New challenges for new leaders

How can China realize "the Chinese dream" which President Xi Jinping called "the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation?" With complete transition of China's new leadership, headed by Xi and Premier Li Keqiang, it is appropriate to describe this grand vision and to set forth the challenges that must be met.

The Chinese dream is a moderately well-off (xiaokang) society, such that all citizens, rural and urban, enjoy high standards of living in all aspects of life and society. This includes doubling 2010's GDP per capita by about 2020 (approaching $10,000 per person), completing urbanization by about 2030 (roughly 1 billion people, three quarters of China's population), achieving modernization (China regaining its position as a world leader in science and technology as well as in economics and business), and appreciating Chinese civilization and culture (China participating in all arenas of human endeavor).

In making this vision a reality, China's new leaders face many challenges. I here list 35 such challenges (there are more), catalogued under five categories, so that global readers can grasp their scope and complexity and can assess their difficulties and progress.