The Geographical Transformation of China

The aim of this book is to examine the transformation of the geography of China in the years since the start of China's policy of reform and opening-up in 1978, as seen through the eyes of Chinese geographers. Throughout that period, Chinese geographers have studied these environmental, economic, political and cultural processes closely, drawing on sources that are far from easy to access, and have published their results in Chinese. Much of this research has underpinned the Chinese government's assessment of policies and the policy choices at different levels, yet it is not well known outside of China.

This volume deals with aspects of the socio-economic geography of China's transformation including its changing relations with the rest of the world, although it also deals with the impact of China's development path on the country's ecological systems. Each chapter deals with aggregate trends and specific cases to show the ways in which the particular characteristics of China's economic and social order (economic organization, political system and cultural model and values) have shaped and are shaped by its geography.

Michael Dunford is Visiting Professor at the Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research (IGSNRR), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, and Emeritus Professor at the University of Sussex.

Weidong Lui is Professor in Economic Geography and Assistant Director of IGSNRR, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing. He is also the Deputy Director of the CAS Key Laboratory of Regional Sustainable Development Modelling, and the Team Leader of the Regional Development Report of China (eight volumes of the Report have been published in Chinese by the Commercial Press).