People's Daily - August 21, 2026

Decision on Awarding Zhang Lu the "Second-Class Spaceflight Merit Medal" and Conferring the Titles of "Heroic Astronaut" on Wu Fei and Zhang Hongzhang, Along with the "Third-Class Spaceflight Merit Medal"

On October 31, 2025, the Shenzhou-21 crewed spacecraft was successfully launched, and astronauts Zhang Lu, Wu Fei, and Zhang Hongzhang piloted the spacecraft to successfully enter the Tianhe core module, where they remained in orbit for 7 months, conducted 3 extravehicular activities in succession, completed more than 110 space station construction, upgrade, maintenance, and repair tasks, carried out a series of space science experiments and technology tests, and returned safely on May 29, 2026. The Shenzhou-21 crewed flight mission is the 6th crewed flight mission since China's crewed spaceflight program entered the space station application and development phase. It set the fastest record for rendezvous and docking between a Shenzhou spacecraft and the space station, and set a new record for the longest in-orbit stay by a single crew of Chinese astronauts, marking a new step in China's aerospace industry's high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-improvement. It is of great significance for enhancing China's comprehensive national strength and the cohesion of the Chinese nation, further strengthening the national confidence and pride of all Chinese people, and inspiring the entire Party, the entire military, and people of all ethnic groups across the country to raise their fighting spirit and forge ahead with determination.
The complete success of the Shenzhou-21 crewed flight mission embodies the wisdom and hard work of the vast number of scientific and technological workers, astronauts, cadres and staff, and officers and soldiers of the People's Liberation Army. Comrades Zhang Lu, Wu Fei, and Zhang Hongzhang are outstanding representatives among them. They are devoted to the Party, loyal to their mission, fearless in the face of hardship and danger, and courageous in taking on responsibility, demonstrating to the world China's strong ambition, backbone, and confidence. Comrade Zhang Lu returned to space after two years and served as commander, conducting a total of 7 extravehicular activities and setting a new record for the number of individual extravehicular activities by a Chinese astronaut. Comrade Wu Fei, with keen进取 spirit and arduous training, conducted 3 extravehicular activities on his first spaceflight, becoming the youngest aerospace flight engineer to execute a crewed flight mission in China. Comrade Zhang Hongzhang, steady and composed with superb skills, was honorably selected as a payload specialist for the Shenzhou-21 crew and excellently completed a series of experiments oriented toward space applications. To commend their outstanding contributions to China's crewed spaceflight program, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, the State Council, and the Central Military Commission have decided to award Comrade Zhang Lu the "Second-Class Aerospace Merit Medal," and to confer upon Comrades Wu Fei and Zhang Hongzhang the honorary title of "Hero Astronaut" and award them the "Third-Class Aerospace Merit Medal."
Comrades Zhang Lu, Wu Fei, and Zhang Hongzhang are pioneers of the era who remain true to their original aspiration, keep their mission firmly in mind, and devote themselves to the lofty cause; they are models and exemplars in exploring the universe, building dreams in space, and constructing a space power. The Central Committee of the Party calls upon the entire Party, the entire military, and people of all ethnic groups across the country to take Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era as guidance, thoroughly implement the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the Party and the plenary sessions of the 20th Central Committee, earnestly implement the arrangements of the Fourth Plenary Session, deeply comprehend the decisive significance of the "Two Establishments," enhance the "Four Consciousnesses," strengthen the "Four Confidences," and achieve the "Two Upholds," unite more closely around the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, vigorously promote the spirit of the "Two Bombs, One Satellite" and the spirit of crewed spaceflight, take the commended astronauts as role models, strengthen confidence in certain victory, maintain high fighting spirit, and make unremitting efforts to comprehensively advance the building of a strong country and the great cause of national rejuvenation through Chinese-style modernization.
(Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, August 20)

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Xi Jinping Sends Congratulatory Message to Hichilema on Re-Election as President of Zambia

Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, August 20 — On August 20, President Xi Jinping sent a message to Hakainde Hichilema, congratulating him on his re-election as President of the Republic of Zambia.

Xi Jinping pointed out that in recent years, we have met twice and jointly guided the development of China-Zambia relations. The two countries' political mutual trust has continued to deepen, practical cooperation has yielded fruitful results, and the two sides have maintained close coordination and collaboration in multilateral affairs. I attach great importance to the development of China-Zambia relations and am willing to work with President Hichilema to implement the outcomes of the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, carry forward the traditional friendship, firmly support each other, continuously raise the level of mutually beneficial cooperation, and lead the China-Zambia comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership to constantly reach new heights, so as to better benefit the peoples of both countries.

