China's green logistics sector thrives with diverse innovations: report

China's green logistics sector has made significant strides in recent years, marked by a proliferation of innovative green practices that are reshaping the industry, according to a report released Friday by the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP).

Green logistics, which aims to minimize environmental impact through efficient resource utilization, advanced technologies, and optimized processes across the supply chain such as transportation, storage, handling, packaging, distribution, and information processing, is gaining significant traction in the country, said the China Green Logistics Development Report (2023-2024).

The report highlights the notable achievements in green logistics, including the introduction of various evaluation standards, fostering a multi-faceted approach to sustainable development.

Data reveals a fluctuating trend in energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions within the logistics industry between 2020 and 2022, with an initial increase followed by a subsequent decline.

Transportation remains the primary source of carbon emissions within the sector, says the report.

The proportion of emissions, however, attributed to transportation activities decreased by 0.92 percentage points in 2022 compared to 2021.

To facilitate the low-carbon transformation of the logistics industry, a number of green product evaluation standards have been established, further enhancing the system of green product standards.

In this year, China's logistics and supply chain development shows a trend towards a synchronized digitalization and green transformation, deeper cross-industry integration, technology-driven innovation, and strengthened value-driven growth.

Moreover, increased government support for new energy and clean energy transportation equipment, such as electric and hydrogen-powered vehicles, is also playing a crucial role in reducing carbon emissions from logistics transportation. He Liming, head of the CFLP, emphasized the advancements in clean energy and intelligent technologies.

"In recent years, clean energy and intelligent technologies such as hydrogen fuel logistics vehicles and intelligent warehousing systems have made significant progress, opening up new pathways for the green transformation of the logistics industry. At the same time, efforts have been made to promote green technologies and materials, including recyclable packaging and biodegradable solutions, to continuously improve environmental protection and reduce the carbon footprint of logistics operations," said He.

China's green logistics sector thrives with diverse innovations: report

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) aims to deepen its cooperation with China across all fields, thereby reinforcing its partnership with the Global South as a whole, said UNESCO director-general Khaled El-Enany.

El-Enany visited China's Hangzhou, Beijing and Shanghai from May 11 to 14, his fourth time in the country and first time as UNESCO director-general. Speaking with CCTV in Beijing during the visit, he highlighted the significance of cooperation with China, noting that the partnership goes beyond the bilateral scope.

"I'm here to deepen the partnership, the very strong and well-established partnership with China, one of the big partners to UNESCO. And when you deal with China, I think it's beyond a bilateral relationship. We are dealing with the global South. We are working with China in all the fields of competence of UNESCO - in education, science, culture, communication, information. Since I arrived at UNESCO in November 2025, I'm building a very strong partnership with your permanent delegation at UNESCO, a very active one," El-Enany said in an interview that aired on Friday.

In Hangzhou, the UNESCO chief attended the opening and the plenary session of the 2026 World Digital Education Conference. He described the meeting as fruitful in terms of consensus-building.

"We [all agreed] that digital transformation and using AI [in education] is a must, but it must complement what human beings are doing. It must be ethical, equitable and inclusive," he said.

El-Enany highlighted his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on May 12.

"He reiterated his strong commitment to intercultural dialogue, to mutual learning among the civilizations. And this resonated [with] what he had said at UNESCO in his historic visit in 2014 to UNESCO in March, which is very aligned with the mandate of UNESCO - to build peace in the minds of women and men and to defend peace through education, science and culture," said the director-general.

UNESCO chief pledges stronger cooperation with China across all fields