China
GDP per capita: $ 8,500 (no. 122 of 227 countries)
Revenue from business: 48.6 % from industry, 43.1
% from services, 10.1 % from farming
Sources of energy (consumption): Biomass 20 %,
water power 2 % and non-sustainable sources 78 %
(Oil 23 %, coal 74 % and natural gas 3 %)
Worth knowing about china:
 Emerging country with the world’s fastest growing economy.
 China has the largest CO2 emission in the world. It is also the most populous country – hence
the emission per capita is rather low.
 Is no. 1 out of 210 countries when it comes to total CO2 emission (emits 6,538,367 thousand
tons CO2 per year)
 Is no. 69 out of 215 countries when it comes to emissions per capita (5 tons CO2 per capita)
 China is responsible for almost half of the world’s production of coal, and coal represents ¾ of
the country’s energy production.
 For long, China has been silent in the climate debate. The country has made other areas a
priority, such as providing energy to all its citizens and dealing with pollution from cars and
industry at a national level. Lately, China has shown a growing interest in participating in the
international efforts to solve the climate challenges.
Sources: Globalis.no, cia.gov, wikimedia commons, UN Statistics Division, CDIAC/UN
Examples of Names:
 Bao Li
 Cong Zhang
 Chun Liu
 Ji Chen
 Jiao Yang
 Mei Huang
 Tei Meng
Negotiation tips:
Historically, poor countries like China have represented a small part of the emission of greenhouse
gasses. The industrial countries are responsible for the majority of the emissions that have caused
global warming. Perhaps these countries should also accept the larger responsibility? Perhaps a
climate agreement should be based on emissions per capita, instead of each country’s total
emission.
China needs to be able to produce cheap energy from coal, without energy the industrialisation of
the country cannot continue. The standard of living for millions of Chinese must be raised. Many
countries import items produced at low cost in China. The US is one of their biggest trade partners.
Developed by the Norwegian Board of Technology
www.klimamote.no
Supported by Klimaløftet/ the Norwegian Ministry of the Environment
Climate Change in the Classroom
Capital: Beijing
Language: Chinese
Population: 1.3 billion (life expectance: 74 years)
PREPARATION FOR THE CLIMATE SUMMIT
Answer the questions below as part of your preparations for the climate summit.
A. Pick a name
On the previous page you will find a list of typical names from your country. Every member of
the delegation must pick a name and use it during the negotiations.
B. consider the four issues up for negotiation
Consider each of the four issues below and form arguments to present during the negotiations.
1) Industrial countries should, according to the UN, reduce their CO2 emissions with 50-85%
before 2050 to reduce the rise in temperature to a maximum of 2°C. In your opinion, by how
much should the industrial countries reduce their CO2 emissions before 2050?
More than 85%
Between 50-85%
Less than 50%
There should not be any requirement to lower the emission
2) Emerging countries have a much lower rate of CO2 emissions per capita than the industrial
countries. However, as some of the emerging countries are so large, their emissions are still
substantial and they represent a big part of the rise in the global CO2 emissions. Which
requirements should these emerging countries meet?
They should reduce the CO2 emissions with the same percentage as the industrial
countries
They should have limits on their emissions in the same way as the industrial countries,
but not as strict limits
They should not have to meet any requirements about reducing CO 2 emissions
3) Developing countries have low emissions of greenhouse gasses. Most developing
countries want economic growth. This involves increased use of energy which most often leads
to an increase in the emission of greenhouse gasses. How should these countries participate in
a solution?
They should have limits for their emissions, but not as sharp limits as the industrial and
emerging countries
They should have limits for their emissions, but only if the rich countries give monetary
contributions to reduce emissions
They should not have to meet any requirements to reduce emissions
4) Technology that produces clean energy or that cleans up industrial emissions is very
important for curbing emissions. Such technology is often called “green” technology, and is
primarily produced in industrialised countries. Poor countries do not have the money to develop
nor to buy the green technology needed for cutting emissions. How can we make sure that
these countries get access to green technology?
 Every country is responsible for acquiring the green technology that they need – thus
there is no need to include this in the climate agreement.
 Industrialised countries should commit to share or finance green technology in middleincome and developing countries.
 Industrialised countries should commit to share or finance green technology in
developing countries.
C. Prepare an appeal
Prepare an appeal for question 2. An appeal is a short speech in which you inform the other
countries what is important for your country/organisation. The appeal cannot be longer than 2
minutes and must contain the following:
 Which of the three scenarios does your country/organisation believe is the right one?
 Why? Give three reasons why the other countries should vote for your preferred
scenario.
Developed by the Norwegian Board of Technology
www.klimamote.no
Supported by Klimaløftet/ the Norwegian Ministry of the Environment