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Macro policies gain momentum and efficiency

By: 本报记者 曲哲涵

On July 30, General Secretary Xi Jinping presided over a meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee. The meeting pointed out that "we should implement a more proactive fiscal policy and a moderately loose monetary policy, fully leverage the effectiveness of existing policies, promptly plan and introduce pragmatic and effective incremental policies, and intensify counter-cyclical adjustment."

Since the beginning of this year, macro policies have been exerted in advance, implemented with precision, and coordinated in synergy, effectively promoting the sustained development of the economy toward new, high-quality, and better performance. In the first half of the year, the gross domestic product reached 69.6 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 4.7%, with an increment of 3.6 trillion yuan setting a new high for the same period in the past five years. Core indicators such as employment, prices, and foreign trade operated within a reasonable range.

At present, the external environment is complex and volatile, the contradiction of strong supply and weak demand domestically is prominent, and the foundation for the economy to maintain stable growth needs to be consolidated. Macro regulation must maintain necessary intensity and respond to environmental uncertainty with policy certainty. This clear policy signal continues to boost the development confidence of the whole society.

Activating existing policies and fully utilizing the policy space

On the shore of the Yellow Sea, the construction of the Oriental Aerospace Port project in Yantai, Shandong, is in full swing. Engineering vehicles shuttle back and forth on the site, welding sparks fly, and special bonds provide solid funding guarantees for project construction. Once this land-sea integrated aerospace base is completed, it will help the development of the aerospace industry and drive the industrial transformation and upgrading of the Jiaodong region.

To implement the more proactive fiscal policy well, in the first half of the year, national general public budget expenditure increased by 1.5% year-on-year, strengthening expenditure guarantees for key areas. Newly issued special bonds totaled 2.07 trillion yuan, and a large number of major infrastructure projects are being accelerated with full force. The 200 billion yuan of ultra-long-term special treasury bond funds used to support equipment renewal have all been allocated, covering approximately 11,000 projects in 22 fields, with the leverage effect continuing to be released — in the first seven months, investment in equipment and tool purchases increased by 9.0% year-on-year, and many manufacturing enterprises have taken advantage of this momentum to complete the "renewal and upgrading" of their production lines.

Monetary policy has been implemented with precision, maintaining reasonably ample liquidity. In July, the weighted average interest rate on newly issued corporate loans was slightly below 3%, and financing costs have genuinely decreased, with more medium- and long-term funds flowing at an accelerated pace toward manufacturing, small and medium-sized enterprises, and technological innovation.

The 2026 "race" is more than half over, and many existing policies are at a critical stage of implementation and refinement — funds are going through procedures, and projects are awaiting commencement. Going forward, it is necessary to continue clearing the "last mile" of policy transmission, so that policy dividends can quickly move from "paper" to the "accounts" of enterprises and residents, and truly transform the "gold content" of policies into the "physical output" of development.

To clear the "obstructions" in implementation and continue releasing policy effectiveness — the Ministry of Finance has made clear that it will accelerate the pace of fiscal expenditure and the use of bond funds; the National Development and Reform Commission has stated that it will strengthen whole-process closed-loop management of ultra-long-term special treasury bond projects, promote the formation of more physical workload as soon as possible, and fully leverage the benefits of central government funds.

Precisely aligning with the needs of market entities and dynamically improving implementation measures. Many localities continue to improve the closed-loop handling mechanism for enterprise-related appeals and regularly collect the difficulties and bottlenecks enterprises encounter in policy implementation.

"We must fully utilize the 'self-review and self-issuance' pilot policy for special bond projects, continue to reserve and implement a batch of high-quality projects with strong investment-driving effects such as the Weifang-Suqian high-speed railway and the Lyocell fiber supporting projects, and accelerate their construction," said Hou Zhihong (侯志虹), Director of the Government Debt Management Division of the Shandong Provincial Department of Finance.

"Fully activating existing policies can amplify the effectiveness of macro regulation at a lower cost, accelerate the transformation of bond funds and tax and fee support policy dividends into effective investment and market vitality, and cultivate long-term momentum for economic development," said Li Xuhong (李旭红), Vice President of Beijing National Accounting Institute.

Strengthening counter-cyclical adjustment with pragmatic, effective, and steady measures

During this summer vacation, Xu Hao, a citizen of Wenzhou, Zhejiang, planned to buy some furniture for his home. When handling business at the Wenzhou Ouhai sub-branch of the Agricultural Bank of China, he learned that purchasing furniture could enjoy fiscal interest subsidies on consumer loans, and after applying, he received a consumer loan on the spot.

"Calculated out, I can save nearly 400 yuan in interest!" What made him even happier was that the bank staff told him that this interest subsidy policy has very broad coverage, and education and training expenditures are also included in the subsidy scope.

