The Rules of Procedure of CCICED was endorsed by the CCICED 2007 AGM, which is as follows:

The China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED) is a high level, non-profit international advisory body, established by and providing advice to the Government of the People’s Republic of China.

Ⅰ.The Mandate of the Council

1. The Mandate of the Council is outlined in the Terms of Reference and was adopted at the 1st Meeting of the Council in Beijing in April 1992. By November 2006, the Council had successfully completed its mandate for Phase I, Phase II and Phase III. The Terms of Reference of Phase IV has defined the mandate of the Council: to continue and improve research achievements, policy recommendations and successful experience of the first three phases; to provide more executable policy recommendations, enhance and extend demonstration projects; and at the same time, to provide the Chinese government with new strategic and pre-warning policy recommendations in the new context.

2. The objectives of the Council are to explore ways of coordinating and integrating environmental protection, economic and social development, science and technology and related areas in order to provide the Chinese government with more executable policy recommendations, technology assistance and demonstration experience for China’s “Five-Year Plans”, 2020 long-term targets and beyond, and the implementation of sustainable development strategies.

3. The Council will encourage the cooperation and support of the international community for China’s efforts to promote a resource saving, environmentally friendly society, while protect its own ecological system, conserving energy and natural resources, and realizing environmental, social and economic sustainable development, as well as contributing to global sustainable development.

II. Adoption of the Rules of Procedure

4. The Rules of Procedure have defined the regular operation of the Council. The Rules of Procedure have been amended after its adoption in Phase I, Phase II and Phase Ⅲ of the Council, and are amended and adopted at the 1st meeting of the Council Phase IV.

5. Amendments to the Rules of Procedure are made in accordance with Section 62 below.

Ⅲ. The appointment of Chairperson and Vice Chairpersons

6. The Chairperson and Vice Chairpersons are Council Members.

7. The Chairperson of the Council will be a leader of the State Council, appointed by the Chinese Government.

8. The Council has one Chinese and one International Executive Vice Chairperson, who will be invited and approved by the Chinese Government.

9. In addition, the Chinese and international Vice-chairpersons will be invited by the Chinese Government, in consultation with relevant main donor countries.

10. The terms of office for the Chairperson and Vice Chairpersons shall be five years. Under special circumstances, they may resign before their term ends. In that circumstance, the Chinese government will appoint a new Chairperson or invite and approve new Vice Chairpersons.

Ⅳ. Approval and change of Council membership

11. Members of the Council will be invited and approved by the Chinese government to serve on the Council. The Chinese Government shall consult with the primary donor country when selecting any new international members.

12. The term of Council Membership shall be five years. A Member may be replaced before the end of this term if the Member resigns for personal reasons, or does not perform his or her duties, or no longer meets the requirements of the Council. These changes shall be adopted by the Bureau Meeting of the Council and reported to the Council’s Annual General Meeting.

Ⅴ. The Bureau and the Bureau Meeting

13. The Council has a Bureau, which will consist of the Chairperson, Executive Vice Chairpersons, Vice Chairpersons and Secretary General.

14. The Bureau Meeting will be established and co-chaired by the Executive Vice Chairpersons to serve as the executive body of the Council. The members of the Bureau Meeting include the Executive Vice Chairpersons, Vice Chairpersons and the Secretary General. The executive responsibilities of the Bureau Meeting are to:

1) Consider and adopt changes to the Council Membership

2) Make decisions on the Annual General Meeting themes and dates

3) Approve the tentative agenda for each Annual General Meeting

4) Approve the themes to be studied by Task Forces

5) Give guidance on major strategic issues facing the Council, including major new initiatives to be undertaken by the Council.

6) Endorse the general annual Work Plan of the Council

7) Approve the annual Work Report presented by the Secretary General

15. A quorum of the Bureau Meeting shall be a majority of its members, including both Chinese and international members.

16. The Bureau may invite the Deputy Secretary Generals, the director of the Secretariat, the head of the Secretariat International Support Office, the Chief Advisors, or other guests to participate in the Bureau Meeting as observers as required.

