During China's 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period, Ordos city in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region has undertaken a comprehensive green transformation of its energy structure, industrial development, ecological governance, and lifestyle.

Once long plagued by sand and desertification – nearly 48 percent of its area was covered by the Kubuqi Desert and Mu Us Sandy Land – Ordos has made ecological restoration a top priority.

Since 2021, it has implemented a series of major ecological programs, including the Three-North Shelterbelt Forest Project, which integrates the management of mountains, rivers, forests, farmland, lakes, grasslands, and deserts. These efforts have shifted the focus from partial improvement to overall restoration of the local environment.

Leveraging the construction of a major new energy base in arid and desert regions, Ordos has advanced wind-solar integration and desert control projects. The city is developing a "photovoltaic Great Wall" in the Kubuqi Desert capable of supporting 100 gigawatts of installed capacity.

Through innovative models that combine renewable power generation with ecological restoration, such as "PV + desert control", Ordos has completed photovoltaic desertification control on 800,000 mu (53,333 hectares) and has treated over 13 million mu of land for sand prevention and restoration.

Treatment rates in the Mu Us Sandy Land and Kubuqi Desert have reached 80 percent and 40 percent, respectively – marking a shift from "human retreat, sand advance" to "green advance, sand retreat". These achievements present both a "Chinese solution" and an "Ordos experience" for global desertification control.

As a major national energy base, Ordos is advancing China's dual carbon goals and accelerating its transition toward clean energy.

The city's zero-carbon industrial park model has created new pathways for green growth. It has promoted renewable energy, upgraded coal-fired power plants, and improved green power utilization, while enhancing value chains in coal-based chemical industries to foster low-carbon industrial transformation.

In the transport sector, Ordos has promoted hydrogen and new energy vehicles, advanced "vehicle-road-cloud integration", and piloted hydrogen use in heavy freight railways – driving a regional shift toward greener mobility.

Industrial upgrading has further strengthened Ordos' green transformation. The city has built 18 emerging industrial chains, including the "wind-solar-hydrogen-storage-vehicle" cluster and advanced chemical sectors. Its total power generation capacity now stands at 61.33 million kilowatts, of which 24.71 million – 40.3 percent – comes from renewable sources.

Meanwhile, Ordos has eliminated 6.03 million metric tons of outdated capacity in high-energy industries such as cement, calcium carbide, and coke, while completing major efficiency and ultra-low emission upgrades for coal-fired power units.

Environmental treatment has also achieved significant progress. The city's air quality has remained excellent about 90 percent of the time, while 100 percent of its State-monitored water bodies have maintained high-quality standards for two consecutive years.

All centralized drinking water sources in urban areas meet quality standards, and safe use rates for both polluted farmland and key construction land remain at 100 percent. Industrial wastewater discharge has reached zero, urban sewage treatment and compliance rates stand at 100 percent, and rural wastewater treatment has reached 66.3 percent.

Today, Ordos is recognized as a model for livable, green urban development, having received over 100 national honors, including "National Forest City" and "National Garden City".