China's approach to addressing its environmental concerns in Tianjin through the Sino-Singapore Tianjin eco-city (SSTEC)

Abstract

China’s rapid economic growth had left its environmental condition in devastation. Tianjin’s strategic location allowed its region to be developed into one of China’s leading industrial sector—at the cost of its environment: from air pollution, water scarcity, land contamination, energy overconsumption to biodiversity loss. Most states would have immediately ceased its development activities in the face of ecological crisis, but China decided on an alternative solution of collaborating with Singapore in the Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-city (SSTEC) agreement. This agreement comprised of both states’ collaboration to develop an eco-city in Tianjin. This research is conducted to answer the research question as to ‘how China addresses its environmental challenges in Tianjin through the SSTEC agreement?’ using Robert Keohane’s international cooperation theory and the concept of sustainable development. The answer to the research question lies in the key performance indicators (KPI) established to ensure the project is carried out effectively. Most of SSTEC’s KPIs were developed specifically to address Tianjin’s environmental challenges. However, this research finds SSTEC to be ineffective (through the SWOT analysis) in addressing Tianjin’s environmental concerns as the environmental standards and KPIs are only applicable in SSTEC and not all of Tianjin.