Illustration: Liu Xidan/GT

"Lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets." "Wetlands and humanity are interdependent." Several bilingual banners in Chinese and Spanish are prominently displayed at the construction site of the Chinese-built Chancay Port in Peru. They demonstrate that China not only pursues harmony between humanity and nature in its own development, but also joins hands with other countries to build a clean and beautiful world.

The Chinese modernization is the modernization of harmony between humanity and nature. While accomplishing wonders in green development, China has also contributed wisdom and solutions to global environmental governance with its profound philosophy of ecological civilization.

The Chinese people have always revered and loved nature, and China's 5000-year-long civilization embodies a rich ecological cultural component. The belief that humans are an integral part of nature and need to follow nature's course is a distinctive feature of traditional Chinese culture.

Over 2,000 years ago, ancient Chinese philosopher Mencius told King Hui of Liang (the state of Wei, whose capital was at Liang) during China's Warring States Period (475-221 BC), "If the seasons of husbandry be not interfered with, the grain will be more than can be eaten. If chosen nets are not allowed to enter the pools and ponds, the fishes and turtles will be more than can be consumed. If the axes and bills enter the hills and forests only at the proper time, the woods will be more than can be used."

As times change and the world evolves, ancient Chinese wisdom has taken on a new connotation. 

Laying green foundation of Chinese modernization

Guided by the philosophy that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets, China has persisted with a holistic and systematic approach to conserving and improving mountain, water, forest, farmland, grassland, and desert ecosystems. It has ensured stronger ecological conservation and environmental protection across the board, in all regions, and at all times, which has led to historic, transformative, and comprehensive changes in ecological and environmental protection.

For instance, the Taklimakan Desert, the largest desert in China, has been completely encircled with a sand-blocking green belt stretching 3,046 kilometers, which is the world's longest ecological shield around a desert. 

Thanks to three generations of dedicated foresters, Saihanba, located in the northern reaches of China's Hebei Province, has turned from a barren wilderness into the world's largest man-made forest. 

Launched in East China's Zhejiang Province, the Green Rural Revival Program has received the Champions of the Earth award, the United Nation's highest environmental honor, as it has shown the transformative power of economic and environmental development.

As China embraces a green and beautiful future, a magnificent green picture is unfolding across the country, laying the green foundation of Chinese modernization. In recent years, the "green quotient" in China's economic and social development has continued to rise. China has become the first country in the world with "zero increase" in land degradation, and its newly added area of afforestation accounts for a quarter of the global total.

Joining hands to push forward global green development

As the world's largest developing country, China has been working with other countries to pursue green development and push forward global environmental protection.

At the 2024 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, China announced that it is ready to help Africa build "green growth engines," narrow the gap in energy accessibility, adhere to the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, and jointly push for the global transition to green and low-carbon development.

At the 31st APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting held in Peru, China proposed to prioritize ecological protection, promote resources conservation and their efficient use as well as green and low-carbon development, and push forward coordinated digital and green transformation and development to create new momentum and new drivers for Asia-Pacific development.

At the Session II of the 19th G20 Summit held in Brazil, China called for efforts to improve global ecological governance and build a world economy characterized by eco-friendliness, saying that it stands ready to continue to deepen international cooperation with all sides on green infrastructure, green energy, green mining and green transport, and will provide support to developing countries to the best of its ability.

China is working for global cooperation on ecological conservation, which demonstrates its commitment to building a community of life for humankind and nature.

Promoting global environmental governance for win-win cooperation

As a participant, contributor and trailblazer in global ecological conservation, China is committed to putting multilateralism into action and promoting a fair and equitable system of global environmental governance for win-win cooperation, making contributions to protecting the shared home planet of humanity.

China has worked for the adoption, ratification, entry into force and implementation of the Paris Agreement, successfully hosted the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15), and initiated the Belt and Road Initiative International Green Development Coalition.

So far, it has signed 53 memoranda of understanding on South-South climate cooperation with 42 developing countries, started nearly 100 mitigation and adaptation programs, and hosted over 300 capacity-building workshops related to climate change. 

While keeping in mind that humanity lives in a community with a shared future, China has made significant contributions to building a clean and beautiful world. 

Sebastien Perimony, a researcher with the Schiller Institute, believes that China's proactive efforts and extensive cooperation have injected positive energy into the global fight against climate change.

As a Chinese poem reads, "Heaven does not speak and it alternates the four seasons; earth does not speak and it nurtures all things." Earth is humanity's only home, and protecting the environment is a common challenge and shared responsibility of everyone. 

China remains unwaveringly committed to advancing Chinese modernization featuring harmony between humanity and nature, and fostering global exchanges and cooperation in ecological conservation, so as to let the torch of respecting and protecting nature light up humanity's way forward.

He Yin is an international commentary column of the People's Daily, founded in November 2019. This piece was first published in People's Daily. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn