Belinda Schäpe

Dialogue Earth, May 2024

“The recent US tariffs on green technologies mark the next stage in a trade war with China that could slow down an already delayed energy transition in the US. (…) The EU should not compromise on its climate targets; instead, it should find its own way of handling China’s dominance in green technologies.”

EnergieWinde, Jörn Petring, March 2024

Offiziell äußerte sich Peking zwar kritisch zu CBAM. „Dennoch lässt sich nicht bestreiten, dass CBAM einen deutlichen Einfluss auf die Stahl-Dekarbonisierung in China hat“, so Schäpe.

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Lukas Fuhr, August 2023

Interview with FAZ analysing Germany’s China Strategy and how Germany can effectively engage China on climate change

China.Table, July 2023

Featured in China.Table heads as one of the “China experts of our time” among many distinguished China watchers.

Energy Monitor, Nick Ferris, July 2023

Belinda Schäpe adds that there is good news in the fact that actual power generation growth from coal plants in China has been “relatively moderate”, even if there has been a rapid expansion in pre-construction and construction stage coal power plants.

Deutsche Welle, Christina zur Nedden, July 2023

„Chinas Rekordausbau von Kohlekraftwerken hängt mit Pekings Fokus auf nationaler Sicherheit und damit auch Energiesicherheit zusammen“, sagt Belinda Schäpe, China Policy Advisor. „Kohle ist in Pekings Augen die sicherste Energiequelle“.

Clean Energy Wire, Sören Amelang, July 2023

EU-China climate diplomacy expert Belinda Schäpe called the strategy a “a good example” of effective climate foreign policy. “It aims to cooperate with China, but is also clear-eyed about China’s responsibility” as the world’s largest emitter, as well as about the need to de-risk green supply chains, she said.

International Business Times, Marvie Basilan, June 2023

“The planet’s future should not be used as a political tool by any party. If geopolitics prevent countries from cooperating on climate change, it doesn’t stop them from competing with each other to do better,” Schäpe said.

Carbon Brief, June 2023

Belinda Schäpe, China policy analyst, tells Carbon Brief “we really have to judge the dialogue based on delivery”. She also highlights areas not covered by the dialogue, including renewable targets and the use of coal.

Climate Home News, Xiaoying You, June 2023

Belinda Schäpe, policy adviser, told Climate Home News: “China hasn’t put a timeline on the fund. But for it to actually have an impact, it should happen faster.” As China sees the south-south climate cooperation as a way to “portray itself as the responsible leader power”, to keep that leadership of the developing world and its credibility as the climate leader, accelerating the delivery of its climate fund is the “rational next step”, she added.

South China Morning Post, Yujie Xue, January 2023

Challenges remain around grid connectivity and storage, especially in large-scale projects in more remote provinces. Another hurdle is increasing the share of renewable energy in the total electricity generation as China is still admitting new coal power plants into the mix, said Belinda Schäpe, climate diplomacy researcher.

Carbon Brief, November 2022

“The decision text at COP raised the pressure on China, as the third largest historic emitter after the US and the EU, to step up on financing towards loss and damage. At COP27, some small island states have publicly called on China to pay for loss and damage. China has said that it is open to voluntary contributions through existing mechanisms and it has already pledged $3.1bn through its fund on south-south cooperation on climate change back in 2015. As a responsible power and a climate leader, China could, and should, take its support for vulnerable countries to the next level.”

Novethic, Concepcion Alvarez, November 2022

“Le redémarrage du groupe de travail américano-chinois sur le climat est un signal fort pour la COP27”, estime Belinda Schäpe

Sixth Tone, Xiaoying You, November 2022

Belinda Schäpe, a climate diplomacy researcher on E.U.-China relations, says it will be “much harder” for European countries to push China to phase out coal due to the recent measures they have taken to secure alternative fossil fuel supplies.

Climate Home, Xiaoying You, October 2022

On the bright side, climate diplomacy researcher Belinda Schäpe said adapting to climate change has “really gained importance” in China. She said the government’s new adaptation strategy is “much more ambitious” than the previous version. She expects these improvements to continue, especially after China experienced the “longest and strongest heat wave on record” this summer.

Dialogue Earth, Chris Davy and Ma Tianjie, August 2022

It’s not been possible to silo climate change from the other challenges facing the US–China relationship. However, the attempt to outcompete each other in their domestic energy transitions, green tech development and financial assistance to the global south could be of significant global benefit.

Bloomberg, August 2022

The one thing public climate spending plans in the US, China and the EU all have in common is that the investments aren’t enough, said Belinda Schäpe, a climate diplomacy researcher on EU-China relations. “To succeed in bringing about the global transition needed, the US, China, and the EU, as the largest emitters, all need to significantly scale up investments — at home and abroad,” she said.

Dialogue Earth, Damon Evans, April 2022

“The EU should reaffirm its climate goals and defuse any Chinese perception of the EU’s backtracking on the commitments on phasing out fossil fuels,” said Belinda Schäpe, climate and diplomacy researcher on EU–China relations.

Carbon Brief, April 2022

Schäpe said that the extent to which the current “crisis” in Ukraine impacts the pace of the EU’s energy transition “will be closely watched” by Chinese policymakers. She added: “Von der Leyen reaffirmed that the current geopolitical shocks are driving Europe to transition faster to clean energy sources and will not change the EU’s climate commitments…If the EU follows through on its commitments, it will be harder for China to defend any backtracking and slowdown in its transition.”

Yicai, November 2021

Interview on COP26 outcomes with Chinese media outlet Yicai

IFL Science, Tom Hale, November 2021

“It is a welcome political signal that both countries recognise the urgency of the climate crisis in the declaration and commit to cooperate on this issue despite their tense bilateral relationship. This has the potential to deliver practical actions going forward, starting from the first meeting planned for the first half-year of 2022.”

New Statesman, India Bourke, November 2021

While signing up to the recent G20 agreement to meet net zero by or around mid-century, China has also, as part of the Like-Minded Developing Countries coalition, been opposing developed nations’ call for a global net-zero target, said Belinda Schäpe. Playing it both ways, as a member of developing and developed economies’ groups, “will be a difficult balance to strike”, she added.

The Guardian, Fiona Harvey, Jonathan Watts, Vincent Ni, October 2021

Belinda Schäpe said the recent warning by the world’s leading climate scientists required nations to step up further than they were willing to do last year. “Things have changed since a year ago. The recent ‘code red warning’ by the IPCC puts China’s targets into a different light and increased ambition from China is crucial to keeping global warming below dangerous levels. China could still bring large contributions to the table at G20 and Cop26 by supporting a political commitment to keep 1.5C within reach and clarifying the role of coal in its power system.”

South China Morning Post, Eric Ng, October 2021

“China has yet to put at date on [the overseas coal ban] nor did they say whether the pledge would only cover financing from policy banks or include other commercial or state-owned banks”, said Belinda Schäpe, climate diplomacy researcher.

Scientific America, Sara Schonhardt, September 2021

“An end to Chinese finance could facilitate the cancellation of over 40 gigawatts of pipeline projects in 20 countries — equivalent to the current coal fleet of Germany,” Belinda Schäpe, an EU-China climate diplomacy researcher, said in an email.