People's Daily - May 31, 2026

"We must adhere to the educational philosophy of putting health first" (The General Secretary's concern for the people)

By: 本报记者 吴 丹

"Participate more in outdoor sports, get your bodies in great shape. Exam scores are just one aspect; the first thing is to be a healthy person so you can better adapt to society in the future." On the eve of this year's Spring Festival, in the Longfusi Street area (隆福寺街区) of Beijing (北京), General Secretary Xi Jinping's (习近平) earnest words were addressed to the adorable children he met.

"Teenagers are like saplings, full of vitality and hope. They should set lofty aspirations from a young age, love knowledge, love labor, and love nature, developing morally, intellectually, physically, aesthetically, and practically in an all-round way, and strive to grow into pillars of society." This March, while participating in the capital's voluntary tree planting activity, General Secretary Xi Jinping (习近平) planted trees while inquiring about the children's studies, life, labor exercises, and participation in tree planting.

Children and adolescents are the future vital force for advancing the construction of a strong country and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Allowing children to grow up better has always been the warmest concern in General Secretary Xi Jinping's (习近平) heart.

A "shoulder bump" ignited enthusiasm. Inspecting the preparations for the Beijing Winter Olympics, General Secretary Xi Jinping (习近平) took the hand of a young ice hockey player, bent down, and interacted with him with a "shoulder bump," a greeting unique to ice hockey players. The General Secretary said with a smile, "Young man, you need to grow a bit bigger."

A pair of "small glasses" is a major issue. Myopia among students in our country is showing a high incidence and younger age trend. General Secretary Xi Jinping (习近平) made important instructions emphasizing, "This is a major issue related to the future of the country and the nation, and we must attach great importance to it and not allow it to develop unchecked." "The whole society must take action to jointly protect children's eyes."

A "school meal" concerns growth. At Guoluo Xining National Middle School (果洛西宁民族中学) in Xining City (西宁市), Qinghai (青海), General Secretary Xi Jinping (习近平) entered the cafeteria and looked carefully, "Children are growing up. We must pay attention to food hygiene."

Wherever he goes, his heart is concerned. From the top-level blueprint of "adhering to the educational philosophy of health first" to the earnest expectation of "growing strong and being in great shape," to the clear guidance of "'Small' is our future, we must let them grow up healthily," General Secretary Xi Jinping (习近平) has transformed his deep love for the next generation of the motherland into words of exhortation and deployments.

In his concern is a profound insight into the current educational ecology.

Once, "grades first" was highly sought after. "Off-campus training advertisements are flying all over the sky, 'creating anxiety and selling anxiety'..." In March 2021, at the joint group meeting of members of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (全国政协) from the medical and health sector and the education sector, a lively exchange and discussion on education took place.

General Secretary Xi Jinping (习近平) listened attentively and said pointedly: "Education, whether school education or family education, should not focus too much on scores. Scores are a temporary gain, and we must look at them from the perspective of lifelong growth goals. If a healthy and mature personality is not formed in the end, then it is unqualified."

From "grades first" to "health first," the "health gift package" for children is gradually being implemented. Many primary and secondary schools have implemented "micro-reforms" during breaks, extending breaks to 15 minutes to guide students to go out of the classroom and into the sunshine; from 2021 to 2024, the overall myopia rate of students nationwide has achieved "four consecutive declines"... More and more children are not wearing "small glasses," not becoming "little chubby kids," and straightening their "little spines."

In his concern is a strategic consideration of the future task of national rejuvenation.

Today, be good children of the motherland; tomorrow, be builders of the motherland. Good children in the new era should develop morally, intellectually, physically, aesthetically, and practically in an all-round way. This concerns the happiness of every "small family" and, even more, the future of the "big family."

At the Dadong Non-Staple Food Market (大东副食品商场) in Shenyang (沈阳), Liaoning (辽宁), he smiled as he accepted the candy given by the children and said kindly, "You are the future of the motherland. I hope your lives are as sweet and beautiful as candy."

At Zhongyi Township Primary School (中益乡小学) in the depths of the mountains in Chongqing (重庆), he entered the teachers' and students' cafeteria, carefully inspected the dining room and kitchen, and instructed the school and teachers to "put safety first and ensure that students are safe in school, living, and eating, so that parents can rest assured."

In his reply to eight old professors from the Central Academy of Fine Arts (中央美术学院), he put forward earnest expectations: "Promote the spirit of Chinese aesthetic education and let the young generation of the motherland grow up healthy in body and mind."

Meeting with representatives of the first National Civilized Families, he emphasized, "Parents are the first teachers of their children. Family education involves many aspects, but the most important is moral education, which is the education of how to be a person."

From classrooms to fields, from meeting places to inspection sites, wherever General Secretary Xi Jinping (习近平) goes, he brings his care for the physical and mental health of young people. "I especially like children. I am happy when I see them. Chinese-style modernization depends on everyone, on young people, generation after generation, to jointly realize the great rejuvenation of our Chinese nation."

The "15th Five-Year Plan" proposes to "promote the healthy growth and all-round development of students" and "implement a plan to strengthen students' physical fitness." Ensure that physical education classes are fully offered, and that primary and secondary school students have no less than 2 hours of comprehensive physical activity time every day; carry out school aesthetic education immersion activities and labor habit development plans, popularize mental health education; establish scientific educational evaluation guidance, and prevent and correct deviations such as "grades first"... The educational philosophy of "health first" is being written into the curriculum, running onto the playground, integrated into evaluation, and implemented every day in a systematic institutional design.

With light in their eyes, dreams in their hearts, and roads under their feet, when generations of children and adolescents grow up healthily and straighten the spine of the nation in their running, the foundation for building a strong country and realizing the great rejuvenation of the nation will surely become more solid.

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Xi Jinping and Egyptian President Sisi Exchange Congratulatory Messages on the 70th Anniversary of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations Between China and Egypt

On May 30, Chinese President Xi Jinping (习近平) and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi (塞西) exchanged congratulatory messages to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Xi Jinping (习近平) pointed out that Egypt is the first Arab and African country to establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. Over the past 70 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, no matter how the international and regional situation has changed, the two countries have always respected each other, treated each other as equals, trusted each other, and helped each other. China-Egypt relations have become a model of friendly coexistence and unity and cooperation among developing countries, and a model of collective cooperation between China and Arab countries and between China and Africa, and are striding forward towards the goal of building a community with a shared future for the new era. As ancient civilizations and important members of the Global South, China and Egypt should draw wisdom and strength from history, shoulder the contemporary mission of seeking peace, promoting development, promoting cooperation, and promoting justice, and inject strong impetus into building a community with a shared future for mankind.

Xi Jinping (习近平) emphasized that he attaches great importance to the development of China-Egypt relations and is willing to work with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi (塞西) to take the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations as a new starting point, continue the traditional friendship, strengthen exchanges and cooperation in various fields, promote China-Egypt relations to be more strategically leading, develop more cohesive, and have greater international influence, better benefit the people of the two countries, and contribute more to international and regional peace and development.

Abdel Fattah el-Sisi (塞西) said that Egypt and China have stood shoulder to shoulder in every historical period. Over the past 70 years, under the joint leadership of the leaders of the two countries, Egypt-China relations have continued to develop. He expressed his appreciation for the important achievements made in Egypt-China relations and looked forward to working with President Xi Jinping (习近平) to continue to promote bilateral relations to achieve more fruitful results, and jointly build a more stable and capable multipolar world to cope with global challenges, so that all countries can share the fruits of comprehensive development and jointly achieve peace and security.

On the same day, Premier of the State Council Li Qiang (李强) and Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly (马德布利) exchanged congratulatory messages. Li Qiang (李强) said that China is willing to work with Egypt to fully implement the important consensus reached by the heads of state of the two countries, accelerate the high-quality joint construction of the "Belt and Road," strengthen exchanges and cooperation in various fields, promote the continuous development of the China-Egypt comprehensive strategic partnership, and better benefit the people of the two countries.

Mostafa Madbouly (马德布利) said that over the past 70 years, Egypt-China relations have made great progress, and bilateral cooperation has achieved unprecedented results. Egypt looks forward to continuing to strengthen cooperation with China and achieve more achievements in the fields of economy, science and technology, to benefit the friendly two countries and their peoples.

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Resolutely implement the important instructions of General Secretary Xi Jinping on work safety and earnestly safeguard the safety of people's lives and property and the overall social stability.

Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, May 30th. The National Work Safety Video Conference was held in Beijing (北京) on May 30th. Li Qiang (李强), member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Premier of the State Council, recently made important instructions on work safety. The instructions pointed out: Since the beginning of this year, safety accidents have occurred frequently in some localities and industries, causing significant losses to the lives and property of the people, and the lessons are extremely profound. All regions and departments must resolutely implement the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's (习近平) important instructions on work safety, follow the decisions and deployments of the Party Central Committee, adhere to the principle of putting the people first and valuing life above all else, and promote the three-year action plan for fundamentally addressing work safety issues in depth. They must improve the quality and effectiveness of risk and hidden danger investigation, strictly investigate and deal with illegal and fraudulent activities in work safety, and exert a powerful deterrent effect. We must always be vigilant, adhere to **防微杜渐** (fáng wēi dù jiàn - "prevent the slightest error," to nip problems in the bud), strengthen full-chain and penetrating safety supervision and governance in key industries and fields such as mines, fireworks and firecrackers, transportation, and engineering construction, and make great efforts to solve deep-seated contradictions and problems in the field of work safety. We must strengthen the sense of responsibility and implement measures strictly to resolutely curb the momentum of frequent major and serious accidents. At present, it is the flood season, and the situation of flood prevention and disaster relief is severe and complex. We must resolutely overcome complacency, strengthen monitoring and early warning, consultation and judgment, and emergency preparedness, build a solid line of defense against accidents and disasters, improve emergency rescue capabilities, and effectively safeguard the safety of people's lives and property and the overall social stability.

Zhang Guoqing (张国清), member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Premier of the State Council, attended the meeting and delivered a speech. Wang Xiaohong (王小洪), member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee and State Councilor, presided over the meeting. Zhang Guoqing (张国清) emphasized that it is necessary to thoroughly study and implement the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's (习近平) important instructions and requirements, implement Premier Li Qiang's (李强) instructions, and, in response to the prominent problems exposed by recent major and serious accidents, give serious warnings to all localities to deeply learn lessons and effectively improve the quality and effectiveness of hidden danger investigation and rectification, and further strictly and practically grasp work safety. It is necessary to investigate and thoroughly clarify the causes and responsibilities of accidents, and directly address deep-seated problems in a serious and uncompromising manner, and transform the bloody lessons into normalized and long-term safety governance measures. We must resolutely and strictly implement work safety responsibilities, look downward and further downward, and effectively transmit and implement safety responsibilities at all levels down to the grassroots level. It is necessary to improve the professionalism and penetration of supervision, improve the criteria for determining major accident hazards, strengthen on-site supervision, downhole supervision, and all-round supervision, strengthen the supervision of the rectification and reform of risk hazards by superiors over subordinates, and ensure that the rectification and reform are genuine and in place. We must highlight key industries and fields such as mines, fireworks and firecrackers, and hazardous chemicals, severely crack down on illegal and irregular activities such as hidden working faces, falsification of safety monitoring, and "four excesses and two reforms" of fireworks and firecracker enterprises, strengthen the connection between administrative and criminal justice, strengthen warning deterrence, and make every effort to stabilize the work safety situation.

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Zhao Leji Pays Official Goodwill Visit to Russia and Attends the 11th Meeting of the China-Russia Parliamentary Cooperation Committee

Xinhua News Agency, Moscow, May 30 (Reporters Feng Xinran (冯歆然) and Liu Kai (刘恺)) At the invitation of Valentina Matviyenko (马特维延科), Chairman of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation, and Vyacheslav Volodin (沃洛金), Chairman of the State Duma, Zhao Leji (赵乐际), Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, paid an official friendly visit to Russia from May 27 to 30. He held talks with Matviyenko (马特维延科) and Volodin (沃洛金) in Moscow and attended the 11th meeting of the China-Russia Parliamentary Cooperation Committee.

During his separate talks with Matviyenko (马特维延科) and Volodin (沃洛金), Zhao Leji (赵乐际) said that under the strategic guidance of President Xi Jinping (习近平) and President Putin (普京), the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era has maintained a high level of development. Last week, President Putin (普京) successfully paid a state visit to China, and the two heads of state held in-depth, friendly, and fruitful talks, jointly signing the China-Russia Joint Statement on Further Strengthening Comprehensive Strategic Coordination and Deepening Good-Neighborly Friendship and Cooperation. China-Russia relations have entered a new stage of greater accomplishment and faster development. China is willing to work with Russia to fully implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, taking the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the China-Russia strategic partnership of coordination and the 25th anniversary of the signing of the China-Russia Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation as opportunities to continue traditional friendship, enhance strategic mutual trust, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation and convergence of interests, and promote higher-quality development of China-Russia relations.

Zhao Leji (赵乐际) stated that the exchange mechanism between the legislative bodies of China and Russia is increasingly improving, playing an important role in optimizing the legal environment for bilateral cooperation and consolidating the public opinion foundation of the two countries' relations. The two sides should, based on the functions and responsibilities of the legislative bodies, maintain a good momentum of multi-level and multi-field exchanges, enhance understanding and mutual trust, strengthen exchanges and mutual learning, and better serve the development of the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era. Legislative experience exchanges should be carried out in areas such as national security, ecological and environmental protection, artificial intelligence, and foreign-related rule of law.

Matviyenko (马特维延科) said that the two heads of state have led Russia-China relations to the best level in history. The Federation Council of the Russian Federation has always been committed to promoting the development of the Russia-China comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era and deepening the friendship between the two peoples. It is willing to strengthen exchanges with the National People's Congress of China to provide legal guarantees for promoting pragmatic cooperation in various fields such as economy and trade, investment, energy, culture, transportation, and local affairs.

Volodin (沃洛金) said that Russia-China relations are a model of major-country relations in the 21st century. Promoting Russia-China friendly cooperation is the firm consensus of all parties in the State Duma of the Russian Federation. It is hoped that further strengthening exchanges and mutual learning between the legislative bodies of the two countries in legislative work in areas such as artificial intelligence. Russia firmly adheres to the one-China principle and is willing to strengthen multilateral cooperation with China to jointly defend the achievements of the victory in World War II.

On the 28th, Zhao Leji (赵乐际) attended the 11th meeting of the China-Russia Parliamentary Cooperation Committee. He pointed out that the legislative bodies of the two countries should adhere to taking head-of-state diplomacy as the guide, promote the implementation and effectiveness of the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, the cooperation documents signed by both sides, and the major projects identified. Legal documents that are conducive to bilateral cooperation should be approved and their implementation supervised in a timely manner, creating a transparent, fair, and stable business environment, safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of enterprises, and providing legal guarantees for bilateral pragmatic cooperation. Actively participate in activities such as the "China-Russia Year of Educational Exchange," deepen cultural exchanges, and consolidate the public opinion foundation for China-Russia friendship. Make good use of existing mechanisms and platforms, give play to the active role of local legislative bodies, and contribute ideas and efforts to expand local cooperation. Strengthen cooperation within multilateral mechanisms such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union to promote international fairness and justice.

During his visit to Russia, Zhao Leji (赵乐际) visited the photo exhibition commemorating the 25th anniversary of the signing of the China-Russia Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation and the permanent exhibition hall of the Sixth National Congress of the Communist Party of China in Moscow, and laid wreaths at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. In Irkutsk Oblast, he met with Governor Igor Kobzev (科布泽夫) and Chairman of the Legislative Assembly Sergey Brilk (韦杰尔尼科夫), expressing his hope to strengthen local pragmatic cooperation, enhance people's friendship, and inject vigorous vitality into the relations between the two countries.

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Shaanxi Promotes High-Quality Development of County-Level Economy

By: 本报记者 张 铁 张丹华

The Sanqin (陕西) land in May is full of vitality. In the Loess Plateau of northern Shaanxi (陕北高原), the Jinjie Industrial Park (锦界工业园区) in Shenmu City (神木市), Yulin City (榆林市), is filled with storage tanks and crisscrossing pipe corridors. In the Guanzhong Plain (关中平原), dairy goats in the farms of Fuping County (富平县), Weinan City (渭南市), are eating alfalfa. Deep in the Qinling Mountains (秦岭), at the volleyball training base in Danfeng County (丹凤县), Shangluo City (商洛市), exciting spikes elicit cheers...

Counties bear nearly half of Shaanxi's (陕西) total economic output. In the first quarter of this year, the growth rate of Shaanxi's (陕西) county economy reached 5.4%. By 2025, the province will have 29 counties (cities, districts) with a total economic output exceeding 20 billion yuan.

In May 2023, when General Secretary Xi Jinping (习近平) listened to the work report of the Shaanxi Provincial Party Committee (陕西省委) and the Shaanxi Provincial Government (陕西省政府), he emphasized: "Develop small towns in accordance with local conditions, promote the standardized and healthy development of characteristic towns, and build a county economic system with county towns as hubs and small towns as nodes." The "15th Five-Year Plan" (“十五五”规划) outlines the need to "cultivate strong agricultural counties, large industrial counties, and famous tourist counties in accordance with local conditions, and promote the integrated development of industry revitalization, county strengthening, and people's prosperity."

To thoroughly implement the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's (习近平) important instructions, Shaanxi (陕西) regards the development of the county economy as a strategic tool to narrow regional, urban-rural, and income gaps, and promote the high-quality development of the county economy.

Adapting to local conditions, one policy per county—

The development conditions of Shaanxi's (陕西) county economy vary greatly across the Loess Plateau (黄土高原), Guanzhong Plain (关中平原), and Qinba Mountains (秦巴山区).

Shaanxi (陕西) divides its counties into three categories based on local conditions: 47 industrial function counties, emphasizing industrialization and population agglomeration; 24 major agricultural product counties, shouldering the responsibility for food security and characteristic agriculture; and 12 ecological function counties, focusing on ecological protection and green development.

Making full use of characteristic resources and leveraging comparative advantages, Shaanxi's (陕西) county economies each have their own characteristics and are blooming in a hundred different ways:

In Fugu County (府谷县), Yulin City (榆林市), energy is a dominant industry. Here, waste gas from coal combustion is used to calcine metallic magnesium, and by 2025, the county's metallic magnesium production will account for nearly half of the global share.

In Luochuan County (洛川县), Yan'an City (延安市), a famous "apple county," Zhang Jidong (张继东), the Secretary of the Luochuan County Party Committee (洛川县委书记), introduced that Luochuan apples are developing in a "chain-like" manner, with apple production reaching 1.1685 million tons in 2025 and a comprehensive output value exceeding 16.5 billion yuan.

Shiquan County (石泉县), located in the upper reaches of the Han River (汉江), has beautiful scenery and abundant tourism resources. Ecotourism, modern agriculture, pumped storage... the local area is focusing on expanding channels for realizing the value of ecological products.

"Shaanxi Province's (陕西省) '15th Five-Year Plan' (‘十五五’规划) proposes to carry out actions to enhance the development of characteristic industries in counties," introduced Xu Tianjiang (徐田江), Deputy Director of the Shaanxi Provincial Development and Reform Commission (陕西省发展和改革委员会副主任). "We are focusing on 'one county, one industry' and compiling a list of 'one county, one policy' items to ensure policy implementation."

Systematic planning, cluster formation—

How can counties with a good industrial base become bigger and stronger?

Break out of "county thinking," do systematic planning, promote the aggregation of factors, and form a coupling effect.

From Gaoling District (高陵区), Huyi District (鄠邑区), and Zhouzhi County (周至县) in Xi'an City (西安市), to Fufeng County (扶风县) and Qishan County (岐山县) in Baoji City (宝鸡市), a more than 100-kilometer-long automobile industry belt sees leading vehicle companies such as Shaanxi Automobile (陕汽), Geely (吉利), and BYD (比亚迪) and hundreds of component companies laid out in a staggered manner and developing collaboratively.

Zhouzhi County (周至县) is located in the middle of this automobile industry belt. The Jixian Industrial Park (集贤产业园区) has been built here, attracting BYD's (比亚迪) component expansion base to settle in. Last year, the park's industrial output value exceeded 51.7 billion yuan, driving more than 30,000 people to find employment at their doorstep. This agricultural county, famous for its kiwi fruit industry, has also dynamically adjusted its functional "label" to an industrial county.

Striving forward in the "15th Five-Year Plan" (“十五五”), Shaanxi (陕西) plans to form about 30 county-characteristic industrial clusters by 2030, including apple planting and deep processing, complete vehicle and component manufacturing, and cultural tourism, supporting the county economy to increase to 2.4 trillion yuan.

People's livelihood is paramount, happy work and living—

Revitalizing industry and strengthening counties is for the purpose of enriching the people.

Liuba County (留坝县), Hanzhong City (汉中市), is surrounded by the Qinling Mountains (秦岭). In Xiaoliuba Village (小留坝村), Zibai Street (紫柏街道), Yang Jinxiu (杨金秀) is deftly preparing lunch for guests. After professional training, she became a homestay housekeeper, "working at my doorstep, earning three to four thousand yuan a month, and it's also convenient to take care of the elderly and children."

"Liuba's (留坝) homestays have become famous, and 'homestay housekeepers' have also become a labor brand," introduced Shen Dong (沈冬), Deputy Director of the Liuba County Employment and Entrepreneurship Service Center (留坝县就业创业服务中心副主任). This labor brand has cumulatively driven more than 5,000 people to find employment and start businesses, generating more than 10 million yuan in labor economic income.

Ziyang County (紫阳县), Ankang City (安康市), has the Han River (汉江) winding through it. Li Xiaofeng (李晓锋), the head of a local foot-trimming skill training base, is lecturing on massage techniques using acupoint charts.

Here, a foot-trimming knife "trims" out a large industry: absorbing more than 60,000 local employees, forming a labor brand, with locals opening more than 28,000 foot-trimming shops across the country, with annual revenue exceeding 30 billion yuan.

Both happy work and living. Since the "14th Five-Year Plan" (“十四五”), Shaanxi (陕西) has implemented more than 6,300 county construction projects, promoted the full coverage of close-knit medical community counties, and built a "five-level elderly care" service system... The development of the county economy helps create high-quality living spaces, making "county life" happier.

"Bearing in mind General Secretary Xi Jinping's (习近平) earnest entrustment, during the '15th Five-Year Plan' (“十五五”) period, Shaanxi (陕西) will adhere to coordinating new urbanization and comprehensive rural revitalization, continuously improving the quality and efficiency of the county economic system with county towns as hubs and small towns as nodes, and continuously improving the balance, coordination, and inclusiveness of development," said Zhao Yide (赵一德), Secretary of the Shaanxi Provincial Party Committee (陕西省委书记).

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Photo Story

May 30th, the 2026 World Intelligence Congress welcomed its public open day. People entered the National Convention and Exhibition Center (Tianjin) (国家会展中心（天津）), genuinely experiencing the new changes that intelligent technology brings to life.

The photo shows citizens and tourists visiting the Intelligent Manufacturing Pavilion on that day.

Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhao Zishuo (赵子硕) photographed it.

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Electricity market trading volume increased by 25.6% year-on-year

This report was published in Beijing (北京) on May 30th (Reporter Wang Yunshan (王云杉)). The reporter learned from the National Energy Administration (国家能源局) that in the first four months, the cumulative electricity market trading volume nationwide reached 2430.7 billion kilowatt-hours, a year-on-year increase of 25.6%.

In April, the national electricity market trading volume was 588.3 billion kilowatt-hours, a year-on-year increase of 25.5%. In terms of trading scope, the intra-provincial trading volume was 473 billion kilowatt-hours, a year-on-year increase of 29.4%; the inter-provincial and inter-regional trading volume was 115.3 billion kilowatt-hours, a year-on-year increase of 11.9%. In terms of trading varieties, the medium and long-term trading volume was 522.3 billion kilowatt-hours; the spot trading volume was 66 billion kilowatt-hours. The green electricity trading volume was 29.7 billion kilowatt-hours, a year-on-year increase of 3.6%.

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Introduction

Under the Wave of Artificial Intelligence
How to Cultivate Teenagers' Thinking Ability

Fifth Edition

Experts and Scholars Discuss Children's Aesthetic Education
Aesthetic Enlightenment, Moving Towards the Light

Eighth Edition

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This "Supporting Role" in the Pursuit of Dreams Has Never Stopped (Stable Employment: My Job-Seeking Story)

By: 本报记者 窦 皓

When the "tomato" plant on the corner of the desk droops its leaves, a "needs watering" reminder pops up on the screen. The user sees it, gets up for a drink of water, and that becomes "irrigation"... This desktop AI (Artificial Intelligence) companion called "PaiPai Farm" turns health management into a fun "desktop farming" experience. From the initial idea to the finished product, Zhang Congmian (张淙冕), a post-00s entrepreneur, spent less than a year.

Behind him, a complete set of "coaching" service mechanisms is quietly operating. In recent years, Hangzhou (杭州), Zhejiang (浙江) has innovatively built a full-cycle "entrepreneurial coaching" service system, focusing on the entire chain of "early-stage cultivation - mid-stage support - late-stage empowerment," allowing young people to dare to venture, try, and forge ahead on the road to entrepreneurship.

