three Decades

Fascinating and interesting [chapters] by a stellar cast of largely US-based China experts about many aspects of China's development—political, social, economic and environmental.