The 2014 Kubuqi Eco-Civilization Entrepreneurs Annual Conference was held from Sept. 19-20 at the Seven Star Lake Scenic Area in the Kubuqi Desert of China's Inner Mongolia Semi-Autonomous Region. The forum was primarily organized by Elion Resources Group, a multifaceted Inner Mongolian company which made its fortune and has gained international acclaim by working with the regional government and local residents to "green" the Kubuqi Desert.

More than 200 representatives from 32 major Chinese companies and research institutions attended the two day event, which focused on the use of entrepreneurial knowledge and commercial ability to help solve China's environmental problems. A series of discussion panels and lectures by business leaders and environmental researchers from throughout East Asia elaborated on themes surrounding the development of sustainable business practices that also benefit society, the economy, ecology, and the livelihoods of individuals.

The social responsibility of businesses was stressed throughout the event. In his address, opening a discussion of investment opportunities in ecological business models, Elion Group Chairman Wang Wenbiao talked about the model and way of thinking that have made Elion successful, saying "In order to improve our national ecology, we have to decide who we are going to rely on and who we are working for. We cannot simply rely on residents and citizens to solve these problems, but we must also rely on businesses to work to support the survival of our country, our families, our enterprises and our citizens' way of life."

He Changchui, former assistant secretary-general of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization and one of the Kubuqi Conference's key speakers, expressed similar thoughts in an interview with China.org.cn.

He asserted that "China is facing major problems of environmental degradation, and many people think that this it is the government's responsibility to solve these problems. But what we are trying to tell people through this forum is that these are in fact problems that businesses also need to address."