BRI as International Norm Construction of China's Green Development Strategy in Asia

Abstract

For several decades, the environmental considerations have been one of a neglected aspect of China’s development process. The massive development and industrialization process have a direct impact on environmental degradation in China, causing considerable economic losses for this country. But now China is no longer a country with an image of development that is not environmentally friendly. That old image seems to be changing, from being not environmentally friendly to pay more attention to develop more “green” development. This change can be seen through the implementation of green development agenda on Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) mega-project. The project is not only China's economic instrument in expanding its market and investment but also can be seen as a tool to construct China's new norms in international level, especially in Asia. The new norm is green development. Thanks to BRI, China has positioned itself as one of the leading countries on the green development agenda. This paper will examine the extent of the changes have been taken place by using constructivism perspective through the Norm Diffusion Theory of Finnemore and Sikkink (1998). The norm diffusion theory will be elaborated from two aspects, first is the norm entrepreneur, and second is the norm life cycle. State actor and non-state actor roles of China are both important players and decision-makers for steering the BRI project on an expected track. Not only that, the establishment of the International Coalition for Green Development on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRIGC) at the beginning of 2019 reflects China's strong commitment to a green development agenda that appears to have been successfully internalized in the Asia region.