01 The Eastern Momentum for the Decisive Decade: Shanghai Climate Week 2026 Brings the World Together for Green Action
On 22 April 2026, the 57th Earth Day, the third Shanghai Climate Week opened in Shanghai under the theme "The Eastern Momentum for the Decisive Decade". Hosted by Shanghai Climate Week, the event brought together government representatives, industry leaders, prominent academics and research institutions from the global climate community to discuss the many pathways to sustainable urban development and to explore green development solutions that meet the needs of our time.
The opening ceremony began with remarks from representatives of the Climate Week 4 Seasons and the Climate China Action City Circle (CCACC). Speaking on their behalf, Mr. Leo Horn-Phathanothai, CEO of Bangkok Climate Action Week, and Mr. Nick Mabey, CEO of London Climate Action Week, drew on climate action in their cities to share experience in global climate governance and discuss pathways for international coordination, laying a solid foundation for cross-regional climate cooperation.
Photo: Mr. Leo Horn-Phathanothai and Mr. Nick Mabey deliver remarks
Prof. He Kebin, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and Dean of the Institute for Carbon Neutrality at Tsinghua University, gave a speech at the opening ceremony on "Responding to Climate Change and Transforming Industrial Systems". Mr. ChengHe Guan, Founding Co-Director of the Shanghai Key Laboratory of Urban Design and Urban Science, spoke on harmony between cities and the climate. Prof. Jianguo Lin, Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, Member of the Academia Europaea, tenured professor at Imperial College London and Chair Professor at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, offered a global governance perspective on the underlying logic and future direction of sustainable development, contributing valuable insights to the gathering.
Photo: Prof. He Kebin, Mr. ChengHe Guan and Prof. Jianguo Lin deliver keynote speeches
International exchange was a highlight of the opening ceremony. Leaders of climate weeks in several overseas cities shared regional experience in climate governance, in person or by video link, and consular officials from several countries, officials from the Delegation of the European Union to China and representatives of well-known international organisations attended alongside co-founders of climate action networks from major Chinese city clusters. Representatives including the Deputy British Consul-General in Shanghai; Mr. Laurent Bardon, First Counsellor and Head of the Green Transition Section at the Delegation of the European Union to China; Mr. Koen Sizoo, Consul General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Shanghai; and Mr. Zhou Fei, Deputy Director-General of the WWF Beijing Representative Office, together opened a new chapter of Chinese and international partners working together on climate governance.
Photo: Representatives of international organisations and business associations speak
As a key player in climate technology innovation, Ms. Remoca Shi, Deputy Secretary-General of Shanghai Climate Week, Secretary-General of its Youth Council and Founder of WeCarbon, received the Climate Community Biennial Award: Outstanding Organiser Award 2024–2025 at the ceremony, and Ms. Mia Zheng, ESG Affairs Representative on the Shanghai Climate Week Executive Committee and Partner (China) at WeCarbon, received the Collective Action Award 2024–2025. The two awards recognise WeCarbon's support for Shanghai Climate Week and its role in putting climate action into practice, as well as its sustained work in climate technology innovation and its commitment to green and low-carbon development.
Photo: Ms. Remoca Shi receives her award on stage
A series of major unveiling and launch ceremonies also took place, giving fresh impetus to climate action: the Green and Low-Carbon Work Committee of the China International Cooperation Association of SMEs was officially inaugurated, the Climate Week 4 Seasons global initiative was launched, and the Climate China Action City Circle (CCACC) was launched at the same time. Together, these initiatives build a multi-level, comprehensive support system for climate action and help move climate governance from ideas into practice.
Photo: Unveiling and launch ceremonies at the opening
Committed to green and low-carbon development and to its mission in climate technology innovation, WeCarbon is part of the global community responding to climate change. Its founding team will fulfil their responsibilities on the Shanghai Climate Week Executive Committee and Youth Council, engage partners across sectors, and focus on core areas such as climate technology R&D and support for green industries. Drawing on its international platforms, WeCarbon will keep opening up integrated pathways linking climate with energy, supply chains, finance and urban operations, working with all of society towards a net-zero, sustainable future.
02 Climate Week 4 Seasons CONNECT+: A Three-City Engine for Stronger Global Climate Collaboration
Under the annual theme "Three-City Engine, Setting Sail from the East", the CONNECT+ event, hosted by Shanghai Climate Week and co-hosted by London Climate Action Week, Bangkok Climate Action Week, San Francisco Climate Week and the Climate China Action City Circle, was a central highlight of this year's Shanghai Climate Week, opening a new chapter for coordinated global climate action.
Moving beyond the traditional forum format, CONNECT+ links climate weeks across the "four seasons" in Shanghai, London, Bangkok, San Francisco and other cities, and works with the Climate China Action City Circle to combine global climate action with local innovation in each city. Its core mission is to turn the global climate agenda into actionable local plans through institutionalised coordination across the "four seasons" and city-led local practice, and to feed the results back into global governance, creating a closed loop of global-regional-city collaboration that truly reflects the principle of "no decoupling, but co-building; no isolation, but stronger connectivity".
The event called on "four seasons" partners worldwide and local city networks to jointly launch three actions: institutional coordination, local innovation and multi-level engagement. During Shanghai Climate Week 2026, the partners plan to jointly release the "CONNECT+ Shanghai Consensus on City Collaborative Action and Innovation across the Climate Week 4 Seasons" (draft title). The consensus will set out principles of collaboration, the structure of joint working groups, local action commitments and plans for cross-border cooperation, and is intended as a landmark document marking the shift of global climate action from commitments to systematic collaboration.
Photo: WeCarbon Founder Ms. Remoca Shi with guests including Mr. Laurent Bardon, First Counsellor and Head of the Green Transition Section at the Delegation of the European Union to China; Ms. Jurei Yada of London Climate Action Week; Mr. Leo Horn-Phathanothai, Convener and Co-Chair of Bangkok Climate Action Week; Ms. Jennifer Zou, Vice President, Global Programs, and Head of China Operations at the Bay Area Council; Mr. Zeeshan Ashfaq, Founder of Renewables First; and Mr. Shah Jahan Mirza, Managing Director of Pakistan's Private Power and Infrastructure Board
Going forward, WeCarbon will continue to draw on its technology and resources to take an active part in global climate cooperation, help put climate technology into practice, support the development of the Climate Week 4 Seasons coordination mechanism and advance low-carbon transition in local cities. WeCarbon also looks forward to continued collaboration among partners worldwide, with deep cooperation as the core path for meeting climate challenges, writing a new chapter in global green and low-carbon development together, so that the dawn of "The Eastern Momentum for the Decisive Decade" lights the way forward for global climate governance.