Between August 17 and 23, I had the opportunity to join a program called Jiangsudu (Jiangsu speed) and visit Nanjing, Wuxi and Yancheng cities in Jiangsu Province, east China. During this trip, many companies, institutions, cultural shows and natural places sparked my curiosity. Together, they illustrated the spirit of China's ongoing transformations, particularly the strengthening of a development path which integrates sustainability, innovation and culture. 

Pedro Steenhagen visits the Huanghai National Forest Park in Dongtai, a county-level city in Yancheng, Jiangsu Province, on August 22 (Wang Ruohan)

Let's start with Nanjing's Vazyme Biotech, a company that has quickly become a leading force in life sciences. Advances in biomedical materials and preventive health solutions are not just scientific achievements—they are essential components of a broader vision, one that drives public health improvements while benefiting both societies and their economies.

Meanwhile, the Dafeng Port Zero-Carbon Industrial Park in Yancheng represents one of the many concrete steps toward the country's ambitious carbon neutrality goals. Moreover, it shows how large-scale industrial projects can live up to the core foundations of sustainable development, which rests on three dimensions—society, economy and environment. Rather than treating economic growth, social benefits and environmental protection as conflicting goals, China has been able to integrate them in a way that effectively aligns with its ecological civilization strategy. This is further reinforced by Jiangsu's cultural and natural heritage. The Tiaozini wetlands, for instance, have been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site, and they are a symbol of China's commitment to protecting biodiversity.

Underlying all of these efforts are, in my view, three central components. First, the realization that intellectual property (IP) plays a key role in supporting such an innovative and sustainable landscape. Without effective protection of patents, trademarks and copyrights, the transition from research to real-world applications would be considerably weakened. China has made remarkable progress in solidifying its IP system over the past decades and, just as importantly, in promoting knowledge and technology transfers, as well as in ensuring investment security.

Second, the importance of prioritizing education, a choice that was made in the past and continues to be made in the present, which directly and positively impacts the Chinese innovation ecosystem. Most companies, institutions and even natural parks I visited proudly shared their partnerships with top universities in China and, in turn, such universities are also birthplaces of new insights, patents and networks that foster people-to-people exchange and scientific cooperation.

Third, the growing internationalization of Chinese companies, universities and local or regional governments, something that was possible to observe in Jiangsu. Certainly, some of the country's cities and regions, including Beijing, Shanghai and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, already have a tradition of internationalism, but it was impressive to see that less known places like Wuxi and Yancheng have been reaching out and establishing businesses and partnerships with counterparts from South America, Africa and Europe.

As a Brazilian, I was particularly excited to learn about several connections between Jiangsu and Brazil throughout the course of my visits. The Sino-Brazilian strategic partnership has been getting increasingly stronger, but there still is a lot of untapped potential, especially when it comes to providing meaningful contributions to the building of a greener, more sustainable and more equitable world.

By combining their strengths, China and Brazil can create new synergies in a wide number of fields, from IP enforcement, academic exchange and technological collaboration to clean energy, biodiversity protection and sustainable agriculture. However, such progress will need strong contributions from cities and regions, including their companies and governments, which can help continuously mould and develop bilateral and multilateral relations in original and ingenious ways.

The author is a Brazilian Ph.D. candidate in international politics at Fudan University in Shanghai and director of development at the independent Observa China network 

Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon

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