Environmental action in China is different to what we’re used to elsewhere. Whereas readers in Europe might associate it with protests, green politics or grassroots movements for change, in China it’s more likely to be top down. Environmental progress in the UK often starts as a lifestyle choice, while in China it arrives as policy backed by state power.
That has risks of its own of course. It can tip towards coercion or get derailed by perverse incentives. And it has the opposite problem to western environmentalism: where we might rely too much on individual actions that don’t add up to systemic change, a top-down approach can focus on infrastructure and systems and forget to involve ordinary citizens. So it’s interesting to see a raft of new measures from the Chinese government this year that aim to influence consumer choices.
China’s Ministry of Commerce, in concert with eight other government departments, has set out a nationwide strategy to encourage greener consumption. It aims to support more sustainable businesses, build the circular economy, and raise environmental standards across the board.
I won’t detail all of the measures, but there are some interesting points to note across the strategy. One is a boost to organic food and more sustainable farming practices, using new certification programmes and consumer-facing logos. There’s also a provision for certifying geographical origins, like France pioneered with its ‘appellation d’origine contrôlée’. (France declared its first protected origin in 1411, a full 582 years before the UK, which tells you a lot about national food cultures). China is also looking at carbon labelling and energy efficiency stickers, empowering consumers to make educated purchasing decisions.
The strategy also looks at waste, recycling and single use plastics. There will be new rules on plastic bags, and investment in a wider set of materials for recycling, such as e-waste and textiles. This is an opportunity to create circular economy businesses, and new forms of ‘reverse logistics’ that take things back for reuse.
Something I’ve not seen elsewhere is a focus on secondhand goods as part of a sustainable consumer culture. Detail is scant at the moment, certainly in English, but there is talk of support for online and in-person secondhand markets, formally recognising it as a key plank in a circular economy. A healthy secondhand market for electric cars is also mentioned, ensuring that there’s a full ecosystem for EVs and that those on lower incomes are able to participate.
There are sections of the strategy that target specific sectors too, such as hospitality. Caterers will have to get to grips with new rules on food waste and biodegradeable packaging. Hotels are encouraged to use environmentally friendly cleaning products, eliminate single use plastics and install water saving technologies. Procurement guidelines – an under-appreciated aspect of environmental action – are pressed into service to bring transparency to supply chains and encourage carbon footprint evaluations.
I can’t find much on this yet either, but it looks like some of this will be ‘gamified’ through a credit system rather than a set of bans or taxes. People will earn credits when making greener choices, and then cash those in for discounts. That’s an interesting approach, and introducing a scheme like that with government backing could be a powerful incentive.
We’ll have to wait for more information about the specifics of all of this, but it’s an impressively broad and comprehensive agenda. If it goes to plan, it could take China a big step closer to the ecological civilisation that they aspire to be.
The Earthbound Report 