A ceremony to award excellence in corporate social responsibility has been held in Shanghai, with 83 enterprises recognized for their model contribution to the city’s green development.

The awards, held under the theme "Invest in a Green Future", looked to encourage and promote ecological growth, as China’s business aims to hub build itself into an international economic, financial, trade and shipping center by 2020.

"Shanghai's goal is to further develop itself into a global city equivalent to the most well-known cosmopolitan cities between 2040 and 2050, and sustainable development is an important element of this," said Zhu Dajian, a professor from Tongji University, who specializes in sustainable development.

A global city requires sustainable enterprises and green growth, Zhu added.