Hainan Province is the only tropical island in China, with the strategic development as a Free Trade Island, a Health Island, and a Zero-Carbon Island. Baoting County plays a central role as the host of the China-EU (Baoting) Green and Digital Innovation Zone (hereinafter referred to as the “Baoting Innovation Zone”). It serves as a critical demonstration site for the Hainan’s zero-carbon initiative. The UNDP-GDIP initiative aims to advance the sustainable development of Hainan’s Zero-Carbon Island and the Baoting Innovation Zone.

Located in the southeastern part of Hainan Province along the 18°N global tropical vacation belt, Baoting County is one of only two regions in the world that possess both tropical rainforests and natural hot springs. It features exceptional ecological and climatic assets: an annual average temperature of 22.4°C, a forest coverage rate of 84.87%, a therapeutic-level negative oxygen ion concentration of 8,200/cm³, mineral-rich natural hot springs, and more than 200 species of ethnomedicinal plants used by the Li and Miao ethnic communities.