LONGi’s Chao Jia joins UNCTAD dialogue in Geneva to highlight innovation and sustainability in solar

The historic Palais des Nations hosted an important milestone in the global sustainability conversation: the High-Level Dialogue on Building Sustainable Business and Brands, convened by the Sustainable Business Leaders Forum (SBLF) with support from UNCTAD. The session was designed as a bridge between Chinese companies, international institutions, and policy experts to discuss how sustainability can be embedded into the core of modern business.

The dialogue gathered an influential panel: Zhao Yan, Chairperson and CEO of Bloomage Biotech; Lin Wei, Vice President of Sustainability and Investor Relations of Anta Sports; a senior representative of UNCTAD; and Chao Jia, President of LONGi Green Energy’s Europe Business Center. The moderator, Allen Lai, Board Director of Executive Committee of Sustainable Business Leaders Forum, guided the three-hour exchange around some of the most pressing questions in sustainable business today: how to design green supply chains, advance circular economy practices, and communicate sustainability credentials without drifting into greenwashing.

LONGi, as one of the world’s largest solar technology companies and a central voice for renewable energy, was firmly in the spotlight.

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Resilient supply chains in times of disruption

The discussion opened with the question of how Chinese companies are redesigning their supply chains to reduce carbon intensity while maintaining global market share. The moderator pointed to the immense challenges of recent years: oversupply in the solar industry, plummeting module prices, and record global inventories.

Chao Jia's response underscored a key lesson: resilience is the new competitiveness. “LONGi builds its supply chain on collaboration and shared responsibility,” he explained. “With ISO 20400-certified procurement, a clear supplier code of conduct, ESG audits, and a TÜV Rheinland AA-rated traceability management system, we ensure that every partner in our value chain contributes to resilience, transparency, and long-term sustainability.”

The point was not abstract. For a sector facing price collapses and geopolitical trade frictions, supply-chain governance has become a decisive factor. LONGi requires every supplier to sign a code of conduct covering labor rights, anti-corruption, and environmental protections. New partners must pass ESG risk screening, and ongoing audits test compliance. Suppliers with higher risk exposure are monitored more closely and supported with corrective measures.

Jia placed this in a wider context: “Voluntary Sustainability Standards are becoming the language of trust across borders. Standards like ISO 14067, France’s ECS certification, and Environmental Product Declarations are no longer optional. They are the benchmarks that decide who can access key markets. Without them, Chinese exports would be locked out; with them, companies gain credibility.”

But he also stressed a larger point: “Standards matter because they provide transparency and comparability, but they should not be the end goal. For any global company, sustainability targets must serve humanity, not just pass audits. That is why we align our work with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals - because these goals reflect the bigger picture: creating value for people, communities, and the planet.”

Circularity begins with innovation

The conversation then turned to the circular economy and how Chinese practices can be scaled globally. For Jia, durability is the strongest form of circularity. “At LONGi, we focus on two things in particular: pushing efficiency rates higher and higher, and building highly reliable modules through Back Contact technology. That is how circularity becomes real.”

He illustrated this with practical examples. LONGi’s latest Back Contact from the EcoLife Series modules come with 30-year performance warranties, cutting waste by reducing the need for premature replacements. Since 2018, the company has reduced aluminum use in its modules by 33 percent and foil by 20 percent, while incorporating up to 30 percent recycled content in glass. Eco-design also plays a role: fluorine-free backsheets and recyclable module architectures are intended to enable future closed-loop recovery. Jia’s highlighted: “Circularity cannot be an afterthought. It has to be built in from the very beginning, from design to end-of-life.”

For the audience in Geneva, the example of a leading manufacturer embedding such practices into mainstream production underlined the feasibility of circular economy principles at scale.

