Tianjie

The old tea forest that kindles China’s ecological imagination Upon entering the wooden house of a Blang family, one is immediately struck by the presence of enormous, dried seed pods suspended from the beams. Often as large as a child’s arm, these pods originate...

Notes from my recent visit to the Jingmai Mountain in Yunnan, every educational trip. insearchofgreenchina.com/the-old-tea-...

Just read this thought-provoking piece. China's environmental record, especially pollution control, is arguably the biggest source of "performance-based legitimacy." It's direct, visible and done in a fashion that bears the distinctive marks of the "Chinese modernity" that Kaiser refers to.

Who is the Chinese delegate in “Kyoto”? Recently, I had the opportunity to watch the play “Kyoto” at Lincoln Center Theater in New York, a dramatized recreation of the international negotiations that resulted in the historic Kyoto Protocol ...

Watched "Kyoto" at Lincoln Center Theater recently and here is some digging behind the Chinese character in this play: lead negotiator Mr. Zhong Shukong and the legacy he left behind. insearchofgreenchina.com/who-is-the-c...

China’s shared bikes are quietly delivering results when no one is watching “Bike graveyards,” unpaid deposits, and chaotic streets—these were the global headlines a few years ago when China’s brightly colored, mobile phone-activated, dockless shared bikes appeared in major c...

Once seen as a scandalous bubble, is China's dockless bike sharing finally making sustainability sense? insearchofgreenchina.com/chinas-share...

Solid waste incineration: from devil to hero? There are not enough garbages to be burned by the country’s fleet of Waste-to-Energy (WTE) incinerators, a viral video circulating on Chinese social media proudly declared recently. The high-temperatu...

China's waste-to-energy incineration facilities collectively emit 100 million tons of CO2 a year and is yet considered a "carbon saving" industry encouraged to expand to the point of overcapacity (not enough garbage to be burned). Does this make sense? insearchofgreenchina.com/solid-waste-...

Thanks Calvin and @kaiserkuo.bsky.social for introducing the book!

The women in China’s environmental history On June 11th, Professor Tang Xiaoyan of Peking University passed away at the age of 93. In the days following her passing, environmental scientists, advocates, and policymakers around the world honore...

China just lost one of the leading figures of environmental science. She reminds us of women's role in greening the country insearchofgreenchina.com/the-women-in...

My interview with the NCUSCR on China's recent environmental history with a special focus on the important US-China interactions throughout that journey

Thursday 19th of June 2025

Not any more, at least in Q1 2025: insearchofgreenchina.com/is-energy-tr...

How did China become a green powerhouse? - Land and Climate Review Bertie speaks with Ma Tianjie, author of "In Search of Green China," discussing China’s environmental transformation and how protestors have influenced policymaking.

Thanks @bertiehb.bsky.social for a great conversation about my book and China's environmental politics. @landclimate.bsky.social is one more great green podcast on my listen list! www.landclimate.org/how-did-chin...

Thursday 19th of June 2025

China's 1.6% YoY reduction of emissions from its power sector in Q1 2025 just provided an interesting case in point for the "energy transition" vs. "energy addition" debate. Here is my take insearchofgreenchina.com/is-energy-tr...

Friday 28th of March 2025

My new blog on recent developments regarding the Tiger Leaping Gorge Dam and a key figure who mobilized opposition to it twenty years ago. This is to continue the conversation started in my book In Search of Green China (Polity, 2025). insearchofgreenchina.com/the-son-of-j...

BYD, “Slave-gate” and the soul search about China’s cutthroat industrial model The EV maker’s labor rights scandal in Brazil adds fodder to an ongoing debate about China’s industrial prosperity that appears to benefit few in the country

Per Reuters on Jan 8: BYD will be fined for each worker found in the labor rights scandal in Brazil. All 163 workers will return to China (some already have). My digest of Chinese online discussions on the case: pandapawdragonclaw.blog/2025/01/06/b...

Brilliant thread!