Monday, January 09, 2012
By Guest Author, Alex de Sherbinin, Senior Research Associate at the Center for International Earth Science Information Network
Given its burgeoning economic growth, its rapidly expanding industries, large population, and growing consumer class, many in the environmental field have an intense interest in how China will address its environmental problems.
Thursday, December 22, 2011
By Guest Author, Jasmine Hyman, PhD candidate, Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, and Jonathan Smith, JD/MEM candidate, Yale Law School and the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies
The Ring of Fire around the Pacific Rim is ablaze with the new carbon trading schemes, and investors worldwide are taking note of these developments.
Friday, December 09, 2011
By Guest Author, Angel Hsu, Max Song, and Jonathan Smith
One of the most persistent themes at the climate negotiations in Durban has been how to bridge gaps -- the divide between the developed and developing nations, many of whom disagree about whether the Kyoto Protocol should be extended into a second commitment period; the hole in climate finance pledges from developed countries; and the ambition or emissions gap between the Copenhagen pledges and the stabilization of global temperatures below a 2 degrees Celsius increase from pre-industrial levels. We had a chance to discuss some of these issues with Chinese energy expert Jiang Kejun, Energy Research Institute, NDRC. The following post is republished from China FAQs: The Network for Climate and Energy Information.
Thursday, December 08, 2011
By Guest Author, Angel Hsu, PhD candidate, Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies
When China launched its first official pavilion at a UN climate conference, UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Secretariat Cristiana Figueres was there alongside China’s NDRC Vice Minister Xie Zhenhua to cut the ribbon. Swarmed by journalists in the standing-room only conference center of the China pavilion in Durban, Figueres applauded China for being a “trend-setter” in global renewable energy, resonating around the world and during the first week of climate negotiations in Durban. The following post is republished from China FAQs: The Network for Climate and Energy Information.
Tuesday, December 06, 2011
By Guest Author, Angel Hsu, Max Song, and Jonathan Smith
The idea of a total cap on energy consumption in China, first suggested last March before the National People’s Congress, has reemerged in Durban -- and surprisingly there are now suggestions that China might consider some kind of a cap on carbon emissions. This has been suggested apparently as part of domestic policy rather than as a negotiating position, but details are very sketchy. This post is republished from China FAQs: The Network for Climate and Energy Information.