As the president pushes the private sector to assume more of the federal government’s role in environmental protection, developing standards and related technology updating could mean new cooperation areas for business and local governments in China and the US. Green-friendly China could also become a haven for like-minded entrepreneurs in the US.

US President Donald Trump has announced that the United States will no longer participate in the 2015 Paris climate agreement, the landmark United Nations treaty that many of us worked so hard to achieve. Trump is making a mistake that will have grave repercussions for his own country, and for the world.

Like the United Nations and many national governments around the world, the Chinese government has sought to use education as an important means of fostering environmental stewardship and ecological sustainability. Yet, while the Ministry of Education guidelines and their plans for implementation look great on paper, they encounter significant obstacles in China’s exam-focused schools.

With commitments to clean energy and combatting climate change wavering under the new US administration, leadership in renewable energy is quietly shifting away from the United States across the Pacific, where China is rapidly building its dominance.

Now is the time, especially given the Trump Administration’s stance on environment, for China to assume the leadership role with more assertiveness and confidence, be more proactive in working with other nations, and coordinate global actions to curb pollution.

While U.S. President Donald Trump was talking about investing more in coal as a source of energy, China has just announced that it will scrap 85 coal power plants under construction and invest 2.5 trillion yuan ($361 billion) in green energy, largely in response to the public outcry about smog in northern China. China’s move in this direction will further strengthen China’s leadership position in green energy.

The Yellow Sea is an important fisheries resource for China and the two Koreas. However, several violent incidents this season have increased tensions between China and South Korea. With the media and public placing greater scrutiny of the Chinese trawlers, the Korean government has resolved to show stronger resolve against illegal fishing in their waters. For their part, Chinese civilian fishing vessels have become increasingly assertive in response to South Korea’s newfound resolve.

It will take time for Chinese authorities to practice effective administration of NGOs, and for overseas NGOs in China to practice self-discipline and accept supervision. But as long as both sides can proceed from goodwill, strengthen collaboration, and work to eliminate misunderstandings and prejudices, there will be mutually beneficial, win-win outcomes.

When a mine leaks heavy metals into drinking water supply in China, or when school children fall sick due to contaminated soil, or when a factory exceeds its pollution, whose job is it to respond? Kristen McDonald met with grassroots environmental groups around China to understand the challenges communities face, and the help that NGOs provide to local environmental protection bureaus.

Friction between Washington and Beijing may be growing, but the Paris climate change agreement stands out as a powerful example of what can be achieved when the U.S. and China cooperate. In the context of U.S. climate politics, cooperation with China may do little to persuade opponents of climate change policy whose views are rooted in denial of climate change. However, cooperation between the two countries in tandem with the Paris Agreement has engendered a sense among industry leaders that sustained competitiveness must involve adapting to a low carbon economy.