A joint statement made today by the United States and China has set out a common vision for COP21 in Paris this December, and increasing climate cooperation between the two countries will significantly strengthen each countries national climate action plans and also send a clear, positive message to business.

Following the recent finalization of the US Clean Power Plan, China announced it's intention to launch a national emissions-trading system in 2017 and develop a "green dispatch" system that will prioritize power generation from renewable sources. China has also agreed to pledge 3.1 billion dollars to help developing countries fight climate change, adding to the 3 billion the US has committed to the Green Climate Fund, and the two countries have also committed to synchronize and implement new heavy-duty vehicle fuel-efficiency standards in 2016, and scale up efforts to control emissions of super-warming hydrofluorocarbons.

Strong government policy on climate change is critical, not only from a government standpoint, but also because it sends clear signals to the private sector that the tide is turning. The increasing climate cooperation between China and the US alongside increased ambition from each country sends the exact signal needed to bring us closer to a net-zero greenhouse-gas emissions economy by the year 2050.

Click here to read a post form We Mean Business to learn more about the joint statement and the climate momentum being built by China and the US.