Over the past 30 years, China has developed rapidly to become the world’s second largest economy, reaching the status of a middle-income country.

Realizing this success, however, has involved a development approach entailing massive and inefficient resource use, and extensive damage to the quality of air, water and soil. Transforming from a resource- and pollution-intensive economy to a green economy is now a strategic priority for China. Success depends on the development of green industries and the transformation and reduced importance of many traditional industries. Success will be built heavily on green finance, and this is where China is headed.