Strengthen cooperation to advance climate goals

While Santiago and Beijing sit on opposite sides of the world, they have more in common than most people realize. Both capitals are hemmed in by mountains, where polluted winter air once settled like a gray lid, posing health risks for millions of people. And both chose to do something about it.

As the minister of environment of Chile, I oversaw efforts to improve Santiago's air quality. We made significant progress by acknowledging the problem, promoting solutions with the right incentives and prioritizing public health. The approach mirrors Beijing's strategy, with both cities transitioning to cleaner energy, modernizing vehicle fleets, and incentivizing clean transportation.

Chile now boasts the largest fleet of electric buses outside China, with around 70 percent of its buses being electric. This transformation is not a symbolic pilot but the backbone of public transport for millions of people. When oil prices spiked due to disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, Santiago's transport fares remained stable. Electrification insulated ordinary families from a crisis thousands of kilometers away.

Many of the electric buses running in Chile were built in China. The battery storage capacity that Chile is installing this year surpasses the country's installed coal capacity.

China's global leadership in electrification and renewable energy is helping drive transformative changes in how people move and live in Chile. The resilience of China's energy system during the Middle East oil shocks proves that committing to clean energy, both on the streets and in people's homes, can offer incredible economic rewards.

Countries across the Global South are rapidly adopting clean technology, bypassing the paths that lead to pollution and heading straight toward clean solutions.

The results speak for themselves: over the past decade, both Santiago and Beijing have made significant strides in reducing pollution and improving air quality.

These remarkable achievements highlight the impact of policy shifts and changing consumer behavior, and indicate what global action on cleaner air can lead to. We can build on these successes to ensure that communities are safer, more livable and healthier. The Global Methane Hub is dedicated to accelerating action by policymakers, researchers and investors to reduce methane emissions, which promises economic and public health benefits.

A recent United Nations Environment Programme report emphasized that climate change and air pollution were interconnected and identified 25 solutions to address these issues. Its key finding is that an integrated climate and clean air strategy can reduce methane emissions by 60 percent by 2050, preventing global warming by about one-third of a degree by 2050. This approach is estimated to offer a return of around $15 on every $1 invested.

China has laid a strong foundation for these efforts through its methane emissions control action plan, and the inclusion of methane and non-carbon dioxide greenhouse gases in China's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) for Building a Beautiful China. The plan includes critical regulations for energy production, waste management and agriculture. It also addresses the environmental impact of manure management. These measures complement existing clean technologies such as renewable energy and electric vehicles, further reducing emissions due to lower dependence on fossil fuel extraction.

These initiatives are already yielding results. New rice varieties requiring less water are reducing emissions and increasing farmers' incomes, while leading livestock companies are guided by world-class Environment, Social and Governance disclosure rules.

I am eager to collaborate with key stakeholders in China to build on methane reduction efforts and foster partnerships with other countries in the Global South. Mitigating methane can enhance food and energy security, improve air quality and contribute to a safer climate. In a year likely to be one of the hottest on record, we need a climate emergency brake. Mitigating methane is one of the fastest ways to lower temperatures in the short term.

Even with rapid decarbonization, the UNEP estimates that the world may overshoot 1.5 degrees of warming within the next few years. Cutting carbon dioxide will determine the eventual stabilization of temperatures, while reducing methane will influence their peak and duration above critical thresholds. China's capacity to produce clean technology at scale can help countries across Latin America, Africa and Asia to achieve win-win outcomes in climate action. Working together is the fastest way to achieve a safer climate and cleaner air for all.

The author is the CEO of the Global Methane Hub and former minister of environment of Chile.

The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

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