GEI & CCS Officially Enter Eco-Partnership at US State House

BEIJING (May 10, 2011) – Global Environmental Institute (GEI) and the U.S.-based think tank, Center for Climate Strategies (CCS), signed a Statement of Intent for Implementation of an Eco-Partnership on Tuesday, May 10 2011, at the offices of the State Department in Washington D.C., officiating one of the six new partnerships of this year under the U.S.-China Ten-Year Framework for Cooperation on Energy and Environment.

CCS and GEI sign the Statement of Intent at the US State Department – GEI 2011

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and National Development Reform Commission (NDRC) Vice Chairman Xie Zhenhua delivered remarks at the U.S.-China Eco-Partnerships Memorandum of Understanding signing ceremony. They spoke of the significance of the eco-partnerships in climate, energy and cooperation on sustainable development between the two countries.

US Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton, addresses GEI and CCS on their Ecopartnership – GEI 2011

Dr. Kerri-Ann Jones, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, Todd Stern, U.S. Special Envoy for Climate Change and Reta Jo Lewis Special Representative for Global International Affairs of the State Department also participated in the ceremony.

CCS’ CEO Tom Peterson and GEI’s Executive Director, JIN Jiaman happily shake hands after signing the Statement of Intent – GEI 2011

The GEI-CCS partnership focuses on adapting CCS’ comprehensive U.S. state climate action planning process to the Chinese provincial context through capacity building and technical support. This partnership aims to help Chinese provinces enhance their own capacity in low carbon development planning and enable them to identify and implement the most cost-effective carbon-reduction policies in all sectors of the economy in order to meet provincial economic and emissions reduction targets under China’s National 12th Five Year Plan. This Eco-Partnership will also advance U.S.-China subnational climate cooperation through exchange of green initiatives, relationship building and cooperative action on climate and energy issues between U.S. states and Chinese provinces.

The other five new partnerships recognized at the ceremony included Case Western Reserve University with the China National Off-shore Oil Corp – New Energy Investment Co, Ltd. ; Duke Energy and the city of Charlotte, NC, with ENN Solar Energy Group (Langfang) and the City of Langfang; The State of Utah with Qinghai Province (China); United States Business Council for Sustainable Development with China Business Council for Sustainable Development; Purdue University with the Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research.

The Ecopartnership Members in the distinguished company of Secretary of Clinton and Minister XIE – GEI 2011

Eco-Partnership Background

In April 2011, GEI and CCS joined together as an eco-partnership under the US-China Ten Year Framework for Cooperation on Energy and the Environment, among 30 applicants.

The “Eco-Partnerships Program” provides a platform under the Ten Year Framework for cooperation between governments and institutions at the sub-national level in both China and the US. The program encourages the formation of voluntary eco-partnerships between, governments, businesses, NGOs as well as academic, research, management and training institutions to develop partnerships aimed at promoting energy security, economically and environmentally sustainable development and the mitigation of climate change.

Both the US and China hope that the Eco-Partnerships Program can promote technical and policy cooperation between the two countries, particularly in the areas of climate, water, transportation, energy, forestry, wetland conservation as well as clean and efficient energy production and consumption.

The GEI-CCS Partnership is aimed at introducing experiences in climate action planning at the US state level in order to assist Chinese experts in climate change technology and policy in enacting low carbon development tools and methodology appropriate for China. GEI and CCS hope that such a project can strengthen technical and policy exchange between US states and Chinese provinces in the area of climate change.