The first Shanghai International Carbon Neutrality Expo in Technologies, Products and Achievements (hereinafter referred to as “Shanghai International Carbon Neutrality Expo”) was successfully concluded at the National Convention and Exhibition Center (Shanghai) on June 14.

The Shanghai International Carbon Neutrality Expo under the theme of “Path to Carbon Neutrality” has an exhibition area of nearly 100,000 square meters. The Green and Smart Auto Shanghai was held concurrently. Nearly 600 well-known domestic and foreign enterprises from 15 countries and regions were invited to participate in the expo. The expo released a technology map based on the main links of the full-lifecycle of carbon emissions for the first time, covering production and supply of low-carbon energy, low-carbon transformation of energy consumption, optimization of the energy operation system, support for carbon emissions management, and absorption and circular disposal of carbon emissions. It displayed 1,081 low-carbon technologies and products. During the expo, 1 keynote forum, 1 science forum, 4 parallel sessions and nearly 40 concurrent activities were held. Exhibitors organized 453 supporting activities such as new product launches, cooperation agreement signing ceremonies, and various promotional presentations in the booth. The expo realized 173 pairs of trade matching through the park match-making session, green development and green supply chain match-making session, and dual-carbon service match-making session. The four-day expo received 146 visiting groups and more than 80,000 visitors.

The first Shanghai International Carbon Neutrality Expo set a benchmark for low-carbon development and cooperation. As a grand international event, the Shanghai International Carbon Neutrality Expo has fully leveraged Shanghai’s leading advantages in green and low-carbon development, scientific and technological innovation capabilities, and opening up to the outside world. It has fully demonstrated the latest progress and the future exploration direction in low-carbon development, actively promoted green and low-carbon cooperation between government and enterprises and collaboration between industries, universities and research institutes, and jointly promoted the exchange and sharing of experience and practice from all walks of life in the society. It has become another innovative measure for Shanghai to serve the national strategy and promote high-quality development, creating a benchmark and model for the whole country and even the world.

Shanghai Low Carbon Initiative Declaration proposes to designate June 11 as “World Low-Carbon Day”

At the keynote forum of the expo, Gong Zheng, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee and Mayor of Shanghai, Yang Yinkai, Deputy Director of the National Development and Reform Commission, and Xie Zhenhua, Special Representative for Climate Change Affairs of China, delivered speeches; Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency, Roland Roesch, Director of the IRENA Innovation and Technology Center, He Kebin, Dean of the Institute for Carbon Neutrality of Tsinghua University, and Bao Xinhe, President of the University of Science and Technology of China, gave keynote speeches. The forum released Shanghai International Carbon Neutrality Expo Green and Low-Carbon Case Collection and Shanghai Low-Carbon Initiative Declaration, proposing to designate June 11 as “World Low-Carbon Day”.

At the science forum, nearly 20 winners of the world’s top science awards, academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering, senior experts and scholars, and representatives of industry-leading enterprises had in-depth exchanges, and released the Science for Carbon Neutrality Shanghai Initiative. The initiative proposes to vigorously promote breakthroughs in cutting-edge science and key technologies of carbon neutrality, facilitate the establishment of carbon neutrality collaboration networks and communication platforms, and boost the cultivation of high-level talents in the field of carbon neutrality science and technology. It uses science to promote changes and provides effective methods for sustainable development.

    “Low-carbon economy” provides a new engine for the high-quality development of industries and enterprises

The trend and demand for coordinated digital and green development has become a consensus at the expo, demonstrating the determination and confidence of all parties to firmly follow the path of green and low-carbon development. China’s “dual-carbon” development strategy has gradually embraced substantial progress and become an important engine for the high-quality development of industries and enterprises. It will play a vital role in the process of Chinese-style modernization. At the expo, various “zero-carbon” exhibits that drive green manufacturing and “net zero” transformation solutions emerged. Major achievements such as the Xinhua Carbon Technology Index were released one after another to provide green opportunities for the development of enterprises and make the expo a new starting point for market players to develop low-carbon economy.

Practice the concept of green exhibition and realize zero-carbon exhibition for the first Shanghai International Carbon Neutrality Expo.

Enterprises with “carbon strength” and citizens with “carbon awareness” constitute the main body of responsibility and an important force in implementing the “duel-carbon” vision, as well as the original intention and mission of the expo. The expo has actively practiced the concept of low-carbon exhibition. In the early stage, it promoted green transportation and green consumption to citizens by putting forward various exhibition requirements to exhibitors in energy utilization, logistics and transportation, exhibition forms, travel and accommodation, and circular utilization, and created a new lifestyle - “low-carbon development changes life, green development creates the future”. During the expo, professional institutions used intelligent IoT, blockchain, big data and other technologies to complete carbon investigation, carbon emission reduction tracking, carbon credit transactions and offsets in one go. According to the Guidelines for the Implementation of Carbon Neutrality for Large-scale Events, a carbon neutrality report was generated for an authoritative organization to verify the level of carbon neutrality at the expo and complete certification, thus realizing the first zero-carbon expo.

The Shanghai International Carbon Neutrality Expo has provided an authoritative communication platform based on the market mechanism for the development of the industrial chain for the first time and a window for participants to understand the rapid development of the “dual-carbon” market. We are willing to witness changes, discover opportunities, and jointly draw a magnificent picture of the “path to carbon neutrality” with all parties.