Ecomagination and Environmental Laws Make Money for GE in China

Big money, big change: General Electric pushes for environmental laws and revs up Ecomagination in China
The Wall Street Journal recently hosted a special event, ECO:nomics: Creating Environmental Capital, that focuses on a “CEO-level view of the rapidly developing relationship between the environment and the bottom line.” Program participant Jeffrey Immelt, chairman and CEO of [...]

Beijing says “bag it up,” but you can’t use plastic

Image via China Digital Times
The Beijing government issued a ban against plastic shopping bags in an effort to reduce “white pollution” and step up its recycling efforts. The ban is effective June 1.

Shoppers: It’s BYO Bag in China
By Christopher Bodeen
Associated Press
January 10, 2008

BEIJING (AP) — Declaring war on the “white pollution” choking its cities, [...]

Conservation Education in China: an interview with Kasen Whitehouse, of the Panda Breeding Center in Chengdu

Interview by Mark Hiew
This post is part of an occasional series of interviews with those working on development and sustainability issues in China, particularly southwestern Sichuan province.

Kasen Whitehouse is a 24-year-old American working in Chengdu at the Panda Breeding Center. Originally from New York, he previously researched panda hormone and reproductive behavior at the Smithsonian [...]

Investing in sustainability

Two recent blog posts examine the potential for foreign investors to capitalize on sustainable building projects.
Steve Dickinson from the China Law Blog recently explained how some recent changes to China’s real estate laws will restrict foreign investment.

“Foreign Investment In China, Part II: Can You Say Last Nail In The Real Estate Coffin?”
By Steve Dickinson
China Law [...]

WorldChanging: Responsibility rests on local governments

Mara Hvistendahl from WorldChanging comments on the impending shifts of power in China as the National Party Congress convenes in Beijing this week.
“National government gets most of the attention outside China, inside the country policy enforcement is mostly the responsibility of local governments,” she says. “When the central government unveils a forward-thinking policy (and [...]