About the China Environment Forum

Since 1997, the China Environment Forum (CEF) has implemented projects, workshops, and exchanges that bring together US, Chinese, and other environmental policy experts to explore the most imperative environmental and sustainable development issues in China and to examine opportunities for business, governmental, and nongovernmental communities to collaboratively address these issues.

This work has established CEF as one of the most reliable sources for China-environment information and has given CEF the capacity to undertake specialized projects. Cooperative Competitors: US-China Clean Energy and Climate Collaboration is CEF’s longest-running program, which explores various areas for the two countries to cooperate or compete on climate action at both government and nongovernmental levels. 

CEF previously worked on the Turning the Tide on Plastics in Asia initiative examining trends, innovative partnerships and policies to reign in plastic pollution in China and Southeast Asia. Other past initiatives include: Choke Point: China explored the country’s water-energy nexus, From Farm to Fork investigated US and Chinese food safety issues. 

 CEF’s current project:

1. Cultivating US and Chinese Leadership on Food and Climate: Food and agriculture generate 20 percent of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. As the United States and China are food superpowers, CEF will delve into drivers of GHGs in food production in both countries (including agricultural imports) in this new three-year project. Our planned dialogues and publications aim to create a roadmap for collaboration and joint learning to mitigate these food-related emissions.

2. Vulnerable Deltasis CEF’s newest water and climate project. In partnership with the East-West Center, CEF and its partners will generate innovative research, policy dialogues and learning tools around climate, pollution and development threats facing five Asian river deltas — Three in SE Asia (Chao Phraya, Mekong, Mahakam) and two in China (Yangtze, and Pearl). A large component of CEF’s work on this four-year project will focus on greening China’s BRI investments in Southeast Asia to protect rivers and their deltas.

3. The Plastic Pipeline: The Wilson Center's China Environment Forum and Serious Games Initiative are currently developing an educational digital game: The Plastic Pipeline. The game will raise public awareness on the plastic product lifecycle and policies, as well as highlight consumer and business actions to slow plastic leakage into the ocean.  

Internships with the China Environment Forum