China and India Going Green: The Power of Wind, International Norms, and National Commitments

• Main Author: Silvan Siefert
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: National Sun Yat-sen University 2017-05-01
• Series: Contemporary Chinese Political Economy and Strategic Relations: An International Journal
• Subjects: green energy; norms and values; new institutionalism; comparative politics; foreign politics; wind energy; policy output performance; legitimation
• Online Access: http://rpb115.nsysu.edu.tw/var/file/131/1131/img/2374/CCPS3(1)-Siefert.pdf

India and China have established reputations in the international community for rapid economic development, innovative technology and exploitation of natural resources. Aside from the United States, China and India are the two major producers of carbon dioxide emissions in the world. At the same time China and India are two of the leading developing countries in promoting green energy and international climate change objectives. The local wind energy industry, as an alternative to replace fuel, witnessed a politically-sponsored take-off in both countries in terms of global market share as well as domestically-installed wind energy capacity in the late 2000s. In particular, the current governments have taken the issue seriously on both the local and international levels. China and India ratified the Paris Agreement in 2015 and their national climate objectives. The puzzle of rapidly growing and politically supported wind energy sectors in these two countries in which environmental protection is strategically ignored in favour for economic growth has to be understood in the terms of the bigger picture of Beij ing and New Delhi fostering external and internal legitimation by transforming norms and values to measureable outcomes. To do so, the paper illuminates the development of renewed legislative commitments for wind energy, the increasing external pressure for emission reductions, institutional changes, and demands for legitimation in India and China.