"Since the optimization of the fiscal interest subsidy policy for consumer loans at the beginning of the year, the number of customers applying for consumer loans has increased noticeably," said Gong Zhijian (龚志坚), General Manager of the Personal Credit Department of the Agricultural Bank of China Zhejiang Branch. In the first seven months, the bank's newly issued personal consumer loans increased by 29% year-on-year, and the cumulative personal consumer loans issued in compliance with the fiscal interest subsidy policy have reached 7 billion yuan. "Residents' willingness to consume in areas such as home renovation, car purchases, and appliance upgrades is being released at an accelerated pace, and the policy effects are tangible."

This year, counter-cyclical regulation has continued to intensify. Taking consumption promotion as an example, the central government continues to arrange ultra-long-term special treasury bond funds to support trade-in programs for consumer goods, and has optimized the implementation of the loan interest subsidy policy for service industry business entities and the fiscal interest subsidy policy for personal consumer loans. The policies broadly cover various consumption scenarios such as automobiles, home appliances, digital products, and life services. At the same time, ultra-long-term special treasury bond funds support the construction of cold-chain logistics infrastructure, the central government provides fixed subsidies for the pilot city construction of a modern commercial circulation system, and the invoice lottery pilot is being carried out in about 50 cities... Policies are working in the same direction, empowering both the supply side and the consumption side, better benefiting residents' consumption.

"Practice has proven that counter-cyclical adjustment can effectively hedge against downward pressure on the economy, expand effective domestic demand, and stabilize market confidence," said Tian Xuan (田轩), Dean of the Guanghua School of Management at Peking University. He stated that currently, economic operations face the challenges of external shocks and internal strong supply with weak demand and structural divergence, and it is very necessary to continue increasing the intensity of counter-cyclical adjustment.

Entering the second half of the year, various relevant departments have accelerated the planning, reserving, and implementation of incremental measures —

The National Development and Reform Commission is seizing the golden construction period of the third quarter to advance the planning and construction of the "six networks." According to estimates, the investment scale of the "six networks" and related key areas in 2026 is expected to exceed 7 trillion yuan;

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has successively introduced supporting policies for the digital transformation of manufacturing to promote the implementation and effectiveness of industrial upgrading policies;

The People's Bank of China has stated that it will continue to implement a moderately loose monetary policy and comprehensively use and timely adjust various monetary policy tools;

The Ministry of Commerce has made clear that it will deeply implement the special action to boost consumption, strengthen bulk consumption and service consumption, and build the "Shop in China" consumption brand...

Tian Xuan believes that for incremental policies to be "pragmatic and effective," they need to focus on the pain points of economic operations in the second half of the year and target efforts at solving prominent problems. "It is necessary to expand effective domestic demand and optimize supply by clearing bottlenecks, optimizing resource allocation, and filling shortcomings, while simultaneously stimulating the vitality of market entities, accelerating the conversion of old and new growth drivers, forming a virtuous cycle, and injecting strong momentum into the sustained development of the economy toward new, high-quality, and better performance."

Improving policy effectiveness and coordinating synergy to safeguard development

Walking into the production workshop of Yangzhou Tianjian Machinery Manufacturing Co., Ltd. in Jiangsu, a set of automated visual inspection equipment emits a crisp operating sound, with high-definition cameras scanning precisely like eagle eyes, running 24 hours a day without interruption.

"Compared with past manual inspection, this 'digital employee' has improved efficiency by 20%." Company General Manager Li Hailin (李海琳) told reporters that when the enterprise decided to carry out technological transformation in the first half of the year, it encountered funding difficulties. The "Yangchuang Loan" policy-based financial product, optimized and upgraded under the leadership of the Yangzhou Municipal Finance Bureau, precisely targeted the pain points of "light assets and expensive financing" for sci-tech innovation enterprises, and a loan of 10 million yuan was fully credited within just one month.

Not only that, the guarantee fee was directly reduced by 60,000 yuan, and the loan interest subsidy was 100,000 yuan. The Finance Bureau, together with the industry and information technology department, provided on-site guidance for applying for provincial-level "specialized, refined, distinctive, and innovative" status, and the tax department implemented the additional deduction for R&D expenses... "The fiscal, tax, and financial sectors jointly launched a policy gift package, making the enterprise's transformation path smoother." Li Hailin said that today, Tianjian Machinery has successfully entered the track of robot reducers and joint components and has become a batch supplier for leading brands in the industry.

The "chemical reaction" of coordinated policy efforts is giving birth to the fundamental transformation and iterative upgrading of countless market entities.

Practice shows that to do macro-control work well, it is necessary not only to enrich policy supply but also to optimize the way policies are implemented, enhancing the comprehensive effectiveness of policies through scientific coordination.

Adhering to systematic thinking and joining forces —

Strengthening the consistency of policy objectives, cycles, and orientations, and preventing "synthesis fallacy" in policies. For example, this year, in the governance of the pneumatic industry in Xikou Town, Fenghua District, Ningbo, Zhejiang, a cross-departmental linkage mechanism was established, and environmental enforcement adopted guided rectification, which both safeguarded the ecological bottom line and stabilized the employment of the real economy, achieving coordinated policy efforts in the same direction.

Focusing on key tasks and concentrating efforts —

Jiangxi and Sichuan have deployed consumption promotion work for the second half of the year, taking multiple measures to activate service consumption markets such as cultural tourism and housekeeping; Shanghai and Guangdong have launched supporting measures for artificial intelligence, opening up industry application scenarios... Localities are closely following the main line of high-quality development and concentrating policy resources on tackling core areas.

Improving implementation mechanisms and leaving marks with every step —

Firmly establishing and practicing a correct view of political achievements, and seizing the moment to work hard once the direction is clear. Continuously streamlining approval procedures, establishing a closed-loop mechanism of dynamic monitoring, research and evaluation, and optimization and adjustment... Truly transforming policy dividends into development increments and into people's livelihood benefits that the masses can touch and feel.

Activating existing policies, making good use of incremental tools, strengthening coordination and synergy, and firmly grasping implementation and effectiveness — these will surely strongly promote the sustained development of the economy toward new, high-quality, and better performance, and strive for a good start to the "15th Five-Year Plan."

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Zhao Leji Holds Talks with President of El Salvador's Legislative Assembly Castro

BEIJING, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) -- Zhao Leji, chairman of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, held talks with Ernesto Castro, president of the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Tuesday.

Zhao noted that Wednesday will mark the 8th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and El Salvador. Under the strategic guidance of the two countries' heads of state, bilateral relations have developed comprehensively and rapidly, with fruitful results in practical cooperation. China is willing to work with El Salvador to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, enhance mutual trust, expand exchanges, strengthen cooperation, and continuously elevate bilateral relations to a higher level.

Zhao pointed out that the two sides should deepen political mutual trust and be friends who support each other. China appreciates El Salvador's adherence to the one-China principle and its support for China's position on issues such as Taiwan and human rights. China is willing to continue working with El Salvador in the spirit of mutual respect, equality, win-win cooperation, and non-interference in each other's internal affairs to make the bilateral relationship an example of friendly cooperation between countries of different sizes and national conditions. The two sides should focus on people's livelihood and well-being, and be partners of mutual benefit and win-win results, sharing the development opportunities brought by China's continuous expansion of high-standard opening up, and deepening economic and trade cooperation. China is willing to provide assistance within its capacity for El Salvador's development. The two sides should promote people-to-people connectivity, strengthen the bonds of mutual understanding and affinity, deepen exchanges and cooperation in education, culture, media and other fields, and consolidate the public foundation for bilateral friendship. The two sides should strengthen multilateral coordination, safeguard common interests, uphold true multilateralism, maintain international fairness and justice, and promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Zhao stressed that exchanges between legislative bodies are an important part of China-El Salvador relations. The NPC of China is willing to strengthen friendly exchanges with the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador between special committees, bilateral friendship groups, NPC deputies and parliamentarians, share experience in rule of law construction, poverty reduction and development, and provide legal safeguards for practical cooperation. Zhao also introduced the fine qualities of the Communist Party of China and the situation of developing whole-process people's democracy, saying that China is willing to strengthen exchanges of governance experience with El Salvador to better support the development and revitalization of both countries.

Castro said that developing friendly relations with China is of great significance to El Salvador. Over the past eight years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two sides have respected and trusted each other and pursued mutual benefit and win-win outcomes, and the friendship between the two countries has been continuously consolidated. El Salvador is willing to work with China to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, strengthen cooperation in economic, technological, cultural and other fields, and effectively benefit the two peoples. The Legislative Assembly of El Salvador is willing to strengthen exchanges and mutual learning with the NPC of China, and build bridges for further developing bilateral relations and promoting practical cooperation.

Wang Dongming attended the talks.

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"Three-North" Project攻坚战年均完成建设任务8000万亩以上

Beijing, August 20 (Reporters Gu Zhongyang (顾仲阳), Dong Siyu (董丝雨)) — The reporter learned from the National Forestry and Grassland Administration (国家林草局): In the three years since the "Three-North" Project (三北工程) key battle was launched, an average of more than 80 million mu of construction tasks have been completed annually, and the main mid-term goals of the sixth phase plan of the "Three-North" Project have been fully achieved.

The "Three-North" Project is an important landmark project of China's ecological civilization construction. The National Forestry and Grassland Administration, together with various localities and departments, has adhered to a systematic approach and scientific governance, cumulatively arranging 88.9 billion yuan in central investment and implementing 544 key projects.

