Making low-carbon cities a reality for China

Climate Change is a priority agenda for the Chinese government and in 2010, a pilot programme was launched for provinces and cities towards low-carbon, sustainable development. Peng Yan, East Asia Regional Director at C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, looks at the opportunities for Chinese cities to advance the green agenda

The “Low Carbon Pilot Cities” programme launched in 2010 is of great significance for Chinese cities in terms of climate action planning because it is the first attempt by the national government to expand the sectoral climate policies to the city level.

The Chinese government selected five provinces and eight cities as the first pilot group to explore and experi...