Fueling the eco drive

[Photo provided to China Daily]

In the past he has been involved with important campaigns such as the creation of tradeable production entitlements for chlorofluorocarbons in compliance with the Montreal Protocol, an international treaty designed to protect the ozone layer by phasing out the production of some substances that are responsible for depletion of the gas cover around the Earth.

Since the 1990s, Dudek and his organization cooperated with the then China's National Environmental Protection Agency and successfully carried out a trial emission trading system in seven locations in China.

His organization has had close partnerships with other central government agencies, such as the National Development and Reform Commission, and regional governments.

"We try to help bring some of the lessons we've learned internationally to China and see how they can be productively deployed and developed with Chinese characteristics," Dudek says during a recent visit to Beijing.

"We really want to see the national carbon market successfully introduced and thrive, and become an important factor for the green transformation in China."

During the 2010 Shanghai Expo, the EDF developed rechargeable subway cards to bring the concept of carbon emission trading to ordinary Chinese.

Each card had a number that matched one ton of carbon traded at an exchange in Shanghai.

By buying the card, people spent money to erase carbon footprints they made visiting the expo.