Deeply Grasp the Scientific Connotation of the “Two Mountains” Concept

The “Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Deepening Reform Comprehensively to Advance Chinese-Path Modernization,” adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, points out: “Accelerate the improvement of the institutional mechanisms for implementing the concept that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets.” The “Two Mountains” concept is not only an innovation and development of the Marxist theory of productive forces, but also a necessary action for promoting the organic unity of high-quality development and high-level protection, and it is an inherent requirement for realizing the modernization of harmony between humanity and nature.

党的二十届三中全会通过的《中共中央关于进一步全面深化改革、推进中国式现代化的决定》指出，“加快完善落实绿水青山就是金山银山理念的体制机制”。“两山”理念既是对马克思主义生产力理论的创新与发展，也是推进高质量发展与高水平保护有机统一的必然行动，还是实现人与自然和谐共生现代化的题中之义。

I. The “Two Mountains” Concept Is an Innovative Development of the Marxist Theory of Productive Forces

一、“两山”理念是对马克思主义生产力理论的创新发展

Productive forces are humanity’s ability to transform and conquer nature, and they are the decisive force in the development of human society. The liberation and development of productive forces are manifested not only in transforming relations of production and improving social institutions and mechanisms to meet the requirements of the development of social productive forces, but also in protecting and improving the natural ecological environment to meet the needs of the sustainable development of social productive forces.

生产力是人类改造自然和征服自然的能力，是人类社会发展的决定力量。解放和发展生产力，不仅表现在变革生产关系，完善社会体制机制以适应社会生产力发展的要求，而且表现为保护和改善自然生态环境以满足社会生产力的可持续发展需要。

The “Two Mountains” concept proposed by General Secretary Xi Jinping is an innovative development of the Marxist theory of productive forces. It regards a sound ecological environment as a foundational resource for the survival and development of human society. The “Two Mountains” concept discards the drawbacks of traditional industrial productive forces and treats the ecological environment as a source for the development of social productive forces. Lucid waters and lush mountains can provide what humanity needs for production and life; a sound ecological environment itself contains rich economic value and social effects. It is necessary to protect the “golden rice bowl” of lucid waters and lush mountains, develop distinctive industries according to local conditions, and promote the ecologization of industry and the industrialization of ecology. At the same time, it is necessary to accelerate green technological innovation and the promotion and application of advanced green technologies, use the achievements of the new technological revolution to make good use of the “landscape” [1]1 “做好山水文章” (zuo hao shan shui wen zhang) is a Chinese idiom meaning to make good use of local natural resources (mountains and waters) to create economic and ecological benefits., build a green, low-carbon, and circular economic system, and continuously strengthen the “beautiful” economy.

习近平总书记提出的“两山”理念，是对马克思主义生产力理论的创新发展。将良好的生态环境视作人类社会生存与发展的基础性资源。“两山”理念摒弃了传统工业生产力的弊端，将生态环境视为社会生产力发展的源泉。绿水青山能够为人类提供生产生活所需，良好的生态环境本身就蕴藏着丰富的经济价值和社会效应，要保护好“绿水青山”这个金饭碗，因地制宜发展特色产业，推进产业生态化、生态产业化。同时，要加快绿色科技创新和先进绿色技术推广应用，利用新科技革命成果，做好山水文章，构建绿色低碳循环经济体系，不断壮大“美丽”经济。

II. The “Two Mountains” Concept Is a Necessary Action for Promoting the Organic Unity of High-Quality Development and High-Level Protection

二、“两山”理念是推进高质量发展与高水平保护有机统一的必然行动

Green development is the defining feature of high-quality development. Economic development and environmental protection are interdependent, mutually constraining, and mutually reinforcing. A sound ecological environment is the foundation of economic development, and economic development can in turn provide financial and technological support for environmental protection, promoting effective improvement of the ecological environment. The “Two Mountains” concept is the best interpretation of the dialectical relationship between economic development and environmental protection.

绿色发展是高质量发展的底色。经济发展与环境保护二者相互依存、相互制约、相互促进。良好的生态环境是经济发展的基础，经济发展又能为环境保护提供资金和技术支持，促进生态环境有效改善。“两山”理念是对经济发展与环境保护辩证关系的最好诠释。

With the widespread dissemination of the “Two Mountains” concept in society and the extensive implementation of green development practices, China’s socialist ecological civilization construction has entered a fast track. Indeed, the “Two Mountains” concept breaks through the limitations of the thinking that promotes ecological civilization construction solely through environmental remediation, emphasizing that while vigorously carrying out environmental governance, greater attention should be paid to solving problems at the source. Specifically, this means accelerating the adjustment and optimization of the industrial structure, energy structure, and transportation structure to promote the formation of green, low-carbon production methods and lifestyles. “Fish follow the water and grass, birds choose good trees to perch on” [2]2 “鱼逐水草而居，鸟择良木而栖” (yu zhu shui cao er ju, niao ze liang mu er qi) is a classical Chinese saying meaning that living beings seek out favorable environments, used here to illustrate that a good ecological environment attracts people and investment.; when the ecological environment is good, people naturally are willing to come to places with lucid waters and lush mountains to invest, live, and travel. In recent years, the rise of mountain tourism, health tourism, and summer resort tourism in various regions is evidence of this. The “Two Mountains” concept originated in Zhejiang and now bears fruit across the country. It provides the people with new ideas and new concepts for innovating production methods and lifestyles. This is an important pathway for developing a green, low-carbon, and circular economy and building a resource-conserving and environment-friendly society. The proposal and implementation of the “Two Mountains” concept confirm the process of continuous renewal and progress in the thinking and concepts of the Chinese people, the process of continuous green transformation of the economic growth model, and the process of the relationship between humanity and nature moving towards harmonious coexistence.

