Library & Data

Key Points:

• Historically, China’s leaders have responded to the rising demand for energy with efforts to increase supply.
• In recent years, however, these leaders have recognized that China cannot just grow its supply of energy, but must also find ways to curb demand.
• While China is taking significant steps to curb demand, the nations’ leadership remains wary of embracing policies to reduce demand that could be politically unpopular and slow economic growth. As a result, China faces longer-term risks of energy shortages and economic and environmental problems.

Key Points:

• China has become one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing markets for household appliances, such as televisions, clothes washers and refrigerators.
• To improve the energy efficiency of these products, China has developed an array of mandatory and voluntary standards and labeling programs.
• These programs promise to significantly reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, but stepped up compliance testing and enforcement could enable China to reap even bigger gains.
• International collaboration – including with experts from the United States – has played an important part in China’s appliance efficiency efforts.

WHAT:

Leading U.S. experts on China will brief journalists Tuesday on Beijing’s climate policies and the actions it is taking to combat climate change both domestically and internationally. A panel of four experts affiliated with the ChinaFAQs network, a project of the World Resources Institute, will discuss the prospects for progress on China’s climate goals, including carbon intensity, and for U.S. – China cooperation on climate change. The event will be moderated by Jonathan Lash, president of WRI. The briefing will be followed with light refreshments and the opportunity for journalists to meet with the panelists.

WHEN:

Tuesday, April 13, 2010 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. EST

Since 1999 I have directed the China Environment Forum (CEF) at the Woodrow Wilson Center, where we convene meetings, organize exchanges, and create publications that promote dialogue predominantly among U.S. and Chinese policymaker, business, NGO, and research communities on environmental and energy challenges in China. In our current project “Cooperative Competitors: Building New U.S.-China Energy and Climate Networks” we are tapping into CEF’s extensive network of energy experts to explore practical and mutually beneficial avenues for U.S.-China clean energy cooperation. We are also involved in a three-year USAID-supported project focused on environmental governance in China and another project in which we are convening water experts to examine water pollution challenges in Chinese lakes.