Looking Toward Nuclear Expansion, China Works with U.S. on Safety*

March 18, 2015, 8:19 am

≫ Next: Momentum For Paris Agreement Builds from U.S.-China Climate Change Pledges

≪ Previous: Reports from China Suggest Low-Carbon Shift in 2014

Jane Nakano

For many years, Chinese regulators have learned about nuclear safety from working with the United States, but nuclear safety cooperation is becoming increasingly a two-way street. Nuclear energy could play a significant role in meeting China’s new climate goals stated in its November 11th, 2014 joint announcement with the U.S. This includes targets to peak its carbon dioxide emissions around 2030—with the intention to do so sooner—and to raise the non-fossil fuel share of energy use to around 20 percent by that date. The U.S. and China are working together to ensure attention to safety considerations in China’s projected expansion of nuclear power.

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Momentum For Paris Agreement Builds from U.S.-China Climate Change Pledges

March 31, 2015, 10:18 am

≫ Next: US-China climate cooperation could be model for more bilateral deals

≪ Previous: Looking Toward Nuclear Expansion, China Works with U.S. on Safety*

Paul Joffe and Geoffrey Henderson

With the U.S. release of its proposal for the international climate negotiations and proposals expected soon from other countries, the negotiations are intensifying. A key factor in this dynamic is China’s November commitment to peak its emissions and scale up non-fossil energy, which has shifted the global debate on climate action. China is already taking action on multiple fronts to meet its new goals.

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US-China climate cooperation could be model for more bilateral deals

April 13, 2015, 12:22 pm

≫ Next: The G-2, The Paris Climate Deal, and the Need for Additional Cycles of Action

≪ Previous: Momentum For Paris Agreement Builds from U.S.-China Climate Change Pledges

Sarah Forbes and Joanna Lewis

This op-ed originally appeared on The Hill’s Congress Blog:

When U.S. President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping jointly announced major targets to combat climate change last November, they did more than chart an ambitious course for their two countries. The leaders of the world’s two biggest economies – which are also the planet’s two biggest energy consumers and greenhouse gas emitters – showed a way forward for U.S. bilateral cooperation with other countries on energy and climate.

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The G-2, The Paris Climate Deal, and the Need for Additional Cycles of Action

May 6, 2015, 9:00 pm

≫ Next: Strategic and Economic Dialogue announces climate progress, ChinaFAQs and EESI hold briefing

≪ Previous: US-China climate cooperation could be model for more bilateral deals

Angel Hsu and Andrew Moffat

Given last November’s historic joint climate announcement, much anticipation has been focused on the contributions of the United States and China towards December’s Paris climate deal. At the end of March, the United States announced its intended nationally-determined contribution (INDC), and China is expected to release the details of its pledge in the next few months. Already, there is concern that the country submissions are behind and that they will not be sufficient to narrow the emissions gap sufficiently after 2020 to contain global temperature rise. That countries might submit less ambitious commitments is a serious concern, as the Climate Action Tracker has said about Japan’s prospective commitments, for example. Either way, the reductions needed to avoid dangerous climate change are so substantial that additional “cycles of action” are needed both at the upcoming Paris Summit and beyond.

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Strategic and Economic Dialogue announces climate progress, ChinaFAQs and EESI hold briefing

June 26, 2015, 12:08 pm

≫ Next: China Announces Next Steps in Shift to Low-Carbon Path

≪ Previous: The G-2, The Paris Climate Deal, and the Need for Additional Cycles of Action

Geoffrey Henderson

For the full briefing notice including speakers, topics, and the video recording, click here

At this week’s U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue in Washington, D.C., the two countries built on their robust cooperation on climate change and clean energy. The U.S. and China pledged to work together to address obstacles to an “ambitious global climate agreement” at this December’s Conference of the Parties in Paris. They also agreed to continue to discuss each country’s post-2020 plans, and announced a new dialogue on domestic policy. The countries highlighted their progress on the initiatives they jointly announced in November, such as phasing down hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and expanding the Clean Energy Research Center (CERC).

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China Announces Next Steps in Shift to Low-Carbon Path

July 2, 2015, 2:50 pm

≫ Next: Stronger Commitments from China and US Are Breakthrough for International Climate Action

≪ Previous: Strategic and Economic Dialogue announces climate progress, ChinaFAQs and EESI hold briefing

Paul Joffe and Geoffrey Henderson

As China unveiled its contribution (“INDC”) to the international climate negotiations, affirming the pledges it made in its joint announcement with the U.S. in November, a spokesman for Christian Aid, Mohamed Adow, said, “The pledge marks a significant shift away from a fossil fuel-intensive development path to one focused on renewables on a scale the world has never yet seen.” Jennifer Morgan of the World Resources Institute called it “a serious and credible” effort, and said “China’s commitment was made possible by its ambitious clean energy policies and investments enacted over the past decade.”

