China’s authoritarian approach won’t save the environment
A truly sustainable future needs more than order and rules
IT IS TIME that civic-minded Chinese become better acquainted with rubbish, suggests Chen Yu, a retired publisher from Shanghai, at the end of a Saturday spent counting litter on the banks of the Yangzi river. This afternoon’s survey has a scientific purpose. Undaunted by the muggy heat and mosquitoes of late summer, Mrs Chen and three dozen other volunteers sort river debris on a concrete breakwater, before weighing and recording each pile on a smartphone app. The heap of takeaway food packaging is dismayingly large, and there are a surprising number of shoes.
This article appeared in the China section of the print edition under the headline “More red than green”
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