Cheng Li

About Cheng Li

Cheng LI is Director of Research and Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution’s John L. Thornton China Center. He is the author/editor of numerous books including Rediscovering China: Dynamics and Dilemmas of Reform (1997), China’s Leaders: The New Generation (2001), Bridging Minds Across the Pacific: The Sino-U.S. Educational Exchange 1978-2003 (2005), China’s Changing Political Landscape: Prospects for Democracy (2008), China’s Emerging Middle Class: Beyond Economic Transformation (2010), and The Road to Zhongnanhai: High-Level Leadership Groups on the Eve of the 18th Party Congress (2012 in Chinese). He is the principal editor of the Thornton Center Chinese Thinkers Series published by the Brookings Institution Press and a columnist for the Stanford University Journal, China Leadership Monitor.

Dr. Li has advised a wide range of government, business and non-profit organizations on working in China. Dr. Li currently serves as a director of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, a member of the Academic Advisory Team of the Congressional U.S.-China Working Group, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and a member of the Committee of 100. He is a regular participant and speaker of the famous Bilderberg Conference. Dr. Li has frequently been called upon to share his unique perspective and insights as an expert on China. He recently appeared on CNN, C-SPAN, BBC, ABC World News with Diane Sawyer, NPR News Hour with Jim Lehrer, and the PBS Charlie Rose Show. Born and raised in Shanghai, China, he came to the United States in 1985 and later received an M.A. in Asian Studies from the University of California, Berkeley in 1987, and a Ph.D. in Political Science from Princeton University in 1992.