Enterprise Service Specialists Solve Problems

"At every stage of the company's development, we can always get timely responses from the University Student Entrepreneurship Park and the Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, and this certainty is crucial for entrepreneurs." Not long ago, at the 2026 Hangzhou Employment and Entrepreneurship Activity Week, Zhang Congmian (张淙冕), CEO of Hangzhou Juanpai Technology Co., Ltd. (杭州卷湃科技有限公司), spoke about his entrepreneurial experience over the past year, his tone revealing a sense of steadiness.

The reporter followed Zhang Congmian (张淙冕) to the University Student Entrepreneurship Park of the Alibaba Digital Ecological Innovation Park (阿里巴巴数字生态创新园) in Wuchang Street (五常街道), Yuhang District (余杭区), Hangzhou (杭州). An independent office here is the team's "home."

"You only need to submit your identity certificate and project information to the enterprise service specialist, and you can complete the review and move in within a week." Zhang Congmian (张淙冕) said that with the University Student Entrepreneurship Site Subsidy and the park's special support for AI projects, he basically doesn't have to spend his own money on rent.

The park's enterprise service specialist in Zhang Congmian's (张淙冕) words is Su Yue (苏月), who is affectionately called "Shopkeeper" by the entrepreneurs. Previously, during a weekly routine exchange, Zhang Congmian (张淙冕) raised a concern: "Our team is good at algorithms, but we have never been exposed to the research and development of AI hardware, what should we do?"

Su Yue (苏月) found Yang Kunyu (杨昆宇), a grid member of the Wuchang Street (五常街道) Building Workstation. "Xinqiang Technology (新腔科技) is just two blocks away, specializing in software and hardware research and development, maybe we can cooperate." Yang Kunyu's (杨昆宇) response gave Su Yue (苏月) confidence. Through government platforms and park connections, the two sides hit it off: Juanpai (卷湃) outputs AI technology capabilities, and Xinqiang (新腔) undertakes hardware development and supply chain, complementing each other's resources.

In recent years, Yuhang District (余杭区) has continued to optimize the construction of the employment and entrepreneurship ecosystem. In 2025, it issued 116 million yuan in entrepreneurial guarantee loans and 27.37 million yuan in funding for university student entrepreneurship projects, an increase of 53.8% in university student entrepreneurship projects compared to the previous year, ranking first in the city in terms of growth rate. In the first quarter of this year, 372 new university student entrepreneurship projects were added, creating 394 jobs.

Entrepreneurial Mentors Provide Guidance

The "coaching service" allowed Zhang Congmian (张淙冕) to break through the initial stages of entrepreneurship, and it also became a key support for Hangzhou Dongchu Cultural and Creative Co., Ltd. (杭州冬初文化创意有限公司) when it was climbing over hurdles.

In 2019, after working in the film and television industry for many years, Lu Heng (陆衡) decided to start his own film and television company. Over the years, the company has gradually developed from a one-man show at its inception to a growing enterprise with a stable customer base.

At the end of 2023, at a critical stage in the company's application for a science and technology project, a thorny issue appeared before Lu Heng (陆衡) - because he had only focused on doing business in his early years and had never made an overall plan for finance, the company's tax burden rate was too high, and the profit margin was greatly compressed, and he was about to miss the application qualification. "I couldn't sleep all night those days, worrying while flipping through the account books, and I felt that the efforts of the past few years were going to be stuck because of this hurdle," Lu Heng (陆衡) recalled.

At a loss, the Yunhe Qingchuang Academy (运河青创学院) established by the Gongshu District (拱墅区) Human Resources and Social Security Bureau of Hangzhou (杭州) sent an entrepreneurial mentor - a senior financial expert - to conduct a comprehensive "physical examination" for Lu Heng's (陆衡) enterprise on a one-on-one basis. From cost collection to expense allocation, and the applicable conditions for tax incentives... the expert gave suggestions one by one.

Today, Dongchu Culture (冬初文化) has not only clarified the company's financial context, but also established a lightweight financial management system suitable for creative enterprises. With its excellent strength and standardized management, Dongchu Culture (冬初文化) has become the official designated partner of the China International Cartoon & Animation Festival (中国国际动漫节).

Since its establishment in 2023, Yunhe Qingchuang Academy (运河青创学院) has continued to provide systematic and precise services to university student entrepreneurship enterprises, holding innovation and entrepreneurship themed activities such as entrepreneurship course training, project roadshow guidance, and enterprise visits and study tours, and organizing entrepreneurial mentors to conduct one-on-one enterprise guidance for 3 rounds, serving more than 400 enterprises.

Multiple Measures to Empower Entrepreneurship

At the beginning of last year, Wei Xiaobao (韦晓报) from Qiantang District (钱塘区), Hangzhou (杭州) successfully registered Hangzhou Youqiuzhixing Network Technology Co., Ltd. (杭州有球之星网络科技有限公司). "The beginning of entrepreneurship was not smooth, and facing the dual pressure of rent and venue, I had more than once the idea of giving up," Wei Xiaobao (韦晓报) said.

By chance, Wei Xiaobao (韦晓报) learned through the Hangzhou (杭州) "Employment and Entrepreneurship One Map" that the entrepreneurial coaching space can provide start-ups with low-cost office space, entrepreneurial subsidies and loans, and other support, helping him solve the urgent needs of the initial stage of entrepreneurship. Today, Wei Xiaobao's (韦晓报) company focuses on empowering sports competitions with artificial intelligence and is operating successfully.

Open the Hangzhou Citizen Card APP or Alipay, the "Employment and Entrepreneurship One Map" electronic map provides one-stop services such as job search and recruitment, entrepreneurship services, subsidy smart handling, labor rights protection, agency query, and policy consultation. Entrepreneurs can also get policy intelligent matching, resource precise push and other services with one click. Since the platform was launched in December 2023, it has presented an average of about 70,000 jobs per day, with a cumulative access volume of more than one million person-times, facilitating the successful employment of more than 50,000 people.

Hangzhou (杭州) relies on university student entrepreneurship parks, coaching spaces and other carriers to provide one-stop services such as site funding, mentor guidance, community cooperation, and digital government affairs. At the same time, it builds a three-dimensional financial support system of "entrepreneurial guarantee loans + policy support funds + special loans," establishes an entrepreneurial mentor pool covering more than 30 industries, and provides in-depth guidance for entrepreneurs.

"We want to provide more considerate and inclusive services to all young people seeking employment and starting businesses in Hangzhou (杭州)." Fu Ningyu (傅宁宇), director of the Employment and Entrepreneurship Guidance Department of the Hangzhou (杭州) Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, said that the new round of three-year action plan for university student innovation and entrepreneurship is being promoted, striving to achieve a greater degree of upgrading at the policy level.

Today, Lu Heng (陆衡) has also become a mentor in the Hangzhou University Student Entrepreneurship Practice Camp (杭州大学生创业实践营), often appearing at various entrepreneurship competitions and sharing sessions. "This 'coaching' about dreams has never stopped." Under the spotlight, he sits side by side with entrepreneurs from different industries, waiting to answer questions for the next young person.

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Using Algorithms to Find Optimal Logistics Solutions (Vigorously Promoting Employment and Entrepreneurship)

By: 本报记者 韩 鑫

"The volume of lychee fresh food collection will increase significantly, please adjust route planning in time."

It's lychee season again. Xu Jianheng (许健恒), the head of the SF Express lychee collection station in Gaozhou (高州市), Maoming (茂名), Guangdong (广东), received an early warning message on his mobile phone.

Opening the system to view, the trend analysis is clear and the optimization plan is output simultaneously: dispatching a front-station truck to pick up goods at the station on the way, which can not only meet the freshness requirements but also effectively control costs.

This instant decision-making comes from a powerful "control brain." Hundreds of kilometers away, in the Shenzhen SF Technology (深圳顺丰科技) headquarters building, Huang Yixiao (黄一潇), a senior operations optimization algorithm engineer, flipped his fingers, and lines of code "flowed" on the screen, constantly injecting into the "control brain."

"This is my normal work state. Most of the time, I am 死磕 (sǐ kē - "wrestle to death," to work doggedly on something) with code," Huang Yixiao (黄一潇) said. Since joining the company, he has been single-mindedly thinking about how to use algorithms to find the optimal solution for logistics.

In 2018, Huang Yixiao (黄一潇) graduated from the Department of Industrial Engineering at Tsinghua University (清华大学) with a doctorate and entered the rapidly developing express delivery industry.

Huang Yixiao (黄一潇) recalled that at the beginning of his employment, he and his colleagues were thinking about how to use the power of algorithms to speed up intra-city express delivery.

Through mathematical modeling, they built a lightweight transit network in the city, so that intra-city express delivery no longer had to detour to the suburban sorting center overnight, and could complete "collection-transit-delivery" within a few hours.

Huang Yixiao (黄一潇) clearly remembers that the "same-city half-day delivery" product was quickly rolled out in 80 cities as soon as it was launched, which not only greatly increased the volume of intra-city express delivery but also expanded new scenarios such as store allocation and medicine delivery.

In 2023, the company's super transit center at Ezhou Huahu International Airport (鄂州花湖国际机场) in Hubei (湖北) was put into operation. How can the operation of a super-large hub be orderly with massive amounts of goods pouring in?

Huang Yixiao (黄一潇) said that they developed an algorithm. Relying on the intelligent dispatching system, nearly 50 all-cargo aircraft can be quickly passed through the station in the air within 3 hours, and more than 300 various vehicles and hundreds of staff can be accurately dispatched on the ground to achieve efficient collaborative operations.

More logistics tools are coordinated and linked. Working with the subway, express delivery takes the subway to achieve "station-to-station" rapid flow; cooperating with the railway, "high-speed rail + express delivery" helps packages arrive "in the morning and evening"... Huang Yixiao (黄一潇) and his team partners accurately match express delivery outlets with rail lines, which not only revitalizes idle transportation capacity and alleviates traffic pressure but also stimulates the industry's growth potential.

In the past two years, Huang Yixiao's (黄一潇) algorithm constraints have added a "low-carbon" indicator. "Green delivery is a systematic project. In addition to reducing express packaging, route planning is also required," Huang Yixiao (黄一潇) explained. Transportation via the shortest route can significantly reduce carbon emissions. In 2025, the company successfully reduced carbon dioxide emissions by more than 1.92 million tons through intelligent technologies such as optimized routes.

"Let every package run faster and better." Over the years, Huang Yixiao (黄一潇) has grown from a grassroots algorithm engineer to a technical backbone. What he has been thinking about has gradually become a reality: Since joining the industry, the model tools developed by the team have cumulatively helped the company reduce logistics costs by more than 10 billion yuan and improve the timeliness of more than 1 billion packages.

After multiple optimizations and iterations, the "control brain" incubated by Huang Yixiao's (黄一潇) team has covered more than 340,000 service outlets, 340 transit yards, and connected more than 230,000 land transportation vehicles and 111 all-cargo aircraft. Through intelligent matching, the "control brain" can output calculation schemes for more than 2,000 routes at the minute level.

Along the way, there are many fellow travelers who "speed up express delivery." Launching the "New Exploration Plan" internship recruitment, establishing joint university laboratories, and carrying out technical carnival events... Facing the wave of AI (artificial intelligence) technology, SF Express (顺丰) continues to increase talent reserves and build employee growth ladders.

In March last year, Jin Chengneng (金成能), born after 1995, joined the company as a postdoctoral fellow, and Huang Yixiao (黄一潇) became his corporate mentor. This teacher-student combination continues to deeply cultivate network planning optimization algorithms and tackle cutting-edge AI intelligent body technologies.

"The ultra-large-scale market has built a complex and huge innovation test field for us." Huang Yixiao (黄一潇) firmly believes that with the rapid development of AI technology, China's express delivery will move towards a broader stage. "Every line of code we write is like a pair of wings, helping China's express delivery continuously pursue green development and strive for new strength."

Reporter's Note

Looking forward to the industry and the profession resonating at the same frequency

In recent years, the new profession of algorithm engineer has gradually been "seen" by more people. Some people sigh: It turns out that the express delivery industry not only has thousands of couriers running around regardless of wind and rain, but also a group of people manipulating algorithms and weaving warp and weft.

What is "seen" is not only the new profession but also the new look of the industry behind the profession. Unmanned vehicles are scaled and deployed for last-mile delivery, and humanoid robots appear in distribution centers... Taking digitalization as a breakthrough point, China's express delivery industry, which has evolved a "smart brain" and grown "flexible hands and feet," has not only reshaped its operating model and refreshed its efficiency ceiling but also made smart express delivery a bright "Chinese business card."

"Seeing" is the starting point, and "doing" is the foothold. The industry is thriving with talent. China's express delivery industry has entered a stage of value enhancement from scale expansion. It is expected that the industry and the profession will further integrate deeply and resonate at the same frequency. Deepening skills improvement, expanding growth channels, and optimizing the employment environment, when more high-quality talents emerge, the high-quality development of the industry will have more vigorous vitality.

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78 Meters Under the Sea: Changing the Cutterhead of a Tunnel Boring Machine (China in Focus)

By: 本报记者 李心萍

On the coast of the East China Sea, in the Jintang Channel, the construction of the world's longest undersea high-speed railway tunnel—the Yongzhou Railway (甬舟铁路) Jintang Undersea Tunnel—is in full swing. Going downwards, penetrating the rock layers, the "Yongzhou Hao" (甬舟号) and "Dinghai Hao" (定海号) two super-large diameter shield tunneling machines are digging towards each other.

Currently, the "Dinghai Hao" shield tunneling machine is facing a new test—cutterhead replacement.

Why replace the cutterhead? It turns out that after a long distance of soft soil stratum excavation, what stands in front of the "Dinghai Hao" shield tunneling machine is a hard rock mountain. "To gnaw down high-strength rock, we need to replace the 'teeth' of the shield tunneling machine, replacing the ripping cutters suitable for soft soil strata with rock-breaking roller cutters," said Wang Shuang (王双), project leader of the China Railway Eleventh Bureau (中铁十一局) Yongzhou Railway (甬舟铁路) Third Work Area Project.

How difficult is the cutterhead replacement? The "Dinghai Hao" is a slurry balance shield tunneling machine. During the excavation process, the slurry chamber is filled with slurry to ensure pressure balance before and after the cutterhead. When replacing the cutterhead, half of the slurry in the slurry chamber needs to be drained and pressurized air injected.

However, the "Dinghai Hao" shield tunneling machine has reached 78 meters underwater, and the pressure of the injected air must reach 8.5 bar, which is about 8.4 standard atmospheric pressures.

"According to current standards, the limit for conventional air pressurized cutterhead replacement operations can only reach 60 meters underwater. Operating in an environment exceeding 6 atmospheres is very risky," Wang Shuang (王双) introduced.

To this end, the construction team developed the world's first "ternary mixed gas" shield pressurized operation equipment. This equipment uses precisely formulated helium, nitrogen, and oxygen ternary mixed gas to replace air for engineers to breathe, ensuring that the pressurization process is safe and harmless.

At 10:15 am on May 17, the first cutterhead replacement operation at 78 meters underwater began—

Engineers entered the pressurized chamber in front of the shield tunneling machine, put on special respirators, and increased the internal pressure of the human body to about 8.4 atmospheres within 6 minutes by breathing the pressurized mixed gas.

After the engineers adapted, they successively crossed the shield tunneling machine's man-lock, air cushion chamber, and slurry chamber, arriving behind the cutterhead, facing the tunnel face, and carried out the cutterhead replacement operation. In a high-pressure environment, the human body's basal metabolic rate and oxygen consumption increase significantly, and physical energy consumption is enormous. A ripping cutter weighs about 150 kilograms and requires the assistance of multiple people and the use of pulleys to complete the operation.

The operation is time-consuming, but the maximum adaptation time for the human body to an environment of about 8.4 atmospheres is only 60 minutes. To this end, the research and development team achieved 24-hour continuous operation through 3-person teams and 2-team man-lock cooperation. After completing the task, the operators underwent scientific decompression before leaving the chamber and entered the deck decompression chamber for secondary decompression recuperation.

On May 18, the first cutterhead replacement operation was completed. The "Dinghai Hao" shield tunneling machine will replace more than 60 cutters in this batch.

Faced with the same underwater cutterhead replacement challenge, how did the "Yongzhou Hao" shield tunneling machine choose?

The stratum faced by the "Yongzhou Hao" is more complex, with 24 soft and hard stratum switches, and the cutterhead replacement frequency is higher than that of the "Dinghai Hao". "Since the start, we have excavated more than 3,400 meters and have already replaced over 3,000 cutters," said Hu Hao (胡浩), project leader of the China Railway Fourteenth Bureau (中铁十四局) Yongzhou Railway (甬舟铁路) Project.

How to solve the "Yongzhou Hao's" high water pressure and high-frequency cutterhead replacement needs? The technical team chose the saturated pressurized cutterhead replacement path.

Hu Hao (胡浩) introduced that saturated pressurization means allowing operators to enter the same high-pressure environment as the seabed before the operation, so that the gas in the body's tissues is completely saturated. To support this operation mode, an underwater space station is needed.

The underwater space station is divided into the Zhenhai Control Cabin (镇海控制舱), the Ninghai Living Cabin (宁海生活舱), and the Tanhai Shuttle Cabin (探海穿梭舱). During the underwater operation cycle, the staff lives in the Ninghai Living Cabin (宁海生活舱). The cabin simulates the air pressure of more than 80 meters underwater, and the breathing gas is a helium, nitrogen, and oxygen ternary mixed gas. When operation is required, the staff enters the Tanhai Shuttle Cabin (探海穿梭舱), and the shuttle cabin is transported to the inside of the shield tunneling machine by a vehicle and docked with the man-lock.

After the staff passes through the connecting channel, they begin to work. "We have 3 operators per shift, and each cabin works underwater for an average of 8 hours, with 3 shifts a day," said Dong Bing (董冰), chief mechanic of the China Railway Fourteenth Bureau (中铁十四局) Yongzhou Railway (甬舟铁路) Project. Each staff member has a saturated pressurization cycle of 28 days each time, "and we hope to challenge cutterhead replacement operations at more than 100 meters underwater in the future."

"The successful application of this technology provides a replicable and scalable Chinese solution for global ultra-high pressure engineering construction," said Li Bing (李冰), Deputy Chief Engineer of Shanghai National Railway Engineering Construction and Management Company (上海国铁工程建管公司) and Commander of the Zhoushan Headquarters (舟山指挥部).

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The Tenth Batch of Scientific Experiment Samples from China's Space Station Successfully Returned

This newspaper's Beijing (北京) dispatch on May 30th (Reporters Wu Yuehui (吴月辉) and Li Junqiang (李君强)) On May 29th, the tenth batch of space science experiment samples from the China Space Station (中国空间站) successfully returned aboard the Shenzhou-22 (神舟二十二号) spacecraft. In the early morning of May 30th, some of the experimental samples were transported to Beijing (北京) and delivered to scientists for subsequent research.

The returned scientific experiment samples involve 23 experimental projects in life science, materials science, and combustion science, including 9 types of life science experimental samples, 12 types of materials science experimental samples, and 2 types of combustion science experimental samples, with a total weight of approximately 41.14 kilograms. Among them, life science experimental samples such as artificial embryos and brain organoids have been transferred to the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization, Chinese Academy of Sciences (中国科学院空间应用工程与技术中心). After the staff checked and confirmed the status of the returned experimental samples, they were delivered to scientists for subsequent research. The remaining materials science and combustion science experimental samples will subsequently be transported to Beijing (北京) aboard the Shenzhou-22 (神舟二十二号) spacecraft return capsule.

In the field of life science, scientists will continue to focus on the cutting-edge field of "artificial embryos" and conduct a series of studies, which are expected to reveal the adaptation laws of life in the space environment, providing crucial theoretical basis for human long-term residence in space and deep space exploration.

In the field of materials science, after the return of experimental samples of new titanium alloys, high-strength and high-toughness steel, and relaxor ferroelectric single crystals, scientists will conduct tests and analyses on the spatial samples' organizational morphology, chemical composition, and distribution differences, studying the influence of gravity on material growth, component segregation, solidification defects, and performance. The research results will provide technical support for guiding the performance optimization of new alloys and the ground preparation of key materials such as high-performance piezoelectric/ferroelectric functional crystals and high-strength and high-toughness structural steel, helping them to be applied in aerospace, high-end equipment manufacturing, precision sensing, and medical ultrasound imaging.

In addition, after the return of combustion experiment samples such as burners, carbon black collection plates, and collection covers, scientists will conduct analysis and research on the flame synthesis products of semiconductor nanomaterials, carbon black samples, and the generation characteristics of nano-carbon particles. The research results are expected to provide technical support for extraterrestrial nanomaterial flame synthesis, new energy system development, space fire prevention technology, and the preparation of advanced functional nano-carbon materials.

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Central SOEs establish a joint venture for the industrialization of scientific and technological achievements.

This newspaper reported from Beijing on May 30th (Reporter Wang Yunshan (王云杉)) On the 30th, the central enterprise science and technology achievement industrialization consortium, guided by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council (国务院国资委) and led by the China Energy Investment Corporation (国家能源集团), was established in Beijing (北京). The consortium is jointly built with the participation of all central enterprises, and incorporates research institutes, universities, leading enterprises in the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain, and innovative private enterprises. Focusing on national strategic deployments, it promotes the deep integration of technological innovation and industrial innovation, and builds a one-stop, full-chain service system for the industrialization of scientific and technological achievements.

The consortium connects three key links: opening up the innovation chain of basic research, application development, and achievement transformation; solidifying six core functions: leading basic research, deepening scenario opening, unblocking transformation channels, outputting benchmark paradigms, optimizing the innovation ecology, and promoting industrial quality improvement.

According to the plan, by the end of 2026, the consortium will complete standardized establishment and stable operation, and initially build a digital ecosystem for achievement transformation; by the end of 2028, it will achieve mature and standardized operation, and become a core carrier for domestic scientific and technological achievement transformation and trading, and an important support platform for industrial upgrading and emerging industry cultivation; by the end of 2030, it will build a world-class innovation consortium with open collaboration, element aggregation, perfect ecology, and global radiation, with transaction scale, service energy level, and radiation driving effect leading the world.

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A Successful Example of Promoting the Implementation of the Global Development Initiative

By: 本报记者 黄培昭

Starting from Cairo (开罗), the capital of Egypt, and driving approximately 120 kilometers east, one arrives at the China-Egypt TEDA Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone (中埃·泰达苏伊士经贸合作区) (hereinafter referred to as "the Cooperation Zone"). Since its construction began in 2008, the Cooperation Zone has attracted over 200 enterprises, with actual investments exceeding $3.8 billion and cumulative sales surpassing $6.6 billion, directly creating tens of thousands of jobs for the local community. Recently, the third-phase expansion project of the Cooperation Zone was successfully completed. This project not only improved the park's hardware facilities but also benefited the Egyptian people, contributing to local employment, income growth, and industrial upgrading.

"The 'heart' of these substations beats within the Cooperation Zone."

Stepping into the switchgear manufacturing workshop of XD-EGEMAC High Voltage Electrical Co., Ltd. (西电—EGEMAC高压电气有限责任公司) (hereinafter referred to as "XD Egypt"), a Sino-Egyptian joint venture, one is greeted by a bustling scene: transformers and gas-insulated switchgear being assembled are neatly arranged, their silver-gray metal casings gleaming; skilled workers perform their respective duties.

Egyptian worker Saad communicates with Chinese engineers in Chinese about parameter calibration details. "The equipment produced here will be shipped to various parts of Egypt," Saad says. "Substations are springing up, providing reliable power for large-scale mechanical irrigation. The 'heart' of these substations beats within the Cooperation Zone." In October 2025, when the New Delta Substation was successfully energized for the first time, he was in the control room, closely monitoring the data, filled with excitement. "At that moment, I truly realized that the skills we learned in the Cooperation Zone are enough to revitalize a piece of land," Saad said.

Having been rooted in the Cooperation Zone for 17 years, XD Egypt has cumulatively completed over 30 complete substation projects ranging from 66 kV to 500 kV, effectively alleviating the local power shortage and enhancing Egypt's local power equipment manufacturing capabilities. Li Jianfei (李剑飞), the company's general manager, stated that relying on the manufacturing and technological advantages of the Cooperation Zone, XD Egypt has gradually developed from simple equipment assembly to having general contracting capabilities, with a production and operation network covering core equipment, technical solutions, and even project management systems, providing strong support for substations operating in the desert.

Combining the market and location advantages of the Suez region, the Cooperation Zone carries out market-oriented operations, tailoring industries such as chemicals, building materials, textiles, electrical engineering, metal processing, and construction machinery to local conditions. Jushi Egypt Fiberglass Co., Ltd. (巨石埃及玻璃纤维有限公司) (hereinafter referred to as "Jushi Egypt") is one of the earliest enterprises introduced.

In Jushi Egypt's constant-temperature and humidity fiberglass production workshop, white fiberglass yarns shuttle at high speed and are precisely wound on winding machines, intelligent robots shuttle flexibly for delivery, and robotic arms accurately grab and transport materials. The entire process from production, transportation to packaging achieves efficient human-machine collaboration. Through intelligent testing, high-quality fiberglass products are supplied to the Egyptian domestic market and also sold to other African countries, as well as the Americas and Europe.

