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This is Beijing Hour, examining the events that impact and shape china and the rest of the world.
This is the beijing hour, one hour of news and information brought to you every weekday.
Now here's your host, shane biggum, with you on this thursday, february 19th 2026.
You're listening to a special holiday edition of the beijing hour, coming to you live from the chinese capital.
On today's program, the latest trilateral talks on the four-year Ukraine conflict have come to an end without any breakthrough reported.
A court in South Korea has sentenced the country's former president to life in prison on insurrection charges.
And travel numbers in China, including visits by foreign nationals, continue to surge over the spring festival holiday.
And starting today, we're bringing you a three-part series on China's path toward its dual carbon goals.
The first episode is about clean energy solutions, how to build a sustainable network and the challenges of those efforts.
Now check in the day's top stories.
Trilateral talks between Ukraine, the United States and Russia have wrapped up in Geneva with no major breakthrough reported.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the discussions made some initial progress, but positions remain far apart.
He noted proposals for possible US involvement in monitoring a ceasefire, along with sensitive issues including the Donbass region and the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant.
A Russian presidential aide described the atmosphere as difficult but businesslike, confirming there will be another round of negotiations soon.
The third round of talks comes just days before the fourth anniversary of the start of the conflict.
Jagruti Davi has more from Washington.
Well, the president's envoy, Steve Witkoff, has given an upbeat summary of these talks.
He took to social media and said President Trump's success in bringing both sides of this war together has brought about meaningful progress.
He said both parties agreed to update their respective leaders and continue working towards a deal.
The benchmark of success for the US appears to be the fact the US can bring both parties to the table.
This is something that's been echoed by Marco Rubio in the past.
But this benchmark appears to be different to what Ukraine and Russia measure as success.
I think what we're seeing here is clearly a positive spin in public.
But behind the scenes, there clearly must be some frustration at the lack of progress.
Remember, this isn't the first time this has happened.
Previous U.S. mediator talks have also ended without a breakthrough.
And Donald Trump, who's prided himself on being a peacemaker, clearly must be frustrated that peace has not manifested as quickly as he had promised in this instance.
That was Jagruti Davi reporting.
Well after the talks, Russia said its delegations operating under understandings reached at an August meeting in Alaska between President Vladimir Putin and US.
President Donald Trump.
Moscow says its military operations will continue despite ongoing diplomacy.
Dasha Chernyshova has more from Moscow.
The Kremlin has been saying that it is up to the negotiators on the ground to be providing the comments on what is being discussed between the delegations.
But we know that these are the discussions that have lasted for two days.
They have been talking for more than four hours on Tuesday and they have been talking about two hours on Wednesday.
Those are the discussions that are quite important.
They are proceeding in an expanded format. from the Russian side.
And we are hearing some words from Russia's lead negotiator, Vladimir Medinsky, who has been speaking to the reporters on the ground in Geneva.
Here is what he had to say.
As you know, the talks lasted for two days.
We had very long discussions yesterday in various formats.
Today we talked about two hours.
Talks were difficult but businesslike.
A new meeting will take place soon.
And, following these comments, Vladimir Medinsky has been holding another round of meetings which the Russian media have been talking about.
Medinsky has confirmed that he had about two hour long private conversation with the Ukrainian side.
And also we've been hearing from Russia's foreign ministry spokeswoman saying that Kyiv has actually intensified its attacks on the civilian targets inside Russia ahead of the negotiations in Geneva.
Zaharova was also saying that the West and Kyiv believe that Moscow will pause its military operation and watch Ukraine itself.
Then Moscow says those who are taking this as a possibility are just foolish in her words.
So at this stage, we understand the negotiations is something that Moscow is counting on.
But in the meantime, those military activities are expected to continue.
I was dash to turn a show about reporting from Moscow.
A Ukraine's face sustained pressure from U.S.
President Donald Trump to agree to a deal that could mean painful concessions as Russian forces slowly advance on the battlefield.
After the two-day talks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was dissatisfied with the outcome.
Well, at the same time, Washington reported meaningful progress.
Yellow app David takes a closer look from Geneva.
The speed really of what's being agreed or not being agreed doesn't really affect what's happening in eastern Ukraine.
However, there is a degree of optimism that both sides seem to suggest that the talks are difficult, but they are important.
And there was not an excessive amount of optimism before this latest round in Geneva, after two rounds in Abu Dhabi.
But I think you know, when you listen to what Rustem Umarov, the lead negotiator on behalf of the Ukrainian government, what he was saying.
He did clarify and say that they were looking at what may happen with a ceasefire and the mechanics of discussions that had taken place on the Tuesday.
So some optimism there.
There is progress, but no details can be disclosed at this stage.
The next step is to achieve the necessary level of consensus to submit the developed decisions for consideration by the presidents.
Our task is to prepare a practical, not merely formal, foundation for this.
