As the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China holds its fourth plenary session from October 20 to 23 in Beijing, China, the world's second-largest economy, is undergoing a profound transformation driven by scientific and technological innovation, shifting its development focus from quantity to quality. In the realm of building a green future, China is leveraging technology to march toward a low-carbon future, playing a crucial role in addressing climate change.

In the field of renewable energy hardware and system integration innovation, China has been a global leader. Take photovoltaic (PV) power as an example. The Tengger Desert Solar Park in in northwestern China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region is one of the largest PV power bases in the world. With advanced PV panel technologies and intelligent monitoring systems, it can efficiently convert sunlight into electricity. Its installed capacity of renewable energy has ranked first worldwide for many consecutive years, exceeding 2 billion kilowatts by the end of April 2025.

In 2024 alone, the newly installed capacity of renewable energy reached 373 million kilowatts, accounting for nearly 64 percent of the world's total. China has also made remarkable achievements in reducing the cost of renewable energy generation. Over the past decade, it has helped cut the average cost of electricity by 60 percent for global wind power generation projects, like the massive wind farms in northern China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, and by 80 percent for global photovoltaic power generation projects. This not only consolidates China's dominant position in the global clean energy supply chain but also makes clean energy more accessible and affordable worldwide.

The Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud computing are revolutionizing energy management and carbon emission monitoring in industries, cities, and agriculture. In the steel industry, Baosteel in Shanghai uses IoT sensors to monitor the energy consumption of each production line in real-time. The data is then analyzed via cloud computing to adjust production processes, reducing energy waste and carbon emissions. In cities, the smart grid system in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, powered by cloud computing, can dynamically balance energy supply and demand. During peak hours, it redirects electricity from storage facilities or renewable energy sources to meet the surge in demand, and during off-peak hours, it stores excess electricity. In agriculture, farms in Shandong Province utilize IoT-enabled devices to track the carbon footprint of activities such as irrigation and fertilizer application. Farmers can then make data-driven decisions to adopt more sustainable practices, like using precision irrigation to save water and reduce associated carbon emissions from water pumping.

Frontier technologies like carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS), green hydrogen, and biodegradable materials are also making strides in industrialization in China. The Shenhua CCUS project in Ordos, northern China's Inner Mongolia Region, is a prime example. It captures carbon dioxide emissions from coal-to-oil processes and injects them into underground reservoirs for enhanced oil recovery, preventing the carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere. Meanwhile, Green hydrogen, produced using renewable energy from wind and solar farms in Qinghai Province, is being used in the chemical industry as a clean feedstock. Biodegradable materials, such as those made from corn starch and used in packaging by companies in Zhejiang Province, are replacing traditional plastics, reducing pollution. These technologies are vital in helping China achieve its "dual carbon" goals of peaking carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality before 2060.

With such technological advancements, China is not only forging its own path to a low-carbon future but also contributing significantly to global climate action, showing the way for other nations in the pursuit of sustainable development.