"Chinese enterprises have fulfilled the dream of Egyptians to have fiberglass!" Suleiman, the Egyptian executive in charge of production at Jushi Egypt, introduced that Egypt previously had no fiberglass production capacity. Now, Jushi Egypt has completed the construction of four fiberglass production lines and supporting auxiliary projects, becoming the largest fiberglass production base in Africa and promoting Egypt to become the fourth largest fiberglass producer in the world.

The landing of key industrial projects has further driven the entry and development of more supporting enterprises, continuously improving the Cooperation Zone's industrial chain. Driven by Jushi Egypt, Egypt's wind power generation, pipelines, auto parts, and other fiberglass downstream industries have achieved vigorous development. "The birth of Egypt's fiberglass industry chain has effectively helped Egypt maximize the value of its mineral resources and made important contributions to local economic development," said Amr (阿姆鲁), former Minister of Trade and Industry of Egypt.

"The Cooperation Zone has opened the door to opportunities and helped me grow."

Currently, the localization employment rate in the Cooperation Zone has exceeded 95% - 98% of Jushi Egypt's employees are from the local area; among XD Egypt's 260 employees, except for 6 Chinese resident managers, the rest are all local Egyptian employees.

Tina (蒂娜) joined Jushi Egypt in 2013, training in various positions such as warehousing, transportation, and order management. "Chinese colleagues guided me step by step to build a complete understanding of the company's business," she said. Gradually, she became capable of handling things independently. Once, a sudden power outage occurred on the production line. She quickly organized the investigation of products, coordinated production and sales, and worked overtime to minimize losses. This experience earned her recognition, and the company entrusted her with more important tasks. Now, Tina has become the deputy manager of the company's planning and logistics department. "The Cooperation Zone has opened the door to opportunities and helped me grow," Tina said.

Suleiman (苏莱曼) was a winding process technician when he first joined the company after graduating from university. The experience of receiving vocational training at the Chinese corporate headquarters benefited him greatly. In 2014, he was promoted to workshop director and developed a set of management methods suitable for local conditions, leading the workshop to improve production efficiency. Due to his outstanding work performance, Suleiman has been awarded the title of advanced worker by the company for three consecutive years and became the first Egyptian executive in charge of production in 2017. He often says: "The experience and knowledge brought by Chinese enterprises have given me a second life."

Ibrahim (易卜拉欣), the deputy general manager of XD Egypt responsible for market development and sales layout, was initially a team translator. He still remembers that when he first came into contact with bidding documents, Chinese colleagues explained the specifications to him repeatedly and revised them word by word with him. From participating in the preparation of materials for project bidding to going to the front line to follow up on project execution, and then to independently connecting with customers and developing the market, this is not only an adjustment of positions for Ibrahim, but also a training path - from single skills to composite abilities, from an auxiliary role to independent responsibility.

"Chinese colleagues work side by side with us and have been pushing us to go further," Ibrahim said that Chinese enterprises cultivate local employees to grow into all-rounders who understand technology, the market, and management. Standing on a higher platform, Ibrahim has set his sights on a broader regional market, hoping to use what he has learned to lead the team to promote the company's products to the Gulf countries, Africa, Europe, and other regions.

"Attracting more and more enterprises to come like phoenixes to roost, build nests, and grow stronger."

After the Cooperation Zone successfully incubated industrial clusters in the first-phase starting area, it gradually expanded new development space in line with industrial upgrading and the deepening of Sino-Egyptian cooperation. The second-phase expansion project further strengthened the Cooperation Zone's bonded, warehousing, logistics, and financial functions, and the third-phase expansion project built a complete and stable municipal supporting system, effectively guaranteeing the production and operation of enterprises in the park.

Egypt's *Al-Akhbar* newspaper stated that the new expansion area marks the "expansion and quality improvement" of the Cooperation Zone. With more and more enterprises about to settle in, the Cooperation Zone's industries will shift from single-point layout to cluster development, with equipment manufacturing, building materials processing, and supporting services interconnected, forming complete industrial chains.

At noon, the management department of the Cooperation Zone welcomed several inspection merchants from Jordan and Lebanon. The mature supporting facilities and stable environment of the Cooperation Zone made them optimistic about its development prospects. Wena (韦娜), the director of Egypt TEDA Special Zone Development Company, who has worked in the Cooperation Zone for more than 17 years, introduced that the park's attractiveness has continued to increase in recent years: it received more than 300 business inspection groups from various countries in 2024 and more than 500 in 2025, mainly from China, Arab countries, Russia, Uzbekistan, etc. "The continuous increase in the heat of visits reflects the high attention paid to the development of the Cooperation Zone by enterprises from various countries, and also reflects the continuous deepening of Sino-Egyptian pragmatic cooperation and win-win development."

At present, the Cooperation Zone has moved from local cultivation to diversified innovation, forming industrial clusters covering bonded logistics, new building materials, petroleum equipment, machinery manufacturing, textiles, new energy, and white goods, and further developing into a "industry-city integration ecosystem" integrating production, logistics, trade, finance, innovation, and living functions, becoming an important platform for regional industrial collaboration and open cooperation.

"The Cooperation Zone takes into account both localization and innovation. It is a successful example of China's promotion of the Global Development Initiative and a powerful practice for developing countries to seek economic self-reliance," Imad (伊玛德), a researcher at the Egyptian Liberation Research Center, told this reporter that the experience of the Cooperation Zone is of great significance to the Middle East, North Africa, and even the Global South. "It is like a lush parasol tree, attracting more and more enterprises to come like phoenixes to roost, build nests, and grow stronger."

(Reported from Cairo (开罗) on May 30)

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U.S. and China Actively Exploring the Right Way to Get Along Will Benefit the World (International Forum)

By: 苏拉布·古普塔

Taking this meeting between the heads of state of the United States and China as a new starting point, both sides strive to build a "Constructive Strategic and Stable U.S.-China Relationship" with practical actions, respect each other's core interests and major concerns, promote the stable operation of bilateral relations, and make greater contributions to global stability and development.

The recent meeting between the heads of state of the United States and China in Beijing (北京) created important conditions for promoting the stable, healthy, and sustainable development of relations between the two countries. Since last year, although U.S.-China relations have experienced ups and downs, they have generally remained stable with the joint efforts of both sides. During this meeting between the heads of state of the United States and China, the two sides established a new positioning of a "Constructive Strategic and Stable U.S.-China Relationship," providing strategic guidance for the development of U.S.-China relations for the next three years or even longer, and also building a strategic framework for frank communication and peaceful coexistence between the two sides.

The U.S. and China determining a new positioning for bilateral relations is not only beneficial to the two countries but will also bring more opportunities for development and prosperity to countries around the world. More crucially, building a stable and forward-looking U.S.-China relationship is an important prerequisite for advancing the reform of the global governance system. Only when the U.S. and China actively explore the right way to get along and find common goals can the reform of the global governance system truly take root and be sustained for a long time. Strengthening communication and cooperation in areas such as climate change and ocean governance, and jointly improving global governance, will hopefully usher in a new stage of global prosperity and development.

Economic and trade relations are the ballast stone of U.S.-China relations. U.S.-China economic and trade exchanges have brought prosperity to both countries and the world, and there is no reason for the two sides to slide into conflict and confrontation. Rejecting Chinese goods and technologies will not change the existing industrial realities of the two countries, and equal consultation is the only correct choice to resolve differences and frictions. The two sides should jointly maintain the current hard-won good momentum, replace unilateralist practices with fair competition, and promote the stable development of U.S.-China economic and trade relations on the basis of mutual respect, mutual benefit, and win-win cooperation.

Currently, humanity is in a new era of continuous emergence of technological innovation and scientific discovery. The global science and technology ecosystem is an interconnected and indivisible whole. The U.S. and China should adhere to resolving differences and finding common interests through consultation and cooperation, rather than adopting unilateralism and tit-for-tat approaches. If U.S.-China science and technology relations are handled properly, it will fully stimulate the innovation vitality of both countries, expand the boundaries of scientific exploration and technological innovation, generate more valuable breakthrough results, and better benefit human society.

The exchanges and cooperation between the peoples of the U.S. and China are an important link in maintaining relations between the two countries. China's proposal to "invite 50,000 American youths to China for exchanges and study in five years" opens a window for American youths to observe China up close and objectively understand China. This meeting between the heads of state of the United States and China provided an important opportunity for both sides to further consolidate the foundation of people-to-people exchanges in bilateral relations and create conditions for consolidating, deepening, and expanding people-to-people bonds.

As the world's two largest economies and permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, the U.S. and China should demonstrate their responsibility as major powers, jointly maintain international order, and inject more stability, fairness, and predictability into a world intertwined with change and turmoil. The two sides should uphold the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation, strengthen communication and coordination, properly manage differences, and carry out constructive cooperation in areas of common interest. Taking this meeting between the heads of state of the United States and China as a new starting point, both sides strive to build a "Constructive Strategic and Stable U.S.-China Relationship" with practical actions, respect each other's core interests and major concerns, promote the stable operation of bilateral relations, and make greater contributions to global stability and development.

(The author is a senior researcher at the U.S.-China Research Center)

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Integrating Economic Development, Social Stability, and People's Well-being

By: 本报记者 颜 欢

"This was a visit that far exceeded my expectations." Manuel Pineda (曼努埃尔·皮内达), International Secretary of the Communist Party of Spain, summarized his trip to China in an exclusive interview with this reporter a few days ago.

Not long ago, Pineda (皮内达) visited China for the first time. From Beijing (北京) to Shenzhen (深圳), Guangdong (广东), and then to Jieyang (揭阳), this Spanish left-wing politician, who has long been concerned about international politics and the Global South, observed the reality of Chinese-style modernization up close for the first time. In his view, Chinese-style modernization is not only reflected in economic growth and technological progress, but also means "combining economic development, social stability, and people's well-being."

Pineda (皮内达) said that he strongly felt that China's development has always revolved around improving people's lives. He noted that Chinese people, young and old, mention the improvement of family life when talking about national development—their grandparents experienced poverty and turmoil, their parents witnessed reform and opening up and development, and today's young generation has educational opportunities, living conditions, and development space that were unimaginable in the past.

"What shocked me even more was the Chinese people's confidence in the future." Pineda (皮内达) believes that this confidence is not an empty slogan, but is based on real and visible improvements in life. More importantly, this continuous improvement in living standards is not accidental, but is "based on long-term planning, continuous investment, and strategic focus."

In Shenzhen (深圳), Pineda (皮内达) directly felt the strategic focus of China's continuous promotion of modernization for decades. "China promotes major affairs through long-term goals, five-year plans, and clear development strategies. From top to bottom, the persistence and ability to continuously work towards the same goal for decades is impressive." He said that this is why China has become a global leader in technological innovation, advanced manufacturing, infrastructure, and the digital economy, which is one of the most worthy aspects of Chinese-style modernization for Europe to study carefully.

"China's development experience tells us that economic development must be combined with clear social goals, and national development must always be linked to improving people's lives," said Pineda (皮内达).

Currently, the international situation is becoming more turbulent, and geopolitical conflicts are frequent. Pineda (皮内达) said that China is becoming "an important force for global stability, cooperation, and development." "China actively advocates multilateralism and firmly safeguards the authority of the United Nations, which is commendable." He said, "China has always emphasized resolving differences through dialogue and consultation on the basis of respecting international law and the basic norms of international relations." He believes that China's emphasis on cooperation, common development, and respect for national sovereignty is very important for today's world, and China is playing an increasingly critical role in promoting cooperation among countries in the Global South. "Today, a more balanced and multipolar world is taking shape, and China is one of the important driving forces behind this change." He said that whether it is the BRICS cooperation mechanism, the "Belt and Road" initiative, or the concept of a community with a shared future for mankind, they all reflect a more equal and more development-focused approach.

"What the world really needs today is not more confrontation, but more understanding." Pineda (皮内达) said that he hopes to convey what he saw and heard in China to the people of Spain and even Europe, so that more Europeans can start from reality and truly understand China. "The future needs more dialogue than confrontation, more cooperation than camp confrontation, and more mutual respect than imposing will. I believe that China will play an increasingly important role in promoting the construction of a more just and reasonable international order," he said.

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Building a Smart Manufacturing Ecosystem Together, Accelerating the New Industrial Revolution

By: 本报记者 刘晓宇

The 2026 BRICS Partnership on New Industrial Revolution Forum was held recently in Xiamen (厦门), Fujian (福建) Province. With the theme of "Jointly Building a Smart Manufacturing Ecosystem and Accelerating the New Industrial Revolution Process," the forum was co-sponsored by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of China (中国工业和信息化部) and the People's Government of Fujian Province (福建省人民政府). Officials from government departments, ambassadors to China, representatives from enterprises and think tanks from 27 countries and regions, as well as representatives from international organizations such as the New Development Bank, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, and the League of Arab States, attended the conference.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the BRICS cooperation mechanism. How to further strengthen "Greater BRICS Cooperation" in the field of the New Industrial Revolution has become the focus of attention in Xiamen (厦门). At the forum, the New Industrial Revolution Partnership City Network was officially launched, which will effectively open up multi-level cooperation channels of "country-city-enterprise" and further enrich the BRICS cooperation system.

Having built more than 500 excellent-level smart factories, formulated 498 national standards for smart manufacturing and 52 international standards... At present, China's smart manufacturing is booming. It is relying on international cooperation platforms such as the International Intelligent Manufacturing Alliance, the Chinese Expert Committee of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) Smart Manufacturing System Committee, the BRICS Smart Manufacturing and Robotics Working Group, and the BRICS Partnership on New Industrial Revolution Innovation Base to promote pragmatic cooperation in smart factories, strengthen industrial docking and capacity sharing, and coordinate the promotion of standard mutual recognition. Li Lecheng (李乐成), Minister of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (工业和信息化部), said that China is the world's largest smart manufacturing application market and is willing to work with all parties to seize the opportunities of technological change, jointly cultivate an open and interconnected market, jointly consolidate the foundation for industrial development, and jointly build an inclusive and cooperative relationship.

The BRICS Partnership on New Industrial Revolution is an important starting point for BRICS economic cooperation. According to the person in charge of Fujian Province (福建省), in 2025, Fujian Province's (福建省) imports and exports to BRICS countries reached 365.5 billion yuan. Since the BRICS Innovation Base was established in Xiamen (厦门) in 2020, the base has held more than 50 high-level international exchange activities, organized more than 90 online and offline talent training sessions, and signed 138 projects, with a total investment of more than 62 billion yuan.

The International Intelligent Manufacturing Alliance, together with relevant units, released an international cooperation initiative on smart manufacturing at the forum; the BRICS Industrial Capacity China Center released the "2026 BRICS Industrial Cooperation Case Collection," selecting 38 mature solutions covering new energy, digitalization and the medical field; the forum's supporting event—the BRICS New Industrial Revolution Exhibition—focused on showcasing the most cutting-edge achievements of more than 120 companies from 10 countries. Industrial large models, low-altitude aircraft, embodied intelligent robots, and intelligent agricultural equipment booths were crowded with people.

"We don't lack the will, what we lack is replicable paths," said an official from the Indonesian Ministry of Industry who attended the meeting. Gambian Minister of Communications and Digital Economy Lamin Jabi said that smart manufacturing is accelerating industrial transformation, and Gambia looks forward to deep participation in the BRICS cooperation mechanism. Zimbabwean Minister of Industry and Commerce Nqobizitha Mangaliso Ndlovu said that China's comprehensive implementation of zero tariffs on 53 African countries that have diplomatic relations with China "will help Zimbabwe's industrialization process."

During the forum, the BRICS Industrial Innovation Competition Award Ceremony was also held. The competition attracted 1,428 projects from 8 countries and regions. The "Key Technology and Complete Equipment for Green and Full-Volume In-situ Regeneration and Recycling of Asphalt Pavement" project of Jilin Jiapeng Group Co., Ltd. (吉林省嘉鹏集团有限公司) won the first prize in the green industry track. The project realizes 100% recycling of old asphalt pavement materials, and the emissions of sulfides and nitrogen oxides are significantly lower than national standards. It is understood that all winning projects will be uniformly included in the "BRICS Industrial Innovation Cooperation Project Library" and will be given priority to be recommended to settle in the BRICS Innovation Base for incubation and enjoy investment and financing docking services.

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Canadian Prime Minister Carney Meets with Wang Yi

Xinhua News Agency, Ottawa, May 29th (Reporter Lin Wei (林威)) On the 29th local time, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (卡尼) met with Wang Yi (王毅), Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs, in Ottawa (渥太华).

Trudeau (卡尼) asked Wang Yi (王毅) to convey his sincere greetings to the Chinese leaders, saying that during my visit to China earlier this year, I and the Chinese leaders jointly decided to build a new type of strategic partnership between Canada and China. In the past four months, exchanges at all levels and cooperation in various fields between Canada and China have accelerated their restart and advancement, achieving positive results. Canada is willing to work with China to strengthen high-level exchanges, deepen cooperation in energy, finance, agriculture, fisheries and other fields, and continuously consolidate the foundation of bilateral relations. Canada supports China in hosting the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting and is willing to work with China to jointly advocate and practice multilateralism, and contribute to global economic development and world peace and stability.

Wang Yi (王毅) conveyed the greetings of the Chinese leaders to Trudeau (卡尼), saying that the Prime Minister's successful visit to China has corrected the course of China-Canada relations and brought them back on track. The leaders of the two countries have determined to build a new type of strategic partnership between China and Canada, providing strategic guidance for the development of bilateral relations. Facts have proved that the turnaround in China-Canada relations is in the interests of both countries, meets the expectations of all parties, and is the correct choice for Canada. There are no fundamental conflicts of interest between the two countries, and there is huge room for cooperation. China is willing to work with Canada to respect each other, meet each other halfway, **求同存异** (qiú tóng cún yì - "seek common ground while reserving differences," to seek common ground while setting aside differences), strengthen communication, deepen cooperation, and promote the healthy, stable, and sustainable development of bilateral relations. The two sides should adhere to multilateralism, adhere to the international rule of law, adhere to strategic autonomy, support free trade and an open world economy, which will not only benefit the people of both countries, but also inject the stability of China and Canada into a turbulent and volatile world.

During his visit to Canada, Wang Yi (王毅) also held talks with Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly (阿南德) and met with former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien (克雷蒂安).

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Strengthening People-to-People Bonds, Promoting Mutual Understanding Between China and Arab Countries

By: 本报记者 张志文

The Oman Across Ages Museum, located in the suburbs of the ancient city of Nizwa, is a brand-new cultural and tourism landmark built by the Omani government in recent years. Recently, the first Omani "Chinese Bridge" competition and "Charming China" Chinese Camp event were held here, with more than 160 students from the first batch of Chinese learners from 4 high schools in Oman participating.

In the final, 10 contestants completed Chinese speeches, knowledge Q&A, and talent show competitions, winning warm applause from the audience. "The students performed very well!" Masouma (马苏玛), Assistant Minister of Education of Oman, told this reporter that Chinese is the language of the future, and the Omani Ministry of Education hopes to continue to expand the coverage of Chinese teaching so that more Omani students have the opportunity to learn Chinese and understand China.

Starting in September 2025, Chinese will be included in the Omani public school curriculum. Lü Jian (吕健), Chinese Ambassador to Oman, said that supporting Chinese education to enter the Omani national education system and holding colorful cultural exchange activities is not only a reflection of the traditional friendship between China and Oman, but also a precious gift from China to Omani youth.

Inside the Oman Across Ages Museum, the blue and white porcelain and ancient coins in the display cabinets, and the Maritime Silk Road route on the electronic display screen, tell the story of the friendly exchanges between China and Oman for thousands of years. "We look forward to carrying out exchanges and cooperation with Chinese museum counterparts in the field of cultural heritage protection, and jointly continuing the wonderful chapter of civilization exchanges between the two countries," said Nabhan al-Brouni (纳布汉·布鲁尼), Director of the Collection Department of the museum.

In recent years, China-Oman cultural and people-to-people exchanges have continuously achieved new results. At the end of November 2025, direct flights were realized between the capitals of China and Oman. Ahmed al-Amri (艾哈迈德·阿姆里), CEO of Oman Airports, said that the opening of direct flights will promote economic, trade and personnel exchanges between the two countries, not only attracting more Chinese tourists to explore Oman's rich tourism resources, but also building an "air silk road" to add momentum to closer practical cooperation between the two countries.

In November last year, the China-Oman Youth Letter Exchange Program was officially launched, aiming to promote the building of a "bridge of hearts" for spiritual communication between young people in the two countries in the form of traditional letters, and inject youthful power into the traditional friendship between the two countries; the Chinese film "Ne Zha" (哪吒之魔童闹海) was screened in Oman and received good local reviews; Sami al-Shinai (萨米·希奈), an Omani employee of China National Petroleum Corporation Geophysical Company (中石油东方物探公司) with 200,000 fans on social platforms, created a short video "He Who Does Not Reach the Great Wall Is No Hero" (不到长城非好汉 (bù dào Chángchéng fēi hǎohàn - "Until you reach the Great Wall, you are not a true man," one is not a real man if he fails to reach the Great Wall)) based on his two trips to China, perceiving China's long-standing culture and development achievements from the perspective of an Omani, which not only won praise from many local netizens, but also won the special prize in the first China-Oman Short Video Competition... Chinese and Omani people visit each other frequently, promoting more diverse forms and richer content of cultural and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.

Masouma (马苏玛) said that in recent years, cultural and people-to-people exchanges between Oman and China have become increasingly warm, and the bonds between the people of the two countries have been continuously strengthened. It is hoped that in the future, Oman and China will hold more cultural activities, encourage the younger generation to continuously discover the shining points of civilization exchanges between the two countries, grow together in mutual learning, and promote Oman-China cultural and people-to-people exchanges to a new level.

(Reported from Muscat (马斯喀特) on May 30 by this newspaper)

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The 5th Wanshou International Security Symposium Opens

Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, May 29th. The 5th Wanshou International Security Forum, hosted by the Chinese People's Association for Peace and Disarmament, opened in Beijing (北京) on May 29th. The theme was "Global Security Order in Transition and Reshaping." Liu Haixing (刘海星), Minister of the International Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, attended and delivered a keynote speech. Nearly 50 international security experts from more than 30 countries attended the meeting.

Liu Haixing (刘海星) stated that President Xi Jinping (习近平) creatively proposed the holistic approach to national security, making positive contributions to maintaining global peace and security. China is willing to work with all countries to establish the concept of common security, practice the principle of comprehensive security, adhere to the path of cooperative security, and adhere to the direction of sustainable security. We will work together to implement the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, the Global Civilization Initiative, and the Global Governance Initiative to promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Participants from various countries highly praised China's contributions to promoting the reform and improvement of the global governance system, and expressed their willingness to strengthen strategic communication and close multilateral cooperation with China to inject more stability into the world.

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First "Zero-Carbon Island" Built on the Yangtze River (Striving for the "15th Five-Year Plan": On-the-Spot Observations)

By: 本报记者 杨 义 杨颜菲

Effectively control projects with high energy consumption and high emissions, accelerate the innovation and application of green and low-carbon technologies and equipment, orderly promote the transfer of high energy-consuming industries that meet the requirements to areas rich in renewable energy resources, and build zero-carbon factories and parks.
——Excerpt from the "15th Five-Year Plan" Outline

In the early morning, standing at the Madang Ferry (马当渡口) in Pengze County (彭泽县), Jiujiang (九江), Jiangxi (江西), and looking out, the outline of Mianchuan Island (棉船岛) is faintly visible. This island in the middle of the river is like a small boat on the Yangtze River.

Boarding the ferry to Mianchuan Island (棉船岛), the reporter met Ding Younan (丁又男), the captain who has been ferrying on this route for 38 years. He proudly said, "Our Mianchuan Island (棉船岛) is the first 'zero-carbon island' on the Yangtze River!"

Ding Younan (丁又男) is a native of Mianchuan (棉船). Talking about the changes on the island, he said, "In the past, the islanders relied entirely on firewood and coal for cooking and heating, plus open-air burning of straw, which was smoky and fiery. Now, cooking doesn't require firewood, the roof can generate electricity, and all the straw is recycled, making the environment better and better."

Accompanied by a long whistle, the ferry slowly docked. Looking up, the sky is blue and the water is clear, and giant wind turbine blades turn leisurely. Walking to the photovoltaic charging shed in the port parking lot, Chao Zhonghua (潮忠华), a villager from Fupai Village (复排村) in Mianchuan Town (棉船镇), is charging his electric car. "It only costs me about ten yuan to drive this car to the county seat, which saves a lot compared to a fuel car." He said that it is convenient and environmentally friendly to have green electricity available right at his doorstep.

"This 1,300-square-meter photovoltaic charging shed has an annual power generation of about 270,000 kilowatt-hours, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by about 270 tons. When not charging, the green electricity can be automatically stored." Rui Wenyu (芮文羽), Chairman of the People's Congress of Mianchuan Town (棉船镇), said that the island is like having a "large power bank" installed.

But just a few years ago, the power supply on Mianchuan Island (棉船岛) was a major problem. "For the past few decades, the island has been completely dependent on the 35 kV Ma-Mian line (马棉线) for power supply. The lines are old and cross the river, so it is easy to trip and lose power when encountering strong winds and rain." Rui Wenyu (芮文羽) said.

