Author: Dialogue Earth
Dialogue Earth is an independent non-profit dedicated to producing exceptional environmental journalism and informed conversations on urgent climate and sustainability topics. Our unique model brings local voices to global audiences and global stories of hope, action and change to local communities. We are committed to accurately portraying China’s development impacts across the Global South through geopolitically even-handed reporting and constructive dialogue. Our approach is rooted in a network of specialist country editors located across South and Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America, and delivered through reporting in eight languages, workshops, and media partnerships. We seek to bring light, rather than heat, to crucial debates, and solutions to bear on complex problems.
Related Posts
Can Chinese Agricultural Tech Work for Kenya?
By Duncan Mboyah Many Kenyan farmers work fertile land close to fast-growing urban markets. But they are struggling as rainfall gets less predictable, heat stress rises and pests and diseases spread. For smallholders, a single ...
Related Posts
China’s Clean Tech Charm Offensive Wins Global South Hearts and Minds
By Chris Aylett and Bernice Lee Air travellers making the descent into Islamabad, Nairobi, or São Paulo may be struck by the sight of solar panels scattered liberally over the rooftops. Regular visitors to Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital city, will probably have ...
Chinese Mining Companies Need Deeper Dialogue With Overseas Communities
By Chen Yu Minerals like nickel, lithium, cobalt, and copper are foundational to the global clean-energy transition. Solar panels, wind turbines, EVs, and battery storage cannot be built without them. Yet extracting, processing, and transporting these “transition minerals” can be resource-intensive, ...
Chinese Demand Boosts Brazilian Coffee Exports and Challenges Small Producers
Since 2018, São Paulo–based businesswoman Carla Guindani has been eyeing the Chinese market. That year, she was invited by ApexBrasil, a Brazilian government agency dedicated to promoting exports, to exhibit family farming products at the Shanghai International Food Exhibition. At the time, Guindani was head of a ...
The Evolving Role of China in Argentina’s Energy Transition
By Javier Lewkowicz Over the past decade, Chinese companies have played a fundamental role in the expansion of Argentina’s clean energy infrastructure, both through financing and direct participation in large projects. However, recent geopolitical and economic ...
China’s Lending to the Global South Has Been Growing More Commercial
By Yunnan Chen Development finance has been embattled of late. Aid cutbacks have raised alarm over financing for climate and development goals. The most notable example is the egregious dismantling of the US Agency for ...
China’s Belt and Road Hits New Highs, but Latin America Lags
By Fermín Koop and Patrick Moore The first half of 2025 saw the highest engagement ever for a six-month period under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China’s flagship global infrastructure program, a new report has shown.
Is BYD’s Acceleration a Win for Latin America?
By Sally Jabiel A new world order is being contested in the electric vehicles sector. While the trade war between the United States and China rumbles on, the Chinese electric carmaker BYD has already pulled ahead in the race against its ...
After Trump Cut Funding for Energy Transitions Overseas, Could China Step In?
By Zhou Xiaozhu On the day he became president again, Donald Trump signed an executive order to take the U.S. out of the Paris Agreement on climate change. That was followed by a termination of U.S. funding pledged during the Biden ...
China-CELAC Summit Invests in Multilateralism Amid Global Trade Tensions
By Fermín Koop, Jack Lo Lau, Juan Ortiz Latin American leaders gathered in Beijing on Tuesday for the fourth ministerial summit between the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) and China. Speaking at the opening ceremony, Chinese President Xi ...
Is It Possible to Work With China for Development?
By You Xiaoying Some 10,000 kilometers from the rolling tea fields of eastern China, tea farmers in Kenya are fighting climate change using Chinese know-how. From planting trees to organically fertilising, tea plantations in the ...
Is It Possible to Work With China for Development?
By You Xiaoying Some 10,000 kilometers from the rolling tea fields of eastern China, tea farmers in Kenya are fighting climate change using Chinese know-how. From planting trees to organically fertilising, tea plantations in the ...
Power Plays: China’s Changing Energy Financing in Africa
By Wu Tianyi Over the past two decades, Chinese financing in Africa has boomed and waned and undergone cycles of change. Initially dominated by lending from state-owned policy banks for large infrastructure and energy projects, notably in coal and hydropower, the ...
Pakistan Must Rebuild Chinese Investor Confidence in Its Energy Transition
By Haneea Isaad and Mustafa Hyder Sayed Pakistan’s energy sector investments are on a complex trajectory. Despite government efforts to attract foreign capital and de-risk new projects, investor confidence remains low. In January 2024, a 600-megawatt (MW) solar project in Muzaffargarh ...
