10 Things You Need to Know About China, Part 2

China is an increasingly powerful player on the world stage and a critical nation for Americans to understand.

Part 1 of “10 Things You Need to Know About China” (Upfront, Sept. 18, 2023) covered such questions as whether China should be considered a superpower, whether it’s still a Communist country, and the extent to which its people have freedom.

In Part 2, we look at five more key issues: the environment, population, education, human rights, and the prospects for U.S.-Chinese cooperation in the future.

China is an increasingly powerful player on the world stage and a critical nation for Americans to understand.

Part 1 of “10 Things You Need to Know About China” (Upfront, Sept. 18, 2023) covered such questions as whether China should be considered a superpower, whether it’s still a Communist country, and the extent to which its people have freedom.

In Part 2, we look at five more key issues: the environment, population, education, human rights, and the prospects for U.S.-Chinese cooperation in the future.

China is the world’s dominant maker and user of solar panels and wind turbines. It produces the most energy from hydroelectric dams. Its national tree planting campaign is the largest such effort anywhere. The country’s two biggest cities, Beijing and Shanghai, have taken steps to improve their air pollution problem and have built lots of new, walkable green spaces.

But China also burns more coal than the rest of the world combined and has accelerated coal mining and the construction of coal-fired power plants. Coal is the most polluting of fossil fuels because it emits toxins like mercury, lead, and sulfur dioxide in addition to carbon. In part because of its continued reliance on coal, China emits nearly a third of all human-made greenhouse gases—more than the U.S., Europe, and Japan combined.

China is the world’s dominant maker and user of solar panels and wind turbines. It produces the most energy from hydroelectric dams. Its national tree planting campaign is the largest such effort anywhere. The country’s two biggest cities, Beijing and Shanghai, have taken steps to improve their air pollution problem. The cities have built lots of new, walkable green spaces.

But China also burns more coal than the rest of the world combined. It has also accelerated coal mining and the construction of coal-fired power plants. Coal is the most polluting of fossil fuels. Coal emits toxins like mercury, lead, and sulfur dioxide in addition to carbon. In part because
of its continued reliance on coal, China emits nearly a third of all human-made greenhouse gases. That is more than the U.S., Europe, and Japan combined.

In 2014, China launched a “war against pollution,” and that’s made a big difference, experts say. But despite this progress, China remains among the top 10 most-polluted countries in the world in terms of air quality, according to University of Chicago rankings.

In short, says Scott Kennedy of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., China’s environmental record is “a basket of contradictions.”

And without its cooperation, the world won’t be able to address climate change.

“What China does environmentally,” says Minxin Pei, a professor at Claremont McKenna College in California, “determines the world’s future.”

In 2014, China launched a “war against pollution.” That’s made a big difference, experts say. But despite this progress, China remains among the top 10 most-polluted countries in the world in terms of air quality, according to University of Chicago rankings.

In short, says Scott Kennedy of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., China’s environmental record is “a basket of contradictions.”

And without its cooperation, the world won’t be able to address climate change.

“What China does environmentally,” says Minxin Pei, a professor at Claremont McKenna College in California, “determines the world’s future.”

In the late 1970s, China faced a predicament: The population was growing so quickly that it was strangling the country. To pull China out of poverty, its leaders decided they had to control population growth. Their solution was an extremely restrictive policy, adopted in 1980, limiting families to one child each.

Thanks to the one-child policy, China’s population has leveled off at 1.4 billion, and India has surpassed it as the world’s most populous country. Reducing the number of births has enabled China to feed its people, improve access to education and health care, and pull millions into the middle class.

n the late 1970s, China faced a predicament. The population was growing so quickly that it was strangling the country. To pull China out of poverty, its leaders decided they had to control population growth. Their solution was an extremely restrictive policy, adopted in 1980, limiting families to one child each.

Thanks to the one-child policy, China’s population has leveled off at 1.4 billion. India has now surpassed it as the world’s most populous country. Reducing the number of births has enabled China to feed its people.
It has also resulted in better access to education and health care. It pulled millions into the middle class.

^{Source: BBC}

^{Source: BBC}

But the policy also has created some major demographic problems, including a huge gender imbalance. Because boys are traditionally favored over girls, many couples aborted female fetuses so they could try again for a boy. After decades of this, there are almost 35 million “extra” men who will be unable to find wives.

