Enabling Sustainable Lifestyles in China
The CSCP wants Chinese consumers to have choices. They should have the possibility to choose more sustainable lifestyles that increase their wellbeing and the wellbeing of others. As a partner in the European Commission funded SWITCH SUS-BIRD Project we work on strengthening the market for sustainable interior design and renovation products and services in China.
Capacity Building and Sustainable Housing
Since 2011, the CSCP has been working to prepare local trainers to lead training for several hundred members of building design and construction companies in East China. Participants learn how to select and apply sustainable material when designing and constructing building interiors. As a second pillar of the project, the partners established an online platform - the Product Information System (PIS) where building product companies can register sustainable products they offer. The system will help decoration companies and consumers in China to identify, check and select products that are energy efficient, have less environmental impact, and offer superior health and safety performance.
An Entry Point to the Chinese Market for European Companies
The project partners have also established a tangible entry point to the Chinese market for European companies that produce sustainable building interior materials. To this end, an English language version of the product platform has also been prepared. Suppliers can apply to register products and, in turn, gain profile among sustainability-driven Chinese designers and consumers. At the same time, buyers in Europe can gain access to information on environmental, health and safety aspects of Chinese products that are also profiled on the site. As a start, the English platform includes the four product categories of wallpaper, artificial boards, water-based paints and adhesives.
The Way Ahead: Increasing Feasibility of Criteria and Embedding SUS-BIRD
Both dialogue with practitioners through the training courses as well as the development of the product platform in English to gain European market will support improvement of evaluation/sustainability criteria in China. In terms of standardisation, we are steadily increasing the feasibility of the SUS-BIRD scheme to make it a lasting institution in the Chinese interior decoration and renovation sector.
In addition, the CSCP is working to foster stronger linkages between the SUS-BIRD scheme, which focuses on building interiors, and other building and construction schemes. We are working to build these linkages because we believe that sustainable housing will only be realised at larger scales in China if local practitioners are empowered to take a systemic and holistic approach to buildings as systems.