"When there is a power outage, the food in the freezer is easily spoiled, and there is no mobile phone signal." Gao Zijuan (高子娟), who runs a supermarket in Jinzhou Village (金洲村), Mianchuan Town (棉船镇), recalled.

In July 2021, in order to solve the power supply problem of Mianchuan Island (棉船岛), the State Power Investment Corporation (国家电投集团) and the local government jointly promoted the construction of a 100 MW wind power project on the island. However, it was not so easy for the project to be implemented.

"Every step of the project construction is like 如履薄冰 (rú lǚ bó bīng - "as if treading on thin ice," to be extremely cautious)." Wang Zhifa (汪志发), Director of the Development and Reform Commission of Pengze County (彭泽县发展改革委), said that the 18 160-meter-high wind turbines had to be erected on soft geological tidal flats, like "inserting chopsticks into tofu." To this end, the construction team repeatedly demonstrated and strengthened the design to ensure that these "giants" could firmly take root and resist river flow and wind pressure.

"Another difficulty is the 110 kV supporting line crossing the Yangtze River for wiring operations." Wang Zhifa (汪志发) said that the Yangtze River shipping is busy, and the time when no cargo ships pass is very short. The construction team must seize the short "window of opportunity" to complete the cross-river traction of conductors and optical cables. With tight time and complex operations, the construction team innovatively adopted technologies such as ship-towed guide ropes and tension stringing, staging a 172.8-meter high-altitude "threading the needle" to allow the line to cross the Yangtze River on time and smoothly.

Eighteen wind turbines rose from the ground, and 35 kV collection lines, 110 kV booster stations, and 10 MW energy storage systems were successively put in place... In May last year, the 100 MW Mianchuan Island (棉船岛) wind power project achieved full-capacity grid connection. "The clean energy supply system of Mianchuan Island (棉船岛) has been basically completed, becoming the first 'zero-carbon island' in the Yangtze River basin to achieve large-scale renewable energy power supply." Feng Cheng (冯成), Deputy Manager of the Jiangxi Nuclear Power New Energy Department of the State Power Investment Corporation (国家电投集团江西核电新能源部副经理), introduced that the project has an annual power generation of 244 million kilowatt-hours, which is equivalent to saving 96,000 tons of standard coal and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 240,000 tons per year, which is equivalent to planting more than 10 million trees on the Yangtze River coastline. Since it was put into operation, it has not only met the electricity demand of 32,000 residents on the island, but also transmitted more than 100 million kilowatt-hours of green electricity to areas outside the island.

"Now the power supply on the island is stable, and I don't have to worry about the inventory in the freezer being spoiled anymore." Gao Zijuan (高子娟) said.

The "zero-carbon wind" blows to all aspects of life on the island: in the zero-carbon park, solar emergency charging seats have become a good place for residents to relax; along the roads, 160 photovoltaic street lights illuminate the night road; in the fields, straw is "turned waste into treasure" to achieve recycling; in the photovoltaic charging shed, charging piles provide green power for vehicles.

"The pursuit of zero carbon will not stop." Wang Zhifa (汪志发) said that Mianchuan Island (棉船岛) will continue to focus on zero-carbon energy, zero-carbon transportation, zero-carbon buildings, zero-carbon solid waste, zero-carbon agricultural tourism, and zero-carbon shipping, and through the development of a "zero-carbon economy," more villagers will be able to hold up "green rice bowls" and eat "ecological meals."

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Zero-Carbon Construction Must Adhere to Resource Endowment Orientation (Expert Commentary)

By: 吴代赦

The practice of the first "Zero-Carbon Island" on the Yangtze River provides replicable and scalable lessons for zero-carbon construction in various regions. Mianchuan Island (棉船岛), based on its own wind and solar energy and agricultural and forestry biomass resources, has built a "wind, solar, storage" coordinated energy supply system, forming a coordinated development model of energy transition, people's livelihood improvement, and ecological carbon sequestration, which not only solves the problem of unstable power supply, but also allows the fruits of green development to directly benefit the people.

From an industry perspective, zero-carbon construction must adhere to resource endowment orientation: wind-rich areas should prioritize the development of wind power, areas rich in biomass resources should vigorously promote biomass power generation, areas with abundant water resources should steadily develop hydropower, and coastal and riverside areas should scientifically utilize tidal energy and wave energy... Multi-energy coordination of wind, solar, water, geothermal, tidal, and biomass can effectively smooth out the intermittent fluctuations of new energy sources and provide stable, reliable, sufficient, and clean green electricity guarantees for production and life. At the same time, we should continue to deepen the integration of source, grid, load, and storage, vigorously explore zero-carbon scenarios, and promote the deep integration of zero-carbon technologies with agriculture, culture and tourism, transportation, public services, and other fields.

We believe that as long as we adhere to developing various renewable energy sources in accordance with local conditions and accelerate the construction of a clean, low-carbon, safe, and efficient new energy system, China's "dual carbon" goals will be achieved as scheduled.

(The author is the Vice President of Pingxiang University (萍乡学院), interviewed and compiled by Yang Yanfei (杨颜菲), a reporter from this newspaper.)

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Centralized Demonstration Activity of "Three Services to the Villages" (Culture, Science & Technology, and Health) Held Nationwide in 2026

Xinhua News Agency, Lanzhou, May 30 (Reporter Bai Liping (白丽萍)) The 2026 National Cultural, Scientific and Technological, and Health "Three Services to the Villages" Centralized Demonstration Activity, jointly organized by the Central Propaganda Department (中宣部), the Gansu Provincial Party Committee (甘肃省委), and the Gansu Provincial People's Government (甘肃省人民政府), was held on the 30th in Huining County (会宁县), Gansu.

The event unfolded with a linkage between the main venue and sub-venues. The main venue was located at the People's Square in Huining County (会宁县人民广场). Representatives from the Chinese Artists Association (中国美术家协会), the Chinese Photographers Association (中国摄影家协会), the Chinese Calligraphers Association (中国书法家协会), and other member representatives, as well as representatives of the national "Most Beautiful Doctors," along with experts and volunteer representatives from Gansu Province (甘肃省) in the fields of publicity, culture, science and technology, health, education, agriculture, and justice, provided policy publicity, agricultural technology guidance, science popularization, free health clinics, and legal consultations to the people of Huining (会宁). Representatives from central and local art troupes and literary and art workers performed wonderful programs. Five small teams went to the township sub-venues to deliver high-quality cultural products, medical services, agricultural technologies, and other resources to the farmers. Taking this event as an opportunity, Gansu Province (甘肃省) also established 12 paired contact points between provinces and counties, forming a systematic arrangement to promote the "Three Services to the Villages" activities to be frequently in the countryside and frequently benefit the countryside.

It is understood that according to the 2026 "Three Services to the Villages" activity arrangements, the National Development and Reform Commission (国家发展改革委), the Ministry of Education (教育部), the Ministry of Science and Technology (科技部), the Ministry of Justice (司法部), the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (农业农村部), the Ministry of Culture and Tourism (文化和旅游部), the National Health Commission (国家卫生健康委), the State Administration of Radio and Television (广电总局), the Communist Youth League Central Committee (共青团中央), the All-China Women's Federation (全国妇联), the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles (中国文联), the China Association for Science and Technology (中国科协) and other departments and units are taking the lead in carrying out centralized demonstration activities in relevant provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities.

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Main venue activities for the 10th National Science and Technology Workers' Day held

This newspaper's Beijing (北京) dispatch on May 30th (Reporter Yu Sinan (喻思南)) On the 30th, the main venue event for the 10th National Science and Technology Workers' Day and the 4th National Innovation Competition Awards Ceremony were held in Beijing (北京), celebrating the festival belonging to all science and technology workers.

In order to commend the advanced and establish models, recently, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (人力资源社会保障部), the China Association for Science and Technology (中国科协), the Ministry of Science and Technology (科技部), and the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council (国务院国资委) jointly carried out the 4th National Innovation Competition Awards selection, and decided to commend a group of advanced collectives and advanced individuals, and award them the National Innovation Competition Award medals, medals or certificates respectively. The award decision was announced at the event site, and awards were presented to the winning teams and individuals.

The memoirs of China's bridge expert Mao Yisheng (茅以升), the handwritten manuscript of "Two Bombs, One Satellite" meritorious scientist Yu Min (于敏), the medal awarded to "Sugar Pill Grandpa" Gu Fangzhou (顾方舟) with the title of "People's Scientist"... The event site also vividly demonstrated the conscious pursuit of science and technology to serve the country and the deep feelings of benefiting the people by telling the stories of scientists behind the collections.

The ceremony for the new batch of materials from the "Academic Growth Materials Collection Project of Senior Scientists" to be housed in the China Scientists Museum (中国科学家博物馆) was held simultaneously. According to reports, after more than 10 years of efforts, the collection project has systematically collected valuable historical materials of more than 700 scientists, and built the largest, most content-rich, and most widely-typed precious historical data bank of scientists in China. Recently, the "Pillars of the Republic - Exhibition of Fine Collections from the China Scientists Museum" has been upgraded, and a series of fine exhibitions such as the newly planned "Leading · Chasing Light - Special Exhibition of Winners of the National Top Science and Technology Award" are fully open to the public.

This year's National Science and Technology Workers' Day series of activities is themed "Striving for the '15th Five-Year Plan' and Writing a New Chapter in Science and Technology", and is jointly organized by the China Association for Science and Technology (中国科协), the Central Propaganda Department (中宣部), and the Ministry of Science and Technology (科技部).

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Adjustment of Key Leadership Positions in Hubei Provincial Party Committee

This newspaper reported from Beijing on May 30th. Recently, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China decided: Guan Zhiou (关志鸥) was appointed as a member, standing committee member, and secretary of the Hubei Provincial Party Committee; Wang Zhonglin (王忠林) no longer serves as the secretary, standing committee member, and member of the Hubei Provincial Party Committee, and will be given another appointment.

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Photo Story

On May 30th, children shook hands with humanoid robots at the Liuzhou Science and Technology Museum (柳州科技馆) in Guangxi (广西). On the same day, the Liuzhou Science and Technology Museum (柳州科技馆) held a series of special science popularization activities, integrating science popularization experience, fun competitions, and science and technology exhibitions. It is the 26th National Science and Technology Activity Week, and May 30th is the 10th National Science and Technology Workers' Day. Various places have launched a variety of colorful science popularization activities to promote the sinking of high-quality science popularization resources to the grassroots level and create a strong atmosphere for the whole people to love science.

Li Hanchi (黎寒池) photographed (People's Vision (人民视觉))

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Zhao Leji Pays Official Goodwill Visit to Russia and Attends the 11th Meeting of the China-Russia Parliamentary Cooperation Committee

Xinhua News Agency, Moscow, May 30 (Reporters Feng Xinran (冯歆然) and Liu Kai (刘恺)) At the invitation of Valentina Matviyenko (马特维延科), Chairman of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation, and Vyacheslav Volodin (沃洛金), Chairman of the State Duma, Zhao Leji (赵乐际), Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, paid an official friendly visit to Russia from May 27 to 30. In Moscow, he held talks with Matviyenko and Volodin respectively and attended the 11th meeting of the China-Russia Parliamentary Cooperation Committee.

During his separate talks with Matviyenko and Volodin, Zhao Leji said that under the strategic guidance of President Xi Jinping (习近平) and President Putin (普京), the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era has maintained a high level of development. Last week, President Putin successfully paid a state visit to China, and the two heads of state held in-depth, friendly, and fruitful talks, jointly signing a joint statement on further strengthening comprehensive strategic coordination and deepening good-neighborly friendship and cooperation between China and Russia. China-Russia relations have entered a new stage of greater accomplishment and faster development. China is willing to work with Russia to fully implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, taking the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the China-Russia strategic partnership of coordination and the 25th anniversary of the signing of the "China-Russia Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation" as an opportunity to continue the traditional friendship, enhance strategic mutual trust, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation and the convergence of interests, and promote higher-quality development of China-Russia relations.

Zhao Leji stated that the exchange mechanism between the legislative bodies of China and Russia is increasingly improving, playing an important role in optimizing the legal environment for bilateral cooperation and consolidating the public opinion foundation of the two countries' relations. The two sides should base themselves on the functions and responsibilities of the legislative bodies, maintain a good momentum of multi-level and multi-field exchanges, enhance understanding and mutual trust, strengthen exchanges and mutual learning, and better serve the development of the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era. Exchanges of legislative experience should be carried out in areas such as national security, ecological and environmental protection, artificial intelligence, and foreign-related rule of law.

Matviyenko said that the two heads of state have led Russia-China relations to the best level in history. The Federation Council of the Russian Federation has always been committed to promoting the development of the Russia-China comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era and deepening the friendship between the two peoples. It is willing to strengthen exchanges with the National People's Congress of China to provide legal guarantees for promoting practical cooperation in various fields such as economy and trade, investment, energy, culture, transportation, and local affairs.

Volodin said that Russia-China relations are a model of major-country relations in the 21st century. Promoting Russia-China friendly cooperation is the firm consensus of all parties in the State Duma of the Russian Federation. It is hoped that further strengthening exchanges and mutual learning between the legislative bodies of the two countries in legislative work in areas such as artificial intelligence. Russia firmly adheres to the one-China principle and is willing to strengthen multilateral cooperation with China to jointly defend the achievements of the victory in World War II.

On the 28th, Zhao Leji attended the 11th meeting of the China-Russia Parliamentary Cooperation Committee. He pointed out that the legislative bodies of the two countries should adhere to taking head-of-state diplomacy as the guide, promote the implementation and effectiveness of the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, the cooperation documents signed by the two sides, and the major projects determined. Approve in a timely manner and urge the implementation of legal documents that are conducive to bilateral cooperation, create a transparent, fair, and stable business environment, protect the legitimate rights and interests of enterprises, and provide legal guarantees for bilateral practical cooperation. Actively participate in activities such as the "China-Russia Year of Educational Exchange" to deepen cultural exchanges and consolidate the public opinion foundation for China-Russia friendship. Make good use of existing mechanisms and platforms, give play to the active role of local legislative bodies, and contribute ideas and efforts to expanding local cooperation. Strengthen cooperation within multilateral mechanisms such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union to promote international fairness and justice.

During his visit to Russia, Zhao Leji visited the photo exhibition commemorating the 25th anniversary of the signing of the "China-Russia Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation" and the permanent exhibition hall of the Sixth National Congress of the Communist Party of China in Moscow, and laid wreaths at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. In Irkutsk Oblast, he met with Governor Igor Kobzev (科布泽夫) and Chairman of the Legislative Assembly Alexander Vedernikov (韦杰尔尼科夫), expressing his hope to strengthen practical local cooperation, enhance people-to-people friendship, and inject vigorous vitality into the relations between the two countries.

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"2025 National Agro-Meteorological Bulletin Released"

This newspaper reported from Beijing on May 30th (Reporter Li Hongmei (李红梅)) On May 29th, the China Meteorological Administration (中国气象局) released the "2025 National Ecological Meteorology Bulletin." The bulletin shows that in 2025, the national vegetation ecological quality index was 69.1, and the area accounting for good and very good ecological quality reached 66%. The vegetation ecological quality was the second best since 2000, second only to 2024.

The vegetation ecological quality index is an important indicator characterizing the quality of the ecological environment. It is a comprehensive index calculated based on vegetation net primary productivity and vegetation coverage parameters. The value is between 0 and 100. The larger the value, the better the vegetation ecological quality and the greener the surface.

Among them, in 2025, the vegetation ecological quality index of forest areas increased by 0.9% compared with 2024, hitting a new high since 2000; the grass yield of grasslands increased by 1.8% compared with 2024, and the net primary productivity also hit a new high since 2000; the area of land with high and extremely susceptible to sand and dust grades in the northern desertification area decreased by 0.2 percentage points compared with 2024.

From 2000 to 2025, the temperature in 99% of the country's regions showed an increasing trend, and precipitation increased in 62% of the regions. The areas with increased precipitation are mainly concentrated in the central and eastern regions. Good hydrothermal conditions, coupled with a series of ecological protection and restoration projects implemented in China, have promoted the steady improvement of surface ecology in national forest areas, grasslands, agricultural areas, and desert areas. The national vegetation net primary productivity and vegetation coverage have gradually increased, with an average annual increase of 3.2 grams of carbon/square meter and 0.28 percentage points, respectively. Ecological service functions such as water conservation, soil retention, and windbreak and sand fixation have been improved to varying degrees.

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Shaanxi Promotes High-Quality Development of County-Level Economy

By: 本报记者 张 铁 张丹华

The land of Sanqin (三秦) in May is full of vitality. In the Loess Plateau of northern Shaanxi, the Jinjie Industrial Park (锦界工业园区) in Shenmu City (神木市), Yulin City (榆林市), is filled with storage tanks and crisscrossing pipe corridors; in the Guanzhong Plain (关中平原), dairy goats in the breeding farms of Fuping County (富平县), Weinan City (渭南市), are eating alfalfa; deep in the Qinling Mountains (秦岭), the volleyball training base in Danfeng County (丹凤县), Shangluo City (商洛市), is filled with cheers as exciting spikes are executed...

Counties bear nearly half of Shaanxi's total economic output. In the first quarter of this year, Shaanxi's county-level economy grew by 5.4%; by 2025, the province will have 29 counties (cities, districts) with a total economic output exceeding 20 billion yuan.

In May 2023, when General Secretary Xi Jinping (习近平) listened to the work reports of the Shaanxi Provincial Party Committee and the Shaanxi Provincial Government, he emphasized: "Develop small towns in accordance with local conditions, promote the standardized and healthy development of characteristic towns, and build a county-level economic system with county towns as hubs and small towns as nodes." The "15th Five-Year Plan" proposes to "cultivate strong agricultural counties, large industrial counties, and famous tourist counties in accordance with local conditions, and promote the integrated development of industry revitalization, county strengthening, and people's prosperity."

To thoroughly implement the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's (习近平) important instructions, Shaanxi takes the development of the county-level economy as a strategic focus for narrowing regional, urban-rural, and income gaps, and promotes the high-quality development of the county-level economy.

Adapting to local conditions, one policy per county—

The development conditions of county-level economies in the Loess Plateau (黄土高原), Guanzhong Plain (关中平原), and Qinba Mountains (秦巴山区) in Shaanxi vary greatly.

Shaanxi divides counties into three categories according to local conditions: 47 industrial function counties, focusing on industrialization and population agglomeration; 24 major agricultural product counties, shouldering the responsibility for food security and characteristic agriculture; and 12 ecological function counties, focusing on ecological protection and green development.

Making full use of characteristic resources and leveraging comparative advantages, Shaanxi's county-level economies have their own characteristics and are flourishing:

In Fugu County (府谷县), Yulin City (榆林市), energy is an advantageous industry. Here, waste gas from coal combustion is used to calcine metallic magnesium, and in 2025, the county's metallic magnesium production will account for nearly half of the global share.

In Luochuan County (洛川县), Yan'an City (延安市), a famous "apple county," Zhang Jidong (张继东), Secretary of the Luochuan County (洛川县) Party Committee, introduced that Luochuan apples are developing in a "chain-like" manner, with apple production reaching 1.1685 million tons in 2025 and a comprehensive output value exceeding 16.5 billion yuan.

Shiquan County (石泉县), located in the upper reaches of the Han River (汉江), has beautiful scenery and rich tourism resources. With eco-tourism, modern agriculture, pumped storage... the local area is focusing on expanding channels for realizing the value of ecological products.

"Shaanxi Province's '15th Five-Year Plan' proposes to carry out actions to enhance the development of characteristic industries in counties," said Xu Tianjiang (徐田江), Deputy Director of the Shaanxi Provincial Development and Reform Commission (陕西省发展和改革委员会). "We are focusing on 'one industry per county' and compiling a list of 'one policy per county' items to ensure policy implementation."

Systematic planning, cluster into chains—

How can counties with a good industrial base become bigger and stronger?

Break out of "county-level thinking," do systematic planning, promote the agglomeration of factors, and form a coupling effect.

From Gaoling District (高陵区), Huyi District (鄠邑区), and Zhouzhi County (周至县) in Xi'an City (西安市), to Fufeng County (扶风县) and Qishan County (岐山县) in Baoji City (宝鸡市), along a more than 100-kilometer-long automobile industry belt, leading vehicle companies such as Shaanxi Automobile (陕汽), Geely (吉利), and BYD (比亚迪) and hundreds of parts companies are laid out in a differentiated manner and develop collaboratively.

Zhouzhi County (周至县) is located in the middle of this automobile industry belt. The Jixian Industrial Park (集贤产业园区) has been built here, attracting BYD's (比亚迪) parts expansion base to settle in. Last year, the park's industrial output value exceeded 51.7 billion yuan, driving more than 30,000 people to find employment at their doorsteps. This agricultural county, famous for its kiwi fruit industry, has also dynamically adjusted its functional "label" to an industrial county.

Striving for the "15th Five-Year Plan," Shaanxi plans to form about 30 county-level characteristic industrial clusters by 2030, such as apple planting and deep processing, complete vehicle and parts manufacturing, and cultural tourism, supporting the increase of the county-level economic volume to 2.4 trillion yuan.

People's livelihood is paramount, happy work and living—

Industry revitalization and county strengthening are for the purpose of enriching the people.

Liuba County (留坝县), Hanzhong City (汉中市), is surrounded by the Qinling Mountains (秦岭). In Xiaoliuba Village (小留坝村), Zibai Street (紫柏街道), Yang Jinxiu (杨金秀) is skillfully preparing lunch for guests. After professional training, she became a homestay housekeeper, "working at my doorstep, earning three to four thousand yuan a month, and it's also convenient to take care of the elderly and children."

"Liuba's homestays are famous, and 'homestay housekeeper' has also become a labor brand," said Shen Dong (沈冬), Deputy Director of the Liuba County Employment and Entrepreneurship Service Center (留坝县就业创业服务中心). This labor brand has cumulatively driven more than 5,000 people to find employment and start businesses, generating more than 10 million yuan in labor economic income.

Ziyang County (紫阳县), Ankang City (安康市), has the winding Han River (汉江). Li Xiaofeng (李晓锋), the head of a local foot trimming skills training base, is teaching massage techniques using acupuncture point charts.

Here, foot trimming knives "trim" out a large industry: absorbing more than 60,000 local employees, forming a labor brand, with locals opening more than 28,000 foot trimming shops across the country, with annual revenue exceeding 30 billion yuan.

Both happy work and living. Since the "14th Five-Year Plan," Shaanxi has implemented more than 6,300 county town construction projects, promoted the full coverage of close-knit medical community county domains, and built a "five-level elderly care" service system... The development of the county-level economy helps create high-quality living spaces, making "county life" happier.

"Bearing in mind General Secretary Xi Jinping's (习近平) earnest entrustment, during the '15th Five-Year Plan' period, Shaanxi will adhere to coordinating new urbanization and comprehensive rural revitalization, continuously improve the quality and efficiency of the county-level economic system with county towns as hubs and small towns as nodes, and continuously improve the balance, coordination, and inclusiveness of development," said Zhao Yide (赵一德), Secretary of the Shaanxi Provincial Party Committee (陕西省委书记).

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One insurance policy helps farmers embark on the road to prosperity.

By: 本报记者 罗阳奇 屈信明

In May in northern Anhui, wheat fields roll like waves. Song Xiuqi (宋修启), a large cattle farmer in Yougou Village (尤沟村), Suixi County (濉溪县), Huaibei City (淮北市), Anhui, is feeding a newly purchased group of calves.

"A few months ago, I took advantage of the low calf prices and bought 50 head at once, which I wouldn't have dared to think about in the past," Lao Song (老宋) explained. In the past, cattle farmers' capital turnover could only be realized by selling large cattle before they could buy calves again. This time, before his large cattle were sold, he bought a new batch while the calf market was low, "saving about 500 yuan per head."

Where did the money to buy the cattle come from this time? An insurance policy played a big role. "In the past, when buying cattle, I thought about applying for a loan, but I didn't have any collateral, so I couldn't get it. Now, relying on the insurance policy, I tapped on my phone, and a loan of 1 million yuan was approved!" Lao Song (老宋) said.

The insurance policy Lao Song (老宋) is talking about is beef cattle breeding insurance. In March of this year, after he insured beef cattle breeding insurance, he obtained credit guarantee support with the insurance policy as credit enhancement, and applied for the "government-insurance loan" product in the "Agricultural Insurance +" section of the National Financing Credit Service Platform, and applied for a loan of 1 million yuan with one click, and the interest rate was not high.

Lao Song's (老宋) story is not an isolated case. In recent years, Anhui has deeply leveraged the role of agricultural insurance as a tool to support agriculture and benefit farmers, and has continued to promote the "Agricultural Insurance +" reform, with more social capital and financial resources helping the development of industries that enrich the people.

"In the past, banks often had to investigate and evaluate credit household by household when issuing loans, which was costly and risky. By strengthening data sharing, insurance institutions can access information such as the breeding scale, production status, and historical claims records of insured farmers into the bank's risk control model, and the bank can quickly complete the credit rating of farmers," said Zhao Jiashuai (赵家帅), manager of the Rural Insurance Department of Anhui Branch of China Ping An Property Insurance Co., Ltd. (中国平安财产保险股份有限公司安徽分公司).

