Measured Insights
The latest blog posts from our research projects.
Hugging a Panda
I recently fulfilled a lifelong dream of mine - hugging a giant panda. In fact, this dream can be yours too, for the incredible donation of 1300 RMB (around $200 USD) to the Chengdu Panda Breeding Center, located in the north part of Sichuan province's capital city....
Wuhan's decade's worst air pollution
Back in mid-June, Wuhan recorded the worst levels of air pollution in a decade. Media reports included pictures of Hubei's capital shrouded in a greenish-yellow smog. Naturally, I decided that I had to make Wuhan one of the stops on my research trip. Despite (or in...
Hunan's first Pollution Information Transparency Index
This video features Green Hunan, a non-government, non-profit organization located in Changsha, the capital of Hunan province. Green Hunan worked with the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs (IPE) last year in a first attempt to develop a city-level...
A funny thing happened on the way to Hunan's Provincial Government Offices …
While registering to enter the Hunan Provincial Government offices in Changsha, I asked a security officer if there was a trashbin where I might throw out a cup that had previously contained my bubble tea. In heavily-accented Mandarin, the security officer said...
Zhejiang's City-level Environmental Performance Indicators
My second stop in Zhejiang province was the capital, Hangzhou. As you can see from the video, Zhejiang is currently working with the Chinese Academy for Environmental Planning (CAEP) to adapt the China EPI framework we helped them develop (see post here) for a...
Ningbo's Blue and Transparent Skies
Ningbo, a seaport city in the northeast of Zhejiang province in China's more developed Southeast region, has come in first in the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs Pollution Information Transparency Index (PITI) ranking for the last two years in a row....
A view of Suzhou's Environmental Regulatory System
In a previous post, I mentioned the accolades Suzhou's environmental monitoring received as the "best in the world," from a US EPA official when she visited. I also had a chance to see for myself the regulation in action. We were taken to what I'm pretty sure is a...
Suzhou- the 'Best Environmental Monitoring in the World'
While in Suzhou, I had the opportunity to meet with Liu Wenbao, the Vice Director of the city's Environmental Protection Bureau (EPB). Mr. Liu is pictured above showing me the region of the now infamous Lake Tai, which in 2007 suffered a large algal bloom that then...
Shanghai Environmental Monitoring Center's Air Quality Reporting
Meet Li Juan, PhD - an engineer in the Atmospheric Monitoring Division of Shanghai's Environmental Monitoring Centre (EMC). She prepares the daily air quality reports for the Shanghai Environmental Protection Bureau. Most of the process to retrieve the data and...
