China's investments in renewable energy and announcements of targeted reductions in CO2 emissions has flattered environmentalist NGOs. To such an extent that they have praised China for its endeavours overlooking the injustices and suffering meted out to those who oppose the CPC. They must be on a par with climate deniers!
The key word in this discourse is sustainability. China, unbeholden to argument, compromise or special interest groups, can mobilise social resources, tax its captive population, jack up investment and direct communitarian resources as appropriate, regardless of how people may feel (and those who dissent disappear).
People like Amory Lovins, founder of the Rocky Mountain Institute, is more optimistic. He told me that China is the only country that’s cut its energy intensity over 5 percent a year for a quarter of a century. They are the world leader in distributed renewable sources of power and the only country that has energy efficiency as its top development priority.
To be sure, implementation is at an early stage. But, Lovins said, China has better leaders than we do, and they are more highly motivated and work harder.
“For all these reasons, I think we can rely on China to lead the world out of the climate mess.”
William McDonough, co-author of Cradle to Cradle, shares these sentiments. He told me that while “they’re not going to become an eco-paradise overnight, at the senior level, they’ve recognised the idea of closing cycles as being a critical part of any long-term plan.”
It is alarming that the corporate sustainability movement takes China's utterances and statistics at face value; admires its system of governance for long-term stability and planning; and pays lip service to the values of the West. To be watched and fought...