For Central Asia and China, these are not abstract slogans, but a response to very concrete challenges: climate change, water scarcity, desertification, air pollution, land degradation, and threats to biodiversity.
President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, speaking at the RES-2026 Regional Environmental Summit in Astana, emphasized that environmental protection is not only an ecological task, but also a moral duty, an economic necessity, and a strategic priority for preserving peace and stability. The leaders of Central Asian countries закрепили this approach in the Declaration on Regional Cooperation in the Field of Ecology and Sustainable Development, “Environmental Solidarity of Central Asia.”
Chinese President Xi Jinping, speaking at international platforms on climate, sustainable development, and human rights, has repeatedly emphasized the priority of green and low-carbon development, as well as the need for such a transition that simultaneously protects the environment, supports economic growth, creates jobs, and reduces poverty. In messages to human rights forums, he stressed that development is a great human right and that human rights are unattainable without sustainable development and improved quality of life.
This leads to a common conclusion: it is impossible to speak of the full realization of human rights if people are not guaranteed the right to a safe, clean, and sustainable environment.
Today, the right to life, health, decent work, and development directly depends on the quality of air, water, and land. In Kazakhstan’s updated Constitution, environmental protection is enshrined as one of the key principles of state policy and civic responsibility, and environmental security has in fact been recognized as a value shaping modern national identity.
At the initiative of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Kazakhstan is implementing the large-scale public movement “Taza Kazakhstan,” which has united millions of citizens. Its significance goes far beyond sanitary cleanup of territories. It is about forming a new culture of careful treatment of nature, developing volunteerism, and the conscious participation of citizens in the life of their communities. In this context, the right to a favorable environment acquires a practical dimension, becoming part of everyday life and a form of civic participation in solving issues that directly affect people’s quality of life.
Central Asia is already among the regions most vulnerable to climate and environmental risks: from glacier melt and water depletion to land degradation and loss of biodiversity. These threats directly affect public health, food security, and migration processes.
In 2026, in Astana, the heads of state of Central Asia adopted the Declaration “Environmental Solidarity of Central Asia,” which закрепляет the countries’ common approach to climate, glaciers, biodiversity, the management of chemicals and waste, combating plastic pollution, improving air quality, and countering desertification. This declaration became the main outcome of the Regional Environmental Summit and reflects the political readiness of the countries to act together rather than separately.
At the same time, a regional biodiversity conservation initiative was launched, within which the declaration “Harmony with Nature for the Benefit of Sustainable Development of the Region” and the preparation of an umbrella program and action plan in this area are being discussed. Thus, Central Asia is forming its own solidarity-based approach to environmental rights and sustainable development, closely linked to the theme of human rights in the regional context.
In recent years, China has demonstrated how the environmental agenda becomes the core of a national modernization model described as building an “ecological civilization.” President Xi Jinping expressed the key idea of this approach with the formula “lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets,” meaning that ecology is viewed as a strategic development resource rather than a cost of growth.
During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the environmental situation in China improved significantly: the level of fine particulate air pollution decreased, the number of days with good air quality increased, the share of surface waters of good quality exceeded 90%, and forest cover expanded. In the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030), the goal of “building a beautiful China” is закреплена as one of the key benchmarks, bringing the environmental agenda to the center of socio-economic planning.
For China, this strategy is part of the realization of human rights: by improving the quality of air, water, and land, the state improves the quality of life and health of hundreds of millions of people, ensuring the right to development that does not destroy the natural basis of life.
Five key areas of China – Central Asia cooperation (2024-2026)
Allow me to dwell on several practical areas of interaction where the environmental agenda and human rights are already beginning to reinforce each other.
First, green energy and the carbon transition.
A common “green energy” chain is taking shape between Xinjiang and the countries of Central Asia: Chinese companies are participating in the construction of wind and solar power plants, including a large wind farm in Zarafshan in Uzbekistan. The introduction of low-carbon technologies helps simultaneously address energy security, industrial growth, and emissions reduction, which is directly linked to the right to health and a sustainable future.
“Green” financing plays an important role: in China, sustainable bond instruments and targeted “green” loans are being developed, opening up opportunities to finance joint projects in renewable energy and environmentally oriented industrialization in Central Asia. Expanding such instruments is critical for a just energy transition, especially in socially vulnerable regions.