And now the population has begun to decline. By 2100, China’s population is expected to drop below 800 million—about half what it is now.

“China now confronts a population challenge, not by growth, but by the population slowly diminishing,” says Orville Schell of the Asia Society, a think tank based in New York. “It means there are fewer young people to work to support a vast number of older people.”

China ended the one-child policy in 2015, and officials encourage families to have more children. But the birth rate continues to fall.

“The fundamental problem is not that people cannot have children,” says Lu Yi, a 26-year-old nurse in Sichuan, “but that they cannot afford it.”

But the policy also has created some major demographic problems. Now there is a huge gender imbalance. Because boys are traditionally favored over girls, many couples aborted female fetuses so they could try again for a boy. After decades of this, there are almost 35 million “extra” men who will be unable to find wives.

And now the population has begun to decline. By 2100, China’s population is expected to drop below 800 million. This is about half what it is now.

“China now confronts a population challenge, not by growth, but by the population slowly diminishing,” says Orville Schell of the Asia Society, a think tank based in New York. “It means there are fewer young people to work to support a vast number of older people.”

China ended the one-child policy in 2015. Officials now encourage families to have more children. But the birth rate continues to fall.

“The fundamental problem is not that people cannot have children,” says Lu Yi, a 26-year-old nurse in Sichuan, “but that they cannot afford it.”

Chinese students face a tremendous amount of pressure. The ultimate symbol of China’s academic pressure cooker is the gaokao, the national college-entrance exam. A student’s score on this single nine-hour test is the only thing that matters for admission to Chinese universities. And for students from poor families, college is a ticket to the middle class—and out of a life working in fields or factories. So students spend years cramming for the test.

This dedication to education is nothing new.

“Culturally, an emphasis on education is baked into China,” says Schell. “Scholars are at the top of the social food chain. Historically, wealth wasn’t what was respected; it was education that was most important.”

Chinese students face a tremendous amount of pressure. The ultimate symbol of China’s academic pressure cooker is the gaokao, the national college-entrance exam. A student’s score on this single nine-hour test is the only thing that matters for admission to Chinese universities. And for students from poor families, college is a ticket to the middle class—and out of a life working in fields or factories. So students spend years cramming for the test.

This dedication to education is nothing new.

“Culturally, an emphasis on education is baked into China,” says Schell. “Scholars are at the top of the social food chain. Historically, wealth wasn’t what was respected; it was education that was most important.”

China has invested heavily in education over the past few decades, spending about $550 billion in 2022 alone. It has the largest state-run education system in the world, with 291 million students and 18 million teachers in more than 529,000 schools. Chinese colleges graduated 11.6 million students in June—820,000 more than the year before.

All of those new graduates are entering the Chinese labor market at a time when more than 20 percent of young people between the ages of 16 and 24 are unable to find jobs. (This high youth unemployment rate is one of several signs that China’s post-pandemic economic recovery seems to be sputtering.)

China has invested heavily in education over the past few decades, spending about $550 billion in 2022 alone. It has the largest state-run education system in the world. There are 291 million students and 18 million teachers in more than 529,000 schools. Chinese colleges graduated 11.6 million students in June. That is 820,000 more than the year before.

All of those new graduates are entering the Chinese labor market at a time when more than 20 percent of young people between the ages of 16 and 24 are unable to find jobs. (This high youth unemployment rate is one of several signs that China’s post-pandemic economic recovery seems to be sputtering.)

^{Source: The New York Times}

^{Source: The New York Times}

Another issue plaguing China’s education system is inequity. There is a huge gap between the quality of schools in urban and rural areas.

“Urbanites have quite a bit more educational opportunity, and urban schools are much better funded,” Kennedy says. “But rural Chinese are still almost half the population.”

Another issue plaguing China’s education system is inequity. There is a huge gap between the quality of schools in urban and rural areas.

“Urbanites have quite a bit more educational opportunity, and urban schools are much better funded,” Kennedy says. “But rural Chinese are still almost half the population.”

A recent report by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights concludes that China’s treatment of its Muslim Uighur minority in Xinjiang Province is so egregious that it may qualify as “crimes against humanity.”

China has wrongfully detained as many as 1 million people in Xinjiang in various camps, according to Human Rights Watch. Beyond the detentions, the government has set up a vast surveillance system that tracks residents’ every move and subjected many Uighurs to forced labor, forced sterilizations, and religious restrictions.

“It should shock the conscience of humanity that massive numbers of people have been subjected to brainwashing, torture, and other degrading treatment in internment camps, while millions more live in fear amid a vast surveillance apparatus,” says Agnès Callamard of Amnesty International,
a human rights group.

A recent report by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights concludes that China’s treatment of its Muslim Uighur minority in Xinjiang Province is so egregious that it may qualify as “crimes against humanity.”

China has wrongfully detained as many as 1 million people in Xinjiang in various camps, according to Human Rights Watch. Beyond the detentions, the government has set up a vast surveillance system that tracks residents’ every move. It also subjected many Uighurs to forced labor, forced sterilizations, and religious restrictions.

“It should shock the conscience of humanity that massive numbers of people have been subjected to brainwashing, torture, and other degrading treatment in internment camps, while millions more live in fear amid a vast surveillance apparatus,” says Agnès Callamard of Amnesty International, a human rights group.

The Chinese government denies accusations of human rights abuses in Xinjiang and says the camps are meant to teach Mandarin (since most Uighurs are Turkic-speaking) and to prevent terrorism.

While Xinjiang is the most glaring human rights problem, it’s not the only one experts point to.

The government has become increasingly repressive in many areas. Internet censors are cracking down more and more on anything that might be perceived as criticism. In Hong Kong, once a bastion of free expression, a new law has virtually wiped out freedom of the press and people’s ability to protest.

And across the country last year, the government’s severe Covid lockdowns meant that entire cities were effectively held prisoners in their homes, sometimes unable to access food or medical help.

“We continue to see backsliding in human rights conditions,” says U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

The Chinese government denies accusations of human rights abuses in Xinjiang. It says the camps are meant to teach Mandarin (since most Uighurs are Turkic-speaking) and to prevent terrorism.

While Xinjiang is the most glaring human rights problem, it’s not the only one experts point to.

The government has become increasingly repressive in many areas. Internet censors are cracking down more and more on anything that might be perceived as criticism. In Hong Kong, a new law has virtually wiped out freedom of the press and people’s ability to protest.

Across the country last year, the government’s severe Covid lockdowns meant that entire cities were effectively held prisoners in their homes. People were sometimes unable to access food or medical help.

“We continue to see backsliding in human rights conditions,” says U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

The U.S. and China are tightly bound together: Annual trade between the two nations adds up to more than $690 billion. Some 290,000 Chinese students study in the U.S. Americans rely on iPhones and other gadgets assembled mostly in China. And no country buys more American agricultural products than China.

Despite this, the two nations often clash politically. As the U.S. has tried to isolate Russia after its invasion of Ukraine, China has welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing and continued buying Russian oil. In February, the U.S. shot down a Chinese surveillance balloon that was floating across the continental U.S. And the two countries are increasingly wary of each other.

“There’s a lack of good faith on both sides,” says Ian Johnson of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. “Each side believes the other is trying to pull a fast one.”

Still, there are areas, such as climate change, in which it’s clearly in both countries’ interests to work together, and American officials are trying to use those common interests to start talks.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says the U.S.-China relationship isn’t a zero-sum game “where one must fall for the other to rise.”

“We believe,” she says, “that the world is big enough for both of us.”

The U.S. and China are tightly bound together: Annual trade between the two nations adds up to more than $690 billion. Some 290,000 Chinese students study in the U.S. Americans rely on iPhones and other gadgets assembled mostly in China. And no country buys more American agricultural products than China.

Despite this, the two nations often clash politically. As the U.S. has tried to isolate Russia after its invasion of Ukraine, China has welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing. China has continued buying Russian oil. In February, the U.S. shot down a Chinese surveillance balloon that was floating across the continental U.S. The two countries are increasingly wary of each other.

“There’s a lack of good faith on both sides,” says Ian Johnson of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. “Each side believes the other is trying to pull a fast one.”

Still, there are areas, such as climate change, in which it’s clearly in both countries’ interests to work together. American officials are trying to use those common interests to start talks.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says the U.S.-China relationship isn’t a zero-sum game “where one must fall for the other to rise.”

“We believe,” she says, “that the world is big enough for both of us.”

With reporting by Claire Fu, Nicole Hong, Zixu Wang, and Ana Swanson of The New York Times.

With reporting by Claire Fu, Nicole Hong, Zixu Wang, and Ana Swanson of The New York Times.