Ukraine remains constructive.
The ultimate objective is unchanged, a just and sustainable peace.
I mean, the difficulty for the Ukrainians is that they want to push ahead with a ceasefire.
They want a stop. to this war after so much impact on Ukraine.
But how do they do that if they're expected to cede territory or relinquish control entirely of the Safaridze nuclear plant?
If they do that and opinion polls reflect the opposite, that most Ukrainians still don't agree with that?
And, as President Zelensky himself said in Munich, sometimes honestly it feels like both sides are talking about completely different things.
And that gives you an idea of how far apart they are on the main principles of what they hope to achieve in these talks.
That was Yolo Abdefid reporting.
Russian state news outlet says the latest round of Ukraine talks excluded European representatives.
European leaders have repeatedly insisted that Europe and Ukraine must be directly involved in any peace process.
The reported exclusions adding to strains in transatlantic ties.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned that a deep divide is open between Europe and the United States.
Pressure from U.S.
President Donald Trump on NATO allies has also heightened tensions.
Washington's demanding sharp increases in defense spending, and the Europeans are doubtful about Washington's long-term security commitments.
For perspective on the Geneva talks, Rong Ying, chair professor at Sichuan University, says it's too early to expect any major breakthroughs in the negotiations.
It is true.
I think, while we are hopeful and with cautious of the ongoing peace talks, the trilateral peace talks between Russia, Ukraine and the United States, definitely it is not the right time to expect a big or a game changer.
Having said that, I see that the process and I see that the growing sort of narrowing, I mean or clearly identifying the sticking points where, if peace talks is going to be achieved, the issue, these issues should be resolved or ways have to be find out to reach and consensus.
They are first and foremost, i think, the idea of the demilitarized zones or areas, which very much touched upon the territorial concessions i think Ukraine is going to be asked to make.
That's also related to the question of the security guarantees.
I think the United States and Europe are going to provide for Ukraine.
And also related to that, the issues like the re-founding of reconstruction and, last but not least, the issues related to the holding of the elections in Ukraine.
These issues, if they can be reached out I mean consensus reached out that would address the common sort of concerns related to the root causes of this crisis, this conflict which both, I think, Russia and Ukraine want to have their peace and want to have seen as the result acceptable, which would not go not going to achieve the sort of war, but have to be sort of peace talks.
That was Rong Ying, chair professor at Sichuan University.
And coming up, a former South Korean president has received a life sentence in prison.
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We're at 11 minutes past the hour.
A South Korean court has sentenced former President Yoon Seok-yool to life in prison for insurrection over his declaration of emergency martial law.
The court said Yoon's actions, which included deploying troops to the National Assembly, aimed to block parliament from functioning, calling it an unconstitutional attempt to seize power.
Council had sought the death penalty.
Arguing, you mobilize troops and police to obstruct lawmakers and detain key political leaders, despite the absence of war or a national emergency.
The release of millions of documents related to Jeffrey Epstein is fueling coordinated investigations across several countries.
Independent experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council say the abuse of women and girls detailed in the newly released files may meet the legal definition of crimes against humanity.
They described the evidence as pointing to a possible global criminal enterprise rooted in exploitation, misogyny and corruption.
In the United States.
Lawmakers in New Mexico have launched a separate investigation into Epstein's activities in the state, including allegations connected to a ranch that he once owned.
In the United Kingdom, police in three counties are reviewing private flights linked to Epstein through Stansted, Luton and Birmingham as part of a nationally coordinated framework.
Meanwhile, in France, prosecutors are urging potential victims to come forward.
French magistrates are examining possible offenses involving French nationals or acts committed on French soil.
Authorities say the reviews are ongoing, with further findings expected later this year.
In the United States, where Epstein operated with impunity for decades.
Survivors say the system is failing them, protecting the powerful while exposing the vulnerable.
Nitsa Soledad Perez has more from Miami.
The fallout from the Epstein files has been swift outside the United States.
In Britain, Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Prince Andrew, was stripped of his title, relieved of his duties and booted from his royal residence by his brother, King Charles.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's government is under pressure after members of his circle were linked to Epstein, including Lord Mandelson, whom Starmer appointed ambassador to Washington.
Starmer fired Mandelson-Epstein connections and Mandelson is now under criminal investigation.
Starmer is facing calls for his resignation.
His judgment is now being really called into question.
He appointed Lord Mandelson to be the UK ambassador to Washington, even though it was known at the time of the appointment that Mandelson had had a long-standing friendship with Epstein.
Norway has become the first country to bring criminal charges based on the Epstein files.
A former prime minister has been charged with gross corruption over gifts, travel and loans he allegedly received from Epstein.
Norway's crown princess has apologized over her friendship with Epstein.
A Norway's ambassador to Jordan and Iraq has resigned and is under investigation for corruption.
