News imageThe Climate Question, Can China build its way out of climate change?

The Climate Question

Can China build its way out of climate change?

13 September 2026

Available for over a year

Huge construction projects are transforming China - think enormous dams, giant solar power farms and a vast high-speed rail network. Will Beijing's "engineering mindset" help it deal with climate change?

China's senior leadership is dominated by engineers, starting with President Xi, who trained as a chemical engineer in the 1970s. They have overseen megaprojects like the 50-kilometre bridge joining Hong Kong and Macau, and a plan to move water from southern China to the much drier north.

The engineering mania extends to energy, where the world's largest polluter has invested trillions of dollars in wind and nuclear power, as well as high voltage transmission lines spanning the country. So what does China's approach mean for climate change? And can Beijing build its way out of the problem?

In this edition of The Climate Question Host Jordan Dunbar and BBC Presenter Celia Hatton talk to Dan Wang, the author of Breakneck: China's Quest to Engineer the Future. Dan is currently a research fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution.

Producer: Jordan Dunbar and Melanie Stewart-Smith

Sound Mix: Johnny Hall and Tom Brignell

Editor: Simon Watts