China’s ecological conservation reform will focus on refining implementation mechanisms and building a more sophisticated governance system, said an official with China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment.
Sun Jinlong, secretary of the group of leading party members at the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, made this statement in a recent interview with China Media Group (CMG).
“Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), the Party Central Committee headed by Comrade Xi Jinping has regarded ecological environmental protection as fundamental to China’s sustainable development. The resolution adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee includes a special chapter for formulating major plans for deepening ecological environmental protection reforms, and reflects the great importance attached to ecological environmental protection and the strategic plans of the Party Central Committee headed by Comrade Xi Jinping. It has pointed out the direction for deepening ecological environmental protection reforms in the new era and promoted the building of a beautiful China,” Sun said.
Sun stressed that building a beautiful China is a central goal on the path to becoming a modern socialist country and highlighted the key areas for implementing reforms and ecological protection measures.
“We will further develop the implementation and promotion mechanism for building a beautiful China, evaluate the effectiveness and promote the construction of pilot zones. We will implement region-specific environmental management systems with differentiated and targeted regulation. We will refine the regulatory system for ecosystem protection and restoration. We will strive to build a ‘1+N’ policy system to promote new high-quality productive forces in ecological protection and launch comprehensive joint innovations to reduce pollution and carbon emissions in multiple areas and at multiple levels,” Sun said.
He said that while efforts to prevent and control pollution continue to progress, the challenges have become more significant and that the modernization of ecological and environmental policies must be continuously promoted by setting higher standards for planning and developing ecological protection efforts.
“We will comprehensively and accurately implement precise, scientific and law-abiding pollution control. We will focus on data and decision-making, and conduct thorough investigations and research, as well as careful analysis and evaluation, to measure the expected emission reductions and actual improvements in environmental quality from each pollution control measure as accurately as possible. At the same time, we will stick to a region-specific and category-based approach and make good use of ‘nature-based solutions.’ We will better use the method and mentality of the rule of law in our work, and deepen the reform of ecological protection under the rule of law,” Sun said.
Reform of ecological conservation should focus on mechanism building and better governance, says an official statement
The operator of China’s first home-built large cruise ship, the Adora Magic City, plans to increase the proportion of local crew to meet the needs of a growing Chinese clientele for personalized service.
The cruise ship, which will begin service in 2024, will sail from China to Japan and Korea. Of the approximately 1,300 crew members from more than 30 countries and regions, only about 30 percent are from China, while Chinese citizens make up the majority of the passengers.
Qian Juan, human resources director of Adora Cruises, told China Central Television (CCTV) that the operator is building a predominantly Chinese service team.
“At present, Chinese cruise ships are becoming more and more popular. We want to gradually increase the proportion of Chinese crew members at all levels and will provide professional training for Chinese crew members. The entire team consists of Chinese members with international perspectives and high professionalism,” she said.
China’s cruise industry suffers from a shortage of domestic talent, and this gap is likely to widen as the market improves and domestically produced cruise ships come into operation.
Adora Cruises plans to hire 2,000 cruise professionals in ship operations, hospitality, onboard entertainment and other areas over the next few years. The company is also working with colleges such as Shanghai Maritime University and the Tourism College of Zhejiang to place graduates and students in a variety of positions, including pilots and sailors.
In interviews with CCTV, the Chinese crew members expressed their confidence in their professional development.
“I am currently the manager of the ship’s specialty restaurant. I studied cruise ship operations, which is suitable for this job,” said Ren Xiaochuang, manager of the specialty restaurant.
“My job on the ship is activities manager, my short-term career plan is to be promoted to deputy cruise director within a few years,” said Chen Yuqiao, activities manager.
“I graduated from Guangzhou Maritime University, majoring in navigation technology. Now I am a third officer intern. There are still three months until I get my third officer certificate and become a real cruise ship pilot,” said Zhang Xuan, a marine intern.
“There are relatively few Chinese cruise ship captains. We will take the captain’s license exam when we are qualified,” said Liu Xinxin, a marine intern.
China’s first home-built cruise ship aims to hire more locals amid rising domestic demand
