Building a community with a shared future for mankind between China and Latin America: inclusive development as a new paradigm

Abstract

This article argues that inclusive development—understood as social, ecological, and relational inclusiveness—offers a post-Western paradigm for rethinking global order and cooperation between China and Latin America. It first problematizes the semantics of "development,” highlighting its Western biases and advocating a deconstructive lens that re-centers human development and ecosystem services beyond growth metrics. Against a backdrop of geopolitical transition and the erosion of a unitary "West,” the paper maps the emergence of South–South trajectories, with China framed as a "third way” that couples innovation with tradition and advances interdependent hegemony through platforms such as BRICS/BRICS+ and the AIIB. The concept of a Global Community with a Shared Future for Mankind is examined as China’s integrative contribution to global governance—linking political association, security, development, intercivilizational exchange, and environmental stewardship—and as a legal-political project aligned with the comprehensive rule of law and a domestic green principle embedded in the PRC Civil Code. Turning to Latin America, the analysis outlines convergences around green innovation and biodiversity protection, while noting policy gaps and opportunities for scalable social–technological solutions. The article advances a neo-humanist vision that moves beyond anthropocentrism (human as humus), arguing that rights of nature, blue-economy logics, and legal ecologicalism can underpin more equitable, resilient development pathways. It concludes that China–Latin America cooperation within this framework can help re-compose global power asymmetries and translate Agenda 2030 ambitions into actionable, people-centered, and eco-centric governance—despite intensifying great-power rivalry.