Development in China: Study of five national pilot cities1

China was responsible for 25 per cent of global carbon dioxide emissions in 2012 (Liu 2015). This followed the passing of key milestones in the previous decade. From 2007, China’s per capita carbon dioxide emissions exceeded the world average and it has become the world’s largest contributor to annual carbon dioxide emissions, with the burning of fossil fuels and cement production being two important emission sources. According to World Bank research (Hu 2013), cities hold more than 65 per cent of global wealth, consume more than 65 per cent of global energy and emit some 70 per cent of greenhouse gases (GHGs). Reducing urban carbon dioxide emissions is considered to be key to reducing overall emissions, within which transforming cities into ‘low-carbon cities’ is seen as an important policy tool (Bao et al. 2008; Feliciano and Prosperi 2011).