The first emissions-free building in the country, the centre will generate all of its own power and is part of plans for a “virtual academy for sustainable cities” outlined in an agreement between Gordon Brown, British prime minister, and Wen Jiabao, Chinese premier.
Education and the environment are two of China's toughest challenges and the University of Nottingham, honorary award winner at the 2007 Cathay Pacific Business Awards, was the first overseas institution allowed to establish a satellite campus inside the country.
In Ningbo, a booming port of 8m people in Zhejiang Province, south of Shanghai, Nottingham's campus is home to almost 4,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students and more than 250 teaching and administrative staff. In just three years, the university has rolled out first and second degree courses in international business, international communications, international studies, computer science, sustainable development, English studies and engineering.