Written by via berkeley.edu
SACRAMENTO – California Secretary for Environmental Protection Yana Garcia and California Transportation Secretary Toks Omishakin recently visited Shanghai, Hong Kong, and the Chinese provinces of Guangdong and Hainan to advance critical subnational partnerships on climate and identify additional opportunities for collaboration and shared learning.
The trip built on Gov. Gavin Newsom’s visit in October 2023, when California signed five memorandums of understanding (MOUs) that strengthen California’s work with China on climate action and set the stage for more subnational discussions and cooperation.
“Building on California and China’s long history of climate cooperation has never been more important as we all continue to face the growing impacts of climate change. Partnership at all levels of government is critical to protecting our communities from extreme weather and pollution,” said Secretary Garcia. “With our colleagues in China we are continuing to accelerate the deployment of nature-based solutions to capture carbon and improve community resilience, cut pollution from the transportation and goods movement sectors, and catalyze investment in the circular economy. No country or state is in this alone. Visits like these provide opportunities for shared learning and people-to-people partnership vital to achieving California’s world-leading climate goals.”
“Transportation is all about strengthening connections, and that was a big part of this trip to China,” said Secretary Omishakin. “From touring the world’s largest seaport to gaining insight on battery swapping technology for electric vehicles to sharing ideas and best practices with high-ranking Chinese officials, we continue to build upon the trans-Pacific relationships developed by Governor Newsom to help maintain and grow California’s standing as a world leader in clean transportation.”
Highlights from the March 2024 trip:
The secretaries finalized the 2024 implementation workplans for two of California’s MOUs with Chinese governments:
Shanghai MOU,PDF download signed in October 2023 in Shanghai: Declares California and Shanghai’s plan to build on the green shipping corridors between Shanghai and the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, and to exploring joint action on air quality, greenhouse gas emissions reductions, clean energy, climate adaptation and resilience, and nature-based climate solutions.
Hainan MOU,PDF download signed in August 2023 in Sacramento: Outlines five areas of cooperation between California and Hainan – cutting air pollution, developing and implementing climate adaptation and carbon neutrality plans, advancing clean energy, accelerating zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) and driving nature-based solutions.