ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Environ. Sci.
Sec. Environmental Policy and Governance
This article is part of the Research TopicAdaptive Environmental Policy for Strengthening Ecological Resilience in Socio-Ecological SystemsView all 3 articles
Ten-Year Changes in China's Ecological Environment: Governance Effectiveness, Problem Analysis, and Implications for Global Sustainable Development
Provisionally accepted
- 1City University of Hefei, Hefei, China
- 2Anhui Wenda University of Information Engineering, Hefei, China
- 3University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
This research seeks to examine comprehensive changes in China's ecological environment from 2015 to 2024, in conjunction with relevant policy and governance measures, and draw lessons and implications for global sustainable development. Based on data from the China Ecological and Environmental Status Bulletin and using statistical and case analysis methods, this study evaluates the effectiveness and ongoing challenges of governance across nine key areas, including the atmosphere, water, soil, and biodiversity. Results indicate that China has achieved significant progress in air quality, surface water management, ecological restoration, and the transition to green energy. However, persistent and severe challenges remain, including groundwater pollution, threats to species, and climate warming. The analysis is structured around five dimensions: conceptual transformation, legal and institutional safeguards, technological empowerment, low-carbon transition, and pathway improvements. This research enriches both theoretical and practical scholarship in this field and offers insights relevant to other developing countries seeking to address ecological challenges.
Keywords: Ecological environment, ecological restoration, environmental governance, green low-carbon transition, sustainable development
Received: 13 Nov 2025; Accepted: 13 Jan 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Wang, Shao and Qian. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Honghao Shao
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.