New Books in Political Science Taru Salmenkari, "Global Ideas, Local Adaptations: Chinese Activism and the Will to Make Civil Society" (Edward Elgar, 2025)
Oct 24, 2025
Taru Salmenkari, a senior researcher at the University of Helsinki, dives into the complex world of Chinese civil society and NGOs. She discusses how globalization has influenced local activism and highlights the significant role of Confucian values in NGO operations. Salmenkari contrasts examples like Shanghai Pride with grassroots gatherings, showing the rich tapestry of LGBTQ+ activism in China. She also challenges Western definitions of politics, illustrating how local community actions are vital political expressions. Plus, she hints at her work on climate policy and its implications for civil society.
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From History To Fieldwork
- Taru Salmenkari shifted from history to anthropology after Tiananmen and studied democracy discussions in Chinese press.
- She later turned to NGO fieldwork because NGOs were small, observable groups suitable for anthropological methods.
State-Society Boundaries Are Fluid
- Salmenkari found modernization and state-society boundary theories lacked predictive power in Chinese NGO cases.
- Everyday practices showed governments both invite and exclude NGOs, undermining absolute boundary models.
NGOs Came With Global Aid And Local Will
- NGOs in China arrived partly via global democracy and aid regimes that promoted NGOs as intermediaries for donors.
- Yet many Chinese actors actively chose NGO forms from their own goals, not only as external impositions.
