Suchergebnisse

The blue economy or marine economy has become increasingly important for countries not only to generate a new source of growth but also to construct the coexistence between humans and the environment. The People's Republic of China (PRC) has attached great importance to the blue economy since the beginning of the 21st century. During the past two decades, the PRC's blue economy has undergone considerable development. Its share in the GDP has increased substantially and remains large. The blue economy has become a national strategy, though traditionally the PRC has not relied heavily on marine resources. The PRC's approach to the blue economy has also experienced transformative change during the last decade. In the policy directive and at the practice level, ecological sustainability and marine environmental protection have already become an important part of the blue economy in the PRC. The paper argues that government policy and industrial clusters are the two most important factors that contribute to the development of the PRC's blue economy, as the case study of the Shandong Peninsula Blue Economic Zone (SP-BEZ) demonstrates. First, government policy is the basis for the establishment and development of the SP-BEZ. The PRC's government has provided policy guidance and assistance for the development of the blue economy. Both central and municipal governments have sponsored the SP-BEZ project, providing considerable financial and technological support. With the government's encouragement, blue finance has developed due to the public-private partnerships in the blue economy. Second, industrial clusters are both the means and the ends for the SP-BEZ. To promote the development of the blue economy in the SP-BEZ, the government has made full use of Shandong Peninsula's industrial advantages to redistribute and restructure the industries in the region. The SP-BEZ has formed industrial clusters with the support of its advantageous scientific and technological research and development in the blue economy. These industrial clusters have not only integrated a wide range of different industries but also helped to promote the domestic regional economic integration in the Shandong Peninsula.

As the world's second and third largest economies, both the People's Republic of China (PRC) and Japan are facing the challenge of energy insecurity. To meet this challenge, both countries are adopting and enhancing renewable energy policy. This research tries to compare the two countries' approaches to ensuring energy security and particularly the similarities and differences in their renewable energy policy. The dependence rates on primary fossil energy of both countries are very high. Both countries have huge potential and urgent necessity for renewable energy. Therefore, both countries have been devoted to its development and expansion. The PRC has rapidly increased its investment in hydroelectric, solar and wind power, which makes its renewable energy sector grow faster than its fossil fuels and nuclear power. Suffering from environmental pollutions caused by fossil fuels, the PRC government has become determined to make laws to regulate energy use. Japan has set its policy of lowering dependency on nuclear power and expanding the use of carbon-free renewable energy in the wake of the Great East Japan Earthquake happened on 11 March 2011. Similarly to the PRC, Japan also combines its national strategy of energy security with its international strategy on its low-carbon goal. To further enhance the development of renewable energy, the PRC and Japan should put renewable energy as the first priority, increase governmental subsidies and continue encouragement policy, strengthen public-private partnership, search for a global market for renewable energy, take renewable energy as an opportunity to reform and upgrade industries, and conduct cooperation between the two countries.