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Stronger Commitments from China and US Are Breakthrough for International Climate Action

July 22, 2015, 11:25 am

≫ Next: China Is Raising Its Climate Ambition, Experts Say

≪ Previous: China Announces Next Steps in Shift to Low-Carbon Path

Paul Joffe and Geoffrey Henderson

With the current climate negotiations reaching a conclusion in Paris this coming December, we are at a pivotal moment in the global effort to address climate change and shift to a low-carbon development path. The United States and China, which together make up 38 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions (as of 2012), are playing an important role.

Yet there has been confusion about China’s climate action commitments, as well as the fact that both China and the U.S. are taking significant action. Here’s a look at China’s progress to date, and what implications it has for international climate action.

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China Is Raising Its Climate Ambition, Experts Say

August 11, 2015, 7:29 am

≫ Next: Steel production, air pollution, and electricity prices

≪ Previous: Stronger Commitments from China and US Are Breakthrough for International Climate Action

Geoffrey Henderson

This post originally appeared on WRI’s Insights blog:

China is increasing its ambition in addressing climate change, and it has a strong national interest in sustaining its actions. That’s according to a recent panel of experts convened by WRI’s ChinaFAQs project and the Environmental and Energy Study Institute.

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Steel production, air pollution, and electricity prices

September 10, 2015, 10:51 am

≫ Next: To Achieve its New Climate Goals, China Must Look to its Buildings

≪ Previous: China Is Raising Its Climate Ambition, Experts Say

Geoffrey Henderson

China’s top steel-producing city—Tangshan, Hebei province—is undergoing campaigns to reduce smog through stringent pollution standards and to tackle overcapacity, which entail reduced production, plant shutdowns, and plant renovation. The smog campaigns are part of a larger program to address air pollution and limit coal consumption, while the effort to reduce overcapacity comes as China is working to restructure its economy by reducing the share of energy-intensive industry and increasing the share of services.

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To Achieve its New Climate Goals, China Must Look to its Buildings

September 10, 2015, 11:48 am

≫ Next: Chinese and U.S. Cities, States and Provinces Announce Climate Targets and Extensive Cooperation

≪ Previous: Steel production, air pollution, and electricity prices

Maoqi Sun and Jennifer Layke

This post is co-written with Clay Nesler, the vice president for global energy and sustainability at Johnson Controls. This post is adapted from a similar post on WRI’s Insights blog.

China made international news recently when it announced a new pledge to peak its emissions by 2030, in addition to other climate commitments. The country laid out 15 specific actions as part of its “intended nationally determined contribution” (INDC). One in particular–curbing emissions from the buildings sector–offers significant potential for helping China achieve its new climate goals.

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Chinese and U.S. Cities, States and Provinces Announce Climate Targets and Extensive Cooperation

September 15, 2015, 2:05 pm

≫ Next: U.S.-China Presidential Summit Offers Opportunity on Climate Change

≪ Previous: To Achieve its New Climate Goals, China Must Look to its Buildings

Geoffrey Henderson

At this week’s U.S.-China Climate Leaders Summit in Los Angeles, eleven cities and provinces from across China committed to reach a peak in their carbon dioxide emissions before the national goal to peak around 2030. The cities and provinces—along with eighteen U.S. counterparts, which announced emissions reduction targets—also pledged to track and report their emissions, establish climate action plans, and enhance U.S.-China cooperation at the subnational level.

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U.S.-China Presidential Summit Offers Opportunity on Climate Change

September 16, 2015, 5:58 am

≫ Next: US-China Cooperation is Good News for the Climate

≪ Previous: Chinese and U.S. Cities, States and Provinces Announce Climate Targets and Extensive Cooperation

Valerie Karplus

Climate change looms large among the many issues on the table at the upcoming meeting of Presidents Xi and Obama in the U.S. next week. Any new developments at that meeting will build on announced domestic efforts to address the issue, starting with a joint declaration in Beijing last November of what would become the main elements of each country’s Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (or INDC). In its INDC, China has pledged to reverse the increase in its CO2 emissions to peak by 2030 or sooner.

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US-China Cooperation is Good News for the Climate

September 25, 2015, 12:33 pm

≫ Next: On the Path to Paris, Obama and Xi Invite Stronger Global Climate Ambition

≪ Previous: U.S.-China Presidential Summit Offers Opportunity on Climate Change

Deborah Seligsohn

The US-China Joint Announcement on Climate Change is a landmark for the bilateral relationship in terms of its specificity and ambition. This is especially true given that many Chinese wonder at the direction of US policy given that none of the Republican candidates in next year’s election support strong climate policy.

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On the Path to Paris, Obama and Xi Invite Stronger Global Climate Ambition

September 28, 2015, 1:25 pm

≫ Next: US-China Climate Change Announcement Signals New Phase for Global Action

≪ Previous: US-China Cooperation is Good News for the Climate

Valerie Karplus

The latest Obama-Xi announcement sends a strong message: the two nations are acting fast to enable a global low carbon transition. Friday’s joint announcement is an unprecedented step by the world’s #1 and #2 emitters to commit, at the highest levels, to a strong set of domestic policies and to reinforce global mechanisms that will help to engage peers ahead of the upcoming landmark climate change negotiations in Paris.

