On February 28, 2025, the Chinese Society for Environmental Sciences (CSES) and the Aurora Borealis Foundation (ABF) held a serious of online meetings on the International Symposium on Sustainable Development, with in-depth exchanges and discussions on the construction of ecological civilization, global sustainable development, and the preparations for the International Symposium on Sustainable Development.
ABF Chairman, Mr. Bo Ekman, explained the reasons for establishing the foundation in the Svalbard archipelago at the meeting. He pointed out that the Svalbard archipelago, as an important open territory globally, has a unique geographical location and ecological environment. The foundation is committed to maintaining the health and integrity of the earth's biosphere and promoting global sustainable development through scientific research, ecological protection, and international cooperation. Given the significant changes in the current global structure, the challenges of addressing climate change and sustainable development have become unprecedented. Strengthening dialogue and cooperation with China to jointly tackle global challenges is extremely urgent. The International Symposium on Sustainable Development will become an important platform for promoting dialogue and cooperation.
Dr. Zhou Tao, CSES Assistant Secretary-General introduced China's progress in the construction of ecological civilization and environmental protection, including the basic principles for the concept of ecological civilization, the important development process of China's ecological civilization construction, major policies and progress in areas such as air, water, soil, solid waste, and chemical management, China's policy actions in addressing climate change and achieving the "dual carbon" goals, as well as the goals and latest progress of “building a beautiful China”.
Anders Wijkman, former Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations and Honorary Chairman of the Club of Rome, emphasized the importance of ecological civilization as a long-term goal for global sustainable development. He argued that the current economic model lacks consideration for the natural environment and needs to be fundamentally transformed by incorporating nature into the economic models. He proposed that ecological civilization is not only a technological transformation but also a profound cultural and spiritual reform. Despite the challenges in the current international political environment, the advancement of ecological civilization is still necessary and requires the participation of global political, scientific, and creative leaders. He suggested that future meetings should further explore the way of integrating ecological civilization into the global sustainable development agenda, while also emphasizing the importance of combining short-term actions with long-term goals.
Goran Carstedt, former President of IKEA North America, highly praised China's achievements in the construction of ecological civilization, especially the progress in air quality improvement and ecosystem protection. He believed that China's experience in the field of ecological civilization is worth learning globally, and China can also benefit from the experiences of other countries. Goran suggested that in future meetings, ecological civilization should be one of the core issues to explore the ways of integrating it into the framework of the global sustainable development forum. He also mentioned that further discussions are needed on how to combine the concept of ecological civilization with specific actions, such as carbon markets and pollution prevention.
After in-depth exchanges, the experts reached a consensus on the overall structure and goals of the forum. Both sides will hold offline meetings in Sweden and Norway in April this year to prepare for the International Symposium on Sustainable Development to be held in Beijing in October. The experts all agreed that the concept of ecological civilization should be one of the important pillars for future forum discussions. Chinese and foreign experts emphasized that the integration of Eastern and Western wisdom is key to addressing global environmental challenges. China's concept of ecological civilization and traditional culture provide wisdom and Chinese solutions for global sustainable development. The forum will serve as an open global dialogue platform, promoting global ecological civilization construction through enhanced exchanges and cooperation.
This meeting laid a solid foundation for the convening of the International Symposium on Sustainable Development and demonstrated the common vision of Chinese and foreign institutions in promoting the construction of ecological civilization and sustainable development. Both sides look forward to continuous cooperation to make greater contributions to global ecological security and sustainable development.