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Suzhou drives high-quality development through scientific and technological innovation

By: 本报记者 邓建胜 王伟健

At full throttle! In the newly commissioned factory of Ecovacs Robotics Co., Ltd. in the Wuzhong Economic Development Zone of Suzhou, Jiangsu, production orders for cleaning robots are already booked through December of this year, half of them from overseas markets.

With leading enterprises driving the development of upstream and downstream enterprises such as sensor manufacturers, Suzhou has gathered a cluster of robotics and intelligent manufacturing-related enterprises, going all out to build a nationally important industrial science and technology innovation highland. In the first half of the year, Suzhou's total import and export volume reached nearly 1.83 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 40.9%; the export value of Suzhou's cleaning robots reached 7.03 billion yuan, accounting for nearly 40 percent of the national total.

In July 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized during his inspection of Suzhou: "Suzhou has done very well in combining tradition and modernity, possessing not only historical and cultural heritage but also high-tech innovation and high-quality development, representing the direction of future development."

Deeply implementing the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speech, Suzhou continues its thousand-year cultural lineage, bases itself on its solid manufacturing foundation, accelerates the conversion of old and new growth drivers, drives high-quality development through scientific and technological innovation, and writes a new chapter in humanistic economics.

Entering the optics laboratory of Suzhou Huaxing Yuanchuang Technology Co., Ltd., an industrial-grade laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy online inspection device is operating at high speed. This equipment can precisely detect the safety and lifespan of lithium batteries. Today, Huaxing Yuanchuang has taken the lead in forming an innovation consortium, bringing together 12 upstream and downstream industrial chain enterprises as well as universities and research institutes to jointly tackle technical challenges.

Adhering to building the city on industry, strengthening the city with industry, and prospering the city through industry, Suzhou has created three trillion-yuan-level industries: electronic information, equipment manufacturing, and advanced materials. In the first half of this year, Suzhou achieved a gross regional product of 1,375.165 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.6 percent calculated at constant prices; the total output value of industries above designated size reached 2,501.76 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 6.9 percent, of which the output value of high-tech industries accounted for 57 percent.

"The continuous vitality of enterprises is driven by Suzhou's sustained promotion of the professionalization of industrial services, with financial resources further tilting toward the real economy, manufacturing, and high-tech industries," said Sun Yangcheng, Director of the Suzhou Municipal Development and Reform Commission.

A slender electrode lead wire about 1 millimeter in diameter travels beneath the skin, connecting intracranial contacts to a neurostimulator — this is an invasive brain-computer interface product developed by Jingyu Medical Technology (Suzhou) Co., Ltd., which fills a technical gap in the treatment of opioid addiction through non-invasive, real-time closed-loop physical regulation.

Vigorously strengthening the position of enterprises as the main body of scientific and technological innovation, Suzhou has densely deployed high-energy-level innovation platforms, continuously raising the level of transformation of scientific and technological achievements and industrialization. It not only possesses Suzhou Laboratory, 2 national technology innovation centers, and 1 national manufacturing innovation center, but has also successfully obtained approval to build a National New Generation Artificial Intelligence Innovation and Development Pilot Zone. Recently, the "Key Technologies for Green and Intelligent Manufacturing of the Polyester Fiber Industrial Chain" project, in which the National Advanced Functional Fiber Innovation Center participated, won the First Prize of the 2025 National Science and Technology Progress Award.

It possesses both high-tech innovation and high-quality development, and historical and cultural heritage. Outside the ancient city, the Suzhou Industrial Park has gathered 3,243 national high-tech enterprises and 73 listed companies, cumulatively creating 1.87 trillion US dollars in total import and export value; inside the ancient city, the Pingjiang Historical and Cultural Block still maintains the traditional ancient street pattern of "waterways and land routes running in parallel, river and street adjacent."

"Protect well, excavate well, utilize well." In recent years, Suzhou has made persistent efforts to continuously enable this thousand-year-old ancient city to radiate new vitality: launching the "Pingjiang Nine Lanes" urban renewal project and the "Ancient City Protection and Renewal Partnership Program," exploring a sustainable ecological ancient city protection model, which includes not only the protection and renewal of the ancient city's appearance and its ancient buildings and old residences, but also retaining the unique charm of Gusu within the city, so that the thousand-year-old ancient city has both scenery and soul.

Strolling along Pingjiang Road, characteristic homestays and creative bookstores come into view one after another; ancient residences, ancient trees, and ancient wells are protected to the fullest extent; intangible cultural heritage workshops such as Kunqu opera, Pingtan, and kesi silk tapestry are scattered throughout, making the watery charm of Gusu more distinctive. In the first half of this year, the Pingjiang Historical and Cultural Block received over 15 million visits.

