The word "ambition" I mentioned earlier best describes the speed in which China is now going "green", incorporating sustainability and climate change into all of its development plans. China has declared the goal to have carbon dioxide emissions reach their peak before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060.

Merck is supporting these goals, and we have declared some clear targets ourselves. By 2030, we will have integrated sustainability into all our value chains. And by 2040, we will have achieved climate neutrality and reduced our resource consumption.

To sum it up: Going digital with one of the biggest economies on earth; improving the health of 1.4 billion people or striving for sustainability in record time – no task is big or daunting enough to dent this Chinese "can-do spirit". I admire that.

So, with "China 2.0", I mean a country that has even been encouraged in its path by the corona crisis, even spurred on further by the challenges the virus is posing. It is a country going digital and accelerating its modernization with the help of science and technology. "China 2.0" means a country investing courageously in making this a cleaner, safer and healthier place to live for its citizens and a few lao wai like me.

Allan Gabor is president of Merck China.

The opinions expressed here are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of China Daily and China Daily website.