2025 in review: Resilience amid headwinds

Active forces

Despite the current turbulence and resistance faced by global climate governance, experts said that the momentum for climate action has not disappeared. Instead, non-state actors and market forces are playing a larger role.

Zhang pointed to COP30 as evidence. "Despite concerns about inconvenient transportation and rising participation costs before COP30, the scale of on-site participants during the conference remained high. This in itself is an important signal, indicating that the global cohesion of the climate issue remains undiminished," he said.

Zhang further noted that even without high-level federal representation from the US at COP30, a robust delegation of state governors, city mayors, and NGOs remained actively engaged. To Zhang, this demonstrated that shifts in national climate policy can no longer stall the momentum of global climate action, which is increasingly being driven by a more diverse set of actors.

"Climate action is not only a moral issue, but is increasingly driven by interest-based considerations," Zhang highlighted, citing its close interconnection with energy security, industrial upgrading, and public health. "This fusion provides a new, pragmatic foundation for maintaining and deepening climate cooperation in a complex international landscape."

Sun agreed, noting that while global climate governance began in 2025 with uncertainty due to Trump administration's withdrawal, the Paris Agreement and the scientific consensus on climate change have proved resilient and both remain widely supported.

Looking ahead, the key question is whether any nation can step up leading global climate efforts, Sun pointed out, adding that China is poised to take on a more active, even leading role, though its approach will undoubtedly differ from that of the US and Europe.

China's potential influence, experts suggest, may lie in demonstration. "China has played a role in leading by action in promoting the green transition of developing countries," Ma said.

"When China and other regions can prove that the green transition can simultaneously help achieve other goals, such as China cutting pollution and upgrading industrial capacity, this practice will be very attractive to the global community, especially countries in the Global South, driving more countries to embark on this path," Ma explained.

Xu Bihong and agencies contributed to this story.

yangran1@chinadaily.com.cn