CCG Hosts Roundtable Conference on China-US Cooperation on Energy and Climate Change

The Center for China & Globalization joined American Chamber of Commerce in China and Beijing Energy Club in hosting a roundtable conference titled “China-US Relations on Energy and Climate Change: Cooperation and Leadership” on Jan. 25, featuring the visiting US Assistant Secretary of Energy Jonathan Elkind.

Jonathan Elkind, US Assistant Secretary of Energy

About Presentation

Driven by economic globalization, human society is faced with a number of increasingly pressing  issues including environmental pollution, biodiversity loss, climate change, and energy shortages. The world is compelled to take immediate actions to balance the need for economic growth and environmental protection and move forward toward low carbon development and a green energy transition.

Wang Huiyao, CCG President

China and the United States had agreed to strengthen cooperation on energy and climate change during the 7th bilateral strategic and economic dialogue in 2015.  During this meeting, the countries identified 13 priority areas for cooperation. Up to now, both sides have made significant progress in over 30 programs in eight areas. At the UNFCCC’s Cop 21 in Paris, Chinese and American leaders reiterated their commitment to sharing responsibility for dealing with energy and climate change challenges.

Liu Ke, CCG Vice President

Moderated by CCG’s Vice President Liu Ke, the roundtable conference was held to share the U.S. experience in addressing energy and climate change issues, discuss common problems for the two countries in those areas and explore opportunities to cooperate and devise solutions for them.

CCG President Wang Huiyao noted that it is crucial for China and the U.S., the two largest carbon emitters in the world, to enhance their cooperation and leadership in addressing energy and climate change.

As the keynote speaker, Assistant Secretary Elkindsaid that he believes it is a perfect time now to address U.S.-China leadership in the critical area of clean energy and climate change.  He added that the COP 21 meeting “would not have been a success without the early, clear leadership that was provided by President Xi and President Obama, and by the sustained focus of our two countries on energy collaborations. “

Elkind pointed out that China-U.S. cooperation on climate change has demonstrated to the world that there are solutions to global warming that require bilateral and multilateral cooperation as well as ambitious domestic measures. He also emphasized the need to enhance clean energy research and integrate technology innovation with a market-based approach.

Following the speech, Elkind discussed a wide range of issues regarding bilateral cooperation in energy and climate change with audience and addressed the questions from media including Xinhua News Agency, China News Agency, China Daily, and China Radio International.

Other attendants include:

Chen Xinhua, President, Beijing Energy Club
Zhang Shiqiu, Professor, College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Beijing University
Ira L. Cohen, Executive Vice President, Universal Ideas Consultants
Hu Linlin, Chief Representative, Norsk Hydro A.S. Beijing
An Chun, General Manager, Hua Xing Mei Ke New Material Co. Ltd.
Jack Tseng, President, Hua Xing Mei Ke New Material Co. Ltd.
Jacob Wood, Senior President, Green Point Corp.
Jeffrey Bernstein, Managing Director, Wharton China Center
Nina Wang, Vice President for Government Relations, Johnson Controls (China) Investment Co., Ltd
Wang Haibin, Senior Economist, Great China Holdings Ltd.
Wang Yufei, Associate Research Fellow, Development Research Center of the State Council
Yu Hongyuan, Research Fellow, Shanghai Institute for International Studies
Miao Lu, Executive Secretary General, CCG

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