Chongqing - A great river carries the development aspirations of communities along its banks, even as economic activity puts ecological pressure on it. Reconciling urban development, industrial growth, and ecological protection is a shared challenge for the Yangtze and the Amazon. 

This is the starting point for the Western China International Communication Organization’s 2026 international research project, Urban Development and Ecological Protection of Major Rivers: A Study on Ecological Protection Mechanisms in the Yangtze River and the Brazilian Section of the Amazon Basin, which compares practices and governance mechanisms in the two regions.

In his preliminary research, André Tokarski, the project's expert and a representative of Brazil’s Fundação Maurício Grabois, argues that protecting major rivers requires sustained cooperation across regions and government departments, along with support for local livelihoods. 

When fishing bans take effect, how can fishers move into new occupations? When deforestation is restricted, how can residents earn an income from protecting forests? This edition of Global Vision’s China in Depth draws on his research to explore what the Yangtze and Amazon can learn from each other about ecological protection and development along their banks.

André Tokarski, Representative of the Fundação Maurício Grabois, Brazil. (Graphic/Li Jiao)

A shared challenge: protecting ecosystems while improving lives

In Tokarski’s analysis, the Yangtze is an economic artery connecting densely populated cities, industrial centers, ports and logistics networks. Over the years, it has faced a range of pressures: industrial and domestic wastewater discharges; urban development encroaching on wetlands and natural riverbanks; shipping and water infrastructure altering aquatic environments; and overfishing disrupting aquatic species' reproduction. 

The basin’s vast network of interconnected tributaries, lakes, and main river channels adds to the challenge. Pollution and ecological changes in one location can have lasting effects upstream, downstream, and in surrounding waters.

The Amazon faces growing pressure from deforestation, land-use changes, and excessive resource extraction. Clearing forests for cropland and pasture reduces wildlife habitat and disrupts interdependent forest-river ecosystems. Mercury pollution from gold mining can enter rivers and food chains, threatening aquatic life and the health of riverside communities. Roads and other infrastructure extending deeper into the rainforest can fragment continuous forests and encourage further settlement and resource extraction. 

These pressures are also closely connected with the land rights, cultural continuity and livelihoods of Indigenous peoples and traditional communities.

The Amazon’s rich biodiversity and influence on the global climate have long drawn international attention. Yet Tokarski cautions against focusing solely on the forest’s global ecological value while overlooking the people who live there. The region also has cities, and its residents need transport, water supply and sewage treatment, as well as better living conditions. Without addressing these needs, conservation will struggle to secure lasting and stable public support.

Ecological protection in the Amazon must therefore be understood alongside local livelihoods and development needs. This leads the comparative study to a further question: how can conservation policies protect the natural environment while creating better development opportunities for local people?

The Chongqing case: making river protection part of everyday governance

For Tokarski, the Yangtze experience merits study not only for the measures adopted, but also for the policy coordination and sustained investment that keep them effective. Reducing industrial discharges requires both industrial upgrading and regulatory support. Restoring riverbanks requires corresponding adjustments to urban planning and resource use. Fishing bans need employment support to help fishers move into other occupations. 

Since the Yangtze flows through multiple regions, protection efforts upstream and downstream must also connect. These supporting policies and cross-regional cooperation help turn individual interventions into sustained, systematic basin governance.

André Tokarski attends the International Symposium on the Global Significance of Chinese Modernization in Chongqing. (Photo/Western China International Communication Organization)

In June, Tokarski visited Chongqing for the International Symposium on the Global Significance of Chinese Modernization. He toured Changan Auto's digital and intelligent factory, the Chongqing Planning Exhibition Gallery, and the Chongqing Inland International Logistics Hub Exhibition Center. 

These visits helped him understand the relationship between the Yangtze and urban development through the perspectives of industry, planning, and logistics. Building on these observations, he designated Chongqing as a key Chinese case study in his research proposal. As a major industrial city and logistics hub on the upper Yangtze, Chongqing offers a concrete setting for examining how river protection becomes part of urban governance.

“Being inland does not mean that development is constrained. With sound planning and the benefits of regional integration, inland regions can also become strategic platforms for economic development and international exchange,” Tokarski said.

