Zhao has served as China’s Vice Minister of Ecology and Environment and CCICED’s Secretary General since 2016. Prior to that, he was the Ministry of Ecology and Environment’s Chief Engineer. He has previously served as Director General of the Department of Science, Technology and Standards and as Director General of the Department of Pollution Prevention and Control.

Zhao started his career at China’s National Environmental Protection Agency and has also worked at the State Environmental Protection Administration. He has a PhD degree in Science.