With the abolition of the double registration regime, on paper Chinese NGOs are more independent from the Government’s bureaucratic commands than ever. Nevertheless, in reality the Chinese Government’s control over Chinese NGOs remains heavy-handed. Through giving NGOs bianzhi and purchasing services from NGOs, the Chinese Government caused and continues to cause the Chinese NGOs to adopt certain attributes of the danwei tradition. Specifically, the Government strives to embed the CPC into the Chinese NGOs and make the Chinese NGOs financially dependent on the Government. The danwei tradition is not merely a lingering legacy of China’s Communist past but also a result that the Government today actively seeks to bring about.

This study examines the anti-incinerator protest in Guangzhou in China. It uses the advocacy coalition framework to analyze the dynamics between Guangzhou Municipal Government and the protesters. The research covers the establishment of a Public Consultative and Supervision Committee for Urban Waste Management in Guangzhou, a public consultative mechanism for waste management, which is a new development in the policy-making process in socialist China. The ultimate plan will be to demonstrate how policy adjustment is not determined solely by the outcome of protests but is also affected by both a decentralized political structure and the socio-cultural foundation. Consequently, the discussion also explores the gradual transformation of public participation in China’s environmental policy.

This article examines civic and political engagement in contemporary China by three recent cases where activists and citizens take full advantage of interactive information technologies and Web 2.0 tools to overcome obstacles and mobilize for public goods. The cases show how activists act strategically to mobilize mass-based support and use various technologies to ensure monetary transaction, resource allocation, public monitoring, and large-scale inter-organizational coordination. In addition, they also demonstrate how ordinary Chinese citizens take part in innovative civic initiatives, act upon their own decisions, and eventually contribute to the change of a failed policy and the solution to a public problem. Different forms of online mass political engagement have introduced new dynamism to public affairs in China, enhanced social autonomy, and thus can have accumulative impact on the asymmetric power relationship between the authoritarian state and society.

Poor air quality has been affecting the Chinese people for many years due to the country’s speedy industrialization and urbanization. However, very few initiatives had been taken by civil society until 2011. The air pollution campaign between October 2011 and March 2012 initiated on a Chinese microblogging website, mobilized millions of citizens and effected policy change. It is often seen as a milestone in the chronology of public participation in China. Using process tracing, participant observations, framing analysis and in-depth interviews, the article analyses this campaign by revealing its major actors and frames mobilizing issue entrepreneurs and environmental publics. Our analysis generates two findings: first, microblogging platforms can greatly expand the networks of Chinese environmental activists by involving public figures and governmental agencies; second, the frame which links air pollution to health and appreciates governmental efforts is critical to the success of civic participation in China’s environmental governance.

Since 2011, a new mobilization strategy has emerged in the Beijing anti-domestic violence (ADV) movement: performance art public interest advocacy, consisting of live performances in public places for public audiences (A CDB special report, 2013). Drawing on the social movement literature, particularly concepts of political opportunity and mobilizing structure, framing strategy, and tactical innovation (Political process and the development of black insurgency, 1930–1970, 2nd edn, 1999; Dynamics of contention, 2001), this article investigates the following questions: What was the rationale behind the introduction of performance art advocacy into the tactical repertoire of Beijing ADV organizations, and what impact has this tactic had on the Beijing ADV movement? Based on content analysis of 14 semi-structured interviews with ADV movement activists and media reports, it will illustrate that this innovative strategy relied heavily on professional Beijing ADV organizations; performance art public interest advocacy broadened and mobilized the Beijing ADV movement to work toward improved legal protections against DV, triggered nationwide responses, and improved citizens’ awareness of DV.

The current study uses the Wukan protest as a case study to assert that the Chinese farmers involved in the incident demonstrated “instrumental civil rights consciousness” in their protest. Civil rights is a means by which farmers strive for their economic rights and not an end in itself. Without real “rights consciousness,” the Wukan protests resemble “institutionalized participation” more than “rightful resistance.” The grassroots elections and self-governance that have resulted from the protest are not so much a harbinger of the emergence of bottom-up civil society as top-down initiatives by the central government. The central government has incorporated opposing powers into the existing institution to adjust state–society relations. By using bottom-up institutionalized participation, the central government has managed to strengthen its supervision over local governments, fight corruption, and stabilize its authority.

