Taipei’s fourth SDG Asia Expo, held from Sept. 11 to 13 under the theme “Charge Towards Change,” was more than just a showcase of green technology. With more than 100 exhibitors at the Taipei World Trade Center, the event was a testing ground for policies that Taiwan hopes would transform climate ambitions into real action.
As the focus moves to the COP30 UN climate change summit in Belem, Brazil, next month, what happens in Taipei and New Delhi would help determine whether Asia’s climate efforts lead to actual emissions cuts or remain symbolic.
The challenges and opportunities at the SDG Asia Expo reflected Taiwan’s broader policy context. It has set stricter climate targets through its Comprehensive Carbon Reduction Action Plan and the Climate Change Response Act (氣候變遷因應法), aiming for bigger cuts by 2030, 2032 and 2035. They are concrete policy commitments, supported by laws and clear plans. As Taiwan is not part of the UN, it does not have an official role in global climate negotiations.
Still, the SDG Asia Expo allowed Taiwan to show how it manages climate policy outside traditional international settings, highlighting its emissions tracking, regulations and corporate reporting.
Similarly, India is at its own critical climate juncture. It has been moving forward with its own climate architecture, establishing a carbon credit trading scheme and greenhouse-gas intensity rules for industrial entities, while promoting renewable energy. However, its rapid industrial expansion and continued dependence on coal raise the stakes.
India must ensure its policies are not only ambitious on paper, but resilient in practice, building institutional capacity, protecting vulnerable sectors and resisting the temptation to delay standards when faced with industry pressure. As Taiwan strives to prevent its new laws from being undermined by poor enforcement, India must also equip its intensity targets and emerging carbon market with real institutional strength.
Beyond their individual approaches, Taiwan and India have much to gain from mutual learning. Taiwan’s strong corporate culture around transparency, environmental, social and governance practices, and independent reporting could help sharpen India’s carbon accounting and build investor confidence. India’s experience with large-scale renewable deployment, green hydrogen pilots and decentralized clean technology offers lessons in driving down costs and making clean solutions accessible across diverse geographies.
Supply chains are already powerful vectors of influence: If Taiwanese companies insist on low-carbon sourcing or if international buyers demand carbon reductions, those ripple effects would extend across Asia. Conversely, a well-structured Indian carbon market could create tradable credits and investment opportunities attractive to Taiwanese capital seeking responsible offsets.
Pledges matter, but unless they translate into measurable, enforceable action, they remain empty. That is the test for Taipei and New Delhi. Regulations need teeth. Pilot projects must feed into standards. Reporting, measurement and verification systems have to be transparent, consistent and internationally intelligible. Transitions must also be fair. Workers, communities and small producers cannot be left behind; public financing, social safety nets and just-transition planning are not optional, but central to legitimacy.
The SDG Asia Expo must demand more than claps and slogans — real, measurable commitments backed by timelines that can be enforced. For India, the event’s lesson is clear: Speed up market mechanisms now, protect vulnerable sectors with targeted support and do not defer standards in the face of political or industrial pressure.
COP30 offers New Delhi a chance to emerge not only as a nation with big pledges, but one with delivered outcomes. Similarly, Taiwan’s role is to wait for no formal recognition to hold itself to high standards and to make governance, not diplomatic status, the proof point of credibility.
If both economies press ahead with strong laws, transparent systems and honest reporting, the Asia-Pacific region can provide the model many developing nations need, showing that climate ambition and economic development can move hand in hand.
The residue of the SDG Asia Expo should be regulatory frameworks, funding flows and enforced standards — not just case studies. The real test of leadership is not what is promised in international forums, but what is delivered in factories, farms, financial markets and everyday lives. Asia’s climate moment is not merely looming; it has begun. The world will be watching whether Taipei and New Delhi rise to their full weight.
Sutandra Singha is an independent researcher with a doctorate in international studies, specializing in climate change, from Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi.
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