Cancun, Mexico - Non-governmental organizations from China and the United States agreed on Thursday to deepen their cooperation by establishing long-term exchanges and knowledge sharing on climate change issues between the two largest greenhouse gas emitters.

US and Chinese NGOs have cooperated informally to share tactics and strategies previously, but there is no stable, institutional arrangement or concrete set of objectives to leverage their collective strengths.

“We reached this agreement today for long tem cooperative action by capacity building and working together for a better understanding of both countries to mitigate climate change,” said Barbara Finamore, China Director at the Natural Resources Defense Council, in an interview with China Daily.

Representatives from both countries also established a symbolic $30 fast-start fund. “We will work together to reduce our own carbon foot print and to enable both of us to be more effective in the work we are doing on climate change,” Finamore said.