In Dubai, the head of DP World, one of the largest port operators in the world, was fired after documents revealed a lewd exchanges with Epstein.
In the United States, there have been consequences, but not from the Justice Department.
Kathy Rumler, chief legal officer of investment bank Goldman Sachs and former Obama White House counsel, resigned after documents showed she offered Epstein advice on how to respond to sex crimes charges.
Billionaire Thomas Pritzker stepped down as executive chairman of Hyatt Hotels.
Professors have been stripped of teaching duties, but no one has been criminally charged.
And when the Justice Department finally released three million pages of documents, it botched the redactions exposing victims' names, faces and personal information, while the identities of Epstein's powerful associates remained hidden.
That was Anitza Soledad Perez reporting in Miami.
More than a dozen US public health and environmental groups are suing the Trump administration over its rollback of a cornerstone federal climate rule.
The lawsuit filed in the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit challenges the Environmental Protection Agency's decision to revoke the 2009 greenhouse gas bill endangerment finding, which determined that carbon dioxide, methane and other emissions threaten public health and welfare.
The finding has long underpinned federal limits on vehicle emissions and mandatory greenhouse gas reporting.
Plaintiffs, including the American Lung Association and Environmental Defense Fund, argue the repeal violates the Clean Air Act.
President Donald Trump and EPA Chief Lee Zeldin call the move the largest deregulation in US history.
Australia's largest mosque is seeking increased security after receiving threatening letters in the past month.
The Lebanese Muslim Association, which operates Sydney's Lakemba Mosque, says the latest message, delivered just hours before Ramadan, called for violence against Muslims.
Community leaders say the threats of heightened fear among worshippers, with up to 5000 people expected at nightly prayers during the holy month.
New South Wales police say they've seized the latest letter saying and launched an investigation, adding officers are providing extra support for the Muslim community.
A 70-year-old man was previously charged over an earlier threat.
People in Yemen are preparing for Ramadan, the holy month of fasting and reflection.
This year's observance comes amid growing economic pressure, with food prices rising faster than incomes, making daily life even more challenging for many households.
Ammarwan Nabil has more.
The countdown to Ramadan is usually marked by fuller baskets.
This year many are counting coins instead.
In agents' markets.
Even basic Ramadan stables now require careful choices, as prices rise, while incomes remain largely unchanged.
Shopkeepers say demand is weaker than usual.
Shelves are stocked, but customers hesitate buying smaller quantities, delaying purchases or turning to credit.
Some vendors say the season that once promised higher sales now brings uncertainty instead.
Each year we import smaller quantities, especially basic goods, because prices are high.
Customers who used to buy in bulk now take only half.
Market activity has dropped and this Ramadan is weaker than previous years, especially with the fluctuations in the exchange rate.
Families are quietly adjusting traditions fewer dishes on the iftar table, smaller portions, greater reliance on community support or local charity.
For many holders, Ramadan spending now depends on informal credit, borrowing from relatives or help from neighbors.
But for small vendors, weaker demand means tighter margins.
Some say they are cutting stock to avoid losses, while others fear another difficult season could force them to shut their stalls altogether.
Some families still haven't received their salaries while prices remain high in the markets.
The exchange rate has improved, but prices have not gone down at all.
We are exhausted by this situation.
The gap between rising prices and stagnant incomes continues to widen, trapping both consumers and traders in the same economic squeeze.
Here in Aden, Ramadan preparations reflect how economic pressure is reshaping everyday traditions.
For many Yemenis, this holy month now begins with careful choices, not abundance.
That was Marwan Nabil reporting.
Coming up, travel numbers continue to surge during China's Spring Festival holiday.
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19 minutes past the hour.
China's cross-border travel is surging this spring festival.
The National Immigration Administration forecasts about 2 million border crossings a day during the holiday, and that's up more than 14 from last year.
Major international airports are reporting heavier passenger traffic, with inbound arrivals expected to peak on Sunday and Monday.
China's new 30-day visa-free travel policy for visitors from the UK and Canada took effect on February 17th, the first day of the Lunar New Year.
Shanghai Pudong International Airport has already welcomed its first arrivals under the scheme, as more overseas travelers head to China to experience spring festival celebrations.
In China's 2026 Spring Festival, box offices surged past 25 billion yuan roughly 366 million as of Thursday afternoon.
Meanwhile, total box office revenue for the year topped 5 billion yuan, with Pegasus 3, Zootopia 2 and The Fire Raven leading the charts.
The city of Kunshan is home to over 100,000 Taiwan compatriots.
The city celebrated spring festival with a colorful parade honoring Mazu culture, the sea goddess widely revered in coastal communities.
Ubin reports.
This is a parade featuring Mazu culture in East China's Kunshan City.
Mazu traditions are mostly celebrated in Southeast China's Fujian Province and Taiwan region, featuring the worship of goddess Mazu, or the protector of seafarers.