17. The Bureau Meeting will hold annually in conjunction with the Annual General Meeting.

18. Between Bureau Meetings, the Executive Vice Chairpersons, in consultation with other Bureau Meeting members, will make decisions on matters that require the authority of the Bureau and cannot wait for the next Bureau meeting. These matters include Council membership, significant changes to the annual work-plan, changes to decisions on the AGM theme or dates, changes to Task Force themes, or other decisions of major strategic importance. The Secretary General will bring proposals for decisions of this nature to the Executive Vice Chairpersons.

VI. The Secretary-General of the Council

19. The Secretary-General of the Council will be appointed by the Chinese Government.

20. The Secretary-General is in charge of day-to-day operation of the Council, supervises the work of the Council Secretariat and oversees the work of the Chief Advisors. The Secretary General will, with the support of the Secretariat and the Chief Advisors, provide leadership and guidance to the daily operation and management of the Council.

21. The Secretary General shall designate the Deputy Secretary-Generals to assist the Secretary-General’s work. The appointment to the Deputy Secretary-Generals shall be endorsed by the two Executive Vice Chairpersons of the Council.

22. The Secretary General is a Council Member, whose main responsibilities are as follows:

1) Reporting to and supervising the implementation of decisions made by the Bureau Meeting and Executive Vice Chairpersons.

2) Complying with the Council’s tenet and objective and keeping contact with other international organizations and institutions on behalf of the Council.

3) Submitting an annual Work Report to the Bureau Meeting and providing additional information and advice to the Executive Vice Chairperson and Bureau Meeting as requested.

4) Signing documentation of cooperation on behalf of the Council with partners, if necessary.

5) Sending out invitations to Council Members for the Annual General Meeting and putting forward proposals on the timing of AGM and changes in Council Membership.

6) Approving Special Policy Studies

7) Approving the establishment of Task Forces on themes decided by the Bureau Meeting

8) Providing recommendations to the Bureau Meeting on the theme of the Annual General Meeting, based on advice from the Secretariat and Chief Advisors.

9) Submitting an annual work plan to the Bureau Meeting for endorsement, approving the annual operational budgets of the Council and overseeing the implementation of the annual work plan.

10) Supervising the work of the Secretariat, approving the employment of the staff of the Secretariat.

11) Issuing letters of appointment to the Chief Advisors, and overseeing the work of the Chief Advisors.

12) Designating Deputy Secretaries General to assist with his or her work with the endorsement of the Executive Vice Chairpersons.

23. The Secretary-General Meeting will be established and held twice a year to make decisions on regular operation of the Council. The official participants of the meeting include: the Secretary General, Deputy Secretary Generals, director of the Secretariat, head of the Secretariat International Support Office and Chief Advisors. The Secretary-General Meeting will perform the following functions:

1) Reviewing annual work plans including budgets in preparation for submission by the Secretary General to the Bureau Meeting

2) Reviewing proposals for Special Policy Studies and making recommendations on their approval to the Secretary General

3) Providing advice to the Secretary General on the detailed proposals, implementation plans, and management of Task Forces and Special Policy Studies

4) Monitoring progress on the implementation of annual work plans and monitoring results achieved by the Council

5) Providing advice to the Secretary General on other decisions as required

VII. The Annual General Meeting (AGM)

24. Participation in the Council AGMs

1) Members participate in the Council AGMs in their personal capacities. They shall not send representatives in case of their absence.

2) Special Observers shall be invited to participate in the AGM.

3) Special guests and observers may be invited to participate in the AGM.

25. Notices of AGMs

1) The Council AGM is held once every calendar year. Notice of the AGM shall be sent out in writing to each Member at least 90 days prior to the date of AGM.

2) Under special circumstances, the Chairperson or Executive Vice Chairpersons may decide to call a special Council meeting for all Members. Notice of such a special meeting shall be sent out in writing to each Member at least 30 days prior to the date of the meeting.