Insurance policies have become an important bridge and link for financial resources to tilt towards the "agriculture, rural areas, and farmers" field and help the comprehensive revitalization of the countryside. "We give full play to the customer acquisition, credit enhancement, and risk sharing functions of agricultural insurance policies, and effectively connect them with credit products to improve the credit availability and financing convenience of agricultural business entities," said Luo Shengqiang (骆盛强), director of the Credit Policy Management Department of the Anhui Branch of the People's Bank of China (中国人民银行安徽省分行). As of the end of March this year, through the "Agricultural Insurance +" reform, Anhui Province has cumulatively granted credit enhancement to 132,000 farmers for 121.4 billion yuan and issued loans of 115.1 billion yuan.

The "Agricultural Insurance +" business format continues to expand, and Lao Zhao (老赵) of Bailianpo Town (白莲坡镇), Huaiyuan County (怀远县), Bengbu City (蚌埠市) also praised it.

Zhao Qirui (赵其瑞), a large crayfish farmer, is already skilled in shrimp farming and can manage thousands of acres of shrimp ponds. However, the ever-changing crayfish market conditions are always his concern.

In order to better protect the income of farmers, Bengbu City (蚌埠市) innovated the "insurance-bank-supply-purchase" all-factor guarantee model, and explored the formation of a "insurance (futures) issuance - bank targeted lending - direct supply of agricultural materials to households - order guaranteed purchase" model, farmers only need to purchase a price insurance policy to achieve "worry-free shrimp farming."

Specifically, the insurance company provides Zhao Qirui (赵其瑞) with price insurance products. If the market purchase price of 4-6 money crayfish on that day is lower than 16.33 yuan per catty, the insurance company will pay compensation according to the price difference.

In addition, through insurance policy credit enhancement, the bank provides Zhao Qirui (赵其瑞) with a loan of 1 million yuan. According to the agreement, the loan is directly transferred to the enterprise where Zhao Qirui (赵其瑞) purchases feed. The feed enterprise makes concessions for direct supply and provides appropriate subsidies for loan interest, and provides full agricultural technology services. The Bengbu Municipal Finance Bureau (蚌埠市财政局) also promoted local catering enterprises to sign a guaranteed purchase agreement with Zhao Qirui (赵其瑞) to ensure the sales of crayfish.

"Under this model, farmers' sales channels, loans, prices, and raw materials can be guaranteed. Participating banks, insurance companies, feed companies, and catering companies can also benefit. Agricultural insurance is no longer simply an insurance policy, but also an important starting point for carrying out comprehensive agricultural services and enriching the people," said Wang Yong (王勇), deputy director of the Bengbu Municipal Finance Bureau (蚌埠市财政局). The model has been promoted throughout Bengbu City (蚌埠市) to provide guarantees for agricultural products such as corn and crayfish. As of the end of March this year, the insurance policy provided risk protection of 290 million yuan, driving bank credit of 330 million yuan, and coordinating the supply of 38,000 tons of agricultural materials.

Grassroots insurance windows realize "one-stop" financial services, develop a catalog of characteristic insurance products to match local industrial development, and provide "one chain, one insurance" insurance products and comprehensive financial services around the entire chain... At present, the "Agricultural Insurance +" reform in various parts of Anhui has formed more and more innovative practices.

Last year, the Anhui Provincial Government (安徽省政府) issued implementation opinions on comprehensively promoting the "Agricultural Insurance +" reform, proposing to comprehensively promote the "Agricultural Insurance +" reform and rely on agricultural insurance to innovate the investment and financing mechanism for rural revitalization during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period. According to the reform goals, in 2026, Anhui's agricultural insurance risk protection will exceed 230 billion yuan, and strive to drive the balance of agricultural-related loans to reach 3 trillion yuan, and the balance of agricultural-related financing guarantees to exceed 35 billion yuan.

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Comrade Wang Yongguo Passes Away

Xinhua News Agency, Guangzhou, May 27th. Wang Yongguo (王永国), a retired cadre at the deputy military region level and former Deputy Commander of the Guangzhou Military Region and Commander of the Navy's South Sea Fleet, passed away in Guangzhou (广州) on May 7th due to illness, at the age of 87.

Wang Yongguo (王永国) was a native of Rongcheng (荣成), Shandong (山东) Province. He joined the army in 1956 and joined the Communist Party of China (中国共产党) in 1961. During his revolutionary career, he served as a soldier, student, torpedo man, deputy commander, commander, deputy battalion commander, deputy detachment leader, deputy commander of the base, detachment leader, commander of the base, deputy commander of the Navy's East Sea Fleet, and deputy commander of the North Sea Fleet, making contributions to the revolutionization, modernization, and regularization of the troops.

Wang Yongguo (王永国) was a representative to the 13th, 14th, and 15th National Congresses of the Communist Party of China (中国共产党), and a member of the 10th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (中国人民政治协商会议). He was awarded the rank of Rear Admiral in 1988 and promoted to Vice Admiral in 1996.

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Page 1 Editors: Hu Anqi, Xu Nuo, Zhao Zheng; Page 2 Editors: Lü Li, Qi Jiarun, Guo Xueyan; Page 3 Editors: Han Xiaoming, Jiang Bo, Guan Haoyu; Page 4 Editors: Yuan Zhenxi, Chen Zhen, Zhang Xueyan

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How to Cultivate Teenagers' Thinking Skills in the Age of AI (In-depth Focus: Exploring "Artificial Intelligence + Education" ③)

By: 本报记者 黄 超

The wave of AI (Artificial Intelligence) technology is reshaping the education ecosystem with unprecedented depth and breadth. However, the more powerful the technology, the more firmly we should direct educational goals towards the comprehensive development of individuals, especially cultivating human abilities that technology cannot easily achieve.

Facing the "digital native" generation, how should our education system respond to the opportunities and challenges brought by AI? At the recent 2026 World Digital Education Conference, representatives from academia, schools, and local education authorities engaged in in-depth discussions and shared practices around the theme of "Cultivating Thinking Skills that Transcend Artificial Intelligence."

Transcending

Defining Important Qualities of Future Talents

When students can easily use artificial intelligence tools to complete assignments and obtain answers, what do they really need and what abilities cannot be replaced by artificial intelligence? Participants believe that "thinking skills that transcend artificial intelligence" are not an abstract concept, but a comprehensive system composed of a series of specific and cultivable high-level human qualities.

"Knowledge and ability are not opposed. Future education still needs a certain amount of knowledge learning as a foundation, but more effort should be put on the cultivation of abilities beyond knowledge learning." Li Yongzhi (李永智), President of the Chinese Academy of Educational Sciences (中国教育科学研究院), believes that the key to achieving "transcendence" is "intrinsic motivation."

The most important foundation for ability construction and application is intrinsic motivation—"As long as a person is a carbon-based life form, they need to eat and survive, and intrinsic motivation emerges naturally, but a machine will not. All its power comes from pre-injected rules and instructions." Li Yongzhi (李永智) said that this intrinsic motivation, which stems from interest, confidence, meaning, and socio-emotional needs, is the fundamental driving force for humans to master the future and achieve transcendence.

"Critical thinking" and "complex problem-solving skills" are frequently discussed high-frequency words. The case shared by Andreas Schleicher, Head of the Education and Skills Division of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, is thought-provoking: A study in Turkey showed that students' scores improved after using artificial intelligence tools to learn mathematics, but their mathematical thinking skills declined in subsequent tests.

"Artificial intelligence tools improved test scores, but did not improve learning ability." Andreas Schleicher warned, "This reveals a risk: if technology is used improperly, it may weaken students' ability to think deeply and explore independently."

In terms of knowledge storage, rapid recall, and rule execution, artificial intelligence has far surpassed humans. Therefore, education must re-anchor the unique value of people. Li Yongzhi (李永智) believes that education should pay more attention to cultivating high-level thinking skills, reflection skills, the unique human ability to empathize, and decision-making skills in ethical judgment and choice.

In this regard, Huang Changqin (黄昌勤), Director of the Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Intelligent Education Technology and Application (浙江省智能教育技术与应用重点实验室), further explained that the core dimensions of warm education include "positive value leadership" and "humanistic belonging," and it is necessary to establish due spiritual coordinates, emotional connections, and cultural identity, which are precisely the areas that cold algorithms cannot reach.

Practice has found that what students need to learn is not to rely on artificial intelligence, but how to collaborate with artificial intelligence. Mastering and making good use of artificial intelligence is an essential survival skill in the digital age. "In the era of artificial intelligence, we must not only cultivate students' ability to apply technology, but also cultivate 'wisdom beyond technology,' which includes how to get along with artificial intelligence, how to ensure that technology is used for good, and how to give play to the unique value of people," said Zhu Xinyu (祝新宇), Deputy Director of the Institute of Educational Statistics and Analysis of the Chinese Academy of Educational Sciences (中国教科院教育统计分析研究所).

Exploration

"Problem-Solving Ideas" for Systematic Advancement

At the 2026 World Digital Education Conference, the "Global Digital Education Development Index (2026)" was officially released, comprehensively evaluating and tracking the level of education development in 82 countries around the world in the era of artificial intelligence, and for the first time incorporating "cultivating thinking skills that transcend artificial intelligence" into the index research dimension.

The data shows that 78% of countries believe that in the era of artificial intelligence, education should attach importance to the cultivation of students' high-level thinking skills. In terms of the composition of students' thinking skills, more than 50% of countries regard AI application ability, critical thinking, ethical judgment and decision-making ability, creative thinking, problem-solving ability, and socio-emotional ability as key abilities of students in the AI era.

When Zhu Xinyu (祝新宇) analyzed the digital education development paths of various countries through the index, he believed that China's digital education has the characteristics of systematic advancement, pays more attention to top-level design at the national level, and promotes the balanced development of education with infrastructure construction as support, such as "building the world's largest digital center and platform for educational resources."

Zhejiang Province's actions are quite representative. Zhu Hongping (祝鸿平), President of the Zhejiang Academy of Educational Sciences (浙江省教育科学研究院), introduced that Zhejiang takes artificial intelligence as a key variable in the modernization of education reform and has built an artificial intelligence general education system that runs through all academic stages.

In the basic education stage, the technology and artificial intelligence learning platform is iteratively constructed; in the higher education stage, full coverage of artificial intelligence general courses for freshmen has been achieved. On this basis, Zhejiang strives to create a technology-enabled "future classroom." In addition, Zhejiang has also released a framework for teachers' artificial intelligence literacy and carried out special training, aiming to enhance teachers' leading ability as "designers and collaborators." "In this era, the teacher's role as a leader has not only not been subverted, but has been strengthened and enriched," said Zhu Hongping (祝鸿平).

In the discussion, some schools reflected that the teaching paradigm is undergoing a transformation from "knowledge imparting" to "thinking shaping," and profound changes have already taken place in the classroom.

Li Yongzhi (李永智) shared a case: A junior high school student in Beijing (北京) used an intelligent agent to independently and efficiently complete a semester's worth of learning in a certain course. The key is that the student did not passively accept the answers output by artificial intelligence, but actively designed the learning process: allowing the intelligent agent to analyze the learned content to form a logical connection of knowledge points, generate personalized learning materials such as audio and video, make full use of fragmented time to learn, and conduct targeted tests and error analysis.

This case inspired the "Multi-Agent Collaboration Based on Teaching Thinking Chain" project of the Chinese Academy of Educational Sciences (中国教科院). Li Yongzhi (李永智) explained that such an example is not to encourage students to leave the classroom, but to transform the classroom: decompose the learning process, such as learning analysis, resource generation, and teaching design, and assist in completion by a dedicated intelligent agent, and then coordinate and schedule by another dedicated intelligent agent, so as to liberate teachers and students from repetitive training and use the time saved for "future-oriented key abilities that transcend artificial intelligence."

Educational evaluation is the "baton." In the era of artificial intelligence, how can we use evaluation reform to make everyone's growth visible? Chen Liang (陈亮), Director of the Gongshu District Education Bureau of Hangzhou (杭州市拱墅区教育局), shared the practice of using artificial intelligence to help education evaluation reform at the regional level—a literacy-oriented project-based assessment model.

The model transforms the goals of educating people into observable performances in real tasks and uses artificial intelligence for data collection, analysis, and profiling. "For example, in the non-paper-and-pencil assessment in the lower grades of primary school, through 'qualitative, regular, quantitative, and fixed,' the process and evidence-based evaluation of students' comprehensive literacy is realized," Chen Liang (陈亮) said that the goal is to transform the evaluation from a "ruler" that measures results to a "mirror" that sees the process and understands growth, and ultimately drives teaching improvement and governance optimization, making education more fair, high-quality, and warm.

Challenge

Shaping Educational Rationality in the AI Era

While embracing technology and being keen on innovation, the participants also soberly pointed out the outstanding problems and potential risks that currently exist. Facing the challenges, experts put forward constructive response ideas, calling for the construction of a healthier and more controllable education artificial intelligence application ecosystem to promote human-machine symbiosis.

Some experts have put forward the concept of "ability suspension"—artificial intelligence provides everyone with unprecedented opportunities to improve their abilities, but if individuals or groups fail to effectively master and use these abilities, the opportunities are tantamount to nothing. If this "suspension" is unevenly distributed due to socio-economic, regional, or digital literacy differences, it will give rise to a new digital divide.

"We must strengthen the inclusiveness of public digital infrastructure." Huang Changqin's (黄昌勤) solution is "public facilities are inclusive, and a fair and suitable digital base is built." The "Education Cube" provincial-level data base and the "AI Hui Xue" platform built by Zhejiang (浙江) are practices that attempt to narrow the gap between regions and schools by coordinating the province's computing power and resources.

Cognitive superficiality and thinking inertia are the most concerning challenges. Over-reliance on artificial intelligence may lead students into a "fluency trap," that is, being satisfied with the fluent answers generated by artificial intelligence and reducing thinking input, forming "cognitive outsourcing." The American case cited by Andreas Schleicher shows that 80% of students who use artificial intelligence to write compositions cannot remember what they wrote. The survey data of the Chinese Academy of Educational Sciences (中国教科院) also shows that the proportion of primary and secondary school students who have used artificial intelligence to complete homework is as high as 85.6%.

How to adhere to the essence of "learning lies in hard work"? Experts said that education and teaching design should focus on breaking the "fluency trap" and encourage deep cognitive participation. For example, the method proposed by Professor Dragan Gašević of Monash University in Australia is worth learning: design tasks to allow students to question, verify, or generate questions about the information generated by artificial intelligence; organize group discussions to compare different artificial intelligence or human-computer interaction views to cultivate critical thinking.

The deep integration of artificial intelligence and education is unstoppable. The key to this transformation lies not in the dazzling nature of the technology itself, but in how we use technology to awaken, nurture, and protect those precious qualities that make us human—curiosity, empathy, criticality, creativity, and the unceasing intrinsic motivation.

As one participant summarized: Although the road ahead is full of challenges, the educational rationality of the AI era that we want to shape is to make artificial intelligence a "scaffolding" for thinking, rather than a "crutch" to replace thinking; the new learning paradigm we are building is an autonomous journey with technology on the side and thinking in the heart; the "artificial intelligence + education" development path we are pursuing is to transform the "cultivation of thinking skills that transcend artificial intelligence" from a consensus of ideas into a vivid practice and mechanism guarantee rooted in the land of China (中国).

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Using an Education Community to Leverage Resource Sharing (From the Front Lines)

By: 本报记者 周人杰

In the "Happy Farm" behind the teaching building of Wangcun Middle School in Runcheng Town, Yangcheng County, Jincheng City, Shanxi (山西晋城市阳城县润城镇王村中学), busy figures are "immersed" in it. Labor class teacher Wang Qingfeng (王庆锋) demonstrated and explained on the spot: "Find the two leaves and one heart to plant, put it into the pit and cover it with soil and gently press it, and a sweet potato seedling can be planted."

After the demonstration, the students claimed their exclusive "responsibility fields," rolled up their sleeves, and worked diligently. From repairing roots, spacing, placing seedlings to covering soil and watering, sweet potato seedlings were firmly rooted in the fertile soil.

This field labor class is also a live teaching and research observation class for teachers from the six member schools of the education community. Teacher Sun Shuning (孙淑宁), who has been teaching for more than 20 years, has a deep understanding: In the past, rural schools had weak resources and closed teaching and research channels, and teaching was mostly done behind closed doors and explored independently. Now, relying on the education community platform, urban and rural teachers conduct regular exchanges and discussions, and participate in training and research simultaneously, providing solid support for the professional growth of rural teachers.

Building an education community is an important means for Yangcheng County (阳城县) to solve the shortcomings of rural education and promote balanced resources. Since 2020, the local area has built a three-level management structure of "alliance-community-school," and established six junior high school and seven primary school education communities to promote the downward radiation of high-quality education resources in the county, and the interconnection, co-construction and sharing between urban and rural schools.

With stable teachers, lively classrooms, and improved quality, rural schools have gradually stabilized the basic source of students. Liang Yuejun (梁跃军), principal of Wangcun Middle School (王村中学), said that in the past, many rural parents were keen to send their children to urban areas for schooling; now, with the continuous improvement of the quality of education, all primary school graduates in the jurisdiction are enrolled nearby, and many township students studying outside choose to return to their hometowns to study, and rural education is regaining popularity and boosting confidence.

Using the education community to leverage the optimal allocation of resources has become a vivid practice in Shanxi (山西) to promote the improvement of the quality and efficiency of county education. At present, Shanxi Province (山西省) has built more than 600 urban and rural compulsory education school communities, effectively narrowing the gap between urban and rural areas and schools, so that the masses can enjoy inclusive and high-quality education services at their doorsteps.

At noon, more than 2,600 students left the school in an orderly manner at the school gate of Fuli Branch of Shanxi Experimental Primary School (山西省实验小学富力分校). This school, which is now thriving, encountered enrollment problems at the beginning of its establishment: At the beginning of its opening, although the permanent population in the area was nearly 100,000, only 184 people signed up in the first batch. Parents were concerned about the teaching quality and teacher stability of the branch school.

Running a school and revitalizing the school, the root lies in the teachers. "New teachers who have just stepped onto the podium often feel confused about systematic lesson preparation and classroom interaction. Relying on the group-based school platform, the head school customizes growth plans for new teachers in the branch school, and establishes a normalized training mechanism of daily teaching and research, weekly display, and monthly evaluation through famous teachers listening to classes, deconstructing teaching details, and mentoring and teaching," said Jia Rong (贾嵘), principal of Shanxi Experimental Primary School (山西省实验小学), insisting on teacher training as the core.

Today, the scale of running a school and the number of students in Fuli Branch (富力分校) are comparable to those of the head school, from the hesitation and wait-and-see of parents in the past to the preferred choice for the masses to go to school nearby.

From this, looking at the university district system reform that Xinghualing District (杏花岭区) in Taiyuan City (太原市) has cultivated for many years, the results are remarkable: 6 education groups and 10 school development communities have been established, and the "famous school + weak school" and "famous school + new school" models have been innovated to amplify the radiation effect of high-quality education, and a large number of young teachers have grown rapidly. At present, high-quality education resources in Xinghualing District (杏花岭区) have broken through regional boundaries and extended to other districts and counties, and the pattern of cross-regional co-construction and sharing of high-quality education in Taiyuan City (太原市) is accelerating.

In January this year, 12 counties (cities, districts) in Shanxi (山西) were selected into the first batch of the Ministry of Education's (教育部) 2025 creation list for high-quality and balanced development of compulsory education, and have fully met the standards in terms of resource allocation, guarantee level, school running quality, and public recognition.

"High-quality balance is the core direction of basic education development." Facing the "15th Five-Year Plan," Ma Jun (马骏), secretary of the Education Working Committee of the Shanxi Provincial Party Committee (山西省委教育工作委员会) and director of the Shanxi Provincial Department of Education (省教育厅), said that Shanxi (山西) will continue to strengthen urban and rural education communities, implement the university district system reform, and optimize the balanced allocation of teachers, so that fair sunshine will shine on the growth path of every child.

(People's Daily reporter Wu Xiao (武笑) participated in the writing)

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Serving the Nation's Major Strategies, Cultivating Talent Dedicated to Geology (Teachers' Perspectives)

By: 雷涯邻

Cultivating high-level talents in the field of geosciences and contributing to safeguarding national energy and resource security is an important mission of geological colleges and universities. In the "Vivid China" characteristic ideological and political course, academicians and famous teachers tell the story of advancing into the depths of the Earth; in the "Red Flag Flying in the Valley" activity, students form practice groups to go to the field and into the grassroots... In recent years, China University of Geosciences (Beijing) (中国地质大学（北京）) has been guided by serving the country's major strategic needs, focusing on cutting-edge fields such as deep Earth, deep sea, deep space, deep time, and polar regions, and striving to cultivate talents who serve the country through geology.

Anchoring the value coordinates of serving major national strategies. How to transform the concept of serving the country's strategic needs into the intrinsic and conscious value adherence of teachers and students? Our experience is to adhere to Party building to lead and educate people, and deeply integrate ideological and political education with professional education and scientific research. For example, we offer a good "Great Ideological and Political Course" on the move at internship bases such as Beidaihe (北戴河), Hebei (河北), and Zhoukoudian (周口店), Beijing (北京), and jointly establish a collaborative education mechanism with industry benchmarks such as Shandong Geological Team Six (山东地质六队)... This embedded value leadership makes serving the country through geology a perceptible, graspable, and practicable value coordinate. At the same time, we improve the curriculum system oriented to the needs of national strategy, integrate the national energy and resource security situation into the curriculum, and guide students to consciously integrate their personal ideals and pursuits into the cause of the country and the nation.

Relying on major scientific research tasks to forge practical abilities. Newcomers of the era should not only have the ambition to serve the country, but also the ability to serve the country. We pay attention to extending the talent training chain to the forefront of major national scientific research tasks and practice, transforming scientific research platforms into education platforms, and building a "task-driven - platform support - ability enhancement" mechanism to cultivate top-notch innovative talents. For example, relying on major scientific research tasks such as the Songliao Basin (松辽盆地) International Continental Scientific Drilling Project, deep-sea mining, the lunar exploration project, the Deep-time Digital Earth (DDE) international big science program, and polar scientific expeditions, we implement a "master-led + project-driven" training model to guide students to hone their professional skills and enhance their ability to serve the country in real and complex scientific expedition practices and technical research.

Inspiring the motivation to continue the struggle in the inheritance of the spirit. As a university with industry characteristics, the school has accumulated a profound tradition of serving the country through geology and a distinctive industry culture in the process of running the school. From the older generation of educators and scientists who devoted themselves to the geological cause of New China in the early days of the school, to the new era of scientific research teams, generations of geologists have used their actions to write vivid notes for serving the country through geology, and also provide a lasting spiritual impetus for teachers and students to continue their struggle. Effectively activating cultural resources with industry and school-based characteristics requires the school to deeply explore, transform, and make good use of them, and through specific people, stories, and achievements, let students see the vivid embodiment of serving the country through geology in every generation of geologists, so as to inspire the power of struggle.

Value leadership points out the direction of education, practice forging enhances the ability to serve the country, and spiritual inheritance inspires the motivation to struggle. Facing the future, we will continue to anchor the national strategy, keep in mind our mission and responsibility, cultivate more geological newcomers who can take on great responsibilities, and let the spirit of serving the country through geology be passed on from generation to generation.

(The author is the Party Secretary of China University of Geosciences (Beijing) (中国地质大学（北京）), and this article was compiled by Wu Yue (吴月), a reporter from this newspaper)

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"Walking Study Tours Shouldn't Go Astray (Educational Commentary)"

By: 黄 超

Stepping out of the classroom and integrating knowledge with practice, the study tour market has seen rapid development in recent years. However, beneath the surface of this boom, problems such as formalistic and profit-driven approaches to study tours have gradually emerged, even spawning many hidden tricks that deviate from the original intention of nurturing people through study tours.

Previously, discussions in the study tour market mainly focused on the abuse of the "study tour" label. Some institutions simply printed study tour manuals and hung up signs for practice bases, transforming regular sightseeing and outdoor team-building activities into study tours and selling them to schools and parents at high prices. These itineraries only involve touring and not learning, only playing and not studying, rendering the educational value virtually non-existent. As the market becomes increasingly hot, some more deceptive problems have emerged one after another, and industry governance faces challenges.

First, pricing is not standardized enough, and hidden consumption and bundled charges are difficult to prevent. Some institutions take advantage of parents' emphasis on their children's psychology, deliberately raising prices, with the quality of food, accommodation, and transportation not matching the charging standards, and even adding self-funded projects midway, forming a pattern of "low-price traffic generation, high-price consumption."

Second, the qualification threshold is virtually non-existent, and safety management and professional capabilities are lacking. Some intermediary agencies have flooded into the market without relevant qualifications and capabilities. Some practitioners lack professional training and do not have relevant knowledge backgrounds, posing hidden dangers in terms of safety plans and emergency response.

Third, there are loopholes in supervision, disguised transfer of responsibility, and simplified review processes. Individual schools do not strictly check the qualifications of service providers when introducing study tour projects, do not carefully review the course content and charging standards, and even use voluntary registration as a guise to turn study tours into "rigid consumption" that is difficult to refuse.