随着“两山”理念在社会中的广泛传播，绿色发展实践广泛开展，我国社会主义生态文明建设驶入快车道。诚然，“两山”理念打破了单纯通过环境整治来推进生态文明建设的思维局限，强调在大力开展环境治理的同时，更加注重从源头上解决问题。具体而言，即通过加快推动产业结构、能源结构、交通运输结构等的调整优化，推动形成绿色低碳的生产生活方式。“鱼逐水草而居，鸟择良木而栖”，生态环境好了，人们自然愿意到绿水青山之地来投资、生活、旅游。近年来，各地兴起的山地游、康养游、避暑游等就是例证。“两山”理念发源于浙江，如今在全国开花结果。它赋予了老百姓创新生产生活方式的新思路、新概念，这是发展绿色低碳循环经济，建设资源节约型、环境友好型社会的重要途径。“两山”理念的提出与实践印证了我国人民思想观念不断更新进步的过程，经济增长方式不断绿色转型的过程，人与自然关系趋向和谐共生的过程。

III. The “Two Mountains” Concept Is an Inherent Requirement for Realizing the Modernization of Harmony between Humanity and Nature

三、“两山”理念是实现人与自然和谐共生现代化的题中之义

Chinese-path modernization is the modernization of harmony between humanity and nature. The “Two Mountains” concept is not only a correction of the past approach of consuming “lucid waters and lush mountains” to obtain “invaluable assets,” but also an important pathway for resolving the ecological paradox in the process of modernization development, and it is an inherent requirement for realizing the modernization of harmony between humanity and nature.

中国式现代化是人与自然和谐共生的现代化。“两山”理念不仅是对过去以消耗“绿水青山”获取“金山银山”方式的纠偏，还是破解现代化发展过程中生态悖论的重要途径，更是实现人与自然和谐共生现代化的题中之义。

During the period of the 14th Five-Year Plan, China’s ecological civilization construction has entered a critical period where carbon reduction is the strategic direction, promoting synergistic effects of pollution reduction and carbon reduction, promoting the comprehensive green transformation of economic and social development, and achieving a qualitative change in the improvement of ecological environment quality from quantitative accumulation. This undoubtedly requires strengthening the planning and use control of territorial space, implementing the main functional area strategy, conducting a thorough survey of the “foundation” of lucid waters and lush mountains such as mountains, waters, forests, farmlands, lakes, grasslands, and deserts, distinguishing resource conditions at different levels such as basic, core, fragile, and endangered, clarifying resource use boundaries and thresholds, and delineating and strictly adhering to ecological protection red lines. At the same time, it is necessary to establish and improve the mechanism for realizing the value of ecological products, systematically solve problems such as the difficulty in measuring, mortgaging, trading, and monetizing ecological products, focus on integrating ecological resources as factors of production into the market economy system, and generate economic and social benefits. Throughout this entire process, it is even more necessary to raise the level of modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity in the ecological environment field, solve problems such as insufficient support from science and technology, talent, and funds for promoting green and low-carbon development, improve the modern environmental governance system with leadership from Party committees, guidance from government, responsibility of enterprises, and participation by social organizations and the public, build institutional mechanisms for integrated planning, integrated deployment, integrated promotion, and integrated assessment, and transform the construction of a Beautiful China into a conscious action of all the people.

“十四五”时期，我国生态文明建设进入了以降碳为重点战略方向、推动减污降碳协同增效、促进经济社会发展全面绿色转型、实现生态环境质量改善由量变到质变的关键时期。这无疑需要强化国土空间规划和用途管控，实施主体功能区战略，对山水林田湖草沙等“绿水青山”之本进行摸底，区分基础、核心、脆弱、濒危等不同层次的资源状况，明晰资源利用边界与阈值，划定并严守生态保护红线。同时，需要建立健全生态产品价值实现机制，系统解决生态产品度量难、抵押难、交易难、变现难等问题，注重将生态资源转化为生产力要素融入市场经济体系，形成经济效益、社会效益。整个过程，更需要提高生态环境领域国家治理体系和治理能力现代化水平，解决好推进绿色低碳发展的科技、人才、资金支撑不足等问题，健全党委领导、政府主导、企业主体、社会组织和公众共同参与的现代化环境治理体系，构建一体谋划、一体部署、一体推进、一体考核的制度机制，把建设美丽中国转化为全体人民的自觉行动。

A sound ecological environment itself contains infinite economic value and can continuously create comprehensive benefits, achieving sustainable economic and social development. Actively advocate and adhere to the “Two Mountains” concept, achieve high-quality economic and social development, jointly build the foundation of ecological civilization, walk the path of green development together, strive to protect humanity’s common home on Earth, and create a beautiful world with green mountains, clear waters, and fresh air.

良好生态环境本身蕴含着无穷的经济价值，能够源源不断创造综合效益，实现经济社会可持续发展。积极倡导和坚守“两山”理念，实现经济社会高质量发展，共筑生态文明之基，同走绿色发展之路，努力呵护好人类共同的地球家园，打造青山常在、绿水长流、空气常新的美丽世界。

Online Editor: Huihui

网络编辑：慧慧