The awareness of climate risk is evolving continuously under the global climate governance framework. In the initiation of the international climate negotiations process,the leading forces called on countries to actively reduce greenhouse gas emissions in accordance with the principle ofcommon but differentiated responsibilities'and work to prevent Black Swan-like climate disasters which are unpredictable but have huge impacts. However,there is still a clear gap between the current national emission reduction efforts and the global temperature control target. Humans are likely to face the high probability and impact of theGrey Rhino'type of climate risk. China has faced extreme weather events many times,but the various infrastructures built after the founding of People's Republic of China have enhanced the ability and level of the society to cope with natural disasters and climate disasters. The domestic understanding of global climate change originally came from international societies. China's initial awareness of the prevention of the Black Swan'incidents in the catastrophic climate strengthened over time. With the advancement of China's industrialization and urbanization,natural disasters caused by climate change have become aGrey Rhino'risk that seriously threatens China's sustainable development. In the context of this shift in understanding the risks,the focus of China's national strategy in response to the impact of climate change has gone through five phases: disaster prevention; participation in scientific research; asserting and defending rights, coordinating development and becoming a leading contributor to positive change. A number of factors worked conjointly to drive the strategic shift for China from passively responding toBlack Swan'climate disasters only to taking proactive measures to manage the Gray Rhino'risks associated with global climate change. These factors include the precipitous rise in CO_2 emission attributable to the burning of fossil fuels,rapid economic growth,the strengthening of China's national capabilities in all aspects,and the severe and growing environmental stress. In the face of issues related to climate change,China has not only done the right thing for itself,but has also made massive contributions towards improving security and safety at the international level.