Amidst the controversy, many places have realized the urgency of industry standardization and have introduced relevant management measures. Some regions are promoting the standardization of study tour courses, requiring study tour projects to have complete teaching objectives, practical processes, and achievement evaluation systems. Many places have opened up complaint feedback channels and implemented dynamic management of rectification through interviews and market clearing for non-compliant institutions. These explorations directly address the pain points of the industry and provide a reference path for standardized governance.

To regulate the study tour market, we cannot adopt a 头痛医头 (tóu tòng yī tóu - "treat the head when the head aches," to treat the symptom but not the cause); only by adhering to the original intention of education, clarifying the boundaries of rights and responsibilities, and improving the regulatory system can we create a healthy and orderly industry ecology.

The essence of study tours is "study" and "learning," and travel is just a carrier. The project design should closely focus on the goal of nurturing people, fit the age characteristics of students and the teaching syllabus, design practical courses with content, depth, and experience, eliminate excessive commercialization and entertainment content, and effectively play the role of practical education.

Accelerating the improvement of unified study tour industry standards, clarifying access qualifications, course specifications, charging ranges, safety standards, and teacher requirements, can make market operations have rules to follow and regulatory law enforcement have rules to rely on, fundamentally eradicating the breeding ground for arbitrary packaging, false advertising, and random charging.

Consolidating the responsibilities of all parties is the key. The education administrative department is responsible for supervising and managing the study tour practice education activities organized by schools, the culture and tourism department is responsible for supervising travel agencies operating study tour businesses, and the market supervision department is responsible for supervising the advertising and contracts of business entities operating study tour businesses. Since it involves multi-departmental management, it is also necessary to further improve the coordination mechanism and improve governance effectiveness.

At the same time, guide rational understanding. Both families and schools should correctly view the value of study tours and not blindly follow the trend and compare. Abandon the concept of emphasizing form over content and emphasizing experience over gain, and give priority to choosing compliant, high-quality, and cost-effective projects, forcing the market to eliminate the inferior through consumer demand.

Study tours are an extension of classroom education and an important carrier for cultivating morality and cultivating people. They are by no means a business that can be profited from at will. The higher the market heat, the more necessary it is to stick to the original intention; the faster the industry develops, the more necessary it is to move forward in a standardized manner. Removing the commercial and utilitarian colors and returning to the essence of education can truly make study tours a high-quality classroom that helps young people grow.

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Editor in Charge for This Section: Ding Yasong

Layout design: Wang Zhepeng (汪哲平)

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Developing and Settling Down in the Mainland: More Peace of Mind (Cross-Strait Pulse)

By: 本报记者 钟自炜

In the early morning at the mouth of the Minjiang River, the sea breeze gently blows. Stepping into the Cross-Strait Integration Community in the Fuzhou New Area (Changle District) (福建福州新区（长乐区）) of Fujian (福建), the lush trees, cleanliness, and orderliness make people feel very comfortable. "The transportation around the community is convenient, and the community has a gym and a reading area. I am very satisfied," said Xie Xiaofei (谢晓非), one of the first Taiwanese residents to move into the community.

In the community, there are multiple apartment types, ranging from 45-square-meter one-bedroom apartments to 105-square-meter three-bedroom apartments, fully furnished with furniture and appliances. Eligible Taiwanese residents can enjoy preferential policies, including a 30-day short-term free residence policy for qualified high-level Taiwanese talents.

Only with a stable home can one enjoy their work. As the "first home" for Taiwanese compatriots and enterprises to land, in recent years, Fujian (福建) has implemented the "Opinions of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council on Supporting Fujian in Exploring a New Path for Integrated Development Across the Taiwan Strait and Building a Demonstration Zone for Integrated Development Across the Taiwan Strait" (《中共中央  国务院关于支持福建探索海峡两岸融合发展新路建设两岸融合发展示范区的意见》), constructing a multi-level housing security system for Taiwanese compatriots, forming a multi-channel and diversified guarantee including rent-free housing during the transition period, public rental housing, guaranteed rental housing, talent apartments, and housing for sale with security attributes, benefiting more than a thousand Taiwanese families.

Recently, reporters visited Fuzhou (福州), Xiamen (厦门), Pingtan (平潭), and other places to conduct on-site visits to the safe havens of Taiwanese compatriots in the vast land of Fujian (八闽大地).

"My heart settled down at once."

At around 8 a.m., in the Ziyu Jiayuan Community (紫玉佳园小区) of the Pingtan Comprehensive Experimental Zone (福建平潭综合实验区), the aroma of breakfast wafted from the home of Taiwanese compatriot Zhan Junjie (詹俊杰). Following the aroma into the home, the one-bedroom, one-living room apartment with an independent kitchen and bathroom is about 47 square meters, and the interior is clean and cozy.

"I make baking and creative cultural products. Look, this is our new sample!" Zhan Junjie (詹俊杰) picked up a baked cookie from the dining table. On the thin and crispy cookie, well-known scenic spots such as Alishan (阿里山) and Sun Moon Lake (日月潭) were printed, exuding a rich brown sugar aroma.

Why choose to start a business in Pingtan (平潭)? One word, "close." Pingtan (平潭) is only 68 nautical miles from the main island of Taiwan. "I am optimistic about the development potential in the mainland, and it is also convenient to travel back and forth to my old home in Changhua (彰化). Pingtan (平潭) has become my first choice," said Zhan Junjie (詹俊杰).

When he first arrived, Zhan Junjie (詹俊杰) had confusion and anxiety. "The biggest anxiety was housing. Where to find rental information, what materials are needed for renting... all kinds of questions swirled in my mind." Soon, the housing security policy provided by Pingtan (平潭) for Taiwanese compatriots gave him peace of mind.

"We implement normalized allocation of rental housing. Taiwanese compatriots who meet the access conditions can 'rent on a first-come, first-served basis, rent as they come.' The housing is equipped with basic furniture and appliances, allowing them to move in with their bags," said the relevant负责人 of the Housing Development Division of the Transportation and Construction Bureau of the Pingtan Comprehensive Experimental Zone (平潭综合实验区交通与建设局住房发展处). The guaranteed housing provided for Taiwanese compatriots is mainly divided into two types: one is public rental housing suitable for short-term rental, which is dormitory-style housing with an area of 10 to 50 square meters; the other is guaranteed rental housing suitable for long-term residence, which is a complete apartment with an area of 50 to 85 square meters.

"Uploading materials on the mobile phone, a few simple steps can complete the application, and I received the approval notice 3 days later," Zhan Junjie (詹俊杰) said with a smile, "The moment I opened the door with the key, my heart settled down at once."

Zhan Junjie (詹俊杰), who has settled down and is at ease, is showing his talents in Pingtan (平潭). In 2025, Pingtan Taiwan Town (平潭台湾小镇) launched a new round of upgrades and renovations. Zhan Junjie (詹俊杰) seized the opportunity and signed a contract for a store of more than 400 square meters, preparing to sell baking and creative cultural products.

"Not only myself, but now the company has also newly hired 4 Taiwanese compatriots. They have also applied for guaranteed housing and are preparing to settle in Pingtan (平潭)," said Zhan Junjie (詹俊杰). The company's goal this year is to complete the construction of the product production line and strive to start trial operation before the end of the year.

"This is my own 'red book'."

"This is my own 'red book,' which gives me a real sense of belonging in Xiamen (厦门)," said Mr. Guo (郭先生), a Taiwanese compatriot in Xiamen (厦门), holding his real estate ownership certificate excitedly. "From housing purchase consultation, preparing materials to the landing of the loan, the whole process took less than a month, which was unimaginable in the past."

What difficulties did Taiwanese compatriots face when buying houses in the mainland in the past? Mr. Guo (郭先生) took himself as an example - if he chose to buy a house in full, he would face the pressure of raising a large amount of funds in a short period of time, and it would be inconvenient to remit funds; if he wanted to apply for a personal mortgage loan, it would be difficult to apply because he had lived and worked in the mainland for a short period of time and lacked mainland credit and income statements.

What helped Mr. Guo (郭先生) realize his "dream of settling down" in Xiamen (厦门) was the "Min-Taiwan Housing Loan" launched by Xiamen Bank (厦门银行) in December 2025. "We have expanded the scope of cross-border material recognition to break through the financial barriers for Taiwanese compatriots to purchase properties in the mainland with mortgages. At the same time, we have simplified the approval process and built a comprehensive risk control strategy to provide Taiwanese compatriots with sufficient, flexible, and convenient housing financial support, and to provide Taiwanese compatriots with a housing mortgage loan service system in the mainland," said Wang Rumin (王汝民), General Manager of the Taiwan Business Finance Department of Xiamen Bank (厦门银行台商金融部总经理).

From "a room" for employment to "an apartment" for settling down, in order to meet the different needs of Taiwanese compatriots, various places in Fujian (福建) have adopted a combination of renting and buying, and a combination of physical objects and currency, to build a comprehensive housing security system for Taiwanese compatriots from job search, employment to settling down.

Fuzhou (福州) selects relatively concentrated housing from public rental housing and guaranteed rental housing as Taiwanese apartments, and rents them to Taiwanese compatriots at prices lower than the market price. Among them, it provides a certain period of free accommodation for Taiwanese compatriots who come to Fuzhou (福州) for visits, exchanges, internships, and entrepreneurship;

Xiamen's (厦门市) municipal-level public rental housing, guaranteed commercial housing, "five-year, 50% discount rental housing" and "a bed" free accommodation policies all include Taiwanese compatriots in the scope of security;

Quanzhou (泉州市) provides Taiwanese compatriots with guaranteed rental housing, public rental housing, and talent rental housing security. Taiwanese compatriots with a college degree or above can enjoy "one exemption, two reductions, and three guaranteed rentals" and a tiered rental discount policy for up to 6 years.

"Fujian's (福建) relevant policies have built a tiered housing security system," said Tang Hua (唐桦), director of the Institute of Cross-Strait Relations of the Taiwan Research Institute of Xiamen University (厦门大学台湾研究院两岸关系研究所所长). Free transitional housing solves the problem of Taiwanese compatriots settling down when they first arrive in the mainland; after finding stable work or starting a business, Taiwanese compatriots can apply for public rental housing to meet their medium- and long-term housing needs. At the same time, relevant policies to support Taiwanese compatriots in purchasing houses have been introduced to meet the housing needs of Taiwanese compatriots.

"The two sides of the strait are one family, building a happy home together."

Before the Spring Festival this year, a special reunion dinner was held in the Guixi Community (桂溪社区) of Jin'an District (晋安区), Fuzhou (福州).

Inside the community party-masses service center, 5 long tables were arranged in a row, and community residents, including dozens of Taiwanese compatriots, brought their own private dishes one after another. Taiwanese sesame oil chicken, Taiwanese sausage, Fuzhou taro puree (福州芋泥)... On the steaming table, Taiwanese specialty foods and flavors from all over the mainland were fragrant together. "The two sides of the strait are one family, building a happy home together!" In the cheers, residents on both sides of the strait raised their glasses to celebrate together.

"The shape of Fuzhou's (福州) specialty snack, Bianrou (扁肉), is similar to the wontons I often eat in Taiwan. It makes me feel both novel and familiar, just like the feeling of working and living in Fuzhou (福州)," said Jian Yixin (简以信), a Taiwanese compatriot engaged in the catering industry in Fuzhou (福州). During the event, he specially invited a master to teach everyone how to make Bianrou (扁肉) on the spot.

As the first cross-strait integration demonstration community in Fuzhou (福州), Guixi Community (桂溪社区) currently has more than 300 households and more than 500 Taiwanese compatriots living there. "Settling down, starting a business, and more importantly, feeling at ease, we have always supported and encouraged Taiwanese compatriots to participate in community public welfare activities and integrate into community governance," said Chen Wenjing (陈雯靖), Secretary of the Party Committee and Director of the Neighborhood Committee of Guixi Community (桂溪社区党委书记、居委会主任).

In 2022, Guixi Community (桂溪社区) and Jinlong Community Development Association (金龙社区发展协会) in Taichung City (台中市) established a standardized cooperation mechanism, with experts and resident representatives from both sides of the strait jointly participating in the formulation of community governance standards. In 2024, the "Cross-Strait Common Community Volunteer Service Regulations" (《海峡两岸共通  社区志愿服务规程》) was officially implemented, which not only absorbed the experience of Taiwanese volunteer services, but also combined the management characteristics of Fuzhou (福州) communities, clarifying the whole process standards of volunteer service recruitment, training, and assessment, and was welcomed by residents.

"Living in Guixi Community (桂溪社区) is like living at home, both considerate and warm," said Jian Yixin (简以信). Several Taiwanese compatriots, including him, have established a Taiwanese Apartment Resident Committee to actively participate in community governance. Since last year, combining his own work, he has opened the "Knowledge 'Food' Molecule · Green Sharing Home" community volunteer service project in the community, and has held more than 10 themed activities, using food culture to build a bridge for cross-strait exchanges.

From "moving in" to "integrating in," the community is not only a living space, but also a bond connecting the hearts of compatriots on both sides of the strait. "It is not just a simple solution to the housing problem. We will continue to add warmth to the home and move towards the deeper goal of cross-strait integration," said Chen Wenjing (陈雯靖).

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Chasing the Starry Dream, Sharing the Glory (Viewing the Sea)

By: 张 烁

On the Shenzhou XXIII manned spaceflight mission emblem, a radiant Bauhinia flower blooms.

"Proud to be from home!" "Hong Kong has its own astronaut!"... On May 24th, payload specialist Lai Ka-ying (黎家盈), as a member of the Shenzhou XXIII astronaut crew, embarked on a journey to the "Tiangong" space station, becoming China's first astronaut from Hong Kong. This embodies the central government's deep care for Hong Kong and Macao, embodies the patriotic feelings of Hong Kong and Macao compatriots, writes a new chapter for Hong Kong and Macao to better integrate into and serve the overall national development, and is a vivid example of the successful practice of "One Country, Two Systems."

Behind the dream of exploring the stars is the central government's consistent deep care and strong support for Hong Kong and Macao. The motherland always cares about the development of Hong Kong and Macao and cares about Hong Kong and Macao compatriots. In 2022, China's fourth batch of reserve astronaut selection work for the manned space program was launched, and payload experts were selected for the first time in Hong Kong and Macao. This is not only an honor, but also a reflection of the central government's trust and importance to Hong Kong and Macao. From strict selection to arduous training, from professional assessment to final departure, relevant national departments have provided meticulous guidance and full support throughout the entire process, allowing Lai Ka-ying (黎家盈), who was born and raised in Hong Kong, to cross mountains and seas and go to space. This deep love has allowed Hong Kong and Macao to grow from "supporters" of the country's great space cause to "executors," fully demonstrating that the motherland is the most solid backing and the broadest stage for Hong Kong and Macao.

The space dream is linked to the Chinese dream. The motherland's space industry has achieved leapfrog development, and has also built a broad platform for Hong Kong and Macao to integrate into and serve the overall national development. From the "surface sampling execution device" in the Chang'e V and VI projects to the "Mars camera" of Tianwen-1; from Hong Kong and Macao universities obtaining valuable opportunities to study lunar soil, to 3 Hong Kong student experiments entering space with the Shenzhou XI manned spacecraft and the Tianzhou V carrying the Macao student science satellite No. 1, and to the recent "Tianyun Camera" scientific research payload led by Hong Kong universities boarding the "Tiangong" space station with Tianzhou X... In recent years, with the strong support of the central government, aiming at the intersection of "what the country needs" and "what Hong Kong and Macao are good at," Hong Kong and Macao have more and more opportunities to participate in the construction of a strong aerospace country. The departure of astronauts from Hong Kong this time is not only an affirmation of their personal abilities, but also fully demonstrates the country's high recognition of Hong Kong's innovation and technology talents, development and achievements, and fully reflects the country's high attention, care and support for Hong Kong's scientific and technological development.

This historic moment vividly demonstrates the significant institutional advantages and strong vitality of "One Country, Two Systems." "One Country, Two Systems" not only adheres to the foundation of "One Country," providing rare opportunities, broad space and strong impetus for the development of Hong Kong and Macao, allowing Hong Kong and Macao to embark on a broad road of complementary advantages and common development with the mainland of the motherland; but also makes good use of the advantages of "Two Systems," allowing Hong Kong and Macao to maintain their own characteristics and advantages, and fully exert their unique advantages and important roles of relying on the motherland and connecting with the world. Today, Hong Kong and Macao's economy and society are booming, the overall social situation remains stable, and external cooperation and international influence continue to expand, showing vigorous vitality everywhere. Facts once again powerfully prove that Hong Kong and Macao are good, the country is good; the country is good, Hong Kong and Macao are better.

Looking forward to flying into the sky, lighting up dreams. On the night of May 24th, many Hong Kong and Macao citizens watched the live broadcast with excitement. When they saw the rocket soaring into the sky and lighting up the sky, a sense of pride and glory arose spontaneously. In recent days, all sectors of Hong Kong and Macao have been jubilant and inspired. Young people have enthusiastically discussed their space dreams, and representatives of community organizations have praised them. Lai Ka-ying's (黎家盈) perseverance and loyalty in training are a vivid portrayal of the spirit of manned spaceflight, setting an example for Hong Kong and Macao youth to love the country and serve the country, and to bravely climb the peak; Lai Ka-ying's (黎家盈) dream-seeking journey has made Hong Kong and Macao compatriots truly see that as long as they have the country in their hearts and dare to work hard, they will have the opportunity to stand on the national stage. This has greatly stimulated the enthusiasm of Hong Kong and Macao youth to admire science and serve the country, and has powerfully promoted the spirit of patriotism and the cultivation of national sentiments in Hong Kong and Macao society, and continuously enhanced national identity, sense of belonging and national pride.

The galaxy is vast, the pursuit of dreams never stops; with one heart and one mind, the future is promising. This year is the opening year of the country's "15th Five-Year Plan." Standing at a new starting point, I believe that with the full support of the central government and the mainland of the motherland, Hong Kong and Macao will actively connect with the country's "15th Five-Year Plan," and will definitely be able to give full play to the unique advantages and important roles of Hong Kong and Macao, and share the historical responsibility of national rejuvenation and the great glory of the motherland's prosperity and strength with the people of the motherland!

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Photo Story

Recently, the 2026 Macao Youth Culture Festival was held in Guangzhou (广州市), Guangdong (广东) Province. The left and top images are scenes from the Youth Culture Festival performance.

Photo by Chen Chuhong (陈楚红) (People's Vision)

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Overseas Chinese Correspondence: Transcending Time and Space, Enduring Affection (Micro Commentary)

By: 江 琳

"Sailing into the night, just as the bright moon rises over the river, seeming to appreciate it shoulder to shoulder with you," "Although Siam is far away, my heart is there, and my body feels like it's next door"... In the movie "A Letter to Grandma," the correspondence between the protagonists is deeply moving. The film allows "Qiaopi" (侨批) (overseas Chinese letters), a cultural carrier bearing a heavy history, to re-enter the public's view in a warm way.

In Chaoshan (潮汕) and Southern Fujian (闽南) dialects, "pi" (批) means letter. Qiaopi (侨批), also known as "Yinxin" (银信) (silver letters) or "Fanpi" (番批) (foreign letters), are letters and remittances sent by overseas Chinese to their hometowns. Across the vast mountains and seas, putting concerns, responsibilities, and affection into each Qiaopi (侨批), it is not only a letter, but also an emotional bond between travelers and their families and hometowns.

A thin piece of paper carries longing, and a few strokes of ink preserve integrity. The reason why Qiaopi (侨批) is touching is that it records the pioneering hardships of the ancestors with a simple method, "一溪目汁（眼泪）一船人" (yī xī mù zhī (yǎnlèi) yī chuán rén - "a stream of tears, a boat of people," describes the hardship and sorrow of people leaving their homes by boat), carries the deep homesickness of "钱银知寄人知返" (qián yín zhī jì rén zhī fǎn - "knowing to send money back home shows that people will return," highlights the importance of family and homeland), demonstrates the character of considering righteousness upon seeing profit, and condenses the selfless devotion of helping each other and overcoming difficulties together, vividly interpreting gratitude, hard work, integrity, and responsibility, becoming a common spiritual memory of Chinese sons and daughters at home and abroad. In 2013, "Qiaopi Archives - Overseas Chinese Silver Letters" was selected into the UNESCO Memory of the World Register.

As time passes, although Qiaopi (侨批) has become history, the love for one's hometown that transcends time and space is always new. Protecting Qiaopi (侨批) cultural relics and inheriting Qiaopi (侨批) culture is not only a memory of history, but also a continuation of tradition. Qiaopi (侨批) witnessed the economic and cultural exchanges and friendly interactions between Chinese hometowns and countries in Southeast Asia and other places. To this day, exchanges and cooperation between China and relevant countries are still close, and the vast number of overseas Chinese are playing an irreplaceable role in deepening traditional friendship.

To make Qiaopi (侨批) culture shine with new contemporary brilliance, we need to further innovate the path of inheritance. We should not only rely on museums and memorial halls to do a good job in the collection and research of cultural relics, and use digital technology to make the yellowed pages "live," but also encourage more literary and artistic creations similar to "A Letter to Grandma" to transform Qiaopi (侨批) culture into popular film and television dramas and short videos that young people love to watch. It is also necessary to promote Qiaopi (侨批) culture in diverse forms such as Chaozhou embroidery (潮绣) and cultural creations to go deep into communities and campuses, so that Qiaopi (侨批) culture can flow naturally in the blood of the younger generation.

Short paper, long affection, and eternal roots. Let us jointly safeguard this "fragrance left by the sea," so that the spiritual light that transcends mountains and seas shines even brighter, and gathers the mighty power of Chinese sons and daughters at home and abroad to work together on the new journey of national rejuvenation.

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Join hands to promote Chinese culture

By: 本报记者 张 烁

"The deer bleat '呦呦,' eating the wild celery. I have honored guests, let us play the zither and pipes..." At the Traditional Culture Forum of the 3rd Cross-Strait Chinese Culture Summit, the "Nanshan Poetry Society" (南山诗社) of Beijing Normal University (北京师范大学) and the "Dongli Poetry Society" (东篱诗社) of Fu Jen Catholic University (台湾辅仁大学) jointly performed a recitation of the "Book of Songs" through a combination of live and video performances.

"Nanshan" (南山) and "Dongli" (东篱) come from Tao Yuanming's (陶渊明) poem, "Picking chrysanthemums by the eastern fence, I leisurely see the southern mountains." Young people from both sides of the Taiwan Strait, dressed in traditional costumes, recited poems from thousands of years ago, echoing each other and sharing their hearts, a unique romance of the Chinese nation. "From poetry, songs, and prose to calligraphy, painting, music, and chess, to festivals, rituals, folk customs, Chinese culture has always permeated the hearts of compatriots on both sides of the Strait," said Zhang Hongsen (张宏森), Chairman of the China Writers Association (中国作协).

Recently, the 3rd Cross-Strait Chinese Culture Summit (海峡两岸中华文化峰会) (hereinafter referred to as "the Summit"), with the permanent theme of "Inheritance, Promotion, and Development" and the annual theme of "Blood Ties, Shared Culture," was held in Beijing (北京). Approximately 2,000 guests from both sides of the Strait attended, including about 1,000 guests from Taiwan (台湾), representatives from the cultural sector, youth, and grassroots representatives.

"Taiwanese people all have Chinese surnames, speak Chinese, write Chinese characters, and celebrate Chinese festivals... Chinese culture has always been in Taiwan (台湾), it is a social gene, practiced in the lives of Taiwanese people. Even during the period of Japanese occupation, the Taiwanese people still insisted on cultural inheritance." At the opening ceremony of the Summit, Chang Jung-kung's (张荣恭), Vice Chairman of the Kuomintang (中国国民党), speech resonated with compatriots on both sides of the Strait, "As authentic Taiwanese people, we should also be upright Chinese people!"

Compatriots on both sides of the Strait share the same roots, the same culture, and are connected by blood. Chinese culture is the common spiritual wealth of compatriots on both sides of the Strait, and it is the root and belonging of their hearts.

Last year, the Jiangsu Grand Theatre's (江苏大剧院) original national dance drama "Dream of the Red Chamber" (红楼梦) premiered in Taipei (台北) to sold-out audiences. In February of this year, the Zhejiang Xiaobaihua Yue Opera Troupe (浙江小百花越剧院) performed in Taiwan (台湾) again after nearly 15 years, with all five performances completely sold out. After the performances, hundreds of audience members were reluctant to leave, gathering at the theater exit to cheer "Come to Taiwan (台湾) more often" and "We love Yue Opera."

"I believe that through non-governmental and cultural exchanges between the two sides of the Strait, new sparks of Chinese culture can be continuously generated together," said Chang Jung-kung (张荣恭), expressing his hope that both sides can jointly promote more exchanges and cooperation in various fields on the basis of Chinese cultural identity.

At the Beijing National Culture Palace (北京民族文化宫), digital light and shadows flowed like a galaxy. During the Summit, the digital exhibition "Unblemished Territory - 2026 Cross-Strait Contemporary Art and Cultural Creative Exhibition" was held here, with nearly 50 artists from both sides of the Strait bringing about 200 digital artworks.

