Ahead of the COP26 Conference, China released a white paper to introduce the country’s progress and achievements in responding to climate change in recent years.
On 27 Oct. 2021, the State Council Information Office released the white paper on “Responding to Climate Change: China’s Policies and Actions” (hereinafter “the white paper”, 中國應對氣候變化的政策與行動).
The white paper covers China’s policies, actions, achievements, and contributions in tackling climate change, as well as initiatives to build a global climate governance system. The white paper was published in eight languages, including Chinese, English, French, Russian, German, Spanish, Arabic, and Japanese.
According to the white paper, China has taken a series of measures to tackle climate change. By 2020, China’s carbon intensity (tons of CO2 emissions per CNY 10,000 of GDP) was 48.4 percent less than that in 2005, which means that China had more than fulfilled its commitment to the international community—to achieve a 40-45 percent reduction. In addition, China has improved its market mechanism and innovatively used the national carbon emissions trading market to control and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
This is also the second time since 2011 that China has released a white paper on its response to climate change at the national level.
Cover Photo by Zixi Zhou on Unsplash
Contributors: CJO Staff Contributors Team