Digital technology empowers, and historical culture radiates new brilliance. On a summer night in Gusu, the "Seeking Elegance at the Humble Administrator's Garden" night tour project uses light art and projection interaction to make the static pavilions, terraces, towers, and pavilions "come alive"; at the Lion Grove Garden, artificial intelligence makes historical figures "travel through time" to arrive, telling visitors across time and space about the garden-making craftsmanship of 咫尺山林 (zhǐ chǐ shān lín - "a foot of distance, mountain and forest," a small space evoking natural scenery).

Bearing in mind General Secretary Xi Jinping's earnest entrustment, Suzhou continuously cultivates new industries with new technologies, leads industrial upgrading, balances economic development and cultural preservation, and strives to be a model in reform and innovation and in promoting high-quality development.

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Rocket recovery success on both sea and land offers inspiration (Today's Talk)

By: 常 晋

In just 40 days, good news has come from both sea and land! After the Long March rocket completed the world's first maritime network-based recovery, the Zhuque rocket recently achieved China's first land recovery.
China has become the only country in the world to master both types of recovery technology simultaneously, writing a vivid footnote for "our country is accelerating its transformation from a global participant and contributor in science and technology to a pioneer and leader," and also bringing profound inspiration.
Give full play to the advantages of the new system for mobilizing resources nationwide under the conditions of the socialist market economy. At sea and on land, two routes advance side by side through challenges; central state-owned enterprises and private enterprises, two forces achieve breakthroughs in synchronization... an effective government and an efficient market work in concert to jointly overcome major scientific and technological difficulties. This is both an important reason for China's aerospace industry's continuous breakthroughs and a key code for our country's "becoming one of the countries with the fastest rising innovation capacity."
Lead the development of new quality productive forces with high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening. From the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System to the lunar exploration program, from domestic large models to embodied intelligent robots, deepening the integration of scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation will consolidate the foundation of new quality productive forces and firmly grasp the initiative in high-quality development.
Seize historical opportunities, meet the challenges of the times, and use new quality productive forces to create new growth engines. China's economy will surely have a more solid foundation and stronger momentum.

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A Reader’s Guide

Theory
Accurately grasp the basic spirit and practical requirements of the ecological environment code
Page 9

Rooted in the land of China, running universities
Rooted in fertile soil, strengthening agriculture to serve the country
Page 15

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Transport Demand and AI Technology Accelerate Integration (Policy Interpretation)

