Top 10 Achievements

We understand that clean water is one of China’s most valuable resources. That’s why we have been helping China work on academic, public, and legislative aspects of wetland conservation for more than a decade. In fact, as of 2009, the country had 36 areas protected as wetlands of international importance, amounting to 3.8 million hectares or 10.4% of all wetland across the country. WWF started working on the National Wetland Conservation Action Plan back in 1999. By 2010, the action plan had placed 200 wetland areas under protection, covering more than 20 million hectares. We are happy to report that seasonal connectivity has been restored to important freshwater bodies along the upper and lower Yangtze, including Dongting Lake, Poyang Lake, Zhangdu Lake, and the Tian’e zhou Oxbow. A great deal of habitat has also been restored thanks to increased community involvement in freshwater conservation, as well as more opportunities for locals to earn a living that does not damage the environment. 

These successes led WWF and the State Forestry Administration to cooperate under HSBC’s “Climate Partnership” and establish the Yangtze Wetland Conservation Network in 2007, which includes the central and lower Yangtze basin. So far 1.64 million hectares of wetland across 40 nature reserves have been linked together, protecting diverse habitats and reducing their vulnerability to climate change. More than 100,000 people have benefited from this project, some of which have seen their income increase as much as 33 per cent. Thanks to the support of The Coca-Cola Company and other sponsors, the network is expected to expand to cover the entire Yangtze basin. Integrated River Basin Management (IRBM) has proven successful in pilot projects in the Huoxihe and Chishui rivers since it was first introduced in 2004, and has since been advocated at the highest political platforms by key stakeholders such as the CCICED and the biennial Yangtze Forum. WWF has established an IRBM Expert Panel and four Working Groups including Environmental Flows, Drinking Water Safety, Master Plan, and Climate Change Adaptation. The Yangtze Climate Change Vulnerability and Adaptation Report and Yangtze Conservation and Development Report have also been extremely successful.

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China’s rapid economic development is putting immense pressure on the habitat Amur tigers once called home. To help improve conditions, WWF and partners released the Changbaishan Tiger Habitat Report in 2010, the first intensive study on the best potential habitat for Amur tigers in China. Also, with WWF assistance, the Jilin provincial government drafted the “Amur Tiger Conservation Plan for Jilin Province,” and “Wild Tiger Conservation Strategy Proposals”, which deliver guidelines that place Amur tigers as a conservation priority. WWF has helped set up five nature reserves and protected areas in concert with Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces, covering a total area of 124,418 ha. We have helped develop Amur tiger and prey populations monitoring and patrolling methodologies that have been implemented in China’s northeast. Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) forest management certification, High Conservation Value Forests (HCVF) methodology and developing livelihood programmes that reduce human-tiger conflict have similarly been applied to conservation efforts as additional methods to help protect tigers, their habitat, and their prey. To push these efforts even further, WWF is hoping to establish a tiger protection network that covers six million hectares of Amur Tiger habitat. And to ensure tigers have the space they need to roam, we’ve been working on a new transboundary nature reserve network between China and Russia.

A significant reduction in the illegal trade on products derived from wild tigers has been achieved with the help of WWF-China's regular monitoring activities along the China-Russia border. We have also been immensely successful examining global concerns about tiger farming and tiger parts trade in cooperation with TRAFFIC and the Chinese government.

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Before WWF became the first NGO to work in China, awareness of environmental issues among the general public was low. It was our groundbreaking work on panda conservation in the 1980s that inspired many people to take an interest in protecting life on Earth. Since then, we have continually worked to improve public awareness about the actions needed for a healthy planet.

Over the past 30 years, thousands of millions people from communities, schools and universities have participated WWF’s campaign such as Wetland Ambassador Action (WAA), 20 ways to 20%, and Earth Hour, taking real action to protect the environment.

Over the last ten years, the WAA campaign has reached more than 600 communities and 400,000 people in 28 provinces. From Earth Hour polling, we found out that 56.7% of individuals from Beijing, Shanghai, Baoding participated in the global climate change awareness-raising event by turning off lights or joining an activity.

And we have a strong network of supporters across China, with more than 29,000 online subscribers and a team of active volunteers who have signed up to demonstrate their commitment to WWF’s conservation goals.

Meanwhile, WWF also worked with China’s Ministry of Education to launch National Environmental Education Guidelines, which ensured our Education for Sustainable Development Programme reached over 200 million students through mainstreaming environment into the national curriculum.

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Since 1995, WWF has been working with governments, academia, civil society and businesses to support China's participation in global action against climate change and the development of a low carbon economy. 

WWF and its partners across China support international climate change negotiations, and promote intergovernmental communication through WWF’s extensive international network. We also work with a wide variety of groups around the world on mitigating the impacts of climate change. In the run up to COP15 in Copenhagen in 2009, we helped draft the Civil Society Climate Change Initiative, which urged governments to reach a fair, ambitious and legally binding agreement on climate change. WWF is especially committed to discussions on climate change between developing nations, and promoting intergovernmental cooperation in low carbon development.

We accomplish this by encouraging a move towards a low carbon economy through the application of renewable energy and energy efficiency technology, low carbon city development, working with leading business partners to cut emissions, and advocating a low consumption lifestyle.

Our Low Carbon City Initiative (LCCI) in Baoding and Shanghai, which focuses on green technology and energy efficiency, has been one of our most successful projects to date. We have also established the China Renewable Energy Entrepreneurs Club, a platform that allows green businesses leaders and top government officials to address some of the largest issues facing clean tech development in China.  We have also been immensely successful engaging people allover the country to take action against climate change. Student groups from more than 100 universities in 16 large cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, and Wuhan took part in our “20 ways to 20%” energy saving campaign, and other activities such as carbon footprint art performances, Low Carbon Spring Festival, Earth Hour, and energy efficiency education campaigns that aim to slow the pace of global warmig.

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Besides environmental conservation, WWF also works to build capacity in nature reserves, local NGOs, and local communities.

WWF-China employees have increased from 6 to 120 in the last 30 years. This simple fact is, we can’t operate without the many talented people we have working for us. That’s why we’ve offered 152 different training sessions since we starting working in China. By constantly challenging our staff and encouraging their development, we’re making sure the remain top experts in China’s species, forests, freshwater ecosystems and climate and energy issues.

To answer the increasing calls for capacity building on nature reserves, WWF has organized over 110 training programs for more than 2,000 nature reserve staff, covering a variety of conservation and community development themes. These include wildlife identification, GIS application, nature reserve management, corridor management, community co-management and many other areas. WWF has also provided more than 800 pieces of equipment to help facilitate conservation work, including computers, GPS devices, cameras, tents, and first-aid kits.

Other projects we’ve successfully completed on nature reserves include training sessions on conservation issues and sustainable development. Experience sharing, community projects, and eco-tourism plans are other areas we’ve helped nurture over the years.

WWF-China has also helped small grassroots organizations build capacity in programme management and campaigning using WWF experience and knowledge. Up to now, WWF has supported more than 85 non-governmental groups in the conservation of priority species. Many students groups and community partners have also benefited from the campaigns we run on the importance of protecting China’s valuable natural resources.

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