East China's Kunshan didn't have this tradition in the past, but with many Taiwan entrepreneurs settling here, they've brought it to the local community.
I joined them after the parade to experience the hardship behind the costume.
Trust me, it was far more difficult than it looks.
Well, thank you.
So after five minutes of trying, I'm already a bit tired.
And this structure weighs just five kilograms.
And imagine the whole costume weighs over 20 kilograms.
Chang is the head of the group.
He organizes Taiwan compatriots in Kunshan to practice the performance at weekends.
Sometimes the parade lasts for hours and they have to take turns every 20 minutes.
Whenever we see the audience's happiness, we don't feel tired anymore.
This is traditional Chinese culture.
We want to pass it on.
The parade also features what every Chinese person is familiar with, the dragon and lion dances.
For Taiwan compatriots living in Kunshan, traditions are always a symbol of who they are.
We are all descendants of the dragon.
We have dragon and lion dances across the Taiwan Strait.
This is a cultural tradition passed down through generations, serving as a bond between the two sides.
Mazu is a significant embodiment of the shared roots, common heritage and cultural continuity between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait.
It also stands as an important component of China's traditional culture.
Mazu plays a vital role in cross-strait exchanges, forging a strong bond between compatriots on both sides.
Kunshan is one of the most active regions on the Chinese mainland, with business, economic and cultural ties with Taiwan.
Each year, many activities with Mazu as the theme will be held in the city.
That was Wu Bin reporting.
In the U.S., Portland welcomed the Chinese New Year at a Suzhou-style garden.
The Lansu Chinese Garden, built in 2000 in partnership with Portland's Chinese sister city, is usually a peaceful retreat, but on the first day of the Year of the Horse, it came alive, with lion dances, traditional crafts and festive celebrations, drawing crowds eager to honor Chinese heritage.
Rosa Kazan takes us there.
Welcoming the Year of the Horse in Portland's Lance McKinney's Garden.
Lion dancing to cleanse the space and offer protection.
And the God of Wealth, handing out lucky red envelopes and teaching kids the right way to receive them.
And what did you learn about the envelope?
You have to take it with two hands.
So many showed up, lines wrapped around the corner.
But visitors say the wait was worth it.
Oh, it was fantastic.
Very fun.
And the kids enjoyed it a lot.
Organizers set up hands-on station for traditional Chinese arts from woodblock printing and stencil painting.
I feel like I'm back in kindergarten.
To Jiangzhe, Chinese paper cutting, a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.
The scissors are meant for little kids sir, kids proof.
That's why it's a little bit hard to cut.
But families actually decorate doors and windows with red paper designs like this to invite good fortune and celebrate the new year, the year of the horse.
To mark the zodiac shift, the garden held a handover ceremony from the year of the snake to the year of the horse.
Yeah, she's super soft, you can pet her both ways.
Last year there was a lot of change in my life.
Ready for the year of the horse, Visitors could even meet the zodiac symbol close up, a 21-year-old rescue miniature horse named Milo.
What do you know about horses and what they symbolize?
What do you think they will give us?
Hopefully peace and calmness, because that's what... See, grief.
For quite a moment, a chance to learn about calligraphy and why a certain Chinese character gets hung upside down around New Year.
This way, this means good fortune.
And if we turn it upside down, and it means good fortune has arrived.
Cultural education organizers say is the garden's mission year-round and was considered as one of the most authentic Suzhou-style scholar gardens in North America.
Almost everything you see here, except for the water and the plants, was brought from Suzhou China, including these Taihu stones, which are meant to represent mountain landscapes.
For a lot of people who come in here, it's really the first time that they've had a direct opportunity to see or feel what it might be like to be in China.
The celebrations continued.
Dragon dancing, chopstick challenges, and tofu, a game of throwing arrows into a slender pot.
If you hear me yelling, it's because the glowing dragon is still performing its dance.
We're not supposed to chase it with bad spirits and bring us all good luck and good fortune.
Ella's Rosa Kazan reporting.
In southwest China.
People living in Lhasa celebrated the first day of the 2026 Tibetan New Year with vibrant traditions and festive gatherings.
Thousands of devotees lined up outside the Jokong Temple, holding head of scarves and flowers, offering prayers for peace, prosperity and well-being.
Across the city, families dressed in traditional attire and prepared festive foods, including dega, a fried dough pastry.
A key New Year ritual is the offering of the chima box filled with roasted barley and fried wheat grain, symbolizing a good harvest.
Family members toss a pinch of the grain into the air while exchanging the greeting Tashi Delek to welcome good fortune.
In the afternoon families gathered to perform the lively Gorshi Circle dance, celebrating reunion and joy on the snowy plateau.
Meta CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, has taken the stand in Los Angeles in a landmark trial over the impact of social media on young people.
Zuckerberg is facing questions about Instagram's design and youth safety.