3) No meeting shall be invalidated as a result of any member’s failure to receive notices as described in this section.

26. Procedures at AGM

1) The AGM agenda shall provide sufficient time for discussion among Council Members on the theme of the AGM, the Council’s policy studies, and policy recommendations.

2) The Executive Vice-Chairpersons, together with other Vice-Chairpersons, will preside over the AGM of the Council.

3) Decisions at the Council AGM shall be made by consensus.

4) A quorum for any AGM shall be a majority of the Members consisting of at least half of the total Council Members.

5) The recommendations to the Chinese government submitted by the Council shall be forwarded to relevant Chinese government departments within 90 days.

VIII. The operation of the Secretariat

27. The Secretariat of the Council will be established based on the support from the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA). Headed by its director appointed by SEPA, the Secretariat shall serve as the implementing organization for the regular operations of the Council.

28. Under the leadership of the Secretary General, the Secretariat is responsible for the coordination and management of the Council’s operation and undertakes tasks for daily operations. The main tasks and functions of the Secretariat are as follows:

1) Providing support to, coordinating, and following up on the activities of the Council and its policy studies;

2) Preparing the annual Work Plan, budgets and progress monitoring reports for consideration by the Secretary General Meeting in close collaboration with the Chief Advisors and Secretariat International Support Office.

3) Taking charge of the Council’s daily work for the purpose of regular operations;

4) Organizing and undertaking the Annual General Meeting and the Round Table Meeting, including managing logistics;

5) Preparing and organizing other activities such as policy seminars or forums of the Council;

6) Coordinating, managing and organizing policy studies programs;

7) Contracting Chinese expert teams/units for policy study activities of the Council.

8) Working in partnership with the Chief Advisors under the coordination of the Secretary General and providing necessary resources, administrative support to the Chief Advisors, and organizing the Secretariat-Chief Advisors Joint Working Meeting.

9) Establishing and maintaining close ties with relevant departments of Chinese Government and playing a role on coordination when necessary;

10) Ensuring the free dissemination of the Council’s recommendations/outputs;

11) Organizing the publication of the annual work reports, policy research reports and other publications;

12) Creating procedures for the management of the Council’s operations and policy study program;

13) Being responsible for the budget planning and management, fund-raising, reception of donations and the mobilization of domestic resources including match funds;

14) Working out strategies and publicity plans on public relations and conducting the implementation;

15) Tracking the results achieved by the Council. Building up wide-ranging partnership and organizing the cooperation programs with other domestic or international institutions;

16) Improving the Council’s website and promoting information exchanges;

17) Undertaking other tasks assigned by the Secretary General.

29. The Secretariat shall obtain support in the international aspects of the Council’s activities from the Secretariat International Support Office (SISO), which shall be established in the primary donor’s country. It shall operate according to the management plan agreed to by the Chinese government and the hosting country. Its main functions include:

1) Functioning as an executing agency for the primary donor country’s project on CCICED.

2) Providing support to the Secretariat regarding funding support and management on international contributions, based on principles agreed by concerned parties.

3) Receiving and managing international donations based on donors’ willingness and regulations, playing the role as an international executing agency for relevant donors.

4) Contracting the international experts who work for policy studies of the Council when necessary and managing the payments to international experts. Also contracting the International Chief Advisor and in international members of the support team.

5) Providing assistance in preparing AGMs, including the international travel arrangements for international Council Members

6) Assisting in preparing the annual Work Plan including the budget plan, as well as the other Council activities.

7) Tracking the results achieved by the Council.

8) Providing assistance to the Secretariat in preparing annual work reports and financial reports as required.

9) Providing training programs and technical support to the Secretariat as appropriate.

30. Detailed working procedures between the Secretariat and the SISO shall be established in agreed guidelines to cover specific activities such as the establishment of new task forces, special policy studies, roundtables, etc.

31. The Secretariat welcomes donors to second their experts/staff to work in its office either for short or long assignments.