This article tries to map the state of civic engagement in social governance at local level in China. Using case studies in Hangzhou, we find that civic engagement in China has not increased responsiveness to citizens’ appeals as predicted in democracy theories. In contrast, civic engagement degrades to a powerful tool for the government to rule the people, which we call the “alienation of civic engagement.” Institutional Isomorphism theory is evoked to explain this phenomenon. Based on the strength of regime stability and responsiveness to citizens’ appeals, civic engagement is categorized into four types: ceremonial civic engagement, substantial civic engagement, absorptive civic engagement, and propagandistic civic engagement. We show the discourses, participation behaviors, and participation outcomes of each type of civic engagement. We also demonstrate how the authoritarian government developed strategies for each type of civic engagement.

This study examines the reform and development of trade associations in Shanghai, China, one of the main economic hubs of the country and marked by a substantial growth in trade associations since the reform and “opening-up” in 1978. We analyze public policies pertaining to trade associations, survey data collected from 212 local trade associations in Shanghai, and interviews of government officials and trade association leaders. The research results show that trade associations are significantly less dependent on the government and they seem to be more oriented to providing services for and representing corporate members. We trace these changes to public policy reforms and growth in private businesses. The transition reflects the dynamic and changing relationship among the government, trade associations, and business in China. We conclude with a model of these dynamics and a discussion of the implications of this study.

Grassroots NPOs have emerged in China in large numbers. Although knowledge about the Chinese nonprofit sector, especially its relationship with the government is accumulating, knowledge regarding the operations of the grassroots NPOs is lacking. This study reviewed the level of development of 78 South China grassroots NPOs involving in rural education. By collecting organizational information on the NPOs’ products, structure and management, governance, human resources, finance and marketing, we developed a framework to assess their capacity. Based on organizations’ performance in the six domains, they were categorized into four different groups: the amateur do-gooders, the start-up charities, the grassroots in transition, and the aspiring young NPOs. We described the key characteristics of each group, and discussed how government policy and organizational leaders’ attitudes influenced organizations’ behavior and development. The assessment tool can be used to guide organizational capacity building in the future.

The Chinese government and human service NPOs are joining the bandwagon of service contracting with enthusiasm. Although this new policy endeavor has attracted much interest, empirical studies are scant. Drawing from interviews with 14 nonprofit organizations and two government officials conducted in 2012 and 2014, along with abundant secondary data, this paper analyzes the impact of China’s service contracting on the following: the social service delivery system, the promotion of NGOs development, and the nature of government-nonprofit relationship. The study found that service contracting has positive impacts on NGOs, such as facilitating their fundraising through sharing the government’s legitimacy. However, the majority of contract funding went to organizations that have a close government connection. We argue that the future of China’s service contracting is determined by the Chinese government’s primary political agenda, which is social control.

In this study, I attempt to integrate the theories of collective action and social movements in an analysis of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in China. Using panel data of AIDS NGOs from 1994 to 2008, I analyse the factors that influence the rise and development of AIDS NGOs, including changes in political opportunity, funding and organisational ecology. The results show that political opportunity, increased funding and organisational ecology have positive effects on the growth of AIDS NGOs. However, the growth trajectories of grassroots NGOs, government-organised NGOs (GONGOs) and international NGOs are found to be affected by different factors. The implications of the findings are also discussed in relation to the future growth of NGOs in China.

The Red Cross Society was introduced to China in the 1900s, when the nation was under the authoritarian reign of Qing dynasty. Famines and rebellions, along with the invasion of foreign military forces, created tremendous humanitarian crises that the corrupted imperial government was incapable to address. The Red Cross model was found to be a pragmatic solution by Chinese philanthropists. Using archived press releases, correspondences, and government statements, the study reconstructs the founding process of the first Chinese Red Cross organization from 1904 to 1912. The analysis reveals that the organization reflected the congruent interest of the imperial court and social elites in preserving the sovereignty and was therefore promoted by key players from both political and civil spheres. The trajectory of Red Cross movement in imperial China supports the synergism perspective of institutional theories. It demonstrates how micro-level factors such as leadership ties and alliances contribute to the interdependence of public and private sectors and facilitate the transformation of traditional charity to modern philanthropy.

