Chen Jie, a resident of central Beijing's Dongsi community, regularly gathers with her neighbors to take part in community activities. But instead of playing chess or knitting like most folks their age, Chen and her friends collect plastic waste and other recyclable refuse.

The 51-year-old Chen and seven others make up the "Green Butterfly Environmental Protection Group," a gathering of community members who dedicate their spare time to collecting recyclable materials in order to offset their carbon footprint.

Some 3,000 km southwest of Beijing, villagers in Kasi township, located in Changning county in Yunnan Province, are also making efforts to live low-carbon lifestyles.

"Marsh gas ponds are like trash bags that can never be filled up," said Kasi resident Yang Cuimei. "They also provide us with endless supplies of gas and organic fertilizer, cheap and clean."

The urban community of Dongsi and the villages of Yunnan represent two sides of a nationwide drive to reduce environmental impact and pursue a cleaner way of living.

Similar efforts are being made in other parts of the country; energy-saving light bulbs and solar panels are becoming more popular, and environmentally friendly practices and ideas are being promoted more than ever before.

"China's path towards a green, low-carbon economy will require not only the creation of government policies, but also a community-level transformation," said Yang Fuqiang, director of global climate solutions for the World Wild Foundation International and a senior advisor to the U.S. Natural Resources Defence Council.

Although Chen said she has always lead a thrifty life due to tight financial conditions, she never thought about the environmental impact of her lifestyle until she and others received a lesson from a non-governmental organization (NGO).

Two years ago, Global Village Beijing China, an NGO focusing on environmental protection, came to Dongsi for a joint project with the government's sub-district office. Through a series of seminars and activities, local residents learned about the economic value of recyclable refuse and learned how to make small changes in their lives to reduce waste.

Chen and her neighbors subsequently established the "Green Butterfly" group to collect waste and promote environmental protection. She said that she also pays more attention to her consumption of energy and water these days, reducing her family's electricity and water costs by 20 percent.

Hao Yanjun, an official from the Dongsi sub-district office, said that he has seen environmental awareness grow among the residents of his community.

"Most of them thought that environmental protection was far from them, but after several activities and rounds of publicity, our residents have learned a lot and are now voluntarily implementing the things they've learned," said Hao.

Chen believes her group's work has contributed to global efforts to address climate change, the same topic that is currently being discussed by

world leaders in Durban, South Africa at the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Hou Fei, a staff member at Global Village Beijing China, said community-level environmental awareness efforts have been difficult and time-consuming, as many residents view environmental activists as troublesome.

"It will make a big difference if people view environmental protection as their own business and not the government's," said Hou.