In 2012, the G-20 Leaders’ Summit in Mexico formally listed the green economy on the G-20 agenda. This signalled the fastest global emergence and expansion of the concept of the green economy in recent years. China has been extremely active in the G-20 since becoming a member country, and this paper discusses how China understands and promotes the concept of a green economy, both domestically and internationally.

First it looks at how China viewed discussions on the green economy at the G-20 summit. Second it examines the impact of the G-20 discussions on China’s national and international actions on the green economy. Finally, it assesses the implications of the interaction between China’s actions and the G-20 discussions for both China and the G-20.

Policy implications for China and the G20:

China’s economic development has to be greened. Recent scandals involving water and soil pollution, toxic smog and poisonous milk have led to the Chinese people losing their patience and confidence. International pressure could be used as leverage to promote the green economy domestically and the Chinese government has become more willing to accept international obligations in green growth
the G-20 could become an influential forum for international dialogue on green growth, given the importance of its members. If the G-20 wants to play a more significant role in this area, it will be necessary to define the concept more exactly and make it more relevant to the macroeconomic roots of the G-20
China should not consider the international green economy dialogues and negotiations a burden on its self-determining policies to advance the country’s growth and national
interests. The government should take advantage of everything beneficial to green its economy. In order to allow more serious participation in the G-20, China needs to adjust its planning to include more relevant agencies when the G-20 is set to discuss the issue. In fact, the G-20 summit is one of the few international forums that the Chinese president will attend regularly. Attracting more attention from the top leaders would be meaningful
to the implementation of a green development strategy