Borderland eco-governance beneficial beyond China

At the 29th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in November and the 16th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification in December, China showcased the pivotal role its border regions have been playing in deepening South-South cooperation on climate change and combating desertification. For instance, in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, China has built the world's longest green barrier around a desert — the 3,046-kilometer-long Taklimakan Desert Green Belt — to prevent the expansion of the desert.

Ecological governance in China's border areas plays a significant role in strengthening ecological security, promoting common prosperity and safeguarding national security. It also contributes to building an ecological community of countries along the Belt and Road and improving the global ecological environment.

China's border ecological governance is different from some Western countries' development model of excessive natural resource consumption, as well as the old paradigm of "polluting first, treating later". Instead, the country is pursuing Chinese modernization that emphasizes harmony between humankind and nature. China's approach is different, and more eco-friendly, than the mainstream neoliberal ecological governance model prevalent in the West, and is free of "ecological capitalization" while avoiding its moral and practical dilemmas.

Moreover, it transcends the prevalent Western dichotomy between nature-centric and human-centric perspectives, advocating for harmonious coexistence between humans and nature. The key concepts of its ecological governance model include "lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets". It believes in the integrated protection and systematic governance of mountains, rivers, forests, farmlands, lakes, grasslands and deserts, and has adopted a "whole life-cycle" approach to ecological restoration and protection. These principles have facilitated theoretical breakthroughs in ecological governance.

What's more, China's border ecological governance represents an organic integration of government leadership, policy-driven initiatives, technological empowerment and social mobilization.

Through top-level design and strategic planning, the government facilitates the implementation of ecological projects, and provides clear direction for ecological governance. It has also incorporated ecological protection goals and assessment metrics into local government performance evaluation systems, with policies related to finance, regulations and other domains guiding the balanced development of the economy, society and ecology.

Using technologies such as satellite remote sensing, big data and artificial intelligence, the border regions have established efficient ecological monitoring and evaluation systems. They also use renewable energy technologies and ecological restoration techniques, and have been developing the green economy and taking measures to improve ecological governance.

China's border ecological governance has established an integrated development model that combines ecological security, common prosperity and national security. For example, southern Xinjiang faces multi-tasks in ecological protection, economic development and national security, which are often interconnected and mutually reinforcing. And addressing them requires an integrated approach that unites these three elements into a cohesive whole.

In this regard, for instance, the Kekeya Afforestation Project in southern Xinjiang, a critical part of China's Three-North Shelterbelt Forest Program, has transformed barren lands into valuable forestry-based economic resources, and fostered coordinated development across primary, secondary and tertiary industries.

The initiative has laid the foundation for achieving common prosperity and strengthening national security, surpassing the scope of ecological protection to integrate regional economic development and social progress. This integrated ecological governance model has not only helped improve local residents' livelihoods, which in turn has enabled them to resist the spread of extremist ideologies, but also prevented the infiltration of the "three evil forces" (terrorism, separatism and extremism) into the region, thus strengthening border security and providing a solid foundation for development.

It should be widely acknowledged that China's border ecological governance has explored a new global cooperation model that emphasizes mutual benefit and win-win outcomes. In terms of policy and cooperation mechanisms, China has proposed and participated in multiple global ecological cooperation frameworks, laying the policy foundation for international cooperation in border ecological governance.

The Belt and Road Initiative, for example, emphasizes green development as a core principle, promoting in-depth cooperation among participating countries in ecological protection and sustainable development.

By signing bilateral or multilateral agreements with neighboring countries, China has established several ecological governance cooperation mechanisms, such as environmental cooperation under the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and water resource protection under the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Mechanism.

In terms of cooperative practices and innovative models, China and some of its neighboring countries have jointly established trans-boundary ecological protection zones which facilitate holistic ecosystem protection and promote cross-border eco-tourism; collaborate on transboundary natural resource management, ensuring its rational allocation and utilization; share green ecological governance technologies and promote cooperation on overseas green industrial projects; establish international cooperation centers for ecological governance; and share environmental data and monitoring systems to improve the efficiency of transnational ecological governance by leveraging technologies such as remote sensing, big data analysis and artificial intelligence.

In conclusion, China's border ecological governance not only advances domestic ecological civilization but also fosters ecological diplomacy with other countries. Together, they are building an ecological governance community, contributing valuable experiences to achieving global ecological civilization and sustainable development.

The author is an assistant researcher at the Institute of Contemporary China Studies.

The views don't necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

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