32. The Secretariat shall organize a Donors Meeting at least once per year. The Secretariat will report on the progress of the Council’s activities and seek suggestions from all donors.

33. The director of the Secretariat and the head of the SISO shall participate in the Council AGM as observers and attend the Secretary-General meeting as members.

IX. The operation of the Chief Advisors

34. The Council will invite Chief Advisors to provide scientific recommendations and expertise on its policy study work.

35. One Chinese Chief Advisor and one International Chief Advisor will be invited following consultation between the Chinese side and the primary donor country, and they will be appointed by the Secretary-General.

36. The Chief Advisors will be nominated to serve as Council Members.

37. Under the leadership of the Secretary General, the Chief Advisors are to provide advice and consultation to the Secretary General, as well as to Executive Vice-Chairpersons when requested, on scientific areas related to policy studies of the Council.

38. The tasks for Chief Advisors include the following:

1) Evaluating the project proposals of the Task Forces and Special Policy Studies and putting forward recommendations to the Secretary General.

2) Providing advice on the scheme of policy studies of the Council.

3) Assessing the work of policy study programs.

4) Giving suggestions for Task Forces’ management.

5) Commissioning Issue Papers for the Council.

6) Drafting and finalizing Council recommendation to the Chinese Government

7) Undertaking other duties as assigned by the Secretary General.

39. The Secretariat will organize a small experts group and assistants to provide support to the Chief Advisors to carry out their duties. The Secretariat will provide administrative support and oversight to the Chinese supporting team, and the SISO will provide administrative support and administrative oversight to any international members of the team.

X. Policy Study Activities

40. Based on China’s needs in the areas of environment and development, the Council will establish its policy study programs including Task Forces and Special Policy Studies to conduct research activities.

41. Duration of policy studies.

1) The research period for one Task Force is normally 12-18 months. Some of the Task Forces may continue for a longer duration but shall not exceed 24 month.

2) The total duration for one Special Policy Study shall not exceed 6-8 months.

42. The basic condition of establishing policy studies are as follow:

1) The topics of the research should be priority issues with significant influence on the policies of environment and development in China.

2) The topics should clearly benefit from the inclusion of international expertise, perspectives and experience.

3) The Council should secure sufficient funding support from both international and domestic sources.

4) Suitable candidates for both Chinese and international experts are identified.

43. When establishing Task Forces or Special Policy Studies, the Secretariat and the Chief Advisors will work under the guidance of the Secretary General to ensure that:

1) The study findings are both relevant to senior Chinese leaders and ministries and are independent and based on the best science and expertise available.

2) The study area, funding budget and expected objectives are clear.

3) The qualifications of the Task Forces or Special Policy Studies co-chairs candidates are the best possible.

4) The timetable for the studies is sufficiently detailed and realistic.

5) The composition of expert team is the best possible. International members should not be limited only to donor countries and Chinese research institutions and experts should be involved as much as possible to assist domestic capacity building in China.

6) The Task Forces or Special Policy Studies have a clear scope of activities, including the preparation of final reports and meeting financial requirements.

7) The reports received from Task Forces or Special Policy Studies for publication are consensus documents reflecting the views of participating Chinese and international experts. The Secretariat, working together with the Chief Advisors, will ensure that in cases where non-consensus document are circulated for a specific purpose, such as further consultation, the draft status of the documents shall be clearly identified on the documents, and any non-consensus content in the report shall be clearly marked.

8) Task Force reports and Special Policy Studies will be published in the name of the Council or the name of the Council’s Task Forces or Special Policy Study teams.

44. Proposal and approval of policy studies.

1) Policy study topics could be proposed and identified by the Chairpersons and Council Members, Bureau Meeting, Secretariat, Chief Advisors, relevant Chinese ministries and other institutions affiliated to the Council or could be based on requests from Chinese leaders.

2) The Bureau Meeting will approve the topics to be studied by Task Forces.

3) The identified policy studies should have project proposals. The proposals should clearly specify the scope, expected output, budget and duration.

