The "Wonderful Ocean Exploration — Franco-Chinese Month of the Environment Joint Special Exhibition", was unveiled at the Hunan Museum of Geology on October 10, 2024. This was the first exhibition of the Franco-Chinese Month of the Environment held in the central part of China. The exhibition will last for two months and is free to the public.

Initiated in 2014, the Franco-Chinese Month of the Environment is the only interdisciplinary activity organized by foreign embassies in China around environmental issues. The activity aims to raise the awareness of the whole society on environmental issues, promoting exchanges and cooperation between China and France in environmental protection. The exhibition highlights the relationship between the ocean and climate, the evolution of marine life, and other themes. Through graphic panels and displays of biological specimens, the exhibition allows visitors to enhance their understanding of the ocean and to raise awareness of environmental protection.

France was the first major western power to formally establish diplomatic relation with China, said Qiu Aihua, first-level inspector of the Foreign Affairs Office of the CPC Hunan Provincial Committee. This year marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries and is also designated as the China-France Year of Culture and Tourism. The "Wonderful Ocean Exploration — Franco-Chinese Month of the Environment Joint Special Exhibition" will bolster more extensive communication and collaboration between Hunan and France in various fields, deepening the friendship between the people of China and France.

Jean-Yves ROUX, the French consul general in Wuhan, remarked that the theme of the 2024 Franco-Chinese Month of the Environment is "Under the same sky". The aim is to raise public awareness of the impact of human activities on the planet, emphasizing that climate change is a matter of common destiny for humankind, and thus calling on the public to take action for environmental protection.

In recent years, the Hunan Provincial Department of Natural Resources along with French collaborators have actively carried out exchanges and cooperation in the field of natural resources, achieving fruitful results. They jointly designed the Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan Green Core Central Park, and promoted the international exchange of minerals and gemstones. Their efforts bring an important opportunity for Hunan to show its achievements in the construction of an ecological civilization, providing an important window for the international communities to understand the ideas and practices of China's construction of an ecological civilization.

Li Quansheng, secretary of the CPC Leadership Group and director of the Hunan Provincial Department of Natural Resources, noted that the two sides will take this exhibition as an opportunity to launch closer and more in-depth cooperation in mineral crystal research and ecological protection technology.