The 18th Chinese Communist Party Congress that starts on 8 November is a landmark event, says the Lowy Institute's East Asia Program Director Linda Jakobson in a short video primer on the meeting.
Not only will a new general secretary be chosen but two thirds of the country's top decision makers will also be replaced. Of the nine-man standing committee only two will continue to serve.
The new generation of Chinese leaders are younger and better educated than their predecessors and because of the complex network of patronage within the government the effects of the changes at the top will be felt in every corner of the country.
And here's Linda's take on what we know about China's new leaders:
