A Systematic Understanding of the Highlights, Difficulties …
157
mechanism and focus on building a government-led, enterprise-based governance
system for an ecological civilization, since the ecological civilization development
and the provision of ecological products are not only for public interest and universal
benefit, but also for profits in the market. Being “government-led” means that the
government should fulfill its responsibilities for establishing rules and regulations,
and formulating plans and policies, in order to regulate and guide the society and
the market. However, it does not mean that the government should take on all duties,
nor should it take administrative orders as the only way of doing its job. Being
“enterprise-based” require us to tap into the commercial value of all kinds of ecological goods based on the concept that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable
assets, and make full use of market tools to attract more market entities to join the
effort. More specifically, this means that we need to improve the pricing mechanism
for resources and the environment, and the long-term mechanism for concrete gains
to act as the guide based on reward and punishment rules, compensation for environmental damages, and various other specific measures. For example, Inner Mongolia
tried an approach that combines government guidance, enterprise investment, and
public participation with the support of technological innovations such as growing
liquorice for soil improvement, in its efforts to combat further desertification in the
Kubuqi Desert, delivering good results mainly in four aspects: Deserts turned green,
the liquorice business thrived, soil was improved, and local people were helped out of
poverty. This pattern that benefits all is worthy of replication as it solves the problem
of high investment and low output caused by excessive government engagement in
environmental governance and the sole emphasis on restrictions rather than offering
incentives.
3. Learning from advanced international practices
Learning is a shortcut to success. Objective rules in ecological civilization development make some stages difficult, if not impossible to stride over. As developed countries encountered ecological and environmental problems earlier, they have gained
much experience in such areas as ecological protection legislation, environmentaleconomic policies, green, low-carbon and sustainable economic development, awareness raising for ecological and environmental protection, and the upgrading of the
industrial structure. On the one hand, we must leverage our latecomer advantage
to draw lessons from what they have gone through, avoiding pitfalls as much as
possible, especially that of “pollution first and treatment later.” On the other hand,
we can learn advanced concepts, technologies and management models from them
to promote ecological progress and green development from a higher starting point.
For instance, in 1872, the United States passed a law to establish the world’s first
national park, the Yellowstone, which, hosting the world’s most complete temperate
ecosystem in the northern hemisphere, and was listed as a world natural heritage site
in 1978. Building national parks has become a widespread convention for the conservation of nature and culture, producing a series of advanced conservation ideas and
patterns. In 2015, the Chinese government drew on foreign experience and launched a
pilot national park system in nine provinces to gather administration responsibilities
from multiple departments for a raft of nature reserves, scenic areas, natural heritage
157
mechanism and focus on building a government-led, enterprise-based governance
system for an ecological civilization, since the ecological civilization development
and the provision of ecological products are not only for public interest and universal
benefit, but also for profits in the market. Being “government-led” means that the
government should fulfill its responsibilities for establishing rules and regulations,
and formulating plans and policies, in order to regulate and guide the society and
the market. However, it does not mean that the government should take on all duties,
nor should it take administrative orders as the only way of doing its job. Being
“enterprise-based” require us to tap into the commercial value of all kinds of ecological goods based on the concept that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable
assets, and make full use of market tools to attract more market entities to join the
effort. More specifically, this means that we need to improve the pricing mechanism
for resources and the environment, and the long-term mechanism for concrete gains
to act as the guide based on reward and punishment rules, compensation for environmental damages, and various other specific measures. For example, Inner Mongolia
tried an approach that combines government guidance, enterprise investment, and
public participation with the support of technological innovations such as growing
liquorice for soil improvement, in its efforts to combat further desertification in the
Kubuqi Desert, delivering good results mainly in four aspects: Deserts turned green,
the liquorice business thrived, soil was improved, and local people were helped out of
poverty. This pattern that benefits all is worthy of replication as it solves the problem
of high investment and low output caused by excessive government engagement in
environmental governance and the sole emphasis on restrictions rather than offering
incentives.
3. Learning from advanced international practices
Learning is a shortcut to success. Objective rules in ecological civilization development make some stages difficult, if not impossible to stride over. As developed countries encountered ecological and environmental problems earlier, they have gained
much experience in such areas as ecological protection legislation, environmentaleconomic policies, green, low-carbon and sustainable economic development, awareness raising for ecological and environmental protection, and the upgrading of the
industrial structure. On the one hand, we must leverage our latecomer advantage
to draw lessons from what they have gone through, avoiding pitfalls as much as
possible, especially that of “pollution first and treatment later.” On the other hand,
we can learn advanced concepts, technologies and management models from them
to promote ecological progress and green development from a higher starting point.
For instance, in 1872, the United States passed a law to establish the world’s first
national park, the Yellowstone, which, hosting the world’s most complete temperate
ecosystem in the northern hemisphere, and was listed as a world natural heritage site
in 1978. Building national parks has become a widespread convention for the conservation of nature and culture, producing a series of advanced conservation ideas and
patterns. In 2015, the Chinese government drew on foreign experience and launched a
pilot national park system in nine provinces to gather administration responsibilities
from multiple departments for a raft of nature reserves, scenic areas, natural heritage