As plaintiffs argue, Metis platforms deliberately addict and harm children.
He told the court he still believes existing scientific evidence has not proven that social media causes mental health damage.
The case centers on a 20-year-old woman who says her early use of Instagram fueled addiction, depression and suicidal thoughts.
The trial is seen as a bellwether that could shape thousands of similar lawsuits against social media companies.
Experts say a week-long snow drought in northern California's Sierra Nevada helped create the unstable conditions behind this week's deadly avalanche.
Meteorologists explained that dry, clear weather since January allowed older snow layers to harden and change in structure.
And when several feet of new snow fell during a powerful winter storm, it did not properly bond with the older surface beneath it.
Craig Clements is a meteorology professor at San Jose State University who has conducted avalanche research.
Let's say you have multiple storms and you have new snow on top of new snow on top of new snow.
Those layers can bond a little bit easier versus old snow and new snow, because the old snow the crystals change and they become.
There's less ability for them to bond well with new snow.
And that's what happened here.
Clements says avalanche danger is typically highest within the first 24 to 48 hours after a major snowfall.
Authorities have issued avalanche warnings for the region before the storm intensified.
He adds that this type of avalanche is not unusual for California Sierra Nevada and cannot be directly linked to global warming.
The Sierra Avalanche Center says the snowpack remains unstable and unpredictable, with the threat of additional slides continuing in the area.
We're at 29 past the hour.
Checking the forecast, and Beijing's down to minus 1 Thursday evening.
It'll be sunny and 15 on Friday.
Shanghai's overcast and 7 tonight, then sunny and 19.
Chongqing will be cloudy tonight and tomorrow, a low of 9 and a high of 20.
Nanchang's getting a light rainfall and a low of 5 this evening, followed by sunny conditions and 17.
Last is cloudy tonight and tomorrow a low of minus 4.
The high is 11.
Elsewhere in Asia, Islamabad's down to 11 this evening, then it's cloudy and 24 on Friday.
Vientiane will be cloudy and down to 19, then sunny and 30 degrees.
Phnom Penh's getting a light rainfall and 23 tonight, followed by overcast skies and 35 degrees Celsius.
And that's it for this special holiday edition of the Beijing Hour.
Up next the first installment of our three-part series on China's path toward its dual carbon goals.
Making news today.
The latest trilateral talks on the four-year Ukraine conflict have come to an end without any breakthrough reported.
And a South Korean court has sentenced the country's former president to life in prison.
On behalf of the staff, Shane Begum in the Chinese capital, hoping you'll join us for the next edition of the Beijing Hour.
Listen up.
Can you hear the heartbeat of our world?
It's vibrant and pulsating with the essence of life itself.
From the stem of trees to the gurgle of rivers.
From the silent strength of mountains to the icy whispers of glaciers, even the solid ground beneath our feet, right there in the midst of all beast, a heart of humanity.
What if those other heartbeats were to stop?
Would ours keep on ticking?
Ever wondered what's actually going on in africa through the perspective of an african?
How are things really going between China and Africa?
What's the narrative of this relationship?
Well, get a perspective with China Africa Talk.
Hear from African diplomats, entrepreneurs, academics, Chinese natives and more.
Get on our wavelength every week to find out what's real with China Africa Talk.
Find us on your favorite podcast.
We'll see you there.
In China's eastern cities, businesses and residents are at the forefront of the nation's push to reduce carbon emissions.
Zheng Tao visited several of them to explore how communities are embracing clean energy solutions, and finds out about a green energy revolution that's visible at offshore wind farms and fisheries projects.
What exactly is clean energy?
Clean energy includes sources many of us are familiar with, like solar and wind.
It also covers others such as hydropower, geothermal energy, tidal power and nuclear energy.
Director Ma Jun from the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs says clean energy refers to all energy sources that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, do not pollute the environment and are sustainable.
According to data from China Electricity Council, in 2023, coal-fired power generation still accounted for more than 60 of the country's total electricity production.
The development of clean energy is crucial to achieving carbon neutrality.
This is because overall, 80 to 90 of carbon dioxide emissions come from the production and use of energy.
While coal continues to play an important role, clean energy projects have been rapidly growing over the past decade.
The first offshore wind farm in Asia stands tall on the horizon of the East China Sea.
From the dock I could see giant wind turbines turning steadily in the distance, supplying energy to the sleepless city of Shanghai.
The Donghai Bridge Offshore Wind Farm began operation in 2010.
Each turbine stands more than 40 storeys tall, with blades stretching over 120 meters.
Renhao Han is the project manager.
Offshore wind power is undoubtedly the future frontier for wind energy, especially along China's coastal regions, where wind resources are abundant.
The potential is enormous.
Wind power has long been a global focus.
The International Energy Agency estimates that global wind energy resources are 10 times that of hydropower.
