China is aiming to overtake the United States and become a global leader in science and technology, which it sees as the key to its rising economic and political effort, from basic research to commercialization.  In July 2012, China's leaders held a major national conference on science, technology and innovation issues.  The timing of the conference was unusual insofar as it came immediately before the 18th Party Congress--suggesting the existence of a new set of pressing imperatives to further reform the Chinese S&T system.  Dr. Denis Simon will discuss the drivers behind the leadership's decision to hold this conference and the new initiatives that were adopted to enhance the performance of the national innovation system.  In particular, he will analyze the challenges facing Chinese leaders as they attempt to fix the problems that are plaguing the PRC R&D system at the national, local and enterprise levels.