China is planning for its environmental protection sector to grow at 15% per annum over the first 5 years of the 21st century. To achieve this, China has strengthened environmental legislation and is investing the equivalent of US$12 billion between 1998 and 2007. While preparations for the Beijing 2008 Olympics have driven this action in part, environmental improvement is also motivated by the desire to modernise industry and make it more efficient, and to create better living and working conditions by reducing pollution. While the reduction in air pollution in Beijing since 2000 has been spectacular, environmental improvements are being planned for most of China.

China's environmental strategy offers excellent opportunities for Australian manufacturers of environmentally sound goods and services to export to China. They can do this either by:

• direct sales; or
• contracting with a Chinese company to manufacture under licence in China; or
• joint venture.

To turn these opportunities into achievements requires careful identification of the market niche of the product and the development of contacts in China. From our experiences and conversations with Chinese business, government and academia, we have developed strategies on how to do this.

Sustainability Centre's China GreenLinks program involves the facilitation of business and government relationships between Australia and China. It does this by cross-cultural advising, marketing, export facilitation, and training. China GreenLinks is based on years of experience by the managers of Sustainability Centre in facilitating joint projects between Australia and China. These include:

• Exporting to China, organising trade seminars in China and running an Australian 'green' product stand at an international trade fair in China (see Trade fair report).

• Building relationships in China with businesses; local, municipal and provincial governments; national associations; large corporations; research groups in the natural and social sciences; professional associations; and the media.

• Giving invited addresses to conferences, international trade fairs, and local government in China and publicising ecologically sustainable development in Chinese media.

• Organising and delivering short training courses on ecologically sustainable development to delegations comprising leading government and business people visiting Sydney. These groups have come from Shanghai, Qingdao, Shenyang, Henan Province, etc.

• Initiating and carrying out a joint research project with scientists at the Institute of Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences. This has created excellent academic and government links.