Taiwanese artist Chou Tzu-chien (周子荐) drew inspiration from Chinese mythology and turned his attention to the contemporary era, creating the "Ode to the Chinese Nation" series of works - "The Foolish Old Man Removes the Mountains" transformed into transportation and network construction, "Jingwei Filling the Sea" reflecting the magnificent picture of turning natural barriers into thoroughfares, "Nüwa Mending the Sky" pointing to efforts in environmental protection and carbon reduction, and "Kuafu Chasing the Sun" transforming into the pursuit of photovoltaic energy.

"I hope that everyone who sees the works can feel the tenacity engraved in their bones, and I also hope that more people will join the ranks of cross-Strait exchanges, using art as a bond to bring the hearts of compatriots on both sides of the Strait closer," said Chou Tzu-chien (周子荐).

"'Golden Goblet' (金瓯) is a metaphor for territory, and 'Unblemished' (无缺) expresses the hope for the reunification of the motherland and the inheritance and development of the bloodline of Chinese culture. The exhibition takes the cross-Strait community of common destiny as its core concept, promoting the integration and co-creation of artists from both sides of the Strait," said Zhao Wennuan (赵文暖), Chairman of the Cross-Strait Entrepreneurs Summit Cultural and Creative Alliance (两岸企业家峰会文创联盟).

During the Summit, the Cross-Strait Performing Arts Cooperation Forum with the theme of "Connected by Art, Moving Forward Together" was held, with more than 100 guests from both sides of the Strait focusing on new trends in the performance industry and conducting in-depth exchanges on music performances, copyright management, performance brokerage, and talent incubation.

"Performing arts practitioners on the island see the broad market opportunities in the mainland, actively respond to relevant mainland policies, and encourage and support practitioners in the field of performing arts brokerage in Taiwan (台湾) to come to the mainland for employment, realizing mutual learning of talents." Wang Hsiang-chi (王祥基), Founding Chairman of the Taipei Performing Arts Brokerage and Cultural Exchange Association (台北演艺经纪文化交流协会), believes that it is the right time to further promote cooperation between the two sides of the Strait in the fields of performing arts and brokerage.

In recent years, excellent mainland film and television works such as "Meet Yourself," "Ne Zha," and "The Peace Year" have set off viewing craze in Taiwan (台湾). Many Taiwanese viewers are very familiar with the filming locations and cultural landmarks of mainland film and television dramas, and come to the mainland to check in following the film and television dramas.

"In the Internet era, literary arts on both sides of the Strait are deeply integrated from creation and production to dissemination and development. No matter where they are, young people on both sides of the Strait can pick up their mobile phones and read the same book, watch the same drama, and listen to the same song at any time, sending bullet screens, writing comments, and chatting about their wishes together, achieving seamless connection of thoughts and emotions," said Zhang Hongsen (张宏森).

It is reported that during the Summit, special exhibitions, symphony concerts, Peking opera performances and other exhibitions and performances were also held, and community and youth cultural exchange activities such as cross-Strait clansmen and "Taiwanese Youth Looking at Beijing" (台湾青年看北京) were organized. "The holding of these activities will further promote the spiritual harmony of compatriots on both sides of the Strait and jointly carry forward Chinese culture," said a spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council (国台办).

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Editor in Charge for This Section: Jiang Lin

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How Yue Opera Stays "Young" (Cultural China Tour: Humanistic Observation - Series of Investigations on Drama Revitalization ①)

By: 本报记者 王 珏

Drama conveys cultural context, and youth continues the magnificent chapter. The implementation of the "Three-Year Action Plan for Drama Revitalization (2026-2028)" injects strong momentum into the inheritance and development of drama in the new era.

From the adherence to tradition and innovation of classic dramas to the protection and development of rare opera genres, from the ingenious inheritance of famous drama artists to the enthusiastic participation of young people, the art of drama is entering the public and permeating people's hearts with a more vivid posture.

Starting from today, this edition will launch a series of reports focusing on the revitalization of drama, depicting the panorama of drama inheritance and development, telling the stories of drama workers' persistent dedication, and recording the vivid practice of drama revitalization.

——Editor

In 1906, in Dongwang Village (东王村), Sheng County (嵊县) (now Shengzhou City (嵊州市)), Shaoxing City (绍兴市), Zhejiang Province (浙江), four rice buckets were covered with door panels to build a simple stage. Li Shiquan (李世泉), Gao Binghuo (高炳火) and other folk ballad singers, based on the foundation of "Luodi Changshu (落地唱书)" (a type of storytelling), put on costumes, picked up props, and performed on stage for the first time.

No one expected that this clear singing voice would kick off the 120-year legacy of Yue Opera.

From May to June, the 6th China Yue Opera Art Festival was held, with 12 major plays and 3 minor plays (excerpt performances) showcasing the artistic level of Yue Opera in recent years, attracting many audiences.

From the banks of the Yanxi River (剡溪) to the banks of the Huangpu River (黄浦江), from rural stages to urban theaters, from a corner of Jiangnan (江南) to the world stage, as the double Jiazi years pass, Yue Opera is still youthful and beautiful. It has become a "cultural top stream" sought after by young people and a model for the "breaking the circle" dissemination of opera.

Why is 120-year-old Yue Opera still so "young"?

Rooted in the folk and close to the masses, Yue Opera's melodies linger in urban and rural areas.

The performance bus of the Shengzhou Yue Opera Troupe was still on the road, and Shangdian Village (上巅村), Xiawang Town (下王镇), Shengzhou City (嵊州市) was already boiling.

Young and middle-aged people were building the stage, the elderly and children were busy moving benches and grabbing seats, and the women were frying and stir-frying at home, preparing to welcome relatives and friends from all over the village to watch the show.

Every time the Shengzhou Yue Opera Troupe performs in the village, the village is as lively as the New Year.

"I like watching 'Biyu Zan (碧玉簪)' the most. I've watched it more than 10 times and still want to watch it," said an old lady with missing teeth, who had dinner at 5 p.m. She occupied the middle position in the first row, "sitting close, seeing clearly, and hearing clearly."

The performance started at 6:30 p.m. Just after 6 p.m., the stage was already full of eagerly waiting audience. As soon as the gongs and drums sounded, the stage immediately quieted down.

In Shengzhou (嵊州), the birthplace of Yue Opera, Yue Opera has never been a high-ranking "art of the palace," but a flowing way of life. Strolling through the streets and alleys of Shengzhou, you can hear the melodious Yue Opera sounds everywhere, next to ancient stages, in cultural auditoriums, and in community corners. "Old to white beard, young to open crotch pants," everyone can hum a few Yue Opera tunes and sing a classic excerpt, which is the most vivid cultural picture of this city.

"The root of Yue Opera is deeply rooted in the folk," said Shao Yuye (邵玉烨), director of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles' Drama Art Center, with emotion. "From the beginning of its birth, Yue Opera has carried the simplicity and affinity of folk art, and is good at absorbing folk nutrients and conforming to the aesthetics of the people. This is its confidence in being evergreen for a hundred years."

Only with deep roots can the leaves be lush. Shengzhou deeply understands the folk nature of Yue Opera and takes multiple measures to protect this local cultural context, so that Yue Opera is always accompanied by and dependent on the people. Last year, the local government issued the "Several Policy Opinions on Further Supporting the Inheritance and Development of Yue Opera," which "cultivates and fertilizes" Yue Opera from the aspects of system guarantee, talent training, and universal popularization. More than 100 private opera troupes are rooted in the grassroots, performing more than 30,000 performances annually, sending classic plays such as "Liang Zhu (梁祝)," "Dream of the Red Chamber (红楼梦)," and "Five Daughters Paying Birthday Wishes (五女拜寿)" to the fields, mountain villages, and courtyards, allowing Yue Opera sounds to linger in urban and rural areas.

In order to further activate the vitality of folk Yue Opera, the "Village Yue (村越)" competition does not set thresholds and is open to all people. In three years, nearly 300 competitions have been held, attracting nearly 5,000 folk players to compete on stage, and the total exposure of topics on the entire network has exceeded 3.334 billion.

Luo Xuehong (罗雪洪), a barber shop owner from Sanjiang Street (三江街道), Shengzhou (嵊州), won the first "Village Yue" competition and received guidance from first-class actor Chen Xueping (陈雪萍). "In the past, I was self-taught and groped blindly. Through the competition, I came into contact with different Yue Opera genres and received guidance from professional teachers. The rhythm and stage presence of my singing have improved a lot," said Luo Xuehong. Now, Luo Xuehong and his opera fans have participated in the street's Yue Opera club and rehearsed several plays.

From rural opera fans to folk singers, ordinary people shine on the stage, allowing Yue Opera to return to the folk, get close to the masses, and truly become an art around the people. At the same time, the local government continues to revitalize Yue Opera cultural landmarks, repair the first performance site in Dongwang Village (东王村), and build a Yue Opera Museum, allowing generations to feel the foundation of Yue Opera while touching history.

"We must not only train professional actors, but also cultivate thousands of viewers who understand and love Yue Opera," said a relevant person in charge of the Propaganda Department of the Shengzhou Municipal Party Committee.

Xiong Lianfen (熊莲芬), head of the Jiaojiang Yueyi Yue Opera Troupe (椒江越艺越剧团) in Taizhou (台州), is a member of this "folk army." She said emotionally: "For more than 20 years, I have followed the troupe from village to village. The audience under the stage has grown from dozens to thousands, including the elderly, children, locals, and outsiders. For me, Yue Opera is not just art, but life."

The folk is the source of Yue Opera and also the destination of Yue Opera. It is this perseverance deeply rooted in the folk that allows Yue Opera to maintain its original artistic temperature after 120 years of wind and rain, and to build a solid foundation for the continuous inheritance of the opera genre.

"The real vitality of an opera genre does not lie in how many awards it has won, but in its weight in the hearts of the people," said Cui Wei (崔伟), director of the Theoretical Criticism Committee of the China Theatre Association.

The flame is constantly burning, and the artistic gene is renewed in continuous inheritance.

Whether an opera genre can maintain its youth depends on whether young people are willing to learn, sing, and pass it on. The stage of Yue Opera has never lacked young faces.

In 2024, a Yue Opera actress named Chen Lijun (陈丽君) became popular all over the Internet with her wonderful performance in the Yue Opera "New Dragon Inn (新龙门客栈)." She played Jia Ting (贾廷) in the play, vividly expressing the role of both good and evil. On social media, her performance clips have been played hundreds of millions of times, and countless young people have discovered for the first time: Yue Opera can be so "cool"!

"This is not only my personal luck, but also the opportunity that our era has given to Yue Opera," said Chen Lijun, who is already the deputy director of the Art Production and Creation Department of the Zhejiang Xiaobaihua Yue Opera Troupe (浙江小百花越剧院), humbly and firmly. "As young Yue Opera performers, we must inject youthful vitality into Yue Opera with a high sense of mission, and strive to create more excellent works that tell Chinese stories well, are full of the atmosphere of the times, and demonstrate Chinese aesthetics."

Chen Lijun reflects the group portrait of the new generation of Yue Opera inheritors. This "intergenerational relay" allows the artistic gene of Yue Opera to be inherited and renewed in generations.

At the Zhejiang Conservatory of Music (浙江音乐学院), the story of a student surnamed Zhang (张) from Liaoning (辽宁) after 00s is equally moving. What made her determined to learn opera was the short video of "New Dragon Inn." "I swiped Yue Opera in the short video. At that moment, I realized that opera can be so powerful and so charming." She traveled 2,000 kilometers to apply for the Yue Opera instrumental music major, hoping to interpret tradition with new understanding.

The "Three-Year Action Plan for Drama Revitalization (2026-2028)," issued in February this year, lists talent training as a key point.

In recent years, the number of applicants for art colleges with Yue Opera majors across the country has increased year by year. Shengzhou Yue Opera Art School (嵊州越剧艺术学校) enrolls nearly 100 students every year, including full-time professional classes and "opera fan classes" open to the public. This year, the school welcomed students from 18 provinces and cities to apply, with an admission rate of less than 9%. This popularity just shows the attractiveness of Yue Opera to young people.

To cultivate the next generation, we must start with children. Shengzhou has realized the coverage of Yue Opera education from folk opera troupes to professional colleges, from basic teaching to higher education. 117 primary and secondary schools in the city have opened Yue Opera interest classes, and the coverage rate of "Yue Opera entering campus" has reached 100%.

Lu Xiaotian (卢笑恬), who was born and raised in Shengzhou (嵊州) after 00s, accidentally heard opera fans singing Yue Opera when her mother went to the barber shop to wash her hair, and she had the idea of letting her daughter learn opera. From participating in the opera performance competition of the National Vocational College Skills Competition to the Zhejiang Youth Opera Actors Competition and the program "Yue Opera in Youth," various platforms have built a ladder for her growth. Now, she has become a young actress at the Shanghai Yue Opera Theatre (上海越剧院). Lu Xiaotian said: "I have caught up with a very good era. This is an era of innovation, an era of trusting the younger generation and letting them do it."

What is even more gratifying is that more and more young actors are choosing to take root in the grassroots and serve the people. Xiong Lianfen (熊莲芬) did not choose to stay in the urban troupe, but founded the Jiaojiang Yueyi Yue Opera Troupe (椒江越艺越剧团). In the past three years, the troupe has performed more than 300 days a year, with as many as 600 performances. "The conditions of private opera troupes are difficult, but they are closest to the audience. Those sitting under the stage are the people who understand and love opera the most," said Xiong Lianfen.

Cui Wei (崔伟) said: "The Yue Opera actor team presents a unique composition of youthfulness, grassroots, and localization. This is a very good signal. If young people are willing to come, stay, and sing, Yue Opera will have a future."

Innovation empowers, daring to break boundaries and adapt to contemporary aesthetics.

"Hey, look at this official, he's so handsome, please follow me here." Along Daiwang Road (戴望路) and up the Panshan Mountain, the immersive Yue Opera "Dreaming Back to the Grand View Garden (梦回大观园)" of the Shengzhou Yue Opera Art School (嵊州越剧艺术学校) is being staged. As soon as the audience steps into the garden gate, they become "people in the play" - "Granny Liu (刘姥姥)" guides the audience through the Lotus Root Fragrance Pavilion (藕香榭) and the Nine-Turn Bridge (九曲桥), and the actors perform the Baodai story around them. Audience member He Xiaoyang (何晓阳) said: "The experience of this play is really novel."

Breaking the boundaries of the traditional proscenium stage and innovating the performance form, "Dreaming Back to the Grand View Garden" allows the audience to interact with the actors in the garden scene, realizing the upgrade from "watching" to "experiencing," and giving Yue Opera a more immersive viewing experience. Since its premiere in April 2025, it has been performed more than 60 times, attracting more than 8,000 viewers.

Innovation is another key word for the inheritance and development of Yue Opera. "Along the way, Yue Opera has been brave in exploring and boldly innovating," said Mao Weitao (茅威涛), vice chairman of the China Theatre Association and honorary president of the Zhejiang Xiaobaihua Yue Opera Troupe (浙江小百花越剧院).

From the initial male class performance to the rise of women's Yue Opera, and then to the innovation of male and female co-performance; from absorbing the nutrients of Kunqu Opera and drama art to integrating modern technology and communication methods, Yue Opera has always been innovating in adherence to tradition and developing in innovation. Entering the new era, Yue Opera keeps up with the pace of the times, adapts to contemporary aesthetics, and realizes the development of breaking the circle.

"Qiantang Li (钱塘里)" is rooted in urban life and focuses on ordinary people in the market; "New Dragon Inn (新龙门客栈)" breaks the boundaries of the traditional stage and creates an immersive viewing experience; "The Love of the Walnut Tree (核桃树之恋)" integrates the great love of the country and family with ordinary warmth... Yue Opera plays are constantly exploring innovation, conforming to the aesthetics of the times and the needs of the audience.

Innovation is not only reflected in play creation and stage presentation, but also in communication methods.

Yue Opera is one of the earliest opera genres to "touch the Internet." From the early opera film "Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai (梁山伯与祝英台)" to today's short videos, live broadcasts, and online broadcasts, Yue Opera has always been at the forefront of opera communication. Following the wave of the integrated media era, young actors have entered the live broadcast room to sing classic excerpts and share opera knowledge, breaking the limitations of time and space, allowing more people to feel the charm of Yue Opera without leaving home. Plays such as "New Dragon Inn" have been spread through the Internet, allowing Yue Opera to enter the public's view from the traditional opera fan circle and become a "national trend art" loved by young people.

Song Guanlin (宋官林), former president of the China National Peking Opera Company (中国国家京剧院), said: "The reason why Yue Opera can 'break the circle' is that it dares to break boundaries and dares to cross-border integration. It asks Kunqu Opera for elegance, borrows characters from drama, learns narration from movies, and borrows strength from modern technology."

The "Three-Year Action Plan for Drama Revitalization (2026-2028)" clearly proposes to "promote technology to empower drama creation and communication," which opens up unlimited imagination space for the inheritance and innovation of Yue Opera.

This spring, the Hangzhou Yue Opera Theatre (杭州越剧院) took classic plays such as "Jingchai Ji (荆钗记)," "Five Daughters Paying Birthday Wishes (五女拜寿)," and "A Thread of Hemp (一缕麻)" to the countryside for continuous performances. All the plays were selected by the villagers themselves. On the stage, famous artists sang heartily; next to the stage, the food market was full of fragrance. On and off the stage, inside and outside the play, it was lively. "We want to let Yue Opera 'grow' in the village and also 'fly' to the cloud," said Du Xiaojing (杜晓晶), president of the Hangzhou Yue Opera Theatre, hoping to allow traditional opera to break through the limitations of time and space, attract young groups, and empower rural development.

The innovation of Yue Opera is moving from "single-point breakthrough" to "systematic promotion." Yang Xiaoqing (杨小青), vice president of the China Opera Directors Association, believes: "Innovation is not the goal, but the means. True innovation is to make Yue Opera adapt to the development of the times, coordinate with modern society, and conform to the aesthetics of the public under the premise of respecting artistic laws."

After 120 years, why is Yue Opera still "young"? Its roots are deeply rooted in the fertile soil of the folk; its branches extend to the sky of the times; its flowers bloom in the hearts of generations.

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The life of art lies in encountering its audience. (Humanities Salon)

By: 王 瑞

What is Yue Opera? Some say Yue Opera is a wisp of misty rain in Jiangnan, gentle and melodious; some say Yue Opera is a woman's innermost thoughts, delicate and graceful. After generations of inheritance, Yue Opera art, with its lively and beautiful character, has become a representative of lyrical and freehand aesthetics in Chinese drama. In recent years, Yue Opera works have successfully "broken the circle" and attracted a large number of young audiences.

The life of art lies in meeting the audience. Over the past 120 years, Yue Opera has been able to move people's hearts through time because of its sincere emotions and exquisite skills; Yue Opera has been able to remain fresh through wind and rain because it is rooted in the countryside, responds to the times, and adheres to integrity and innovation.

The inheritance of an art requires not only wonderful presentations on the stage, but also profound academic support. After 120 years of development, Yue Opera has accumulated rich artistic practice, classic repertoires, and educational experience, but compared with mature art disciplines, its discipline, academic, and theoretical construction still has room for improvement. Zhejiang Conservatory of Music (浙江音乐学院) and Shengzhou (嵊州) jointly established the Yue Opera Academy, hoping to build a sustainable development talent and academic foundation for this art that has gone through two Jiazi cycles. Systematically sorting out the vocal system of Yue Opera, deeply studying the performing aesthetics of Yue Opera, sorting out repertoire genes, and exploring creation rules will provide solid disciplinary and academic support for Yue Opera's creation practice and talent training.

The revitalization of opera depends on people. The talent training of Yue Opera art inspires us that opera talent training should not only adhere to the inherent inheritance of art, and protect the essence of schools and stage charm; but also should be based on the needs of the times, integrate modern education concepts and digital technology methods, and cultivate compound talents with profound artistic skills, academic literacy, and innovative capabilities. At the same time, art talent training should integrate theory and practice, so that stage experience can rise to academic thinking, and academic achievements can feed back into stage practice.

Repertoire is the foundation of a drama genre. Over the past century, Yue Opera has accumulated classic works such as "Liang Zhu," "Dream of the Red Chamber," and "Sister Xianglin." Literary and art workers must continuously delve into life and take root in the people, on the one hand, drawing nourishment from the excellent traditional Chinese culture and the realistic soil to create new works with profound thoughts, exquisite art, and excellent production, and on the other hand, creatively adapting traditional classics, retaining the essence, and appropriately innovating, so that old plays can be revitalized and new plays can become classics.

Yue Opera's gentle and lyrical artistic characteristics and humanistic story expression are deeply loved by audiences at home and abroad. In order to allow Yue Opera to go to a wider world and meet more audiences, Shengzhou (嵊州) has built 260 "Love Yue Opera Stations" around the world, gathering more than 13,000 opera fans, making Yue Opera a bridge for artistic exchanges between Chinese and foreign operas. Next, it is necessary to continue to build a platform for connecting hearts through art, carefully polish a batch of high-quality repertoires suitable for overseas dissemination, learn from international advanced art education and drama research experience, tell Chinese stories well, convey oriental aesthetics, and let the century-old Yue Opera shine more brilliantly on the international stage.

For 120 years, the water sleeves have been fluttering, tailoring the misty rain of Jiangnan; for generations, the clappers have been humming, singing all the emotions of the world. It is hoped that with the spirit of **各美其美，美美与共** (gè měi qí měi, měi měi yǔ gòng - "each appreciates its own beauty, and appreciates the beauty of others," a harmonious coexistence where different cultures appreciate each other's unique qualities), Yue Opera can dialogue with opera genres from all over the country, allowing the world to deeply experience the unique charm of oriental aesthetics.

(The author is the President of Zhejiang Conservatory of Music (浙江音乐学院))

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Even Hemp Can Be Embroidered Splendidly (Inheritance)

By: 本报记者 杨颜菲

"Xiabu Embroidery, commonly known as "linen embroidery," has a long history in Jiangxi (江西) folk art. The old saying, "Embroidering on linen is too difficult," highlights the challenges Xiabu Embroidery once faced. Xiabu is stiff and rough, making it difficult to embroider on, and mastering the needle and thread is no easy task. However, in the Xiabu Embroidery Museum of Xinyu (新余), Jiangxi (江西), Xiabu Embroidery shines with a unique and exquisite artistic brilliance. The double-sided embroidery *Beauty Parade* (丽人行) has identical patterns on both sides, except for the signature and seal. *Jiangxi, Land So Rich in Beauty* (江西如此多娇) embroiders a magnificent and profound artistic conception. *Homes by Fairy Lake* (仙女湖畔人家) cleverly utilizes the natural texture of ramie woven into Xiabu, giving the picture an ink-like rendering effect...

"These are all representative works of Zhang Xiaohong (张小红), a Chinese arts and crafts master." As a representative inheritor of intangible cultural heritage Xiabu Embroidery and winner of the 2025 New Era Youth Pioneer Award, Wu Wanjing (吴婉菁) introduced that Zhang Xiaohong (张小红) has devoted herself to improving the Xiabu material and innovated six unique needle techniques, such as transparent virtual-real stitch, layered stitch, and sesame stitch, giving contemporary folk linen embroidery a unique artistic value.

On the second floor of the museum, in Wu Wanjing's (吴婉菁) office, several colorful trendy toys, each with a different shape, are wearing carefully embroidered Xiabu Embroidery "little clothes." Some are embroidered with blue and white entwined lotus patterns, simple and elegant; some are adorned with lively geometric patterns, fashionable and playful; and some are wearing Xiabu cheongsams with bold color schemes. These modern cultural and creative products wearing "ten-thousand-year linen clothes" silently tell the wonderful collision of tradition and trend.

In 2014, seeing Zhang Xiaohong (张小红) devote her life savings to building the Xiabu Embroidery Museum, Wu Wanjing (吴婉菁) was deeply moved and shocked, and resolutely resigned from her stable bank job to devote herself to the inheritance of Xiabu Embroidery. "I majored in fine arts, so it's a good fit for my profession."

Starting from scratch with an embroidery needle was a new challenge for Wu Wanjing (吴婉菁), who was used to typing on a keyboard and holding a paintbrush. She started with the basics of threading a needle. "You have to understand every stitch and every thread of Xiabu Embroidery, and understand its texture and its temperament," Wu Wanjing (吴婉菁) said.

On the other side of the office, there is both a traditional embroidery frame and a "laboratory" full of whimsical ideas: a genuine leather handbag with a simple design, where the Xiabu Embroidery in the details is the finishing touch; a suit that cleverly contrasts Xiabu with different fabrics, with a neat cut; a delicate Xiabu Embroidery ornament with built-in speakers that stream pleasant music...

"I am not only an inheritor of intangible cultural heritage, but also a 'broker' of Xiabu Embroidery," Wu Wanjing (吴婉菁) said. She is adept at short videos, live broadcasts, and design research courses... At the Xiannv Lake (仙女湖) Marathon in Xinyu (新余), 10,000 Xiabu Embroidery cultural and creative products flowed in all directions with the runners.

Nowadays, many intangible cultural heritage projects face realistic challenges such as the aging of inheritors and narrow market paths. Wu Wanjing (吴婉菁) has provided an answer through more than 10 years of exploration: adhere to craftsmanship, continue the cultural heritage, and promote intangible cultural heritage into modern life and onto a broader stage.

"Intangible cultural heritage should not just be 'antiques' admired in display cases. It should live in the present and be trendy in the present," Wu Wanjing (吴婉菁) said.

