Guest speaker, Ex UN Secretary-in-General Maurice Strong delivers an address at the meeting. [Maverick Chen / China.org.cn]

"This year's drought in southwest China is an acute reminder of the potential for climate change. If left untackled, climate change will further threaten the livelihoods of the population, particularly among the most vulnerable communities," Malik said.

The publication links carbon reduction to economic development, pointing out that some of China's most economically advanced regions on the east coast among the least carbon intensive in the country.

Zou Ji, the report's lead author and professor with Renmin University acknowledged there would be temporary costs involved in the transition to a low-carbon economy, including job losses, higher prices and fiscal revenue shortfalls. But he said long term gains would include improved living standards, reduced harm to human health and the preservation of vital ecosystems.

But the country faces a huge challenge in implementing a low-carbon approach because of its vast territory and uneven development between regions.

"In less developed regions where a low-carbon transformation will incur excessive costs, they can trade their carbon emissions against tax," Prof. Zou suggested. "We cannot implement a universal standard, but will set different goals for different regions."