The Earth has become greener over the past two decades. CFP
Some of you may play Ant Forest. It is a game on Alipay. Users collect “energy” to make their “trees” grow. When the “energy” reaches a certain level, some organizations and companies will plant a real tree in a desert area of China. And now it seems that the nation’s efforts as a whole to make a greener world have paid off.
有人或许会玩支付宝中的一款名为“蚂蚁森林”的游戏。用户能收集“能量”去“种树”。当“能量”累积到一定数量时，一些机构和企业将会在中国的沙漠地带种下一棵真正的树。如今，在全国人民的努力下，地球似乎真的变绿了。
According to a study by NASA and published in the journal Nature Sustainability in February, China and India are mainly responsible for making the Earth greener over the past two decades.
据美国航空航天局今年二月发表于《自然-可持续发展》期刊上的一项研究显示，在过去的二十年间，中国和印度成为了全球绿化的主力军。
The study has found that since 2000 the Earth’s green leaf area has increased by 5 percent, or over 5 million square kilometers. That’s an area equivalent to the total area of the Amazon rainforest.
该研究发现，地球的绿叶面积自2000年起增加了5%，超过五百万平方公里。这相当于亚马逊热带雨林的总面积。
It is mainly the result of big tree-planting programs in China and intensive agriculture in both countries, according to NASA.
美国航空航天局认为，这主要归功于中国的大型植树项目以及中印两国的集约化农业。
“China and India account for one third of the [increased] greening, but contain only 9 percent of the planet’s land area covered in vegetation,” Chi Chen, the study’s lead author and a researcher at Boston University, US, told CNN.
“尽管中国和印度的陆地植被面积仅占全球的9%，但两国为绿化增长所做的贡献超过三分之一。”该研究的主要作者、美国波士顿大学研究员陈池（音译）在接受美国有线电视新闻网采访时如此表示。
China was the major contributor, adding 25 percent to this increase, while India added 6.8 percent.
其中，中国为主要贡献者，占全球绿化面积净增长的25%，而印度则占6.8%。
Over the past decades, China has made great efforts to green the land. In 1978, China began a national-level forestation project – the Three North Shelterbelt Forest Program, also known as the “Great Green Wall”. The program has seen many trees planted in 13 provinces and autonomous regions in northern China to act as windbreaks, according to China Daily.
在过去的十年间，中国为绿化付出了大量努力。1978年，中国启动了全国范围的植树造林工程 —— 三北防护林，又被誉为 “绿色长城”。据《中国日报》报道，该工程项目在中国北方的13个省和自治区种下了大量树木，形成了防风林。
By the end of 2017, the forest coverage rate among the regions of the project had reached 13.57 percent, compared to 5.05 percent 40 years ago.
截至2017年底，工程区森林覆盖率由40年前的5.05％提高到了现在的13.57％。
In the light of China’s success in dealing with desertification, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) believes the country is a good example for others to follow.
鉴于中国在治理荒漠化方面的成功，联合国环境规划署认为我国是其他国家借鉴的榜样。
“China is one of the most successful countries in greening the desert and has lessons to share with the world,” UNEP Executive Director Erik Solheim told Xinhua.
“中国是沙漠绿化最成功的国家之一，其经验可与全世界分享，”联合国环境规划署执行主任埃里克·索尔海姆在接受新华社采访时表示。
