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The framework of collaborative water governance (CWG) has been championed as a promising model for water management across the globe. China is a country confronted by serious water pollution and shortage problems. In recent years, many scholars and practitioners have turned to CWG as an effective model for water crisis management in China. However, the political nature of CWG and China's Authoritarian Environmentalism is inherently conflictual, hence, the development of CWG in China poses a theoretical puzzle, i.e., how the bottom-up CWG model can coexist with the top-down Authoritarian Environmentalism in China's water politics. To better understand this puzzle, this article explores CWG's intertwinement with environmental authoritarianism through a case study of "safe water supply project" in 11 coal-mining villages in Shanxi province of North China. Drawing on fieldwork between 2019 and 2021 in H city of Shangxi province, this research shows that the central government's pledge to provide safe water to every villager in rural China has not materialized so far. The dilemma of safe water supply in coal mining villages in H city shows that, on one side, the central government attempted to show its great will and commitment to providing safe water to everyone in rural China through an approach of environmental authoritarianism; while on the other side, the local governments tended to select the CWG model as a method for practical implementation as well as a blame avoidance strategy. Our study identifies five stakeholders in the villages' safe water supply projects: the Department of Water Resources of the City Government, the Township Government, Coal Mining Enterprises, village cadres and villagers. The outcome of the safe water supply project in these villages is constrained by the transparency and trust deficit among stakeholders when facing cooperation and conflict management obstacles.

Finally, an insightful analysis of China's different types of state-owned enterprises. Grounded in deep and thoughtful empirical research, China's State Enterprises also contributes immensely to debate about the value of state intervention in an economy to drive growth. To understand how China is emerging as the world's largest economy, guided by the strong hand of a highly interventionist state through enterprises it owns and controls, this is a must-read. --Edmund Terence Gomez, Professor of Political Economy, University of Malaya This study of China's state owned and controlled enterprises challenges many of the easy assumptions about such enterprises made by high income country economists and business people. Through careful research and rigorous analysis the two authors argue that these enterprises have been transformed into effective vehicles for carrying out the government's overall development strategy. The study is an important contribution to our understanding of the nature of China's "socialist market economy"--Dwight H. Perkins, Professor of Political Economy, Harvard University This book focuses on the nature and significance of China's state enterprises which have undergone substantial changes since China's economic liberalization in 1978. It argues that much of the criticism is based on mistaken premises, where even the term 'state-owned enterprises' is a misnomer given that the emphasis is much less on ownership than on control. Using numerous case studies, this book highlights the extent to which these enterprises have evolved in response to reforms, and provides an in-depth analysis of their role in China's outward investment strategy in the "Belt and Road" initiative. This role speaks to their growing influence as China expands her global footprint.--

This paper studies whether monetary transmission in China is asymmetric. While researchers found an asymmetric transmission in the U.S. and other economies, China offers a specific rationale for asymmetries: the presence of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) enjoying preferential access to financing. To study the consequences of SOEs for policy transmission, we differentiate between expansionary and restrictive policy shocks and argue that SOEs should suffer less from a policy tightening and benefit more from a policy easing. Based on sector-specific macroeconomic time series and a large firm-level data set, we provide evidence of a systematic and sizable asymmetry in the transmission of monetary policy shocks in China. The nature of the asymmetry is consistent with the notion of explicit or implicit government-guarantees of SOEs and has consequences for the adjustment of aggregate variables. In contrast to other central banks, the People's Bank of China seems to be able to "push on a string".

1. Introduction -- 2. Extant Studies: The Dominance of Large Cities -- 3. The Case Study Approach to City Analysis -- 4. Quanzhou: Reclaiming a Glorious Past -- 5. From Obscurity to Global Prominence: Yiwu's Emergence as an International Trade Hub -- 6. Nanning: Perils and Promise of a Frontier City -- 7. Comparing Growth and Internationalization Trajectories -- 8. Conclusion

Globalisation has arguably been the most discussed topic since the 1970s, and the intensity of discussion peaked in 1995 when the World Trade Organization was formed. As the ideal for growth, globalisation was the tide that lifted all boats. China has been held up as a shining example of a beneficiary of globalisation. The China globalisation model, exemplified by Shenzhen, is founded on production for exports, with inflow of foreign direct investment by transnational corporations bringing in technologies and efficient production methods. The authors analyse case studies of secondary cities, namely Quanzhou, Yiwu and Nanning, to illustrate that alternative globalisation models exist. Quanzhou has had a long history of globalisation, the nature of which changed over the centuries. Its globalisation today leverages the history of earlier phases. The Yiwu model is a contrast to the Shenzhen model in that Yiwu's globalisation represented an extension of its role as a wholesale market benefiting the small traders. Nanning is a good example of state-led globalisation. Findings have demonstrated that other models undoubtedly exist, and that city size is not necessarily indicative of the impact of globalisation. (China/GIGA)