Young China Watchers

For this month’s episode, Sam sat down with Kyle Jaros, Associate Professor in the Political Economy of China at the University of Oxford.  They discussed Kyle’s new book, “China’s Urban Champions: The Politics of Spatial Development”, which took four provincial case studies in Shaanxi, Jiangsu, Hunan, Jiangxi and analyzed the relationships between local leaders, provincial leaders, and Beijing, as well as the roles occupied by other regional stakeholders. Kyle talked about his research methods, decisions, and challenges, highlighting his goal to cover issues unique to each province as well as identity their points of overlap.  Xi Jinping, Kyle points out, made analysis of China’s central power in Beijing the focal point for research and commentary into Chinese policy-making. While in the 1990s, researchers were more interested in addressing questions about China ability to achieve national coherence, now that China has established itself as a united state and global powerhouse, researchers tend to