The Belt and Road International Forum on Public Cooperation for Ecological Remediation, hosted by the China Green Foundation, the China NGO Network for International Exchanges and the foreign cooperation project center of the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, was held in Wuwei (Gansu province) on September 12 and 13. The forum’s theme was “sharing the experience of China’s ecological management, promoting international cooperation among NGOs and facilitating ecological co-construction and sharing”.
A total of 180 representatives from over 20 countries and international organizations were in attendance, including members of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, the International Network of Bamboo and Rattan, the Asia-Pacific Network for Sustainable Forest Managemenet, the International Union for Conservation of Nature and World Wildlife Fund.
The forum’s most concrete achievement was probably the launching of a cooperation fund for a cross-border plan to restore the poplar forests. China’s poplar forests cover an area of about 395,000 hectares, accounting for 61% of the world’s total. Under the plan, three restoration belts will be built connecting Northwest China with some of its Central Asian neighbours. The launch of an international ecological restoration fund to promote a green economy in countries along the BRI was also announced.
The forum can be considered to be the first time Chinese players attempt to build a platform for public cooperation in ecological remediation on the international stage.
