"Two Mountains concept" leading the green transformation of China's economic society

Zhongde Huang; Yang Bai; Maroof Ali; Zhou Fang

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.120960

"Two Mountains concept" leading the green transformation of China's economic society

J Environ Manage. 2024 Apr 27:359:120960. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.120960. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Zhongde Huang¹, Yang Bai², Maroof Ali³, Zhou Fang³

Affiliations

¹ Center for Integrative Conservation & Yunnan Key Laboratory for Conservation of Tropical Rainforests and Asian Elephants, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Mengla, 666303, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China; Yunnan International Joint Laboratory of Southeast Asia Biodiversity Conservation, Menglun, 666303, China.
² Center for Integrative Conservation & Yunnan Key Laboratory for Conservation of Tropical Rainforests and Asian Elephants, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Mengla, 666303, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China; Yunnan International Joint Laboratory of Southeast Asia Biodiversity Conservation, Menglun, 666303, China. Electronic address: baiyang@xtbg.ac.cn.
³ Center for Integrative Conservation & Yunnan Key Laboratory for Conservation of Tropical Rainforests and Asian Elephants, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Mengla, 666303, China; Yunnan International Joint Laboratory of Southeast Asia Biodiversity Conservation, Menglun, 666303, China.

PMID: 38678897
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.120960

Abstract

The rapid urbanization are serious threats to global sustainable development, making the green transformation of socio-economy and industry a must for global efforts. The theory of ecological and economic harmonization in ecological economics has gained attention. However the Two Mountains concept, i.e., "Lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets", has been mostly neglected as a practical demonstration of the theory. In this study an equal weights method is used to construct an index system for testing the effectiveness of the ongoing practices and demonstrations of the Two Mountains concept, and whether it can achieve the expected green transformation objectives. A total of 421 pilot cases and 208 surrounding non-pilot cases in China from 2010 to 2020 are selected for analysis. The results indicate that: (1) From 2010 to 2020, overall 98.33% of pilots show positive improvement in comprehensive effectiveness; (2) Strong evidence indicate that the positive externality of the demonstrations extends to their surrounding region, mainly manifested in the impact of industrial structure change, inspiring collaboration between cities; (3) Such ambitious green transformation has a significant impact on landscape characteristics, which emphasizes the role of landscape management and monitoring. Therefore, this study proposes an industrial integration framework to enhance the transformation of ecosystem service values, to facilitate transition to a green economy in various regions globally. It provides significant managerial insights and practical expertise. The demonstration of China's Two Mountains concept can offer reliable empirical cases to enrich the theory of ecological economics and global sustainable development.

Keywords: Ecological civilization; Ecological effectiveness; Economic development; Ecosystem services; Green transformation; Sustainable development.