Politics

A new provision to China's energy-saving law requires that performance reviews for local government officials include an assessment of their efforts on energy efficiency. The way in which energy-saving goals are accomplished will be made part of the performance rating of local governments and their leaders, according to the revised law. The revised law also stipulates that energy producers are not allowed to provide free energy to their employees.

The political report emerging from China's recent Party Congress said that the country needs to "build an ecological civilization." It's a remark that has attracted widespread attention. It represents an attempt by China's leaders to redefine the model of growth that China should follow, taking into account an objective analysis of severe problems the country faces in terms of resources. It also represents the state of Chinese thinking on the future of global civilization in the light of the world's shared environmental challenges.