By: 本报记者 韩 鑫

Driverless vehicles shuttle through urban streets and alleys, serving as the "new delivery force" for logistics distribution; drones hover over the Yangtze River, becoming "aerial sentinels" for inspection; robots have taken up residence in express delivery processing centers, transforming into "sorters" on the assembly line...
Transportation is one of the important arenas for the large-scale application of artificial intelligence. In June this year, the "Action Plan for Typical Application Scenarios of 'AI + Transportation'" jointly issued by five departments including the Ministry of Transport proposed that by 2030, a batch of new infrastructure, new technology and equipment, new service models, and new industrial forms of "AI + Transportation" will emerge.
How will the application scenario innovation action be carried out? How can artificial intelligence empower the high-quality development of transportation? On August 20, the Ministry of Transport held a special press conference to provide explanations.
What are the new scenarios and new applications?
Forming 860 scenarios for first-mover breakthroughs covering railways, highways, waterways, aviation, and postal services
Driving on the Jingxiong Expressway, within a one-hour drive, intelligence follows you like a shadow—
On the road, the "Jingxiong Yuntu" mini-program accurately pushes road condition changes; on both sides, smart light poles can emit a "yellow strobe flash" in foggy weather to assist drivers in judging their driving position; at toll stations, robots automatically dispense cards, shortening passage time...
"Through cooperation with Baidu Intelligent Cloud and relying on artificial intelligence large models, the Jingxiong Expressway has achieved 'second-level push, one-click reach' for abnormal events, with an identification accuracy rate for sudden situations exceeding 95%." A relevant person in charge of Hebei Expressway Group introduced that in addition, the autonomous driving test and demonstration project has successfully passed mid-term acceptance, achieving "1-towing-2" intelligent mixed platooning of autonomous driving heavy trucks, with cumulative test mileage exceeding 30,000 kilometers.
Roads are "smarter," and vehicles are more "intelligent." "In recent years, we have accelerated the deep integration of artificial intelligence and transportation, focusing on infrastructure, vehicles and equipment, transport services, and industry governance, and have sorted out and formed 860 scenarios for first-mover breakthroughs covering the entire fields of railways, highways, waterways, aviation, and postal services." Xu Wenqiang, Director of the Department of Science and Technology of the Ministry of Transport, said at the press conference.
The plan proposes ten major directions including intelligent driving, smart highways, intelligent railways, smart civil aviation, intelligent postal services, and intelligent multimodal transport, releases the first batch of 41 typical scenarios, and concurrently releases construction guidelines. Sorting through these typical scenarios, two characteristics are clearly visible—
Highlighting the people's livelihood orientation and demonstrating the public's sense of gain. For example, high-frequency scenarios such as one-ticket integrated passenger transport services, intelligent dispatch of urban public transport passenger flow, and intelligent route optimization management are laid out, and applications of concern to society and enterprises such as highway dense fog warnings, intelligent security screening, and cold-chain transport intelligent monitoring are included, allowing artificial intelligence to serve the beautiful vision of "people enjoying convenient travel, goods flowing smoothly."
Emphasizing industrial attributes and valuing the two-way empowerment effect. Among the typical scenarios, many focus on scenarios with strong driving effects such as intelligent driving of heavy-load trucks, intelligent port dispatch, and autonomous health management of railway equipment, which not only inject new momentum into the transformation and upgrading of the transportation industry but also open up large-scale real application scenarios for artificial intelligence enterprises, promoting the docking of transportation demand with AI technology and achieving two-way growth.
"These ten major directions will help promote the large-scale innovative application of artificial intelligence in the transportation field." Xu Wenqiang stated that they will continue to track technological development and industry demand, roll out subsequent batches of scenario guidelines, and continuously enrich the scenario supply.
What are the results?
Improving quality, reducing costs, increasing efficiency, and lowering safety risks
Order big data predicts shipment volume in advance, peak periods automatically dispatch idle sorting ports, and packages automatically plan optimal routes after entering the station... At the beginning of this year, the Zhongtong Wuhan Transfer Center completed its intelligent transformation, with the "Zhongtian" operation management system and the intelligent sorting system operating in real-time linkage. In the first half of the year, the average monthly outbound express shipment volume reached 75 million pieces, the on-time rate remained stable above 94%, and labor costs were reduced by more than 40%.
At the front end, intelligent route planning technology strengthens network dispatch; in the middle, intelligent sorting systems effectively improve efficiency; at the end, more than 16,000 unmanned delivery vehicles and over 400 drones have been put into use in multiple regions across the country, improving the quality and efficiency of delivery services...
"The postal and express delivery industry is an important field for artificial intelligence applications." Xu Huarong, Deputy Director of the Policy and Regulation Department of the State Post Bureau, said that focusing on postal and express production, services, and management, artificial intelligence supports the industry in improving quality, reducing costs, and increasing efficiency.
"We will compile and issue the '15th Five-Year Plan' Postal Industry Applied Technology Research and Development Guide, focusing on research directions such as embodied intelligence, data development, and low-altitude delivery, to promote integrated innovation across industry, academia, research, and application." Xu Huarong stated that they will also support pilot applications of new AI technologies, new products, and new models, using point-to-area promotion to enhance the digital and intelligent level of the postal industry.
Safety is the lifeline of railways. "Artificial intelligence allows us to provide early warning and proactive defense against railway safety risks." Liu Yan, Deputy Director of the Department of Science, Technology and Legal Affairs of the National Railway Administration, introduced that more than 56,000 cameras have been connected along China's high-speed railway lines, covering key locations such as tunnel entrances and bridge heads. Through AI analysis integrating video and radar, personnel and foreign objects intruding onto tracks are automatically identified. As of April this year, nearly 310,000 valid alarms have been cumulatively processed.
"In recent years, artificial intelligence technology has empowered the innovative development of the railway industry, forming a complete innovation chain covering railway basic research, technological breakthroughs, and scenario applications." Liu Yan revealed that the "15th Five-Year Plan" Railway Science and Technology Innovation Plan and the "Guiding Opinions on Promoting the High-Quality Development of 'AI + Railway'" will be formulated and issued.
How will it develop in the future?
Becoming the key technological engine supporting the implementation of "One Network, Four Transformations"
The plan proposes to steadily and orderly promote the large-scale innovative application of "AI + Transportation," serve the construction of an intelligent comprehensive three-dimensional transport network, and help the integrated integration, safety enhancement, digital and intelligent upgrading, and green transformation of transportation.
"'One Network, Four Transformations' is the main theme and main line of high-quality development of comprehensive transportation at present and for a period to come." Xu Wenqiang said that "AI + Transportation" will become the key technological engine supporting its implementation.
Promoting integrated integration through data connectivity. The lack of data connectivity and poor coordination between different transport modes is a prominent bottleneck restricting integrated integration. Scenarios such as "intelligent multimodal transport" and "intelligent operation of comprehensive hubs" set up in this innovation action will help solve these pain points. At Guangxi Beibu Gulf Port, the intelligent dispatch system integrates data such as ship arrival predictions, train operation plans, and highway collection and distribution, automatically matching transport capacity connection sequences and intelligently optimizing yard stacking and container truck driving routes, reducing the transit time for container rail-water intermodal transport by more than 20%.
Empowering safety enhancement through model transformation. In the past, transportation safety relied mainly on "post-incident investigation and manual inspection," which had high labor costs and delayed risk detection. Promoting the large-scale implementation of artificial intelligence will shift safety governance from "post-incident handling" to "pre-incident warning," and from "human prevention as the mainstay" to "technical and intelligent prevention." At present, artificial intelligence has been applied to vehicle active safety warning systems, which can identify behaviors such as driver fatigue and distracted driving and provide timely warnings and interventions, with an identification accuracy rate exceeding 95%.
Empowering digital and intelligent upgrading through systematic reconstruction. This innovation action simultaneously advances the construction of comprehensive transportation large models, high-quality industry datasets, and various specialized intelligent agents, achieving intelligent upgrading of the entire transportation chain of "construction, management, maintenance, operation, and service."
Promoting green transformation through cost reduction and efficiency improvement. Artificial intelligence achieves energy conservation and carbon reduction from multiple links such as transport organization, facility operation and maintenance, and equipment operation through precise dispatch and dynamic optimization of resource allocation, with quantifiable and perceptible results. At Qingdao Port's automated terminal, through the application of the intelligent dispatch system, the operation sequence of quay cranes and the driving routes of container trucks are dynamically optimized, reducing invalid empty driving and waiting time, and reducing energy consumption per container operation by more than 15% compared with traditional manual terminals.
When mature practices scattered in individual points are promoted on a large scale to the entire industry, a higher-quality, more sustainable intelligent comprehensive three-dimensional transport network will become a strong support for building a country with strong transportation network.

