Editor's note: Purushottam Poudel, a special commentator on current affairs for CGTN, is a journalist from Nepal. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

Even as voices are being raised globally to draw the world's attention towards climate change, China has been working quietly to address the issue.

Up until recently, some media now and then wrote about China's unwillingness to reduce the effects of climate change. My interest in understanding China's efforts to address climate change was intense when I first arrived in China four months ago.

People may see the efforts that the Chinese government is making to address the climate issue when they visit Beijing, the capital city of China, or when they travel to other megacities. In addition to observing, I also interacted with various local and foreign people to learn about the effort that China is doing on its part.

According to local people, Beijing's weather along with its air quality has improved a lot over the last few years.

"Until a few years ago, the local administration had issued notices sometimes to the elderly and children not to go out of their homes due to air pollution in the winter," Cui Xiaoyi, 23, a resident of Beijing, said. "They no longer need such [emergency] measures."

Cui added that there has been a reduction in urban pollution due to air-polluting industries, along with thermal power plants, being relocated outside the urban areas.

What has China done to mitigate the climate issues?

Muhammad Asghar, a representative of the Associated Press of Pakistan in China, who has been living in Beijing for the past few years, said that China has done significant work on climate change.

"China has made substantial efforts to minimize the bad impact of climate change. For example, the Communist Party of China-led government has increased vegetation and decreased carbon emissions across China. The government has promoted the use of electric vehicles in place of gasoline-powered ones in order to mitigate the consequences of climate change," said Asghar.

China is also using other alternative energy sources to mitigate damages wrought by climate change. The International Energy Agency has predicted that China will reach 1,200 gigawatts of total wind and solar power capacity in 2026.

Asghar said that China has not only done good work to address the climate issues, but it has also done a lot in the field of biodiversity.  

Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in 2012, China has been prioritizing eco-environmental progress and pursuing green development under the guidance of President Xi Jinping and his thoughts on eco-civilization, according to an official statement of the State Council Information Office (SCIO) of the People's Republic of China.

"A new pattern of biodiversity conservation has largely taken shape, with improvements to the legal system, supervision mechanisms and the governing capacity for eco-conservation, marking the beginning of a new era for biodiversity conservation in China," said the SCIO.

Although China has done some significant work in the area of climate change and biodiversity, the Chinese seem to be modest with regard to their accomplishments.

This gives the sense that the Chinese government does not like empty talk and big words on solving the climate issues. However, their support for the fight against climate change is often reflected in daily life.

While visiting the cities in different parts of China, one can feel that the green transportation and energy industries that China has developed over the years have largely replaced fuel-powered cars, and the Chinese people are willing to use electric-powered cars and public transportation.

The greening and beautification of urban and rural areas have been accelerated and the living environment has been significantly improved with the greening coverage of urban built-up areas nationwide increasing from 39.22 percent to 42.06 percent between 2012 and 2021, and the green space per capita in cities has also increased from 11.8 square meters to 14.87 square meters.

When discussing the approaches that China has been taking in international conferences, the ideas they share are rational. Chinese netizens believe that rather than engaging in empty talk, it would be effective if we invest our time in planting tree.

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