Environment

Whether Donald Trump is re-elected, or Joe Biden becomes the next president, there is little doubt that the United States will continue to pursue hardline policies with China, writes James McGregor, Greater China Chairman at APCO Worldwide The belief that China is an untrustworthy bad actor at home and abroad is the one bipartisan issue in today’s deeply divided Washington. The consensus that China was on a path to become …

IN THIS SERIES, WE LOOK AT CHINA-BASED ENTREPRENEURS, THE BUSINESSES THEY HAVE DEVELOPED AND HOW THEY HAVE COPED WITH RECENT OBSTACLES CREATED BY THE PANDEMIC. THIS WEEK, MEREDITH SIDES OF NAKED NUT BUTTERS EXPLAINS WHY SHE STARTED HER BUSINESS, AND HOW THE HEIGHTENED HEALTH CRAZE IS HELPING IT THRIVE I am originally from the US and moved to Beijing in 2011 on a gap year teaching English before moving back …

Following the announcement this week that China would be carbon neutral by 2060, Charlotte Middlehurst arranged a round table of environmental experts to discuss whether they think the plan is realistic China surprised the world this week with the announcement that it would decarbonise its economy by 2060. In his address to the United Nations General Assembly, president Xi Jinping pledged to deliver carbon neutrality within the next 40 years. …

US car maker Tesla’s arrival in Shanghai, coupled with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, has prompted a race among electric vehicle makers in both China and America. But who will win, and will this ‘new cold war’ shape the future of environmentally-friendly travel, writes Charlotte Middlehurst For a while it seemed like China’s grip on the 21st-century’s electric vehicle market was unshakeable. For decades Beijing has led the world …

BP and China’s Didi Chuxing (DiDi) announce they are forming a new joint venture to build electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure in China, the world’s largest market for electric vehicles. The new joint venture plans to develop a network of EV charging hubs across the country. The ride-hailing and car-sharing platform Didi has approximately 550 million users, and around 600,000 EVs are running on it in China. The joint venture …

Heatherwick Studio’s partner Lisa Finlay discusses the firm’s current ambitious landscaping project, 1,000 Trees, their past designing the British Pavilion at the Shanghai Expo, and future architectural trends in China, with Clizia Sala   The renders of the 1000 Trees Project under construction along the Suzhou River in Shanghai look stunning and extremely ambitious. Can you describe the project? The project has the shape of two mountains topped by living …

As China brings into effect further recycling rules, could the country become a new model for urban recycling, asks Charlotte Middlehurst Before new recycling rules came into effect last summer, taking out the trash used to be simple for Ni Yuan, a resident of a leafy middle-class Shanghai neighbourhood. She would sort household waste into only two categories, wet and dry, and deposit it at her convenience. On July 1, …

China’s economic boom has come with significant environmental costs but it is China’s water scarcity that might be the biggest threat to the country, writes Tom Pattinson When we think of China’s environmental challenges, we often think of smog cloaked cities and poor soil quality. However, according to Charles Parton, former diplomat, fellow at the Royal United Services Institute think tank and trustee of the environmental NGO China Dialogue, it …

By Miranda Carr head of equity research at Haitong International Green finance has been a major investment trend in China since 2016, which saw the first major wave of green bonds issued. These amounted to US$ 36.2 billion, or 39 percent of the global total. While some of these initial bonds were accused of simply using ‘greenwash’ to get low-cost funding, the market is now maturing into being much more …

Zhi Shengke is director of strategy and development and energy firm Wood Plc. Here he talks about China’s energy market and the role CBBC can play in helping shape it   Can you tell us about your upbringing, where you were born, raised and educated? I was born in Shenyang in north China and came to Manchester in 2003. I hold an engineering degree from China, a PhD in mechanical …