On July 15th, the International Forum on Carbon Emissions Peak and Carbon Neutrality 2021, co-hosted by China Chamber of International Commerce (CCOIC), All-China Environment Federation (ACEF), and Beijing Energy Saving, Low-carbon and Environmental Protection Industry Service Association, was held in the New Shougang High-end Industry Comprehensive Service Park (Shougang Park) in Beijing. With the theme of "The Path of Reaching Carbon Emission Peak and Achieving Carbon Neutrality for Business", the forum aims to promote enterprises to reconstruct the supply chain and value chain from the perspective of "carbon peak and neutrality" and to inject new vitality into the green development of enterprises.
Yu Jianlong, Secretary-General of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) and Executive Vice President and Secretary General of the CCOIC, put forward three suggestions in his speech at the opening ceremony: The first is to vigorously promote green and low-carbon development and strive to achieve higher-quality development with less carbon emissions. The second is to take enterprises as the main players of innovation and strive to build a scientific and technological innovation system that leads to green and low-carbon development. The third is to promote international cooperation on low-carbon development, and learn from each other to achieve mutual benefit on the new journey to global carbon neutrality. He said that the CCPIT and the CCOIC will, as always, encourage enterprises to expand practical cooperation on green development, and make positive efforts for China’s carbon peak and neutrality goals, and to encourage domestic and foreign business communities to tackle the global climate challenge.
Su Wei, Deputy Secretary-General of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), said in his speech that the NDRC is pushing forward China’s carbon peak and neutrality efforts, and working on implementation plans of carbon peak in key areas and industries. Green consumer demand will inject new momentum into high-quality development and bring new development opportunities for enterprises. Enterprises should take the requirement of transforming to green and low-carbon development as the basis of production and operation, regard green and low-carbon technological innovation as the source of development and growth, and deem green finance as an important support for achieving carbon peak and neutrality. The business community should work as participants, contributors and leaders in peaking CO2 emissions and reaching carbon neutrality, fulfilling their social responsibilities, and making new contributions to achieving carbon peak and neutrality.
Hu Xiongguang, Vice President of Shougang Group, said in his speech that actively tackling climate change is an inherent need to achieve high-quality development in China and a responsibility to build a community with a shared future for mankind. Enterprises are the main force in solving climate crisis and reducing greenhouse gas emissions like carbon dioxide. Shougang Group adheres to the green and high-end positioning, and coordinates the promotion of cultural revival, ecological revival, industrial revival, and vitality revival. It stands ready to work with enterprises from other countries to strengthen exchanges and cooperation, fulfill social responsibilities, promote global climate action, and make new contributions to improving global climate governance.
Xie Yuhong, Vice President and Secretary General of the ACEF, stressed in her speech that the business community should meet China’s carbon peak and neutrality target, strictly limit carbon emissions, rationally use carbon energy, give full play to the role of top-level design, and focus on promoting technological innovation. The ACEF is committed to environmental protection and will make full use of its strong network and industrial foundation to contribute to China’s carbon peak and neutrality goals.
Du Xiangwan, Academician and former Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE); Claire O 'Neill, Managing Director for Climate and Energy at the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and former UK Minister for Energy and Clean Growth, and John B. Cobb, Jr., member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and Founding President of the Institute for the Postmodern Development of China (IPDC), delivered speeches via video.
Du Xiangwan suggested further reducing energy intensity and optimizing energy structure through industrial restructuring and technological progress. He also suggested building a new type of power system with new energy as the main body, developing new types of electrification, and coordinating power system resources to provide high-quality power output.
O 'Neill said the world welcomes and appreciates the Chinese government's goals of achieving a peak in carbon dioxide emissions peak before 2030 and carbon neutrality before 2060. The path to carbon emission peak and neutrality requires a scientific and thorough transformation, and enterprises play a key role in transforming society to a low carbon future. It is hoped that WBCSD's platform will support companies to reduce and eliminate carbon emissions, develop resilient business models, adapt to and benefit from the impacts of climate change.
Cobb said that China is the only country in the world that takes "ecological progress" as a "millennium plan", which is unprecedented around the world. He hopes that Chinese industries can make efforts to restructure the industry ecology to build an industrial form suitable for ecological progress, and integrate human activities into the greater ecological pattern, which is of great benefit to upgrading and innovating the whole industry.
To support the carbon neutrality goal, the forum has implemented carbon neutrality practices. Nie Xiufeng, President of Beijing Energy Saving, Low-carbon and Environmental Protection Industry Service Association, announced that the forum would be carbon neutral and that the 2.84 tons of greenhouse gases emitted by the event would be neutralized by planting carbon sink forests in Shanxi Province.
During the session of special reports and industrial discussion, representatives from the National Center for Climate Change Strategy and International Cooperation (NCSC), Research Institute of Resources and Environment Policies of the Development Research Center of the State Council (DRC), China Beijing Environment Exchange, and SinoCarbon explained carbon peak and neutrality policies and regional implementation path. Representatives from the China Electricity Council (CEC), Shougang Research Institute of Technology and BP held a discussion on carbon emission management practices in key industries. Representatives from the WBCSD, AVIC Fund Management Co., Ltd., and international energy and climate change experts from Germany held a symposium on the technological development opportunities and challenges of corporate carbon neutrality. Representatives from ACEF Special Committee for Green, Recyclable, & Inclusive Growth, Alibaba Group and Shougang Group held a discussion on the exploration of corporate carbon neutrality and voluntary emission reduction mechanism.
The participants also visited and exchanged views in Shougang Park. Shougang Group began its unprecedented relocation in 2003, becoming the first steel company in China to relocate from a central city to the coastal area. Currently, Shougang Park is actively implementing carbon emission reduction, taking advantage of the Beijing Winter Olympics to promote its development and the revitalization of the old industrial area, and has successfully transformed into a green ecological demonstration area of Beijing, becoming an important symbol of the city's deep transformation. Holding this forum in Shougang Park will help publicize typical cases of transformation and upgrading of traditional industrial parks and demonstrate carbon emission reduction paths for enterprises in key carbon emission industries.
The forum was held both online and offline, with about 270 people attending it offline and more than 40,000 people attending it online.