Change to urban identity

For the first time in history, there will be more urban dwellers than rural residents in China, according to the 2012 Blue Book on China's Society released by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Scholars involved in its compilation hail this as a milestone moment for the country, and for a historically agricultural civilization like ours, crossing this threshold will be.

The transition from a rural to an urban society will mean not only a structural change in the nation's demographics, but also changes in people's ways of life, consumption behavior and personal values that will have profound effects on the economy and society as a whole.