Titolo completo

Greening the Belt and Road Initiative and the 2030 Agenda: China’s Environmental Diplomacy Discourse in Focus

To address concerns about the Belt and Road Initiative's (BRI's) environmental impact, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has created an environmental governance architecture with the intention of transforming the project into a climate-neutral and nature-positive ‘Green BRI’. Through this architecture and bilateral engagements with BRI states, Beijing has produced a distinct environmental diplomacy discourse revolving around the synergies between the BRI and the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including environmental goals 7 (affordable and clean energy) and 13 (climate action). However, in key recipient states such as Pakistan and Kazakhstan, progress towards SDGs 7 and 13 is driven largely by domestic priorities, with limited evidence that Beijing’s environmental diplomacy discourse results in measurable outcomes on the ground.
Keywords: 2030 Agenda; Belt and Road Initiative; China; environmental diplomacy; foreign policy; Global South