On 10 October 2014 Federal Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks took part in the third Sino-German intergovernmental consultations in Berlin. The key element of these consultations was the joint plenary session with nine German ministers, fourteen Chinese ministers and several state secretaries, chaired by Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang.
Minister Hendricks and Zhou Shengxian, Chinese Minister of Environmental Protection, discussed successful cooperation between the two countries under the Sino-German environmental partnership and further areas of bilateral cooperation including air pollution control, green public procurement and water management. At the invitation of Zhou Shengxian, Minister Hendricks took on the deputy chair of the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development, following on in this function from the Norwegian Foreign Minister Borge Brende.
Within this council, which is currently focussing on the issues of urbanisation, air pollution control and environmental governance, and in other bilateral cooperation projects, both countries have been able to achieve success in the development of climate and environmental strategies in China in recent years. A number of German experts are currently advising the Chinese government on behalf of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety, bringing German expertise to Chinese environmental and climate policy. This successful cooperation will be further expanded.
Additionally, both sides agreed that the Sino-German Environment Forum, which takes place every three years, will take place in China in 2016. The forum, which is organised together with industry, is likely to deal with issues such as air pollution control, water management, resource and energy efficiency, the carbon market, biodiversity, green procurement, sustainable business, sustainable consumption and environmental labelling.
The action framework for Sino-German cooperation - "Innovation gemeinsam gestalten!" (Shaping innovation together) - adopted under the intergovernmental consultations reflects the key elements of the bilateral cooperation that will also be strengthened in future. These include greater cooperation on environmental and climate action and the expansion of the Sino-German urbanisation partnership.