This observation extends the inquiry from individual environmental measures to broader urban development decisions. How can ports, roads and industrial parks be built while protecting riverbanks and ecological areas? How can urban sewage treatment and industrial pollution control be coordinated across administrative boundaries? Can industrial upgrading ease environmental pressure while sustaining employment and economic vitality? 

These interconnected questions are central to understanding the Yangtze’s approach to integrated governance.

The project will also examine climate monitoring, responses to extreme weather and the renewal of older neighborhoods, exploring how a megacity incorporates ecological protection into planning, investment and everyday governance.

The Amazon case: connecting conservation efforts into a network

In the Brazilian Amazon, Tokarski’s research focuses on protected areas, Indigenous territories, environmental monitoring and economic incentives for conservation. It examines how these mechanisms protect ecosystems while addressing local development needs.

“For countries in the Global South, the green transition should develop domestic industry, create more skilled jobs and strengthen technological autonomy, rather than deepen dependence on imported technology,” Tokarski said.

Each mechanism has a distinct role. Protected areas establish boundaries between strict conservation and sustainable use. Indigenous territorial arrangements help communities safeguard the forests they depend on. Satellite monitoring helps detect deforestation promptly and informs enforcement. Payments for ecosystem services reward those who protect forests and maintain ecosystems.

Their effectiveness depends on whether they work together. Detecting deforestation does not automatically stop it; enforcement and administrative action must follow promptly. Similarly, restrictions on resource extraction must address local livelihoods and development needs.

During field research, André Tokarski (left) presents books on the ecological ideas of Chinese modernization to Vanessa Grazziotin, a former Brazilian senator and Executive Director of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (ACTO). Grazziotin expressed interest in research cooperation on governance in the Amazon and Yangtze basins. (Photo/Western China International Communication Organization)

The benefits of protecting rivers and forests extend far beyond local communities, yet local people often bear the immediate costs of giving up income from fishing, land clearance, and similar activities. The research will therefore look beyond improvements in water quality and forest protection. 

Can people moving into new occupations find stable work? Does ecological compensation reach those who bear conservation responsibilities? Can new economic activities generate sustained income? These questions will help assess whether protection measures can endure.

During field research, André Tokarski presents books on the ecological ideas of Chinese modernization to Eron Bezerra, a professor at the Federal University of Amazonas and head of a sustainable development research team. Bezerra expressed interest in joining comparative research on governance in the Amazon and Yangtze basins. (Photo/Western China International Communication Organization)

The Yangtze and Amazon: adapting lessons to local conditions

With different natural conditions and stages of development, how can the Yangtze and Amazon meaningfully learn from each other? Tokarski proposes starting with specific problems, examining what measures each region has adopted, how they are implemented, and under what conditions they work.

The project will focus on six areas:

• Planning and coordination: Who takes the lead, and how do regions and government departments work together?

• Monitoring and enforcement: How are pollution and deforestation detected, and can they be stopped promptly?

• Ecological restoration: How are damaged riverbanks, forests and wetlands restored, and with what results?

• Compensation and incentives: Who bears conservation costs, and do those protecting ecosystems receive fair compensation?

• Public participation: How do residents, communities and research institutions contribute to decisions, conservation and oversight?

• Industrial transformation: When environmentally damaging activities are restricted, how can new jobs and stable incomes be created?

Tokarski considers the Yangtze’s coordination and policy continuity, alongside Brazil’s experience in community participation and environmental transparency, worthy of closer study. Whether these lessons can be applied elsewhere, however, depends on local ecological conditions, development stages and governance arrangements. 

The project will use policy reviews, case studies, interviews and data comparisons to examine how different mechanisms work in practice. Indicators will cover water quality, vegetation cover and biodiversity, as well as household income, green employment and public services, to assess whether ecological improvements also bring better living conditions.

Building on this work, Urban Development and Ecological Protection of Major Rivers: A Study on Ecological Protection Mechanisms in the Yangtze River and the Brazilian Section of the Amazon Basin will propose a permanent Yangtze–Amazon Ecological Dialogue mechanism. The aim is to bring universities, research institutions, local governments, and social organizations together for joint research, data sharing, and technical exchanges, turning mutual learning into sustained cooperation.

Global Vision’s China in Depth will continue to follow the project, examining how its research translates into practical cooperation to protect rivers and forests while creating better development opportunities for communities along their banks.