Utilizing just 1% of global wind energy could meet the world's energy demands.
Given the abundance of wind energy and China's rapid development in this field, why isn't wind power the sole clean energy source?
Ma Jun explains that the development of diverse clean energy sources is a vital link for ensuring a balanced and resilient energy mix.
Wind energy is great, but it's not without its problems.
The main issue is that it's pretty unpredictable.
Wind doesn't always blow when we need it.
That's why we need to come up with new ways to mix different clean energy sources together.
In addition to producing more clean energy, storing the clean energy resources is also an important part of the clean energy industry.
One such example is Jintan salt-carbon energy storage project in Changzhou, at the center of the economically active Yangtze River Delta.
During off-peak hours, electricity is used to compress and store air in a salt-carbon.
Pan Libor, deputy director of the energy storage project, described the station as a massive power bank.
If there is little electricity consumption when wind and solar power are generated, the power would be wasted.
By storing it, we capture renewable energy that would otherwise be lost.
The cavern, located a kilometer underground and the size of 105 Olympic swimming pools, can store 300,000 kilowatt hours of electricity, enough to power 30,000 residents for a day.
These mines require investment for rehabilitation anyway, so using them not only generates economic benefits, but also helps manage mineral resources effectively.
In a village on the outskirts of Changzhou.
I found the local people's carbon reduction awareness way above many residents from first-tier cities in the country.
But this place was once troubled by environmental issues in the aquaculture ponds due to the feed used for crab farming.
Shen Jianqing, a local official, said that the local government had proactively integrated photovoltaic technology with aquaculture, a strategy that aims to promote sustainable development.
This is what the government encourages and we ourselves should also promote.
If the project is profitable, we will introduce it to other places.
In 2020, I moved to work at Jintang Energy Storage Station.
It's an emerging industry.
Our original thermal power plants were dusty.
Now the gas-powered plants are as clean as a garden.
We made the transition from thermal power to renewable energy in 2007.
It has been a true privilege to be part of this flourishing journey over the past decade and more.
Our Eastern China trip took us to Xitaihu Industrial Park in Changzhou, a hub for hydrogen energy-related enterprises.
The industrial park is large in scale.
Compared to countries like Germany, Japan and South Korea, China started relatively late in hydrogen energy development, especially in areas such as fuel cell efficiency, storage systems and refueling infrastructure.
Nevertheless, industrial insiders believe that, With continuous technological advancements, hydrogen energy will become a pillar of China's energy security and low-carbon transformation.
Liu Dongwei, a private business owner who previously worked in venture capital, explains his recent shift to the hydrogen energy sector.
We have seen its enormous potential.
Once the industry takes off, it will become a trillion-dollar market and create many job opportunities.
Making the wave of clean energy development.
The four projects we visited are just a small part of the larger picture.
From offshore wind farms towering over the East China Sea to solar panels floating above aquaculture ponds in rural Changzhou, clean energy is no longer just a vision.
It's becoming reality.
China leads globally in clean energy related manufacturing.
We produce over 80 of the world's solar panels, 60 of the power batteries and 50 of wind equipment.
At the forefront of the grain transition, we're also advancing rapidly in research and innovation.
And successful stories and innovative models are quickly shared, sparkling the creation of more clean energy projects.
Data from the National Energy Administration reveals that China is making strides in clean energy, with more than half of the world's new wind and solar capacity coming from the country as of 2023.
Behind the achievement is a sweeping wave of clean energy projects spreading across the country.
We are turning our attention to those people who are making strenuous efforts to build the foundation of a clean energy system.
China's dual carbon goals, meaning peaking carbon emissions by 2030 and reaching carbon neutrality by 2060, have set a clear and urgent timeline for energy transition.
In cities like Shanghai and Changzhou, a quiet green energy revolution is already underway.
Offshore wind projects in Shanghai have begun to provide cheaper electricity.
The fishery solar project generates enough power every year for 80,000 residents.
Our company has developed seawater electrolysis systems for hydrogen production.
We are the only firm in the world capable of commercial manufacturing.
These projects didn't happen overnight.
We had no experience at all for offshore wind construction.
Everything from designing to turbine selection had to be figured out from nothing.
Xu Zhe, site manager of Donghai Bridge Offshore Wind Farm, the first of its kind in Asia, witnessed the industry's evolution from day one.
Back then we didn't even have transport or installation vessels.
We had to design them ourselves.
To adapt to the soft seabed.
We developed high-pile foundations techniques that became foundational for future projects.
In just over a decade, China emerged as a global leader in large-capacity offshore wind turbines.
Following the launch of the Donghai project, Provinces like Jiangsu, Fujian and Guangdong have rolled out even more ambitious offshore wind farms.
Industry insider Ma Jun explained that, much like wind power, the distribution of clean energy resources varies across regions, so development must be tailored to local conditions.
