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Julia Hollingsworth

Only a decade ago, the world’s biggest polluter China was calling on developed countries to take responsibility, while other countries criticised it for failing to act.
China was seen as a tough negotiator during the Copenhagen negotiations in 2009, when it refused to agree to a mandatory target for emission cuts. However, China’s stance eventually shifted. In the talks held in Durban in 2011, China, for the first time, signalled that it was willing to establish a legal binding agreement in 2015.
The shift is a result of China’s domestic pressure to cut carbon emissions and develop clean energies. It was also seen by analysts at the time as a move to improve its image after it was blamed for wrecking talks in Copenhagen.
Now with the US pulling out from the Paris accord reached in 2015, there are high hopes that China will take up a leadership role.
Here we look back at how China has changed.
A climate for change: how China went from zero to hero in fight against global warming in just 6 years
2007
China refuses to agree to binding targets to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, saying it doesn’t have the capability. Lu Xuedu, the deputy director of China’s office of global environmental affairs, criticises developed countries for playing the “games of children” over global warming.

At a UN summit in Bali, 180 countries – including China – agree to a compromise on a deal which doesn’t require binding greenhouse gas targets for developing countries.
How China overtook the US in leading the battle against climate change
Countries agree on a clean development mechanism which allows richer countries to earn credits if they invest in emissions reduction projects in developing countries.
2008
China remains resistant to internationally binding goals for emissions reductions and continues to stress that the main responsibility lies with developed nations at the Poznan climate change conference in Poland. Before the conference, Chinese premier Wen Jiabao urges rich nations to cast aside their “unsustainable lifestyle”.
2009
Outwardly, China appears to change its tune: it commits to raising the share of its renewable energy to 6 per cent by 2020, and says at least 10 solar farms are under construction. It agreed to slash greenhouse gas emissions by 40-45 per cent by 2020.

But when parties meet in December at the Copenhagen Summit, the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Denmark, they struggle to reach an agreement after hours of tense negotiation. China rejected calls from America for its emissions to be independently monitored and resisted a worldwide agreement to halve emissions by 2050.
With US out of Paris climate deal, China’s now able to lead … but is it willing?
In the final chaotic hours, world leaders, including the United States and China, agree to the Copenhagen Accord, which recognises the need to limit the global temperature rise to 2 degrees Celsius.
But the countries still can’t agree on a legally binding commitment. China, the world’s biggest polluter, is widely criticised for wrecking the talks and insisting on an awful deal.
2010
China joins the United States and more than 130 nations as a party to the Copenhagen Accord, which was announced in December 2009. The non-binding accord requires participating countries to pledge actions they’ll take to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, and is the first time all of the world’s major economies offer explicit climate pledges.
Trump pulls US out of climate pact: is China set to lead?
At the end of the year, world leaders meet in Cancun, Mexico. Parties agree to establish a Green Climate Fund to help finance projects in developing countries. This time, China is seen as taking a more constructive approach and Chinese negotiators hint they might be willing to settle on a legally binding deal.
2011
In Durban, South Africa, China says it is willing to enter into a legally binding agreement – if it and other developing countries can be treated differently from rich countries. It’s a deal breaker for the United States. The parties can’t agree on treaty, but agree to establish a legally binding deal in 2015.

It was the first time the world’s three biggest emitters – United States, China and India – signed up to a legal treaty to cut carbon. “After years of preferring to slink into the background, China is now a powerful player in the climate talks,” said a comment piece in The Globe and Mail.
2012
In December, countries meet in Doha, Qatar, and agree to extend the Kyoto Protocol, which was days away from expiring. Parties also agreed that countries worst hit by climate change could be entitled to compensation. The head of the Chinese delegation at Doha, Xie Zhenhua, continues to reiterate that developed countries should do more as developing countries are the “victims of climate change”.
2013
The ongoing stalemate between China and the United States over whether developed countries should do more means there’s still nothing legally binding when nations meet in Warsaw, Poland. The G77 countries and China led 132 poor countries in a walkout during discussions over compensation for countries hit hardest by global warming. Countries agree to announce their emission reduction contributions in 2015.
2014
Both the United States and China commit to ambitious new targets in Lima, Peru. China says its carbon dioxide emissions will peak around 2030 or earlier, and boost non-fossil fuels to about 20 per cent by 2030. Leaders around the world promise to reach a new climate agreement the next year.
2015
Leaders from 200 countries negotiate the Paris Agreement – the deal that United States President Donald Trump has pulled out of. They promise to voluntarily reduce their emissions to targets they set themselves, which are not legally binding. The agreement will enter into force when at least 55 countries join, representing at least 55 per cent of global greenhouse emissions. China claims the deal as a victory. Then-United States President Barack Obama calls Chinese President Xi Jinping to express his appreciation for the “important role China played in securing an historic climate agreement in Paris”.
2016
On Earth Day, 2016, 174 countries sign the Paris Agreement in New York. United States and China, the world’s two biggest emitters, announce they will formally ratify the agreement. The move is seen as two big countries coming together to tackle the problem. China’s vow to cut coal consumption is seen as China actively behaving like a superpower.
2017
Xi Jinping urges the international community to stand behind the Paris Agreement, while Trump pulls out of the deal.


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China 101

Looking back at how China’s stance on climate change shifted

A view of Qianan in Hebei province in December last year. Qianan, with many smoking factories and three-hour drive from China's capital city Beijing, is regarded as one of the air pollutant sources of the capital. Photo: Simon Song

epa05943299 People wear masks while a heavy sand storm hits Beijing, China, 04 May 2017. The Beijing and national meteorological authorities issued a blue alert on air pollution as a sand storm hit the region. EPA/WU HONG

epaselect epa05942935 A general view shows buildings seen through a heavy sandstorm hitting Beijing, China, 04 May 2017. The Beijing and national meteorological authorities issued a blue alert on air pollution as a sand storm hit the region. EPA/WU HONG

(FILES) This file photo taken on March 28, 2016 shows the skyline of Shanghai on a polluted day. China is suspending local meteorological bureaus from issuing smog alerts, media reported on January 18, 2017, raising suspicions the government is attempting to suppress information about the country's air pollution as public anger over the issue grows. / AFP PHOTO / Johannes EISELE

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With the US having abandoned the Paris Agreement, Beijing is poised to take a leadership role on the issue. But its willingness did not come overnight


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