UN climate chief Christiana Figueres says the low carbon leadership of China’s government should be used an example worldwide.
Speaking ahead of the China Summit on Caring for Climate, she said the recent five year plan and carbon market pilots were evidence the planet’s largest economy is committed to change.
“This progress shows domestic manufacturing and investment practices dovetailing into a local need for clean air and the global need for increased ambition in climate,” she said.
Stressing the importance of ecologically sound economic growth, Figueres said the private sector, national policy and international process were the three key drivers towards cutting pollution amd achieveing a 2015 global emissions agreement.
“Climate change is our journey, low carbon is our destination. We must leave the shore of business as usual as soon as we can,” she said.