Greener path to health and harmony

%3CP%3E%3CFONT%20face%3DVerdana%3EThe%2018th%20National%20Congress%20of%20the%20Communist%20Party%20of%20China%20has%20emphasized%20that%20China%20must%20establish%20an%20ecological%20civilization%20by%20incorporating%20it%20into%20the%20country%27s%20economic%2C%20political%2C%20cultural%2C%20and%20social%20advancement.%20This%20will%20further%20enrich%20the%20Scientific%20Outlook%20on%20Development%20and%20meet%20the%20intrinsic%20requirements%20for%20the%20development%20of%20socialism%20with%20Chinese%20characteristics%2C%20signifying%20that%20China%27s%20modernization%20transition%20has%20officially%20entered%20a%20new%20phase%20in%20its%20bid%20to%20build%20an%20all-round%20well-off%20society.%20%3C/FONT%3E%3C/P%3E%0D%0A%3CP%3E%3CFONT%20face%3DVerdana%3EThis%20innovative%20vision%20has%20been%20formed%20against%20a%20profound%20historical%20background.%20During%20its%20three-decades%20of%20reform%20and%20opening-up%2C%20China%20has%20focused%20on%20economic%20development%20that%20has%20largely%20improved%20the%20material%20standard%20of%20living%20of%20the%20Chinese%20people%2C%20and%20realized%20the%20modernization%20objective%20of%20building%20an%20overall%20well-off%20society%2C%20however%2C%20environmental%20protection%20and%20the%20conservation%20of%20resources%20have%20been%20neglected.%20%3C/FONT%3E%3C/P%3E%0D%0A%3CP%3E%3CFONT%20face%3DVerdana%3EThe%20industrialization%20process%20in%20developed%20economies%20shows%20that%20when%20socioeconomic%20development%20reaches%20a%20certain%20level%2C%20the%20public%27s%20awareness%20of%20environmental%20protection%20significantly%20increases.%20%3C/FONT%3E%3C/P%3E%0D%0A%3CP%3E%3CFONT%20face%3DVerdana%3EFor%20example%2C%20a%20large-scale%20survey%20conducted%20by%20the%20European%20Community%20in%20the%201970s%20found%20that%20people%20in%20the%20member%20countries%20showed%20high%20concern%20for%20environmental%20issues%2C%20and%20even%20attributed%20inflation%2C%20poverty%20and%20unemployment%20to%20environmental%20pollution%2C%20which%20prompted%20the%20EC%20to%20make%20environmental%20protection%20one%20of%20its%20top%20priorities%20in%20its%20socioeconomic%20development.%20%3C/FONT%3E%3C/P%3E%0D%0A%3CP%3E%3CFONT%20face%3DVerdana%3ENow%2C%20after%20solving%20the%20material%20problems%20of%20life%2C%20more%20Chinese%20people%20have%20begun%20to%20pay%20more%20attention%20to%20their%20surrounding%20environment%2C%20which%20has%20resulted%20in%20protests%20against%20proposed%20industrial%20plants%20that%20are%20perceived%20to%20be%20a%20risk%20to%20the%20environment.%20This%20means%20that%20the%20country%20faces%20a%20new%20development%20bottleneck%3A%20The%20conflict%20between%20people%27s%20increasingly%20high%20requirements%20for%20environmental%20well-being%20and%20the%20extensive%20industrialization%20model.%20%3C/FONT%3E%3C/P%3E%0D%0A%3CP%3E%3CFONT%20face%3DVerdana%3EConstructing%20an%20ecological%20civilization%20means%20not%20only%20simply%20protecting%20the%20environment%2C%20it%20is%20also%20aimed%20at%20the%20overall%20objective%20of%20sustainable%20development%2C%20with%20the%20emphasis%20on%20human-oriented%20development%20that%20achieves%20harmony%20between%20people%20and%20nature.%20It%20promotes%20adjustments%20to%20avoid%20destructive%20growth%20according%20to%20local%20conditions%2C%20and%20puts%20ecology%20into%20the%20socioeconomic%20system%20by%20taking%20into%20account%20the%20impact%20of%20human%20activities%20on%20ecological%20systems.%20An%20ecological%20civilization%20necessitates%20a%20circular%2C%20ecological%2C%20low-carbon%20economy%2C%20one%20in%20which%20all-waste%20is%20recycled%20and%20reused%2C%20with%20advanced%20management%20concepts%20and%20clean%20technology.%20%3C/FONT%3E%3C/P%3E%0D%0A%3CP%3E%3CFONT%20face%3DVerdana%3EDuring%20the%20past%20decade%2C%20the%20Chinese%20government%20has%20already%20made%20progress%20in%20establishing%20a%20circular%2C%20ecological%2C%20low-carbon%20economy%20based%20on%20energy%20conservation%20and%20emission%20reductions.%20This%20has%20laid%20a%20solid%20foundation%20for%20building%20an%20ecological%20civilization.%20%3C/FONT%3E%3C/P%3E%0D%0A%3CP%3E%3CFONT%20face%3DVerdana%3EWhile%20an%20ecological%20civilization%20seems%20to%20solve%20the%20conflict%20between%20environmental%20protection%20and%20economic%20development%2C%20it%20is%20fundamentally%20about%20people%27s%20livelihoods.%20The%20Five-in-One%20socioeconomic%20development%20model%20is%20an%20interpretation%20of%20the%20Scientific%20Outlook%20on%20Development%2C%20which%20presents%20the%20complex%20and%20arduous%20task%20China%20faces%20in%20the%20coming%20decade.%20%3C/FONT%3E%3C/P%3E%0D%0A%3CP%3E%3CFONT%20face%3DVerdana%3EWe%20first%20need%20to%20free%20our%20minds%20so%20that%20we%20have%20a%20correct%20understanding%20of%20the%20relationship%20between%20economic%20development%20and%20resource%20conservation%20and%20environmental%20protection.%20The%20environmental%20degradation%20and%20consumption%20of%20resources%20re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