The Rise of a Green Society
463
year further specified the goal of building a “resource-saving, environment-friendly
society.” In 2007, the 17th CPC National Congress vowed to “develop ecological
civilization.” In 2012, the 18th CPC National Congress stated that man and nature
constitute a community of life and man must respect, accommodate to and protect
nature. Only by observing natural laws can man avoid detours in the development
and utilization of natural resources. We should, acting on the principles of prioritizing resource conservation and environmental protection and letting nature restore
itself, develop spatial layouts, industrial structures, and ways of work and life that
help conserve resources and protect the environment. With this, we can restore the
serenity, harmony, and beauty of nature. We must put ecological progress in a key
position, put it into practice in every aspect and the whole process of economic, political, cultural and social development, in the endeavor to build a beautiful China and
realize lasting development of the Chinese nation. The 19th CPC National Congress
in 2017 singled out pollution prevention and control as one of the three tough battles
that must be won in building a moderately prosperous society in all respects.
In particular, General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important remarks on environmental
protection have vividly and profoundly expounded the significance of this work
during social construction. For instance, “the environment has no substitute, and we
may not realize how truly precious it is until it is damaged to the point of being
unsalvageable”; “a civilization may thrive if its natural surroundings thrive, and will
suffer if its natural surroundings suffer”; “we should protect the environment like
we protect our eyes and treat the environment like it is our lives”; “protecting and
improving the environment is protecting and increasing productivity”; “lucid waters
and lush mountains are invaluable assets”; and “a good ecological environment is
the fairest public product, and the most accessible welfare for the people,” and so on
and so forth. Under the firm leadership of CPC Central Committee with Xi Jinping
at the core, China has accelerated the top-level design and institutional establishment for ecological civilization since the 18th CPC National Congress. It has set
to protect the environment with the most rigorous systems and regulations, made
faster institutional innovations, reinforced execution and taken a series of fundamental, innovative and forward-looking steps. As a result, we have got onto a fast
lane of environmental governance addressing symptoms and root causes simultaneously, along which historic, dramatic and comprehensive changes are taking place.
As such, environmental factors have been integrated in social construction in a new
light and have driven the profound changes of the society.
2 Main Endogenous Drive for Social Transformation
If our initial steps of environmental protection were somehow influenced by the international wave of environmental protection, our sustained and deepened efforts today
for environmental protection and ecological progress are a conscientious initiative in
response to domestic development demand. Particularly, in comparison to the most
developed countries’ retrogression in environmental protection and the consequent
463
year further specified the goal of building a “resource-saving, environment-friendly
society.” In 2007, the 17th CPC National Congress vowed to “develop ecological
civilization.” In 2012, the 18th CPC National Congress stated that man and nature
constitute a community of life and man must respect, accommodate to and protect
nature. Only by observing natural laws can man avoid detours in the development
and utilization of natural resources. We should, acting on the principles of prioritizing resource conservation and environmental protection and letting nature restore
itself, develop spatial layouts, industrial structures, and ways of work and life that
help conserve resources and protect the environment. With this, we can restore the
serenity, harmony, and beauty of nature. We must put ecological progress in a key
position, put it into practice in every aspect and the whole process of economic, political, cultural and social development, in the endeavor to build a beautiful China and
realize lasting development of the Chinese nation. The 19th CPC National Congress
in 2017 singled out pollution prevention and control as one of the three tough battles
that must be won in building a moderately prosperous society in all respects.
In particular, General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important remarks on environmental
protection have vividly and profoundly expounded the significance of this work
during social construction. For instance, “the environment has no substitute, and we
may not realize how truly precious it is until it is damaged to the point of being
unsalvageable”; “a civilization may thrive if its natural surroundings thrive, and will
suffer if its natural surroundings suffer”; “we should protect the environment like
we protect our eyes and treat the environment like it is our lives”; “protecting and
improving the environment is protecting and increasing productivity”; “lucid waters
and lush mountains are invaluable assets”; and “a good ecological environment is
the fairest public product, and the most accessible welfare for the people,” and so on
and so forth. Under the firm leadership of CPC Central Committee with Xi Jinping
at the core, China has accelerated the top-level design and institutional establishment for ecological civilization since the 18th CPC National Congress. It has set
to protect the environment with the most rigorous systems and regulations, made
faster institutional innovations, reinforced execution and taken a series of fundamental, innovative and forward-looking steps. As a result, we have got onto a fast
lane of environmental governance addressing symptoms and root causes simultaneously, along which historic, dramatic and comprehensive changes are taking place.
As such, environmental factors have been integrated in social construction in a new
light and have driven the profound changes of the society.
2 Main Endogenous Drive for Social Transformation
If our initial steps of environmental protection were somehow influenced by the international wave of environmental protection, our sustained and deepened efforts today
for environmental protection and ecological progress are a conscientious initiative in
response to domestic development demand. Particularly, in comparison to the most
developed countries’ retrogression in environmental protection and the consequent