Low Carbon Innovation in China - Prospects, Politics and Practice

China's efforts to low-carbon transition are a key issue for the whole world in the coming decades. China's spectacular economic growth over 30 years has both propelled it to the core of the global economy and geopolitics while also generating massive and growing greenhouse gas emissions; China is now the top global emitter in absolute terms. There are now many programmes of low-carbon innovation in China. Beyond energy generation, system change in various sectors, such as agriculture and transport, is vital. These efforts also interact closely with a top policy priority of the Chinese government to upgrade innovation capacities and economic competitiveness while keeping state control. A century ago, the innovation and related socio-political change occurring in the rising US superpower came to shape societies across the world. Today, whether or not China's low-carbon transition succeeds, and the qualitative nature of the resulting society, will profoundly affect the rest of the world, including the UK.

There is a growing literature on low-carbon innovation in China, especially from thinktanks, global institutions and INGOs, but a lack of in-depth academic research. Most of these reports focus on technology development. They also overlook the significant differences in socio-political contexts between China and rich Western countries. They thus tend to restate conventional policy recommendations that remain ignored or are proving impossible to implement. Low carbon transition fails to emerge even as socioeconomic change continues at spectacular pace. Such obstacles are to be expected, however, when understanding transitions from a broader systems perspective that acknowledges their 'socio-technical' nature. Social, institutional, cultural and political factors linked to changing technologies and practices are crucial in both explaining and eliciting low-carbon transition. Examining the actual practices of users who are expected by policy or corporate strategy to shift to low-carbon technologies can provide a different, more informative picture about what, how and why particular low-carbon innovations are succeeding or failing.

This project aims to fill these gaps and insert a social science, rather than economic, paradigm into conceiving what a low-carbon future could be like. It will explore the prospects, politics and practice of low-carbon innovation in China in three overlapping, but importantly different, domains: solar energy, urban mobility and agri-food. To make research practicable, we focus on specific case studies, chosen to provide comparative insights regarding differing models of innovation in each domain: solar energy (PV vs. thermal), urban mobility (electric vehicles vs. e-bikes) and agriculture (GM vs. agro-ecological cultivation of maize). In each case we thus compare the globally dominant model of high-technology, IP-intensive innovation favoured by current Chinese 'indigenous innovation' policy and an alternative model that is successfully mobilizing other indigenous innovation resources and capabilities, but without such government support.

The project will examine 4 research questions:
1. Are low-carbon transitions emerging in the case study areas and why?
2. With what effects regarding broader systemic decarbonisation?
3. What qualitative socio-political changes are emerging in China with implications for these socio-technical systems and social practices?
4. What lessons does China's state capitalist approach to low-carbon innovation offer UK industrial policy for a) low-carbon transition & b) globally competitive low-carbon industries?

The expected outcomes are a better understanding of: the strengths/weaknesses of different low-carbon policies and strategies; the qualitative nature of socio-political change related to current Chinese low-carbon innovation; and the possible effects of the emergence of the Chinese low-carbon innovation on UK society.

We envisage the following direct beneficiaries (beyond academia) in the UK:

Relevant policymakers in the UK government, including at BIS (responsible for industrial/innovation policy), DECC (responsible for green economy and renewable energy), DfT (responsible for urban transport), DEFRA (responsible for low-carbon agriculture). Impact will also build on relationships developed by the team over the past years with UK government at the Beijing Embassy (FCO/ BIS/ DfID), including the Science & Innovation Network (see letter of support), with whom spin-off events will be explored to optimize impact and the use of public funds. Strong contacts via the Work Foundation will also maximize impact in UK government (e.g. with BIS Minister Vince Cable).

Key UK stakeholders, including: public sector (inter-governmental, national and regional); think-tanks (including the Work Foundation, Chatham House, E3G, NESTA); third sector/NGOs (especially on environmental issues and with a Chinese presence, e.g. Greenpeace); and consumer groups (especially regarding transport and food).

Business organisations and firms in the relevant sectors, including financial institutions and investors (e.g. China-Britain Business Council, CBI, Renesola, SolarCentury, Smith Electric, Arup, Syngenta, Climate Change Capital).

Within China, similarly, central (e.g. MOST, MOA, NDRC) and provincial ministries, major firms (e.g. BYD, Suntech, Shenzhen Bioenergy), national and international NGOs (e.g. Greenpeace, WRI, WWF) and other stakeholder organisations with whom the research team (UK and Chinese) have an established history of collaboration will also be direct beneficiaries.

Government, business and other stakeholders will all benefit by gaining a better understanding of the dynamics of low-carbon innovation and transition in arguably the most important country regarding these issues - whether as emitter, market for trade and investment, competitor and/or partner in innovation and maker of international policies. By investigating socio-technical transitions in-the-making across a number of key sectors in China, the project is tackling a key theoretical puzzle and methodological challenge associated with contemporary transitions theory - itself key to practical understanding of long-term improvements in quality of life in the UK and internationally. The project will provide insights and resources necessary to inform and improve policy-making and business strategy in the UK and China.

Many of these non-academic beneficiaries are involved in the research through interviews and workshops (as specified in the Prospective Interviewees Table [see Appendix]). These users of the research outputs will be engaged at the outset of the project (around the first project meeting), periodically through its course (through research and engagement activities) and at its conclusion (final workshops). The project's design enables impact pathways to be further developed, monitored and periodically adjusted through the PIPA process (see 'Pathways to Impact' document).

The Advisory Panel and key conference events will bring together policy-makers and experts from China and the UK to enable knowledge sharing and dialogue around the project outputs. Policy briefs (published also in Chinese) and the report developed with the Work Foundation, along with a dedicated media strategy, will tailor project outputs to maximise impact by raising awareness, generating evidence for policy-makers and providing key insights for business. A series of articles on chinadialogue.net (the only dual language platform on environmental issues in China, for which Geall is Deputy Editor) will also be published.

Indirect benefits will also accrue to UK citizens to the extent that policy recommendations expedite low-carbon transition and benefit British society, reflecting the ultimate aim of the project.