4) Any proposal shall be submitted to the Secretariat as the first step. The proposal shall be reviewed and evaluated by the Chief Advisors for their relevance to current policy debates, scientific soundness, feasibility, and methodology. They will forward their recommendations to accept, amend, or reject the proposals to the Secretariat. The Secretariat will screen the proposals to ensure that they contain adequate information to assess their value, feasibility and cost effectiveness. The Secretariat will prepare recommendations for the Secretary General on whether to accept, amend, or reject proposals.

5) The topics to be addressed by Special Policy Studies, and the detailed proposals and implementation plans for Task Forces and Special Policy Studies will be approved by the Secretary General. The Secretary General will seek advice from the Secretary General’s Meeting on these decisions.

45. Members of policy study teams.

1) Each Task Force will be co-chaired by one Chinese co-chair and one international co-chair. Each Task Force may include up to 10 Task Force members, including the two co-chairs.

2) Both Chinese and international Council Members may co-chair Task Forces when required.

3) Each Special Policy Study will be co- chaired by one Chinese co-chair and one international co-chair. Each Special Policy Study team will include up to six members, including the two co-chairs.

4) In principal, the number of Chinese and international members in each Task Force or Special Policy Study team should be equal.

5) The Secretariat, working together with the Chief Advisors, will nominate the co-chairs and members. The Secretary-General will approve the co-chairs and members based on recommendations from the Secretariat and Chief Advisors.

6) Any members wishing to resign from the Task Forces/Special Study Projects shall notify the co-chairs at least 60 days in advance.

XI. Financial management

46. The funding for the Council consists of contributions by international donors and the Chinese government.

47. Any donors who would like to make financial contributions to the Council shall sign an agreement directly with the Chinese side.

48. The Council will gradually set up a core funding mechanism to finance Council study work and related activities.

49. The Secretariat, together with the Secretariat International Support Office, will administer core funds that enter their respective accounts. Funds will be audited annually by a third independent auditing agency, according to their respective financial regulations and rules.

50. An integrated annual work plan including an annual operational budget plan shall be worked out by the Secretariat, with assistance from the Secretariat International Support Office, in close consultation with relevant donors.

51. The Secretary General will approve and sign contracts entered by the Secretariat that are in alignment with the integrated annual work plan and budget. The Secretary General may delegate this authority. The Secretariat International Support Office will enter contracts in alignment with the integrated annual work plan and budget while respecting all relevant laws, guidelines, and regulations, in close consultation with and notice to the Secretariat.

52. The funds from international donors will be administered under guidelines accepted by donors and the Council

53. The funds from international donors will be audited as agreed upon by the donors and the Council.

54. The funds for the Council will be executed through budgeting and final accounting.

55. The Council and any other organization or individuals accepting financial support for the work of the Council must keep accurate and complete financial records according to standard financial regulations and practice.

XII. Conflict of interest

56. When accepting any gift, present or donation or allocating funds, any member of the Council who is officially or formally connected to the contributor shall declare his/her connection.

57. No Council member shall materially benefit, either directly or indirectly, from a contract or agreement entered into by the Council unless an explicit exemption is made by the Bureau Meeting.

ⅩⅢ. Execution of document

58. Entrusted by the Bureau Meeting, every agreement, contract, or official document in writing that requires execution or approval in the name of the Council shall be signed by the Secretary-General of the Council, or by one Deputy Secretary–General designated for such purpose by the Secretary-General.

ⅩⅣ. Statements and reports

59. Any official statement and announcement (except for regular announcements and news briefs issued by the Secretariat) in the name of the Council shall only be made by the Chairperson, Executive Vice-Chairpersons or the Secretary-General.

60. The Council will make an annual report to the Chinese government on its conclusions, activities and recommendations. This report will be submitted by the Chinese Executive Vice-Chairperson.

61. The Council will make appropriate arrangement for its relations with the media.

XV. Amendments to the Rules of Procedure

62. Amendments to these rules of procedure may be made by the Council at any Council AGM. The draft amendment shall be sent to Council members prior to the AGM.