An initiative on carbon neutrality and energy system transformation was officially launched at the 2025 International Forum on Carbon Neutrality and Energy System Transformation (CNEST), which was held in Beijing over the weekend.

The aim of the initiative is to strengthen global collaboration and develop a new paradigm for future energy systems and accelerate progress towards carbon neutrality.

The forum, hosted by Tsinghua University and organized by the Tsinghua Institute for Carbon Neutrality, was the inaugural international gathering as part of the CNEST multilateral collaboration program.

Jiang Peixue, vice-president of Tsinghua University and head of the CNEST program, highlighted the complexity of designing a new energy system aligned with carbon neutrality goals and introduced CNEST's vision of an integrated, optimized system that supports low-cost decarbonization and sustainable development.

Youth representatives from China, Germany, India and Spain read out the text of the CNEST Beijing Initiative, which advocates building a global collaborative network to promote energy system transformation and advancing scientific and technological innovation to lead energy transformation.

The initiative also calls for cultivating an innovation ecosystem to accelerate implementation and synthesizing global knowledge to empower equitable development.

The ceremony also saw the launch of Technology Review for Carbon Neutrality, co-edited by professor Michael McElroy of Harvard and professor He Kebin, dean of the Tsinghua Institute for Carbon Neutrality.

The forum brought together more than 400 participants from 19 countries, including representatives from universities, research institutions, enterprises and international organizations, according to Tsinghua University.