Social Issues in China

Since 1978, the opening up and reform in China has brought tremendous economic and social changes. While China's economic progress has been commendable, the social problems that go with economic changes have raised serious concerns. Some of those concerns are related to gender,ethnic, labor, andenvironmental issues. This book is about what has happened in these arenas inChina since the opening up and reform in 1978. The study of gender, ethnicity, labor, and environmenttouches on some of the fundamental problems of modernization, especially the development of individuals and groups. So even though gender, ethnicity, labor, and environmentseem to be separate issues, they are in fact related in some fundamental ways. That's what this book will explore as well. To understand is one thing and to do is another. This book also incorporates studies of NGO practices to see how NGOs have helped in transforming gender, ethnic, labor, and environmentinterplay. Our study of NGOs in helping improvesuch interplaysheds light on how specifically civil society can prod the state to transform socialrelations for the better. This book is an attempt to assess the changes, both positive and negative, in gender,ethnic, ethnic, and environmentalrelations in China especially in the past 30 years of opening up and reform, especially regarding national identity formation.