Many of these resources are located in remote or hard-to-reach areas, such as offshore, even in deep or open seas, or on high plateaus, where wind conditions are ideal but far from consumption centers.
That makes efficient utilization difficult and transmission costs very high.
Great efforts are made to bring clean energy closer to where people live.
In Lujia Township Changzhou, a fishery-solar hybrid project has been developed through collaboration between a state-owned energy company and the local aquaculture business.
Dai Fei, an executive at Jiangsu's North Arc Agricultural Technology, oversees the aquaculture side of the operation.
We make standardized ponds for specific species like crabs and turtles, then customize the solar arrays.
Solar and aquaculture don't just coexist, they support each other sustainability and integration with the local economy.
Sustainability lies at the heart of these projects.
Early on, many of them relied on government subsidies.
Today, some, like Donghai, are profitable on their own.
Thanks to advances in technology, many clean energy projects have seen their maintenance operations become increasingly automated.
Jia Shizhong, head of maintenance at Donghai, reflects on how the work has evolved.
Now we monitor most systems remotely, but during typhoons or when severe and hazardous weather strikes, we still go offshore for hands-on inspections.
Many of us have been here since day one, We know each turbine inside and out.
Ten years ago, wind and solar power were much more expensive.
Today, wind is over 60% cheaper and solar is more than 80% cheaper.
That's largely because China has built so many wind farms and solar panels.
China has also made notable progress in other clean energy sectors, such as hydrogen energy, although it's a late entrant in the sector compared to countries like Japan.
Hydrogen, a clean and efficient secondary energy source, can power vehicles and industries, while also act as long-term energy storage.
Hydrogen energy contributes only around 0.1% to China's total energy mix.
However, it plays an outsized strategic role in decarbonizing sectors that are difficult to electrify, such as heavy industry shipping and long-haul trucking.
In the beginning, we planned 1,000 mu of land.
Chen Danlei is director of New Energy Division at the Investment Promotion Bureau of Xitaihu Industrial Park in Changzhou.
If companies need land, we provide land.
If they need capital, we have programs like the Talent Plan and Launch an Elite program to help fund their work.
The industrial park covers more than 1,000 acres and hosts many hydrogen energy-related companies.
One of them is Link Fiber Technology, which produces carbon paper, a critical material in hydrogen fuel cells.
Shi Xuedong from the company said it's been a challenge to reduce reliance on imported components.
We are the only domestic company to scale carbon paper from lab to mass production.
Our products cost just one tenth of their foreign alternatives.
Zhang Yang, an executive from another hydrogen energy company, described a breakthrough in seawater electrolysis.
This system produces hydrogen directly from seawater without desalination.
It's the first of its kind to be industrialized anywhere in the world.
As clean energy expands, so does the need for storage.
Energy storage captures excess electricity during low demand hours and releases it during peak time.
China still relies heavily on pumped hydro, which makes up 90% of its storage capacity.
But newer technologies like electrochemical and compressed air storage are gaining traction.
Pan Libo works at Jintan Salt Cavern Energy Storage Project in Changzhou.
The salt cavern was originally a geological hazard.
Now it stores compressed air for energy without using any fossil fuels during the process.
We're also using abandoned mines tunnels and pipelines to create new energy storage systems.
It opens up huge possibilities.
By the end of 2024, China's installed capacity of renewable energy surpassed coal for the first time.
Today, The country operates the world's largest clean electricity system.
We plan to integrate solar into offshore wind zones to create a hybrid energy system.
Our next steps involve drones, unmanned boats and AI-based solar power maintenance.
If the entire supply chain works together to lower costs, we will accelerate global carbon neutrality.
Behind this transformation are engineers, scientists and frontline workers who work quietly to turn sunlight and wind into energy.
That was Jungtao reporting.
China's clean energy expansions encountering significant technical hurdles as projects scale up across the country.
To find out about the efforts to balance growth and sustainability by addressing some of the challenges.
Song Ruixin followed in Zhengqiao's footsteps and spoke with industry insiders.
A storm broke over China's east coast.
I found myself standing on a floating platform in Shanghai looking up at the enormous blades of an offshore wind turbine.
It stood tall, spinning steadily in the wind.
In recent years, China has rapidly expanded its offshore wind power sector, aiming to harness the strong winds on the ocean to meet growing energy demand while cutting carbon dioxide emissions.
According to figures released by the National Energy Administration, as of the third quarter of 2024, China had connected 39 million kilowatts of offshore wind power to the grid, maintaining its position as the global leader.
However, building fixed foundations on the sea floor is far more complex than on land.
Higher waves, unstable seabass and strong currents make construction risky and expensive.
The next challenge for Shanghai is that we have no experience in deep-sea wind power construction.
At depths of over 45 meters.
We need to figure out how we should build the foundations, how the turbines should be fixed and how electricity should be transmitted from offshore to onshore.
