Training Workshop on Asian Development Pathways and transitioning towards a “Green Economy" held in Nanjing, China

Against a backdrop of blistering economic growth and rapid demographic changes in developing Asia, IHDP recently organised a Training Workshop on Asian Development Pathways and transitioning towards a “Green Economy ”, held from October 17 to 21 in Nanjing, China. Participants of the workshop represented the scientific community and public and private sectors from across the Asia-Pacific region. At the centre of the event was the question of how to transform the basic economic sectors of Asian countries to be environmentally and economically sustainable.

The Green Economy, defined by the United Nations Environment Programme as an economy that improves human well-being and social equity while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities, is broadly considered a crucial component of a global shift toward sustainable development . A question often neglected, however, is to what extent fundamental societal shifts are a prerequisite for a Green Economy to successfully meet this challenge? Indeed, pathways that would lead to such an economy remain undefined.

Is the concept of the Green Economy still too vague?

The Nanjing workshop utilised the “ United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development” (UNCSD 2012) to address these issues and provide the context for a critical exploration of questions concerning the human dimensions – that is, the social and economic dimensions – of a Green Economy. While “ Green Economy within the Context of Sustainable Development and Poverty Reduction” is one of the major themes at the UNCSD 2012, the concept of Green Economy was criticised by many countries as too vague during the run-up to the Conference. The UNCSD 2012 proved an opportunity to combine a critical approach on the issue with a focus on policy-relevant solutions.

As participants of the workshop came from the Asian-Pacific region, this event also made for a great example of a regional activity with international outreach and of the integration of local stakeholders into existing international research and policy networks . The institutional cooperation between IHDP, its Chinese National Committee (CNC-IHDP) and the Asian-Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN), which provided funding for the workshop, further illustrated this. A history of productive collaboration between these actors as well as IHDP’s 14 years of experience in organising training workshops and its scientific expertise illustrated by the ten years of research in Industrial Transformation (IHDP-IT project) ensured the success of this event. Participants identified goals such as equity, inclusiveness, and compatibility with other important social and political values, while exploring which transition pathways toward a Green Economy are feasible and desirable in the context of rapidly developing Asian economies.         

Strengthening personal networks

The workshop was held over a week and provided ample opportunities for interaction among the participants, senior scholars, key policy experts and business leaders. Each training day began with a series of lectures given by renowned scientists, experts in science-policy interaction. In the afternoons, participants were organised into working groups to address a particular aspect of the Green Economy. As a result of these activities, the workshop raised participants’ critical understanding of the human dimensions of global environmental change, and increased their capacity to conduct research on topics relevant for the development for the Asian-Pacific region. Strengthening the personal networks between individual scientists and policy-makers was key to the workshop. Participants became over the workshop increasingly receptive to each other’s positions and ultimately identified mutually beneficial solutions to environmental challenges. The results of this interaction are exemplified in the policy-briefs and funding proposals that participants began producing during the workshop, and which will drive the discourse on transitions towards green economy and sustainability in the region.