The rise of China represents a tectonic shift in the global economy and in norms and institutions regulating it. One example concerns Transnational Voluntary Sustainability Standards (TVSS). As Chinese average income grows and as Chinese state increases its engagement in the promotion of sustainability, academic literature questions whether the rise of China would hinder or favour the international diffusion and hence the effectiveness of TVSS. This thesis aims to enlighten this controversy, providing insights on institutional change and promotion of sustainability in an increasingly multipolar world. The thesis investigates the case study of the palm oil-related TVSS, the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil. It starts by questioning the dynamics of diffusion of RSPO in China. Then, it focuses on corporate actors, by questioning the role of the rise of China over the evolution on the structure of the palm oil value chain and its lead firms. Finally, it questions how Chinese central state approaches green value chains initiatives among its broader international relations strategies. The research draws key concepts from sustainability standards and Global China literature and employs a mixed Global Value Chain and International Political Economy perspective. It relies on qualitative research methods, drawing information from a large number of semi-structured interviews, complemented by grey literature, official documents and international trade databases. This investigation produced several results. The first is that there is an opening in China concerning transnational green palm oil approaches. Such opening has been spurred by the tentative diffusion of RSPO, but it is not tailored on the uptake of the standard. Instead, the emerging Chinese approach consists in multiple and diversified responses by relevant corporate and state actors to RSPO and in the recognition and support of other existing tools promoting palm sustainability, such as those promoted by actors in