Colombia Juggles Closer China Ties and Trump Tensions
By Rodrigo Rodríguez On 26 January, a diplomatic spat erupted between Colombia and the United States, as the South American country’s president, Gustavo Petro, refused to land a flight carrying Colombian citizens deported from the US. Taking to social media, Petro
Could China Provide the Renewable Energy Investment Indonesia Needs?
By Joan Aurelia During his first state visit as Indonesian president, Prabowo Subianto oversaw the signing of a $10 billion investment deal in Beijing last November. While the agreement spans sectors such as health, biotechnology, manufacturing, food security, and finance, renewable energy ...
Q&A: ‘Tariffs Could Kill Chinese Investments in EVs in Mexico’
By Alejandra Cuéllar Since his election victory in November, United States president-elect Donald Trump has repeatedly vowed to slap tariffs on the country’s top trade partners, pledging to make this one of his first acts upon taking office on 20 January.
Brazil’s Unions See Potential and Pressures From Chinese Carmakers
By André Duchiade The rapid expansion of the market for electric vehicles in Brazil, particularly Chinese cars, is transforming the country’s automotive industry and could have an impact on workers and production chains, say Brazilian trade unionists in the sector.
What China’s Green ‘Overcapacity’ Could Mean for the Global South
By Xie Ruohan "Overcapacity” is a word that has dominated the global political agenda this year. In an April visit to China, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen privately and publicly raised the Chinese economy’s “imbalances and overcapacity.” Yellen expressed worries that this overcapacity ...
China Endorses ‘Small and Beautiful’ Projects in Africa Despite Challenges
By Liu Shuang and Wang Ye China renewed its commitments to Africa this September at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing. The renewal included endorsing “small and beautiful” livelihood-improving projects and bankrolling sustainable energy projects. The idea of small and ...
Can China’s New BRI Bonds Spur Sustainable Development?
By Jiang Mengnan In June of this year, the Bank of China (BOC) issued the first sustainable development bonds, for which all funds raised were directed towards countries affiliated with the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), according to the bank’s website. The ...
Brazil Edges Closer to China’s Belt and Road. Why Now?
By Matt Sandy As China’s Belt and Road Initiative enters its second decade, the country appears on the verge of persuading Brazil to make the significant decision to finally sign up to its flagship overseas investment programme.'
Roundtable: What the China-Africa Forum Means for Clean Energy in Africa
By Tom Baxter Over 50 African heads of state gathered in Beijing on 4-6 September for the 9th Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC). As per tradition, the triennial meeting concluded with an action plan and a declaration.
Beyond the Belt and Road? What’s next for the EU in Latin America
Last year, the European Union renewed its economic and strategic interest in Latin America by announcing investments of EUR 45 billion (USD 48.7 billion), seen by many as a way to regain influence in the face of China’s growing presence in the region.
Opinion: Brazil and China Could Lead the Way on South-South Climate Cooperation
This August marked the fiftieth anniversary of diplomatic ties between China and Brazil – two of the most consequential countries for global efforts to avert climate chaos. Their celebrations came against the backdrop of improved relations and strengthening climate cooperation. As the ...
Discontent Shadows Kenya’s Biggest Chinese-Funded Solar Power Project
Although the community initially agreed to the plant and were paid for their land, Abdi says that without the other promised benefits, they now regret their decision.
Pakistan and China Pursue Corridor Dream Despite Financial, Security Risks
By Atika Rehman More than 50 people were killed in late August during multiple attacks in Pakistan’s impoverished southwestern province of Balochistan. Despite extensive infrastructure investments made in the region, mostly through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a decades-long insurgency has only ...
How Is Chinese Investment in Latin America Changing?
In the past decade, Chinese investment into Latin America has so often been characterised by large infrastructure projects: roads, railways, dams and ports, among others, frequently backed by state finance, and in many countries arriving under the banner of the Belt and Road Initiative. But in recent years, ...
‘It Worries Me Deeply’: Five Chinese Experts on Climate Change
By China Dialogue We asked five environmental experts from academia and civil society what they made of the Year of the Rabbit, and what they were most proud of. Last year the world was warmer ...
The Young Filipinos Studying Clean Energy in China
By Niu Yuhan Training projects are benefiting the renewable energy sectors of Belt and Road countries, but expansion will require funding. “In three years, I want to be a renewable energy engineer, using the skills ...
Solar Power to the People
By Sophie Mbugua, Wesley Langat The second instalment of this two-part series visits the Garissa solar power plant in eastern Kenya to explore the role of renewables in the energy transition. Heading north from the ...