That was Xu Zhe, site manager of Donghai Bridge Offshore Wind Farm.
He talked about the hurdles that current system is not yet equipped to handle.
Lack of infrastructure and the technological barriers are just part of the major challenges faced by the green energy sector.
The imbalance, unpredictability and inconsistency of weather conditions and resources have been another concern that leads to power shortages or grid instability.
Renewable energies can't always get where it's needed.
When the wind dies down, the power goes out.
And when the sun shines too bright, the grid can't always keep up.
Ma Jun said that access to wind energy is unevenly distributed globally.
Some regions are especially rich in wind energy resources.
Unfortunately, many of these areas are quite remote and hard to reach, such as offshore, even in deep and open seas, or on high plateaus.
While these locations have strong winds, they are far from consumption centres, making it difficult to utilise the energy effectively.
As a result, transmission costs are very high.
Energy storage and hydrogen fuel technologies sound like solutions, although they are still expensive and unproven.
Energy storage.
The capture and holding of energy in reserve for later use improves the predictability of renewable energy integration and reduces costs in long-distance energy transmission.
Hydrogen has the potential to produce almost no greenhouse gas emissions.
It offers substantial potential for expansion in transportation and stationary power generation.
But Liu Dongwei said that technology bottlenecks still exist.
Compared with leading international companies such as Ballard and Toyota, domestic hydrogen energy enterprises still lack significantly behind in areas like fuel cell lifespan and material durability.
The financial burden of sustainable energy projects makes green energy transition even harder.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics, Jiangsu province's gross domestic product exceeded 13 trillion yuan in 2024, or nearly 2 trillion US dollars, solidifying its role as one of China's largest economic contributors.
Yet even in this economically developed province, Renewable energy transition still faces challenges in terms of investment.
Chen Danlei, director of the New Energy Division at the Investment Promotion Bureau of Xitaihu Industrial Park in Changzhou, has observed a growing concern.
During economic downturns, capital remains cautious about investing in hydrogen energy, leaving government industrial funds to bear most of the risk.
Xu Zhe noted that limited profitability also hinders the growth of the business.
Although the cost for power generation has decreased, the profit is not enough, making it highly dependent on financial support.
Echoing this concern from a different sector of the clean energy industry, Zhang Yang, an executive from a hydrogen energy company, called for coordinated effort across the industry to lower costs and enable sustainable growth.
We hope that, through the joint efforts of all companies across the upstream and downstream industry chains, the overall cost of the industry can be reduced as soon as possible, thereby promoting the healthy and rapid development of the entire industry.
Behind the scenes, there is also a growing demand for the right people to keep things moving.
Cross-disciplinary talent is in short supply, especially in areas such as agrivoltaics and energy storage, operation and maintenance.
Cheng Feng is an aquaculture farmer from Changzhou, Jiangsu Province.
We used to raise crabs separately, with little systemic management, and were hesitant to adopt new cooperative models.
He added that this reluctance made it difficult to scale production or integrate new technologies until clean energy projects showed the benefits of working together.
The fishery solar project represents a significant advancement in combining renewable energy with sustainable aquaculture.
Dai Fei is an executive at Jiangsu known as ARC Agricultural Technology.
She doesn't think that scientific aquaculture can be achieved without talent development.
Those who understand aquaculture often lack management skills, while those with management expertise may not be familiar with frontline production.
There is a need to cultivate talent that has both aquaculture and management skills.
She pointed out that the farmers themselves need to learn agriculture PV technologies to ensure proper and effective facility operations.
Intermittent resources, technological gaps, insufficient policy and regulatory frameworks, high investment requirements and financial risks and talent shortages are among the numerous challenges the energy sector faces in finding sustainable energy solutions and reducing CO2 emissions.
But with every offshore turbine, every hydrogen technology breakthrough, every solar panel over the fishpond, and with all these people participating in the transformation of the energy system, China is moving one step closer to its dual carbon goals.
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He can't live without the Yellow River in his eyes.
The Yellow River is so noble and elegant.
Both my grandpa and dad made the living from the river.
Would you like to move away from the Yellow River?
I don't think I will.
I love it so much.
The Yellow River, the second longest river in China, is regarded as a shaping force in the history, economy and culture of northern China.
Today, about 100 million people live within its water basin, making up nearly 9 of the country's population.
How is climate change felt at its headwaters?
And what are the locals doing to cope with it?
What are the descendants of the boatmen doing?
What has kept some people from leaving their home village by the river?
And what has drawn others back?
Could the fading fishing community revive in a time of digital transformation?
From 2021 to 2024.
Our reporters visited the upper, middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River, talked to the herders farmers boatmen, fishermen and eco-activists who share a close bond with the river, and present their stories in pictures, podcasts and videos, or in our 12-part series, The Yellow River Mosaic, available only on CGTN Radio.
