GE CitizenshipEHS Academy
Recognizing the serious environmental and health costs of China’s dramatic economic growth over the past three decades, China’s government has instituted a range of environmental and energy use regulations as well as mechanisms that encourage compliance with these requirements. China’s strong focus on resource efficiency and sustainability is especially critical in Guangdong Province, where the energy demand and environmental impacts of industrial development are profound.
The U.S.-based Institute for Sustainable Communities officially launched the Guangdong Environmental Partnership (GEP) program in response to these needs. Its goal is to build a network of agencies, organizations, businesses and schools dedicated to transforming Guangdong into a model of clean energy and sustainable economic development.
The GEP is an alliance between Chinese and U.S. governments and GE, along with many other private collaborators. Government partners include national and provincial environmental protection agencies in China, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
The challenges of environmental health and sustainable development are hardly unique to China, notes George Hamilton, President of the Institute for Sustainable Communities. “These are global issues that require international cooperation and partnership,” he said.
Sharing best practices is central to the GEP. Its main initiative is to establish an Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) Academy at Sun Yat-sen’s Lingnan College. The Academy’s innovative curriculum has been shaped by Chinese and Western experts, including trainers from GE and is guided by an international steering committee.
“We have found that building the capacity of Guangdong managers to implement EHS measures boosts their companies’ compliance and their ability to compete,” says Ann Condon, director and counsel, EHS Programs for GE and a member of the Academy’s steering committee. “These are the businesses that will drive China’s growth as it moves to a cleaner and greener economy.”