China’s No New Coal Power Overseas Pledge, One Year On
By Han Chen and Wei Shen On 21 September 2021, China’s president, Xi Jinping, told the UN General Assembly via video link that China would increase support for green and low-carbon energy in developing countries, and not build any new coal-fired ...
In Zimbabwe, An Aborted Quarry Shows Need for Community Consultation
By Deogracias Kalima At the center of Mutare in eastern Zimbabwe rises Dangamvura Mountain. Dividing the city center from its southern suburbs and home to a cemetery for state heroes, it is a revered landmark traditionally considered sacred by local communities. ...
A Taliban security personnel operating an anti-aircraft gun keeps watch for Pakistani airstrikes near the Torkham border crossing between Afghanistan and Pakistan in the Nangarhar province on February 27, 2026 following overnight cross-border fighting between the two countries. Photo by AIMAL ZAHIR / AFP
Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif declared "open war" against Afghanistan on Friday amid a surge of fighting between the two South Asian neighbors. Pakistan said it's retaliating against Afghanistan for a series of attacks, including a suicide bombing in early February that killed at least 36 people ...
Can Chinese Agricultural Tech Work for Kenya?
By Duncan Mboyah Many Kenyan farmers work fertile land close to fast-growing urban markets. But they are struggling as rainfall gets less predictable, heat stress rises and pests and diseases spread. For smallholders, a single ...
China’s Clean Tech Charm Offensive Wins Global South Hearts and Minds
By Chris Aylett and Bernice Lee Air travellers making the descent into Islamabad, Nairobi, or São Paulo may be struck by the sight of solar panels scattered liberally over the rooftops. Regular visitors to Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital city, will probably have ...
Chinese Mining Companies Need Deeper Dialogue With Overseas Communities
By Chen Yu Minerals like nickel, lithium, cobalt, and copper are foundational to the global clean-energy transition. Solar panels, wind turbines, EVs, and battery storage cannot be built without them. Yet extracting, processing, and transporting these “transition minerals” can be resource-intensive, ...
Chinese Demand Boosts Brazilian Coffee Exports and Challenges Small Producers
Since 2018, São Paulo–based businesswoman Carla Guindani has been eyeing the Chinese market. That year, she was invited by ApexBrasil, a Brazilian government agency dedicated to promoting exports, to exhibit family farming products at the Shanghai International Food Exhibition. At the time, Guindani was head of a ...
The Evolving Role of China in Argentina’s Energy Transition
By Javier Lewkowicz Over the past decade, Chinese companies have played a fundamental role in the expansion of Argentina’s clean energy infrastructure, both through financing and direct participation in large projects. However, recent geopolitical and economic ...
China’s Lending to the Global South Has Been Growing More Commercial
By Yunnan Chen Development finance has been embattled of late. Aid cutbacks have raised alarm over financing for climate and development goals. The most notable example is the egregious dismantling of the US Agency for ...
China’s Belt and Road Hits New Highs, but Latin America Lags
By Fermín Koop and Patrick Moore The first half of 2025 saw the highest engagement ever for a six-month period under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China’s flagship global infrastructure program, a new report has shown.
Is BYD’s Acceleration a Win for Latin America?
By Sally Jabiel A new world order is being contested in the electric vehicles sector. While the trade war between the United States and China rumbles on, the Chinese electric carmaker BYD has already pulled ahead in the race against its ...
After Trump Cut Funding for Energy Transitions Overseas, Could China Step In?
By Zhou Xiaozhu On the day he became president again, Donald Trump signed an executive order to take the U.S. out of the Paris Agreement on climate change. That was followed by a termination of U.S. funding pledged during the Biden ...
China-CELAC Summit Invests in Multilateralism Amid Global Trade Tensions
By Fermín Koop, Jack Lo Lau, Juan Ortiz Latin American leaders gathered in Beijing on Tuesday for the fourth ministerial summit between the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) and China. Speaking at the opening ceremony, Chinese President Xi ...
Is It Possible to Work With China for Development?
By You Xiaoying Some 10,000 kilometers from the rolling tea fields of eastern China, tea farmers in Kenya are fighting climate change using Chinese know-how. From planting trees to organically fertilising, tea plantations in the ...
Is It Possible to Work With China for Development?
By You Xiaoying Some 10,000 kilometers from the rolling tea fields of eastern China, tea farmers in Kenya are fighting climate change using Chinese know-how. From planting trees to organically fertilising, tea plantations in the ...