Q2: We understand the number of China's super-rich is increasing rapidly. Will this emerging class help develop the nation's charity?

It depends on how you look at it. Yes, a growing wealthy class means more people can have money to donate. According to the latest rich list, China currently has 128 billionaires, second only to the US. But we must also understand that the country's wealthy emerged almost entirely in the past thirty years, so philanthropic practices that are entrenched in Europe and America are new here, and they are open to change.

In fact, what we have now is a first generation of wealth, so it's natural that these philanthropists-to-be are thinking about what they are going to do with their money. The Blue Book uses real-estate tycoons as an example. Five out of the top ten personal donors are from the real-estate industry. And real-estate companies count for 16-percent of corporate charity donation. There are basically two reasons they're so active in charity.

First, the real-estate industry is highly profitable, producing more super-rich than others. Second, since housing prices are so high in China, these entrepreneurs feel the need to build up trust and to ease consumer dissatisfaction. So for them, charity is a way that they can pay back part of what they owe society.

Q3: Yes, paying back to society. How does the public react to charity?

Well, it's rather mixed. Of course, the public welcomes donations. People would assume if you're rich, you should donate. And they tend to use money to determine the donor's generosity. So we see individuals and companies competing for the top position in a number of disaster-relief charity efforts. But unlike what we usually expect, some donors could end up amongst a wave of criticism. For example, Chen Guangbiao, one of the best known philanthropist in China, promised to donate all his wealth after he dies. But some people think the decision is unreasonable when they find he's not planning to give the money to his own siblings, who make very little money. Others tend to think he's just putting on a show for publicity. But Chen says if this is indeed a show, he hopes more people can join this show of charity.

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