China's Climate Change Challenge

Dr. Xuedu Lu, Advisor on Climate Change at the Asian Development Bank, will discuss China's actions to mitigate climate change today, the future outlook of such policies, and its implications for international efforts.

Speaker: Xuedu Lu
Advisor on Climate Change, Asian Development Bank

Moderator: Jennifer Turner
China Environment Forum

China’s rapid economic growth brought with it the complementary distinctions of becoming the world’s largest consumer of energy, and its top emitter of greenhouse gases. In spite of taking notable action in recent years in the form of increased investment on environmental infrastructure, and strengthened accountability and enforcement, China still faces potential crises on many environmental fronts. As the world’s second largest economy and its most populous country, China’s actions are fundamental to any global solution combating climate change. Dr. Xuedu Lu, Advisor on Climate Change at the Asian Development Bank, will discuss China’s actions to mitigate climate change today, the future outlook of such policies, and its implications for international efforts. .

Dr. Xuedu Lu is an Advisor on Climate Change in the Regional and Sustainable Development Department of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Dr. Lu oversees the ADB’s work on climate change and provides high level advice to the Carbon Market Program. Prior to joining the ADB in July 2010, Dr. Lu worked as the Deputy Director General of the National Climate Center of the People’s Republic of China, responsible for research, policy and international negotiations on climate change. Before he joined the National Climate Center, Dr. Lu served as Deputy Head of the Office of Global Environmental Affairs at the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) in the PRC, leading a team to manage international and national programs on various global environmental issues, including climate change, bio-diversity, desertification, ozone protection and persistent organic pollutants. In this capacity he crafted government policies and regulations related to these areas and represented the government as chief negotiator in numerous international meetings. As the representative of MOST, he was acting as the Co-Chairman of the National CDM Board. Before joining the government, he led a research team at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

Dr. Lu holds a Ph.D. in Engineering from Tsinghua University and is an Adjunct Professor at Tongji University, Tianjin University, and Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology.

 Dr. Jennifer Turner has been the Director of the China Environment Forum at the Woodrow Wilson Center for 13 years. She has testified before Congress, led trainings for Chinese officials, and assisted international and Chinese NGOs and researchers in developing projects of impact. Jennifer also serves as editor of the Wilson Center’s journal, the China Environment Series, which is mailed to over 4,000 environmental practitioners around the world who work on China’s energy and environmental issues. She received a Ph.D. in Public Policy and Comparative Politics in 1997 from Indiana University, Bloomington. In her dissertation, she examined local government innovation in implementing water policies in China. Her current research focuses heavily on water and environmental activism in China.

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