R&D as the bridge between profitability and sustainability

A central question posed by the moderator was how companies can reconcile cost pressures with sustainable product lifecycles. For the solar industry, often accused of racing to the bottom in price wars, the question was especially relevant. “R&D is the bridge between profitability and sustainability”, Jia stated, adding “higher-performing modules mean fewer materials, lower labor costs, and stronger returns for customers. At the same time, innovation gives the industry a way out of destructive price competition. It shifts value from cheap products to long-term performance and reliability.”

LONGi’s proof points are tangible. Its Back Contact roadmap, from HPBC 2.0 to HIBC, offers modules with around eight percent higher efficiency than mainstream competitors, translating into lower LCOE and reduced material use. The company’s TaiRay wafer technology reduces energy intensity in production, further cascading sustainability benefits across the value chain.

In Europe, LONGi has tailored products to real-world needs: the EcoLife brand for homeowners integrates safety, ESG credentials, and lifetime warranties, while a new 60-cell module for commercial rooftops is designed so a single installer can handle it -  an important advantage where labor costs can reach 30 percent of total project expenses.

“These kinds of innovations allow us to achieve higher project prices and even 50 to 100 percent premiums in the residential market,” Jia noted. “That is the clearest evidence that innovation and sustainability create value together.”

Transparency without slogans

The moderator then raised a question with global resonance: how can Chinese brands communicate sustainability without risking accusations of greenwashing?

Jia argued that LONGi would avoid broad claims in sustainability management and focus on evidence. “Transparency is not a slogan but a fundamental part of our business model”, he said. LONGi publishes specific, verifiable metrics such as the share of green electricity in its operations, certified emissions reductions, and independently validated durability tests. Its sustainability reporting is aligned with GRI, SASB, and TCFD frameworks, and it openly reports not just achievements but also areas where improvement is needed.

Cultural heritage and long-term vision

The Geneva dialogue also invited panelists to reflect on how cultural heritage can shape sustainable branding. Jia connected Chinese traditions with modern ESG practices. “Chinese culture teaches harmony between humanity and nature. Our principle of ‘solar for solar’, meaning producing renewable energy with renewable energy, is a modern expression of this heritage.”

He also highlighted the values of thrift and resource stewardship, reflected in LONGi’s efforts to reduce material use and design recyclable modules. Confucian traditions of collective responsibility, he said, remind businesses that their duty extends across supply chains, employees, and communities. And perhaps most importantly, Chinese heritage prizes long-term thinking: “Thirty-year warranties, zero-carbon factory roadmaps, and forward-looking innovation all reflect this mindset. We have always thought and acted ahead of the global solar industry. That is why we are seen as pioneers, not followers.”

The role of UNCTAD

The panel concluded with a reflection on the role UNCTAD can play in aligning voluntary sustainability standards with business realities. “UNCTAD’s strength is not to create new standards, but to help align them with business realities,” Jia said. “Companies often face fragmented requirements across markets. UNCTAD can convene governments, industries, and standard bodies to harmonize approaches, support SMEs, and ensure that sustainability standards remain both ambitious and practical. That alignment makes standards not only credible, but scalable, and that is where UNCTAD can create real impact.”

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LONGi’s mission in Europe

In his closing remarks, Jia offered a personal reflection on LONGi’s role:

“We were founded by entrepreneurs and scientists, and our DNA has always been science and R&D. We have pioneered major technological shifts and set world records in efficiency. In Europe, our mission is very clear: to stand behind households, businesses, and communities with solar technology they can trust for decades. Europe has chosen to lead in the fight against the climate crisis, and our role is to make that leadership resilient - not just for today, but for the generations who will depend on it.”

The Geneva dialogue on sustainable business and brands underscored how closely the future of trade, industry, and climate action are now intertwined. LONGi’s interventions from supply chain resilience to circularity, R&D, transparency, and cultural heritage showed how a Chinese solar leader is trying to reconcile immediate commercial realities with long-term planetary needs.

The message was clear: sustainability and competitiveness are not opposites. As Jia put it, “True resilience comes from aligning the two. When green operations, green products, and green communities are at the core, we build both lasting advantage and a fairer future.”

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