In an interview in Dali, Yunnan Province, on October 9, ahead of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, Vorapong Vadhanasindhu, Consul of the Royal Thai Consulate General in Kunming, shared his thoughts on China-Thailand cooperation in biodiversity. This is an edited excerpt of his views:    

The launch of the white paper [Biodiversity Conservation in China] is an example of national actions by China. These are also taking place in other countries as well, to different degrees and on different levels. But I think we are looking at the same goals. In Thailand, we are also introducing similar measures and taking similar actions, including through our new legislation on biodiversity, which is being drafted. And we have our national master plan on biodiversity. 

China and ASEAN are already working together toward sustainable development under the China-ASEAN framework. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the dialogue relations between ASEAN and China. For my country, we are the ASEAN coordinator for sustainable development. We also host an organization known as the ASEAN Center for Sustainable Development Studies and Dialogue in Bangkok.  

Our work on sustainable development is principally guided by what is known as the “sufficiency economy philosophy” toward balanced progress in the economy, society, culture, the environment and many levels of people’s livelihood. We are also seeking partnerships and welcome partnerships based on this model of development. We are introducing another model, known as the Bio-Circular-Green economy. It is an economic model that the Thai Government is looking to promote to make use of our abundant biodiversity within our supply chains. 

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