Shortly after the closing ceremonies of the Shanghai 2010 Expo, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged China to continue moving down the path of sustainable development and emphasis more on environmental sustainability. Holding the title as the world’s most populous country with the fastest growing economy, China has become the world’s largest manufacturer and exporter but unfortunately the greatest emitter of greenhouse gases. “Your environmental footprint is growing daily,” according to Ban. Many of these development problems were raised during discussions as Chinese leaders recently met to draw the 12th Five-Year Plan for economic and social development from 2010 to 2015.
With the reduction in costs of transportation and rapid advances of information technology, globalization has allowed different firms from far corners of the earth to collaborate and ignore time zone differences. As scare and non-renewable resources continue to diminish, sustainable development has never been so important. The idea of preserving mother earth for future generations has recognized to be top priority of the world’s agenda. The rapid pace of globalization has also create problems such as desertification, global climate change, ozone depletion, and so much more. It is everyone’s responsibility to go one step further and make the world a better place.
Sources: Han Yueling, Xinhua
URL: http://english.cri.cn/6909/2010/11/01/167s602132.
