It's easy to get cynical when you are caught in the middle. Western visitors and media are constantly nagging China about what it is doing wrong. Chinese are tired of outsiders pointing their finger that are only concerned about the present tense and don’t recognize how rapidly they are progressing.

I read and hear about sustainability and the environment being an important national priority. China's 17th National Congress of the Communist Party recently concluded. This is a major Chinese political event that takes place every five years to essentially summarize the past five years work and lay out the direction for the next.

Each Chinese leader since Chairman Mao has had a legacy. President Hu's legacy is to steer China on a path according to 'Scientific Development'.

"We must pursue comprehensive, balanced and sustainable development…We must adopt an enlightened approach to development that results in expanded production, a better life and sound ecological and environmental conditions, and build a resource-conserving and environment-friendly society…," said President Hu in his address to the congress.

This sounds like a positive approach to development from the leader of the world's most impressive economy. A statement quite a bit later is somewhat more unsettling. "We will quadruple the per capita GDP of the year 2000 by 2020 through optimizing the economic structure and improving economic returns while reducing consumption of resources and protecting the environment."

How can China move from a developing to developed country while achieving balance, both in terms of its citizens' standard of living and in terms of resource usage? This is a key question that is looming over China right now. China's leadership is very concerned about maintaining balanced growth.

And, for good reason. There are many causes for concern. Just the other day, former Chairman of the US Federal Reserve Allen Greenspan commented that China's stock exchange is a bubble about to burst. There are plenty of other outsiders shaking their fingers and nodding their heads at China, while the Chinese are moving full speed ahead at whatever chance they get to improve their lives.

The key to success in China is to start seeing things the way the Chinese do. This isn't groundbreaking, nor is it rocket science. However, far too often we criticize China. Whether it is related to constitutional rights or cheap exports, it is easy to get on China's case. The Chinese, on the other hand, are just trying to get ahead and increase their quality of life, often studying from the best. Something the Chinese excel at is learning from others. Just like anything in life, it is more useful to set an example rather than point a finger. Many of the world's top companies that have significant operations in China recognize this. They realize the importance of 'demonstrating commitment to China'. While the Chinese government clearly has strategic goals aligned with sustainability, it is up to these companies to align themselves with these goals if they wish to survive in an increasingly nationalist landscape. Aligning with the government goals is also a good way to ensure their brand is protected. Not only does it help China develop, the media will also regard them as a partner in making progress rather than a company looking to exploit China's competitive advantages.

Those organizations that have the power to bring something good to China will win in the end. They will win the heart of the Chinese and they will help win the heart of the cynical Westerner that demands more from China.

The Chinese have a saying, "不能一口吃个胖子" or "You can't get fat in one bite". The Chinese leadership should be commended for recognizing that sustainable development is the way to go. But, it will not happen overnight

By Bradley Burgess