Gov. Linda Lingle met with officials in Beijing to discuss tourism and renewable energy yesterday.

Lingle and United States Ambassador to China Jon Huntsman talked about establishing a way to process visas for China residents who want to visit Hawaii on direct charter flights from Shanghai and Beijing, the governor’s office said.

She later spoke with China National Tourism Association Chairman Shao Qi Wei about the role of tourism in providing educational venues focused on the shared history of China and the United States.

Separately, United States embassy officials asked about the possibility of Chinese companies learning from and investing in Hawaii’s renewable energy projects during next year’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference in Honolulu.