Abstract
Climate policymaking in China has gone through three major phases over the course of three decades. This paper applies the concept of policy learning to an analysis of what the Chinese government has learned about climate policymaking during this period. Our analysis shows that this thirty-year history of climate policymaking can be viewed as a conceptual learning process because the Chinese government has continuously adjusted the problem definition of climate change, redefined climate policy goals, and updated climate strategies. First, the Chinese leadership has redefined climate change from a scientific and diplomatic problem, to a developmental and strategic issue, and finally to an overarching grand strategy guiding national development in the next forty years. Second, the Chinese government has fundamentally redefined its climate policy goal from avoiding climate action so as to foster economic development to reinvigorating economic development through climate action. Third, the Chinese government has updated its climate change strategy from solely emphasizing climate mitigation to a more balanced consideration of mitigation and adaptation, and from state-dominant governance processes to more diversified governance processes that involve the participation of the corporate sector and a greater a role of the law.
Highlights
Academic Editor: Oran YoungWhen it comes to climate change, no single country has attracted more attention thanChina, the world’s largest energy consumer and carbon emitter
This thirty-year history of climate policymaking can be viewed as a conceptual learning process because the Chinese government has continuously adjusted the problem definition of climate change, redefined climate policy goals, and updated its strategies [10]
The Chinese government has redefined climate policy goals as its mindsets regarding the relationship between climate action and economic growth evolve over time
Summary
When it comes to climate change, no single country has attracted more attention than. China’s climate mitigation policies have focused on energy conservation, renewable energy development, and low-carbon pilots [3] By implementing these mitigation policies, China achieved a 48.4% reduction in carbon intensity by 2020 compared to 2005 levels, exceeding the.
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