The abolition of dual administration of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in China is an inexorable and essential trend toward a genuine civil society. This article seeks to examine the challenges that come with the abolition of the dual administration and to explore how to address them during this transitional period. It considers the state dominated NGO governance in China and its transformation since the 1990s and argues that the decisive role the government plays in NGOs’ development, which is criticized by many scholars, is the outcome of Chinese history, political culture and the needs of NGOs. It gives account of the challenges for NGO governance and development following the abolition of dual administration. Suggestions for new approaches to NGO development are discussed from the perspectives of a value-based partnership between NGOs and the government, the importance of securing public trust, the development of legal systems and finally, the role of NGO network organizations.

Volunteering is playing an increasingly bigger role in social services and schools both in Western settings and in the Hong Kong Chinese context. The demand for volunteers in the sector of social services is continually increasing (Sherr 2008). Little is known about the willingness of secondary school students to participate in future volunteering in Hong Kong. This study attempts to explore the phenomenon of youth volunteering through the theory of planned behavior and Personal and Social Responsibility, and identifies prior experience in community service as a main predictor of the willingness of the students to participate in future volunteering. A total of 1046 students from seven secondary schools in Hong Kong completed a structured questionnaire. Social workers, teachers, and volunteer managers could benefit from this study as they could foster students’ willingness to volunteer after graduation by actively engaging them in community service programs early on in a specific time in their life.

International volunteering has become a complex field in the context of globalization. Within the discourses of international volunteering and development programs as well as in the voices of volunteers, the field can be understood as one of unpaid transnational labor, as social activism and altruism, and as a new “soft power” post-colonial agenda. Many studies contend in this context that international volunteers need better training for intercultural understanding amidst these disparate frameworks, to make meaning out of their service and effectively contribute to communities they serve. This study examines the motivations, experiences, and challenges of US volunteer teachers in China’s Yunnan Province as reported within a survey implemented in 2012. Findings elaborate on the challenge volunteers face reconciling cross-cultural views of education while working in post-colonial global contexts, and suggest that intercultural training is necessary to prepare volunteers for related global work practices in the future.

This paper examines the relief work of a faith-based organization (FBO)—Tzu-Chi (Buddhist Tzu-Chi Compassion Relief Organization) in China as a response to the Malaysia Airlines MH370 incident. The study first shows that crises facilitate a synergetic relationship of co-production for social services among states, corporate enterprises, and FBOs. FBOs deliver services that states and corporate enterprises cannot easily provide. This case-study shows how a FBO derives strength from its transnational networks, moral teachings, and compliant political attitude toward the government. The findings underscore the lack of discussion on FBOs in the Chinese civil society literature. Furthermore, they contribute to the understanding of how FBOs may benefit state welfare provisions following a 2012 policy shift in which religion was encouraged to participate in social provision.

In the context of government regulation and social demand, Chinese foundations have increasingly faced pressure to make their organizations more transparent. Our paper explores the factors associated with voluntary disclosure by foundations in China. Building on the literature on transparency and foundation development in China, we explore how the public (donations) and the government (funding and control) might influence the voluntary transparent behaviors of Chinese foundations. Using the database of the China Foundation Center, we perform regression analysis of N = 2074 Chinese foundations. Controlling for organization size, age, and other characteristics, we find that foundations that depend more on donations, collect more restricted funds, receive fewer government funds, and operate with less government control have a higher probability of offering voluntary disclosure. We then discuss organizational strategies and policy implications for building a healthy and transparent foundation sector in China.

This study compares educational foundations in the Chinese Mainland and Taiwan systematically and empirically using a complete evaluation index-system tool based on corporate governance theory that involves both static governance structures and dynamic governance mechanisms. Understanding the differences between foundations in the Mainland and Taiwan can affect government policy and foundation management methods. A group decision making-analytic hierarchy process (GDM-AHP) alongside an evaluation index value of foundation governance (EIVFG) model established a weight coefficient of the evaluation index system, yielding EIVFG scores. Despite having similar EIVFG scores, foundations in the Mainland and Taiwan have distinct governance structures. The governance mechanisms of foundations are more important than their governance structures, and Taiwanese educational foundations are more mature than Mainland foundations with regard to their underlying governance mechanisms. These findings underscore the importance of policies that employ the principles of fairness and impartiality (rather than requiring legal inspections) and that establish thereby an environment of mutual trust that fosters foundations’ maturity and growth.