Yes, China\u2019s leaders have decided to go green \u201d\u201d out of necessity because too many of their people can\u2019t breathe, can\u2019t swim, can\u2019t fish, can\u2019t farm and can\u2019t drink thanks to pollution from its coal- and oil-based manufacturing growth engine. And, therefore, unless China powers its development with cleaner energy systems, and more knowledge-intensive businesses without smokestacks, China will die of its own development.<\/p>\n
What do we know about necessity? It is the mother of invention. And when China decides it has to go green out of necessity, watch out. You will not just be buying your toys from China. You will buy your next electric car, solar panels, batteries and energy-efficiency software from China.<\/p>\n
I believe this Chinese decision to go green is the 21st-century equivalent of the Soviet Union\u2019s 1957 launch of Sputnik \u201d\u201d the world\u2019s first Earth-orbiting satellite. That launch stunned us, convinced President Eisenhower that the U.S. was falling behind in missile technology and spurred America to make massive investments in science, education, infrastructure and networking \u201d\u201d one eventual byproduct of which was the Internet.<\/p>\n
Well, folks. Sputnik just went up again: China\u2019s going clean-tech. The view of China in the U.S. Congress \u201d\u201d that China is going to try to leapfrog us by out-polluting us \u201d\u201d is out of date. It\u2019s going to try to out-green us.<\/p>\n