On 29 June 2020, the Belt and Road Initiative International Green Development Coalition (BRIGC) held a working meeting of the BRI Green Development Report in the form of video conference. The meeting was attended by Erik Solheim, Senior Advisor of the World Resources Institute (WRI) and Convener of BRIGC Advisory Committee; Xue Lan, Dean of Schwarzman College, Tsinghua University and Co-Director of TUSDG; Jeffrey Sachs, Director of the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) and Chairman of the International Academic Committee of the TUSDG; and Zhou Guomei, Deputy Secretary General of the Secretariat of the BRIGC, Secretary of the Party Committee and Deputy Director of the Foreign Environmental Cooperation Center of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment of the People's Republic of China, attended the meeting and delivered an opening speech. Zhang Jianyu, Chief Representative of USEPA China, Liaison of the BRIGC Advisory Committee; Li Yonghong, Deputy Director-General of the Foreign Environmental Cooperation Center, Ministry of Ecology and Environment; Lan Yan, Deputy Director General of the BRIGC Secretariat; Guido Schmidt-Traub, Executive Director of the SDSN; and members of the Tsinghua University research team: Zhu Xufeng, Professor and Associate Dean of the School of Public Policy & Management of Tsinghua University and the Executive Director of TUSDG; Wang Can, Professor and Head of Department of Environmental Planning and Management, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, and Vice Director of TUSDG; Zhu Junming, Associate Professor, School of Public Policy & Management, Tsinghua University, etc., a total of more than 30 delegates online to participate in this conference.
Group photo of all participating guests
The BRI Green Development Report is the flagship research report of the BRIGC, which is jointly conducted by the SDSN and the TUSDG, with the participation of the BRIGC's thematic partnerships, invited by the secretariat of the BRIGC. The project aims to assess the achievements and challenges of green development in the BRI countries, and put forward policy recommendations to promote the green BRI construction by sorting out the global cooperation and innovation mechanisms for green development, and the cases of green development in the BRI and put forward policy recommendations to promote the green BRI construction. The meeting discussed the progress of the project research, key issues of concern, etc., and agreed on the next work arrangement.
In his speech, Erik Solheim said he hoped that the flagship report would show the world the progress and effectiveness of China's environmental protection and green development, and provide experience for the BRI co-construction countries to learn from.
In his speech, Xue Lan pointed out that we need to find ways to balance development and environmental issues, and that a green BRI is the right direction. The flagship report should be scientifically oriented and lay the research foundation for promoting the construction of a green BRI.
In his speech, Jeffrey Sachs pointed out that a positive, constructive and win-win attitude should be adopted to promote the construction of the Green BRI, and that synergies with the European Green Deal could be considered.
On behalf of the BRIGC Secretariat, Zhou Guomei expressed her gratitude to the TUSDG and the SDSN team for their participation in the preparation of the Flagship Report, and hoped that the Flagship Report could objectively assess the green and sustainable development results of the partner countries, and provide valuable policy recommendations for decision-makers.
Project presentation and expert discussion session: Xue Lan, Jeffrey Sachs, Zhang Jianyu, Guido Schmidt-Traub, Zhu Xufeng, Wang Can, Zhu Junming (from left to right, top to bottom)
Subsequently, the TUSDG, SDSN and the secretariat of the BRIGC reported the latest progress of the flagship report project respectively. Participating experts had in-depth discussions on the report's research framework, research methodology and content, data collection and other aspects, and put forward specific comments and suggestions. The research team indicated that it would continue to maintain close cooperation, incorporate the latest results of the BRIGC's thematic partners' topics, and jointly advance the preparation of the flagship report.
Finally, Li Yonghong concluded by expressing his hope that the flagship report will provide green solutions for the partner countries while collating their green development achievements. Solheim said he hoped the report would provide recommendations on synergistic development of the environment and the economy, and promote the green BRI as a contribution to China's and the world's sustainable development.
