China’s “green miracles” highlight Xi’s vision of ecological civilization

Beijing: In his recent letter replying to primary school students in Britain, Chinese President Xi Jinping introduced his vision of green development and his commitment to ensuring harmonious coexistence between humans and nature.

Noting that he attaches great importance to tackling climate change, Xi said that he has always highlighted that “lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets” — a notion that has won broad support in today’s China.

He also said that China has been taking unprecedented steps to tackle climate change, and has made remarkable progress, adding that the country will go on making even greater achievements.

Indeed, under the guidance of Xi’s vision of ecological civilization, tremendous progress on greening China has taken place over the years, from cultivating the Chinese people’s eco-civilization awareness to adding new forests, grasslands and wetlands, and combating air and water pollution.

A survey released during the COP15 conference last year showed that the eco-civilization concept enjoys a high level of recognition among the general public in China.

Regarding the relationship between the environment and development, around 55 percent of people polled said the process of environmental protection brings new economic opportunities and presents a promising prospect, according to the survey, which was conducted by the Research Institute for Eco-civilization, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

The findings are based on the answers to 10,038 internet questionnaires, together with more than 3.5 million online posts and comments that were analyzed with big-data technology, said Zhang Yongsheng, head of the research institute.

“Ecological progress has significantly improved the quality of development and people’s wellbeing in China,” Zhang quoted the findings as saying.

Eco-civilization is spearheading a sweeping transformation of the development paradigm, which will reshape the approach to development, the business model, people’s understanding of a happy life, as well as attitudes toward consumption, employment and wellbeing, said Zhang.

As Xi told British pupils in the letter, schools of various kinds and at all levels in China attach great importance to the education on ecological civilization, adding that Chinese pupils, by starting from the trivial things in their lives, have developed a good habit of conserving energy and protecting the environment, and have learned to live a green and low-carbon life.