Robertson aims to boost green business deals on China trip

Vancouver mayor to visit solar and wind farms, the Shanghai World’s fair and four Chinese cities

The last time Gregor Robertson visited China, almost a quarter century ago, he and his then-girlfriend travelled by bike and bus around a country that was just tiptoeing into the modern era.

This Saturday, Mr. Robertson, now the mayor of Vancouver, will head back for 12 days to a country that has transformed itself into an economic powerhouse since 1986. It’s also a country interested in going green, so the mayor hopes that his presence will help land contracts for environmentally minded businesses in at home.

“They already have connections, but what they need is improved access to government officials and state-owned enterprises. I open those doors as mayor, so there’s a big boost to their efforts to grow,” said Mr. Robertson, who will visit solar and wind farms, the Shanghai World’s Fair, and four cities on his trip.

Along for part of the trip will be people from 22 local businesses and organizations, including Rainmaker Entertainment and Atomic Cartoon from the digital-media industry, MagPower Systems and Westport Innovations from the clean-energy sector, and the green-architecture firm of Busby Perkins + Will.