Written by scholars from both inside and outside China, this wide-ranging collection of essays explores the complexity of the relationship between governance and civil society by combining theoretical exploration and empirical case studies based on the governance practice in China.

"State-society relations have changed in important ways in recent years, and various sorts of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are emerging. Do these NGOs mean that 'civil society' is developing? What does 'civil society' mean in the context of China? Are these new NGOs improving governance in China? What do they mean for the future development of state-society relations? Jianxing Yu, Sujian Guo, and their contributors explore these questions in this timely and important book."

Joseph Fewsmith, professor, International Relations and Political Science and director, Boston University Center for the Study of Asia "Scholars have long hotly debated how theoretical and conceptual understandings of civil society can apply to China. This book does not seek to come up with one single Western or Chinese answer to the problem, but rather attempts to understand how the interaction of state and society solves important problems of public policy and public goods provision in China. By looking at the intersection of governance and social participation, the authors provide valuable insights into state-society relations in a changing institutional environment."

Gunter Schubert, professor and chair, Greater China Studies, University of Tübingen

Autorentext
JIANXING YU is Associate Dean and a Professor of the College of Public Administration and executive director of the Center for Public Policy at Zhejiang University, China.
SUJIAN GUO is Professor of Political Science and director of the Center for US-China Policy Studies at San Francisco State University, USA, and currently associate dean and distinguished professor of the Fudan Institute for Advanced Study in Social Sciences at Fudan University.

Inhalt
The Relationship between Civil Society and Governance in China; J.Yu & S.Guo PART I: GOVERNANCE AND CIVIL SOCIETY IN THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES Governance as Political Theory; B.G.Peters The Tension between Governance and State-building; J.Yu & Z.He Creating Civil-society Structures Top-down?; T.Heberer Industry Associations' Participation in Public Policymaking from the Perspective of State-Society Relations: A Conceptual Framework and Comparative Case Studies; H.Jiang , J.Zhang Y.Zhou Social Enterprise in China; W.Bielefeld & L.He PART II: CIVIL SOCIETY AND GOVERNANCE PRACTICE IN CHINA Growing out of Participation: Finding the Developmental Path of China's Civil Society; J.Yu & J.Zhou Institutional Barriers for the Development of Civil Society in Current China; H.Zengke Recall Behavior and Right Remedy: The Internal Logic of Institutional Change - A Case Study of Three Social Organizations; J.Xu Transforming State and Citizen through Community Building: The View from Zhejiang; K.Parris Optimal Size of Business Associations under the Principle of 'One Industry, One Association'; B.He