Second, combating desertification and land degradation.
In 2025, as part of the second China – Central Asia Summit, the establishment of the Cooperation Center for the Prevention and Control of Desertification, located in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, was announced. Today, the center is already carrying out joint research, specialist training, and pilot projects aimed at restoring degraded lands and introducing water-saving technologies, which is critical for the arid territories of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and other countries in the region.
Third, biodiversity and sustainable nature management.
The regional biodiversity agenda in Central Asia and China’s efforts to preserve ecosystems create a basis for joint initiatives in the protection of specially protected natural areas, migration corridors for wildlife, and the ecosystems of mountains, steppes, and deserts. Preserving biodiversity is not only an environmental but also a social task, since resilient ecosystems ensure food security, sustainable tourism, and new opportunities for local communities.
Fourth, green trade and sustainable agriculture.
Through transport and logistics “green corridors” from Central Asian countries to China, supplies of agricultural products – grains, oilseeds, and food goods – are growing. These flows are built with due regard to product safety requirements, traceability, and supply chain sustainability, and the development of environmentally friendly standards in agriculture is becoming part of the Belt and Road Initiative and the emerging China – Central Asia community of shared destiny.
Fifth, dialogue on human rights and sustainable development.
The China – Central Asia Human Rights Development Forum in Xi’an in 2025 was dedicated to human rights development, dialogue among civilizations, and building a community of shared destiny. Participants emphasized that development is the foundation of human rights, and that regional models must take cultural specifics into account, rely on UN principles, and reject attempts to rank cultures and states hierarchically.
Representatives of Central Asian countries raised issues of digital justice, the role of civil society, and the need for a closer linkage of environmental, infrastructure, and human rights agendas within the Belt and Road Initiative. In 2026, this discussion is naturally moving to a new level, with an emphasis on green transformation and the right to sustainable development for every person in the region.
In recent years, Kazakhstan has consistently acted as an initiator and driver of the regional environmental agenda. Key events were held in Astana – the RES-2026 Regional Environmental Summit and accompanying forums, where issues of biodiversity, restoration of degraded lands, sustainable water use, and the development of green energy were discussed; the main outcome was the adoption of the Declaration “Environmental Solidarity of Central Asia”.
Within the country, Kazakhstan is strengthening the legal foundations of environmental policy, enshrining environmental principles at the constitutional level and implementing large-scale campaigns such as “Taza Kazakhstan,” which reach millions of citizens. This is forming a new civic culture in which the protection of nature is perceived as part of modern identity and, in essence, as an element of realizing human rights to a safe environment and participation in decision-making.
In conclusion, I would like to outline several proposals arising from the agreements and discussions already reached.
First, within the framework of the existing China – Central Asia cooperation roadmaps and already agreed initiatives in the field of green development, it would be advisable to выделить a separate block devoted to the interconnection between environmental sustainability and human rights. Its substantive basis could include issues of climate resilience, water security, a just energy transition, as well as the protection of vulnerable population groups, especially in rural, border, and environmentally risky regions.
Second, it is necessary to expand the network of partnerships between universities, think tanks, and non-governmental organizations in our countries. Joint research is needed on climate justice, the impact of environmental degradation on social rights, as well as the introduction of ESG standards in infrastructure and industrial projects within the Belt and Road Initiative and Central Asian regional programs.
Third, it is important to give the dialogue platforms a sustainable character. The China – Central Asia Human Rights Development Forum, the regional environmental summit in Astana, and specialized conferences in Xi’an and other cities could work in synergy, forming a permanent architecture of dialogue, mutual learning, and joint solution design.
We often speak of the China – Central Asia community of shared destiny. This shared destiny will be sustainable and just only if the right to a clean environment, to development, and to a decent life is realized for every person in our region, regardless of country, place of residence, or social status.
Development, as President Xi Jinping emphasizes, is indeed one of the greatest human rights, but in the 21st century it must inevitably be green, inclusive, and human-centered. In this sense, China’s experience, the efforts of Central Asian countries, and our dialogue today provide grounds for cautious but confident optimism.
Speech by the Director of the China Studies Center, G. Shaimergenova at the China-Central Asia Human Rights Development Forum – 2026, dedicated to the theme “Promoting Progress in Human Rights through High-Quality Development”