Wu Wanjing (吴婉菁) leads her team in cross-border attempts in product design: clothing, pillows, bags, stationery, trendy toy clothing... "Every time a creative idea comes to fruition, I feel a strong sense of accomplishment, and the process is also a lot of fun!" Her eyes sparkled with love, "But innovation must be upright." Integrating modern design, what changes is the form and carrier, but what remains unchanged is the handmade warmth and craftsmanship. Behind every product is still the exquisite workmanship of the embroiderers, stitch by stitch.

In the Xiabu Embroidery Training Center within the Xiabu Embroidery Museum, Gao Yucui's (高雨翠) embroidery needle weaves through the Xiabu, and a landscape sketch gradually takes shape. This girl, who graduated from a school for the deaf and mute, has been learning from Wu Wanjing (吴婉菁) since 2023. Over the years, her needlework has become more and more skilled. Now Gao Yucui (高雨翠) is a full-time embroiderer, and her works have won awards in national competitions.

The inheritance of intangible cultural heritage is not a solitary journey, but a relay race. Wu Wanjing (吴婉菁) uses various methods such as "master-apprentice" teaching, organizing Xiabu Embroidery to enter schools, communities, and villages to cultivate Xiabu Embroidery inheritors, and accepting unemployed women, people with hearing impairments, and others to learn Xiabu Embroidery. "Inheriting the skills also gives them the skills and dignity to make a living." Currently, there are more than a dozen full-time embroiderers in the embroidery workshop, and about 100 flexible employees.

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Editor in Charge of This Section: Wang Jue

Layout design: Zhang Fangman (张芳曼)

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Aesthetic Enlightenment, Moving Towards the Light

Beauty is not a decoration, but an awakening.

Childhood is closest to beauty. A flower, a ray of light, the sound of a bird, can all make a child open their eyes wide, prick up their ears, and stop in their tracks. The enlightenment of beauty is to protect this initial curiosity and excitement about the world, allowing beauty to become a way for children to know themselves and approach the world. This is the essence of "cultivating people with beauty"—planting beauty in the heart, and the child will naturally move towards the light.

On the eve of the "June 1st" International Children's Day, this edition specially invites 5 experts and scholars to tell you about the enlightenment of beauty: "Teaching without teaching" allows creation to happen naturally; "Can't Live Without" leads us to rediscover indispensable love and warmth; creating for children brings all-round spiritual nourishment; caring for "children of the stars" lets us see another possibility of art.

May the enlightenment of beauty become beams of light, illuminating the way forward for every child.

--Editor

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"Unlocking the Secrets of Children's Aesthetic Education Through 'Teaching Without Teaching' (Art Talk)"

By: 谢丽芳

A young child looking at the world with wide eyes may be full of curiosity, but when they pick up a pen to paint, their expression is particularly determined. Painting, as a child's "second language," is a spiritual companion that accompanies their growth. Emotions and subconscious thoughts that cannot be expressed in words can be presented through painting. Children inherently possess unlimited potential for natural growth, and painting allows children's unconstrained imagination and creativity to be fully released. This is the unique power of aesthetic education.

Adhering to a child-centered approach, following the natural growth patterns and psychological characteristics of children, and safeguarding creativity through "teaching without teaching" is the philosophy I uphold in children's aesthetic education. In the 1990s, based on more than 10 years of art teaching and research on children's painting, I compiled and published "Children's Creative Painting" and held the "Contemporary Children's Art Exploration Exhibition" at the China Art Museum (中国美术馆), where the advocacy of the "teaching without teaching" educational philosophy sparked widespread discussion. Later, I compiled nearly 40 years of urban and rural practice research into the "Children's Art Enlightenment 'Teaching Without Teaching' Series." "Teaching without teaching" is not only a teaching method but also an educational attitude—respecting the true nature of children's lives and their self-initiation and self-expression in artistic creation.

Art is essentially a reflection of the human spirit of creation. Do not underestimate early childhood art; they are the first to use images to recognize and depict the world. In reality, many adults often judge children's paintings based on fixed perceptions and whether they "look alike," which easily overlooks the emotional expression of children in art creation and suppresses children's enterprising spirit of daring to express themselves. It should be known that children always create with creative thinking, and painting skills are not the priority. When a child draws one eye to represent one person watching or five eyes to represent five people watching, they are weaving new stories.

It can be seen that children's aesthetic education should not be reduced to mere technical training but should allow children to explore art and grow happily in games. The key to aesthetic education is to abandon the mechanical imparting of techniques and create an environment that awakens imagination and stimulates creativity, helping children to fully develop their abilities to perceive, understand, express, and appreciate beauty. This is also why I have always opposed children's art grading examinations.

Folk art is a good resource for fully stimulating children's creativity and imagination. I have been conducting in-depth investigations in rural areas for a long time and deeply realize the lack of awareness and utilization of aesthetic education resources for children in rural areas. In 2003, under the background of the national basic education curriculum reform, the "Dandelion Action" (蒲公英行动) children's art education special project was launched in Xiangxi (湘西), Hunan (湖南). As the host of the "Dandelion Action," I and a group of like-minded people introduced folk art into Xiangxi rural schools to explore a sustainable development path combining children's art and folk art.

With the joint assistance of the project expert group and university volunteers, a large number of backbone art teachers grew rapidly. From Xiangxi to western Sichuan (川西), from Inner Mongolia (内蒙古) to Yunnan (云南), the rich and colorful traditional folk customs, folk skills, historical stories, and other local cultural resources have entered the classroom and become a highlight of campus cultural construction. Many classic cases have emerged during this period: In Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture (西双版纳傣族自治州), Yunnan, project expert Wu Shangxue (吴尚学) used the Dai slow-wheel pottery technique and brocade weaving, which have a history of more than 4,000 years, as media to create a campus culture with unique ethnic characteristics for Menglong Town Central Primary School (勐龙镇中心小学); in Lixian County (澧县), Changde (常德), Hunan, one of the birthplaces of world rice civilization, volunteers from Capital Normal University (首都师范大学) joined hands with the Xishang Art Museum (溪上美术馆) and other organizations to lead the children of Ganxitan Town Central Primary School (甘溪滩镇中心小学) to complete the course "Meeting 'Rice' a Grain of Rice" (遇“稻”一粒米). Transforming locally accessible materials into art works can effectively enhance children's recognition of national culture and stimulate their interest in art learning. Today, the "Dandelion Action" has successively covered 14 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities, and nearly 100 experimental schools, becoming the public welfare project for children's art education with the largest number of participants and the widest coverage in China. Ninety-seven excellent lesson examples from the project have been included in the Ministry of Education's (教育部) supporting book "Folk Art" for the "Sports, Art 2+1 Project."

Playing is children's nature. Returning to the nature of games and awakening children's artistic instincts in play is an important direction for us to explore children's aesthetic education. In order to study the characteristics of children's handmade games, we went to Xishuangbanna (西双版纳) to observe the process of children creating, playing, and frolicking. Their agile imagination and problem-solving abilities made us marvel at the innate creativity of children. In subsequent children's aesthetic education practices, we consciously used interesting game designs to allow children to experience creative handcrafting and feel the charm of art.

Art is the external expression of life's emotions and an effective way of healing the soul. For a long time, we have also been exploring the combination of aesthetic education and mental health education. After the Wenchuan earthquake (汶川地震), Wu Shangxue (吴尚学) and I rushed to the disaster area as soon as possible to comfort the hearts of the affected children with art classes. Facing the juvenile female prisoners who were deeply trapped in emotional distress, we used painting to help them relieve their emotions, allowing their unspeakable repentance, longing, pain, and anxiety to be alleviated. The preciousness of art therapy lies in its complete acceptance and release of all emotions.

Entering the era of intelligence and information, the Internet has reshaped people's lives, and independent thinking, innovation ability, and emotional experience have become increasingly precious. Art, as a carrier of children's aesthetic education, plays an increasingly important role in cultivating children's cognitive abilities and social participation abilities, and has been recognized by society. Adhering to a child-centered approach, integrating local culture, relying on the nature of games, and taking into account spiritual nourishment are the characteristics that children's aesthetic education in the new era should have. Safeguarding children's innocence and creativity, and letting art accompany every child to grow up towards the sun, is our unchanging original intention in carrying out children's aesthetic education.

(The author is the former deputy director of the Children's Art Art Committee of the China Artists Association (中国美术家协会))

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"Child's Play" Contains "Great Art"

By: 黄一迁

As the "June 1st" International Children's Day approaches, various regions have successively launched distinctive children's art exhibitions. Among them, the Shanghai Art Museum's "'Art' Together Childhood: A Century of Chinese Children's Art Touring Exhibition" has attracted widespread attention, with many viewers leaving messages expressing deep emotion. As the curator, I am both moved and gratified, moved by the long-term neglect of the value of children's art, and gratified that the efforts made to make children's art visible have been rewarded.

Children's art, in the general sense, has two different directions of understanding: one is the art works created by children themselves, and the other is the art works created by artists with children as the subject or for children. After the founding of New China (新中国), the latter had a glorious history, but today when the concept of children's art is mentioned, most people are familiar with the former. The "'Art' Together Childhood" exhibition focuses on the latter, and through systematically梳理梳理 (shū lǐ - "combing," to sort out) the century-old history of Chinese children's art, it re-examines the meaning and value of children's art with the audience.

Reviewing the century-old history of Chinese children's art helps to consider how to cultivate aesthetic awareness, enhance cultural consciousness, and strengthen cultural confidence through children's art in the process of Chinese-style modernization. As early as the 1920s, a group of enlightened people paid attention to the necessity of creating excellent art works for children. Zheng Zhenduo (郑振铎) once expressed his heartfelt feelings in the preface to *The Swan (Fairy Tale Collection)*: "For children's books, illustrations are indispensable." Feng Zikai (丰子恺) created illustrations for primary and secondary school textbooks, Xu Dungu (许敦谷) drew a large number of covers and illustrations for *Children's World* magazine... After the founding of New China (新中国), Lu Bing (鲁兵) also said in *Zuojia Erji*: "Publications like *Xiaopengyou* (小朋友) [Little Friend] undoubtedly should take on the task of conducting aesthetic education for children, which is the connotation, more important than the appearance."

Indeed, children's art is an important carrier for imparting knowledge, cultivating the mind, enlightening education, and edifying aesthetics to children. Guan Liang (关良), Lin Fengmian (林风眠), Zhang Leping (张乐平), Cheng Shifa (程十发), He Youzhi (贺友直), Huang Yongyu (黄永玉), Huang Zhou (黄胄), Hua Sanchuan (华三川), Liu Danzhai (刘旦宅), Shi Dawei (施大畏) and other generations of artists have worked hard to create illustrations, cartoons, wall charts, picture books, comic strips, picture books, animated films, etc., using pure language to convey deep humanistic care. For example, He Yanrong's (何艳荣) wall chart *Baby's Day* guides young children to develop good behavior habits from an early age. The cartoon "Sanmao" series, *Haihong*, *Xiaohuzi* and other educational works have accompanied generations of children to grow up. Animated films convey educational concepts with vivid and interesting images and imaginative stories: *Little Cat Fishing* warns children to be focused on doing things, *No Brains and Unhappy* (partial hand-painted draft shown in the picture) reflects the weaknesses in human behavior, and *Pillow Fight* expresses reflection on filial piety, etc.

Some people say that children's art is "child's play" (小儿科), but "child's play" is not small, and behind it lies "great art," which affects a generation's aesthetic foundation and personality development. Over the past century, art workers have widely drawn nourishment from outstanding Chinese traditional culture, constantly enriching the content and themes and aesthetic conception of children's art, making this small world an important garden to help children enhance their cultural consciousness and strengthen their cultural confidence. The illustrations in newspapers and periodicals such as *Shaonian Wenyi* (少年文艺) [Youth Literature and Art] and *Tonghua Bao* (童话报) [Fairy Tale Newspaper] mostly adopt the form of cartoons, reflecting the light of thought in simplicity. Ma Rujin's (马如瑾) comic strip *Kuafu Chasing the Sun* draws on the colorful colors and exaggerated deformation techniques of Dunhuang murals, and also draws on the tall and majestic style of Yungang Grottoes sculptures, bringing a dignified and gorgeous aesthetic feeling to young readers. Animated films find inspiration from traditional paintings, folk art, and even hieroglyphs, forming the world-renowned "Chinese Animation School."

For the narration of national spirit and traditional culture, children's art is a natural and unpretentious carrier that is easily and happily accepted by people. From ancient Chinese fables, myths, classic literature, to folk legends and ethnic minority customs, children's art encompasses everything. The comic strip *Two Scouts*, the animated films *Little Trumpeter* and *Prairie Heroic Sisters*, etc., all convey the spirit of strong and brave resistance. The national righteousness and indomitable spirit flowing in the blood of the Chinese people, expressed in the language of childlike innocence, are more pure and sincere, not only touching children, but also infecting every adult.

Today, the country is paying more and more attention to children's aesthetic education, and what children's art guards is the initial curiosity, imagination and desire for expression. Therefore, we are studying children's art again today in order to make it visible and valued; in order to dedicate truth, goodness and beauty to children with the pen of the new era, and to replace "radish knives" and "Natasha"-style decompression with warm, beautiful, naive and humorous artistic beauty to enrich children's hearts; and even more for the sake of a country and a nation's brilliant future.

(The author is an associate professor at the Shanghai Film Academy of Shanghai University (上海大学上海电影学院)).

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Youthful strokes, painting a myriad of childlike visions.

By: 潘丽萍

Just as childhood cannot be separated from toys, picture books are also indispensable companions in children's growth. What kind of picture books should be created for children? How can picture books build a bridge to communicate with the world? Not long ago, the China Artists Association's "Youth Partner Program" – the "100 Children's Picture Book Creation" project's outstanding achievements were showcased at the 63rd Bologna Children's Book Fair in Italy, opening a window of observation with a youthful perspective, youthful thinking, and youthful creation.

Picture books with both text and illustrations are high-quality media for immersing children's minds, awakening their perception, and promoting their emotional development. The realization of these functions depends on the cultural propositions, content narratives, and aesthetic expressions of picture books. As a "seed project" for cultivating children's picture book creation talents, the third phase of the "100 Children's Picture Book Creation" project has been launched. The project brings together young art forces from all over the country, and through professional training, guides creators to innovate and create on the basis of deeply cultivating local culture. Deeply cultivating local culture does not mean transforming folk songs and ballads, nor does it mean simply packaging them with traditional art forms, but rather effectively transforming the essence of local culture with modern aesthetics. For example, "The Balloon," which uses poetic ink painting to interpret nostalgia and family affection, and "The Legend of Qianjiadong (千家峒的传说)," which tells the story of history with the beauty of ethnic art, both demonstrate the value pursuits and innovative explorations of young creators.

The most difficult part of picture book creation is to express "meaning" with "pictures" and to be close to children's hearts. Times are different, and children's needs for spiritual nourishment are also different. To be close to children's hearts, it is necessary to perceive the world from a child's perspective and to transform abstract values into colors and images that children can perceive and understand. In this regard, young people have unique advantages—they have a deeper understanding of the current era, a closer psychological distance to children, and are more likely to perceive the inner world and aesthetic needs of contemporary children. From the outstanding picture books exhibited this time, it can be seen that young creators provide spiritual nourishment for children with active thinking and bold exploration. "Grandpa Li's Garden" integrates the artistic style and modeling language of shadow puppetry, telling the story of shadow puppeteer "Grandpa Li (李爷爷)" touring a Chinese garden composed of shadow puppets, which is full of the simple charm of traditional gardens and the fantastic fun of fairy tales; "Firefly" (partial view in the picture) uses delicate brushstrokes and rich pictures to cleverly express the process of fireflies exploring the world and perceiving light step by step, allowing love and courage to light up children's growth path.

Picture books can not only nourish children's hearts but also promote exchanges and mutual learning between different civilizations. As Elena Pasoli, Director of the Bologna Children's Book Fair in Italy, said, "World readers are eager to learn more about China (中国)." Today, Chinese children's picture books are also committed to building a bridge to communicate with the world. Western and Chinese audiences have different acceptance habits for pictures and texts, and young artists are trying to create works with Eastern cultural charm in an international cultural context. For example, "The Chinese Dragon Painted for Children" subverts the Western traditional narrative's perception of "dragon" as representing danger and aggression, and shapes a peaceful and magnificent "Chinese Dragon (中国龙)."

Children's picture books shoulder the important task of cultural inheritance and aesthetic innovation, and young art creators are an important force in promoting the inheritance and innovation of outstanding Chinese traditional culture in the tide of technological iteration. Adhering to Chinese cultural values, following children's reading habits, and conveying truth, goodness, and beauty in appropriate forms, Chinese children's picture books will accompany children's healthy growth with more colorful appearances and novel forms.

(The author is a professor at Beijing Institute of Graphic Communication (北京印刷学院))

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"Cannot do without" - Words of childlike innocence (Reading paintings)

By: 杨 忠

Childhood is the most beautiful time in life, revealing the most authentic state of being. Artist Cai Gao (蔡皋), affectionately known as "Grandma Treasure" by readers, in her latest work "Can't Do Without" (partial view shown in the picture), constructs an aesthetic world where childlike innocence and philosophical thinking are perfectly blended, using simple and heartfelt language and highly infectious imagery.

Cai Gao's (蔡皋) artistic path has always been permeated with a unique creative view—to go deep and come out simple, pursuing authenticity. She once said, "A good picture book has no absolute aesthetic standards. Only by grasping the core and key of the content, and then discussing the techniques of presentation, the rhythm of language expression, and the author's characteristics and style, can it be more valuable and meaningful." Her artistic life originates from the rural areas of Hunan (湖南). The nourishment of the land allows her to still hear the most subtle voices in children's hearts in her later years, and to transform those childlike words into "Can't Do Without," which is full of philosophical thought.

"Can't Do Without" is a perfect example of "living childlike innocence" in the sense of child psychology, which began with a casual conversation between Cai Gao (蔡皋) and her grandson. Psychologist Jean Piaget once pointed out that children in the pre-operational stage have a "animistic" characteristic in their thinking, that is, they regard inanimate objects as having emotions and intentions like themselves. The sentence "Can't do without clouds. Without clouds, who will be the little quilt for the stars and the little pillow for the moon" in the work is an accurate presentation of this animistic thinking. The entire work unfolds in a series of "Can't do without..." sentences, corresponding to the way children explore the world with repetitive language. From the sun to the clouds, from the door to the mirror, from "I" to "you" and then to "him," this progressive process is not a rational logical deduction, but a way for children to understand the world through their own perceptions. Children's eyes are often clearer than adults', and Cai Gao (蔡皋) uses the hands of an adult to collect the voices of children's hearts. Therefore, "Can't Do Without" is not only a work for children, but also a mirror for adults, reminding them to listen carefully to those seemingly simple but profound childlike sounds.

Beneath the appearance of childlike innocence, "Can't Do Without" is wrapped in an extremely profound philosophical core. The work unfolds with the double negative sentence pattern of "Can't do without," guiding the reader's attention to those beautiful things that are often overlooked. The assumption of "Can't do without" contains "having," everything that this world should possess. This dialectical thinking of expressing affirmation with double negation and salvaging precious things from the missing parts contains the profound wisdom of "existence and non-existence arising from each other" (有无相生 - yǒu wú xiāng shēng - "existence and non-existence arise together," the idea that seemingly opposite concepts are interdependent and give rise to each other) in classical Chinese philosophy.

However, Cai Gao's (蔡皋) thinking did not stop at the poetic discovery of natural things. When the work shifts from natural things such as wind, rain, and snow to everyday things such as "Can't do without a door" and "Can't do without delicious food," the philosophical perspective shifts from "cosmology" to "life theory." When the work transitions to "Can't do without you, can't do without me, can't do without him," it completes the narrative from the dimension of nature to the dimension of the individual, from personal monologue to the co-existence of others.

The painting style of "Can't Do Without," like its text, practices the aesthetic pursuit of "simplifying complexity" (删繁就简 - shān fán jiù jiǎn - "simplify the complicated," to simplify something by removing unnecessary details). Cai Gao (蔡皋) uses Chinese ink painting as the background, integrates simple and vivid folk aesthetics, and reconstructs daily life from a warm and healing children's perspective. Unlike the complex and delicate details of her earlier works such as "Bao'er" and "The Story of Peach Blossom Spring," the pictures in "Can't Do Without" present a flowing rhythm and a sense of freedom—the brushstrokes are light and powerful, the composition is sparse and the overall atmosphere is coherent. This simplification is precisely the author's artistic self-awareness of returning to simplicity after years of polishing.

In terms of color application, Cai Gao (蔡皋) creates a warm, harmonious, and vibrant visual atmosphere through layers of gradual ink rendering. Every stroke of color is imbued with the painter's affection for the objects under her brush. What is particularly valuable is her modern transformation of the spirit of traditional painting's blank space. In "Can't Do Without," the blank space is given the aesthetic function of dialogue and imagination: the empty space in the picture is like a breathing space on the canvas, inviting the eyes of young readers to wander freely in it and engage in a silent aesthetic dialogue with the world presented in the picture. The entire work is like a carefully choreographed visual drama: the text becomes a gentle narration, the picture becomes the main body of the performance, and the space between the pictures and text is the stage left for the audience's imagination. This aesthetic creation forms a resonant relationship between language and image—the text injects soul into the picture, and the picture extends the artistic conception of the text.

Cai Gao (蔡皋) has practiced her grandmother's saying "One seedling of rainwater, one seedling of rice" (一蔸雨水一蔸禾 - yī dōu yǔ shuǐ yī dōu hé - "one clump of rainwater, one clump of rice," every bit of effort yields a corresponding result) throughout her life's creation. She regards life as the biggest book, reading, recording, and feeling with her heart, and finally, in her old age, she has handed over the simplicity and sincerity of Chinese picture books to the world. As she said, when you feel the warmth of light, people will unconsciously pursue it and run towards happiness. "Can't Do Without" is that beam of warm light.

(The author is an associate professor at the Central Academy of Fine Arts (中央美术学院).)

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Decoding the Language of Stars

By: 李 妮

Basking in the bright sunshine, an exhibition without walls—the "Under the Same Sun" 2026 Guangxi Special Needs Children's Public Art Exhibition and Nanning Autism Children's Urban Cultural Art Exhibition—was held in Nanning (南宁). Seventeen public art pieces collectively created by children with autism and other special needs children are scattered throughout the Xinyang Petrochemical Lane (新阳·石化里) Better Life Block, illuminating the city's corners and allowing people to understand the language of the "stars" through the eyes of art, stepping into the depths of their souls.

Children with autism are called "children of the stars." For them, art is the most effective healing and the gentlest communication. Compared to rehabilitation training using equipment and language, immersive art creation is more inclusive and healing, helping children grow physically and mentally from multiple dimensions such as emotion, perception, behavior, and concentration.

The "children of the stars" are not good at speaking, but they use colors and handicrafts to express their inner voices. Colorful colors and free creation fully ignite their interest in exploration, allowing them to change from passive training to active participation, gradually improving their self-enclosed state. "Wings of Dreams" (以梦为翼) was collectively created by children with autism, who composed rainbow-colored wings with more than a hundred straw hats painted with colors. Color matching exercises greatly enhance children's color recognition and visual sensitivity. "Blue Light" (蓝光) is made by children painting and collaging arbitrarily on denim, and multi-material and multi-form artistic creation fully exercises children's hand touch and limb control.

The civilization of a city does not lie in the towering buildings and accessible road networks, but in the warmth of embracing vulnerable groups. In the fast-paced urban life, special needs children find it difficult to integrate into the lives of the general public, and gradually become an "invisible group" behind the city's prosperity. The "Under the Same Sun" brand project initiated by the Guangxi Mass Art Museum (广西群众艺术馆) in 2021 has always adhered to using art as a link to open a window for special needs children to integrate into society. Through five years of deep cultivation, the project has gradually upgraded from a single art exhibition to a diversified model integrating art co-creation and art therapy. This exhibition also goes out of the exhibition hall and into urban public spaces, allowing the artistic works co-created by special needs children to truly integrate into the urban fabric and enter the public's view.

Being seen is the beginning of acceptance; being recognized is the power of growth. This public art exhibition aims to allow people to further understand and accept special needs children through art. Like "Pinglu Weaving Dreams" (平陆织梦), countless twisted sticks are woven into a colorful "wall," and every passerby can't help but touch it, feeling the warmth of the soul from their fingertips; "Picking Up Light" (拾光) allows the audience to have a dialogue with the "children of the stars" by kneading and carving various emotional expressions on Nixing pottery. When their own value is recognized, these children can gradually build self-confidence and a sense of belonging.

Eliminating barriers with art and supporting growth with inclusiveness, this public art exhibition is not just an exhibition of works, but also a vivid practice of two-way spiritual healing. Each group of public art works is a silent confession of the "children of the stars" embracing the world, and also a warm imprint of urban culture. They hold up a sky for special needs children, allowing them to walk in the light and grow towards the sun.

(The author is an associate researcher at the Guangxi Mass Art Museum (广西群众艺术馆))

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This edition's editors: Xu Hongmei, Wu Yanli

This edition's email: msfk@peopledaily.cn
Layout design: Zhao Siru (赵偲汝)

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