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US-China Climate Change Announcement Signals New Phase for Global Action

October 6, 2015, 9:26 am

≫ Next: China, the U.S., and France: Paris and the Road Ahead

≪ Previous: On the Path to Paris, Obama and Xi Invite Stronger Global Climate Ambition

Geoffrey Henderson, Kristin Meek, David Waskow, Athena Ballesteros and Paul Joffe

This post originally appeared on WRI’s Insights blog:

Nearly a year ago, the United States and China laid out their national climate action plans for the coming years. These were the first in what is now a substantial list of national climate action plans—plans that will form the basis of a new international climate agreement to be finalized in Paris later this year. Now, the world’s two biggest emitters have taken the next step by cementing their plans, jointly announcing key actions they’ll take to achieve their national goals, and clarifying their views on the upcoming Paris agreement.

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China, the U.S., and France: Paris and the Road Ahead

November 30, 2015, 7:20 am

≫ Next: China in Paris: New Responsibility, New Optimism

≪ Previous: US-China Climate Change Announcement Signals New Phase for Global Action

Paul Joffe and Geoffrey Henderson

While the 21st Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (for short, COP21) officially begins on Monday, November 30th in Paris, the groundwork for a successful outcome and future effort has been laid over the past few years. Along with the United States, France and other major economies, China has played an integral role in building momentum toward a global climate agreement. In the past, some have hesitated because one or another country was said not to be taking action, but that is no longer an issue, and Paris points the way forward to the stronger action needed by all countries.

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China in Paris: New Responsibility, New Optimism

December 7, 2015, 6:52 am

≫ Next: Climate Change in Paris; Air-Pocalypse in Beijing. What’s the connection?

≪ Previous: China, the U.S., and France: Paris and the Road Ahead

Deborah Seligsohn

From the Paris Climate Negotiations

There is an infectious enthusiasm among the Chinese delegation, both actual negotiators and the many academics the Chinese government brings along to provide advice and deliver a continuous set of information sessions at its pavilion, that contrasts greatly with the nervous defensiveness of earlier years. The Chinese Communist Party declared in October that China should play a greater role in global governance, specifically citing the climate talks as an important venue, and the Chinese in Paris appear to be embracing that role.

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Climate Change in Paris; Air-Pocalypse in Beijing. What’s the connection?

December 11, 2015, 2:42 pm

≫ Next: In Paris, China Announces Promising Elements of National Emissions Trading System

≪ Previous: China in Paris: New Responsibility, New Optimism

Deborah Seligsohn

From the Paris Climate Negotiations

By now everyone who follows environmental news or looks at the front page of major newspapers knows that in the last two weeks Beijing has suffered through not one but two of these major multi-day air pollution events that have come to be known as air-pocalypses. Having such a spate of bad air in its capital city just as China was advocating for its green agenda in Paris was undoubtedly somewhat embarrassing to Chinese negotiators, but what does it mean beyond that? We’ve seen commentary suggesting everything from “how can we believe Chinese commitments,” to “this will increase Chinese efforts and make the issue more visible to Chinese.” But what really do conventional air pollution and greenhouse gave emissions have to do with one another? Let’s dig in a bit.

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In Paris, China Announces Promising Elements of National Emissions Trading System

December 11, 2015, 3:44 pm

≫ Next: Where Wai (outer) meets Nei (inner): How China’s international and domestic policy positions reinforce each other

≪ Previous: Climate Change in Paris; Air-Pocalypse in Beijing. What’s the connection?

Ranping Song

From the Paris Climate Negotiations

Negotiators from around the world have gathered in Paris to finalize a global climate agreement, which will be supported by the commitments of over 180 countries to domestic climate action included in their Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs). In September, China’s President Xi Jinping announced that China will launch a national emissions trading scheme (ETS) in 2017 as one of the key policy instruments that China will use to achieve its own commitment to peak carbon emissions around 2030 or earlier. While questions remain about how China will implement a complex market-based mechanism, recent announcements by Chinese officials shed light on promising plans for the policy’s design and implementation.

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Where Wai (outer) meets Nei (inner): How China’s international and domestic policy positions reinforce each other

December 11, 2015, 8:41 am

≫ Next: Data Transparency: New Dynamic at COP-21 in Paris

≪ Previous: In Paris, China Announces Promising Elements of National Emissions Trading System

Michael Davidson and Valerie Karplus

From the Paris Climate Negotiations

National goal-setting—an expected key outcome from the Paris climate talks currently underway—is a common fixture of policy-making in China and many other countries. Collectively, the current pledges still show significant gaps toward meeting long-term climate goals. Nevertheless, they represent an important increase in scope and ambition over those pledged in advance of the 2009 Copenhagen summit, and those established earlier under the Kyoto Protocol. There is great importance in—and a growing consensus around—enhancing these previous rounds of commitments through a pledge-and-review institution, which if designed properly can also mobilize domestic constituencies even across a wide range of political systems. As China and other countries begin to consider their next steps, we explain here the interaction of international and domestic policy-making in setting climate action targets in China.

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From the Paris Climate Negotiations

From the Paris Climate Negotiations

From the Paris Climate Negotiations

From the Paris Climate Negotiations

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