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Young Teams Grow Alongside Future Industries (New Quality Productive Forces Create New Employment Opportunities)

By: 本报记者 罗阳奇

At Hefei Zero-One Robotics Co., Ltd. (合肥零次方机器人有限公司), located in Baohe District, Hefoir City, Anhui Province, robot engineering technician Han Jiahe inputs commands into a computer, and the robot's mechanical arm immediately raises slowly, grasps a water cup on the tabletop, places it under a self-service beverage machine, and after the cup is filled with a beverage, places the water cup back on the tabletop; the entire process takes no more than one minute.

"There is still a gap compared to customer requirements; the grasping force needs to be able to be adjusted smaller, and the overall movement needs to be more smooth." After the movement ended, Han Jiahe recorded the areas that need improvement.

"My job is to discover and solve problems, to translate customer needs into a language that the technical department can understand, and to make robots smarter and easier to use." Han Jiahe is 27 years old this year; after graduating with a major in network engineering, he has successively engaged in work related to image artificial intelligence algorithms and large language models.

Last August, Zero-One Company, which had been established for less than one year, sent an interview invitation to Han Jiahe. Huang Rui, the assistant to the company general manager, said, "Embodied intelligence is a field of rapid iteration; the learning and adaptation abilities demonstrated by Jiahe in different positions moved us." One month later, Han Jiahe officially joined the company. "The field of embodied intelligence has huge potential; I was very much looking forward to joining such an excellent team at that time."

When he first joined, Han Jiahe was not adapted, "Robots are a combination of hardware and software; I used to do software algorithms and did not understand components and circuits."

"Fortunately, everyone is very young and also willing to teach me." When encountering questions regarding hardware, Han Jiahe would go to colleagues in the production and after-sales departments; gradually, he became an expert in robot hardware.

"The average age of the company's R&D personnel is only 26; the team is very young and energetic. We engage in 切磋学习 (qiē cuō xué xí - "cut and polish, study," to exchange ideas and learn from one another) to make up for each other's shortcomings and progress together." Huang Rui stated that many of the company's founding members are from the post-00s generation, and a team of over 90 people has already been formed.

This year, Zero-One Company externally released its independently developed robot mini-store. Adopting an "unmanned retail" model using robot clerks on duty, it has already been implemented in cities such as Shanghai and Hefei, and Han Jiahe is one of the participating personnel.

"At the very beginning, the robot's movement trajectory was not precise, which affected the picking up of goods. After trying multiple schemes, we installed radar at the bottom of the robot and simultaneously communicated with the design team to design the mini-store space to be more suitable for robot activity." Han Jiahe still clearly remembers the various obstacles encountered during the testing process.

After more than a month of debugging, the stable operation time of the mini-store robot increased from one hour to one day. "Watching the robot become increasingly 'smart' makes me very excited; this makes me love this job even more," Han Jiahe said.

Along with the development of the digital economy, batches of technical personnel are throwing themselves into the embodied intelligence industry. In 2022, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (人力资源社会保障部) released 18 new occupations, including robot engineering technicians; in July this year, 12 new occupations, including embodied intelligence robot application technicians, were announced to society for public notice.

"The release of new occupations is of great significance for regulating industry development and establishing industry standards. A while ago, the company also submitted application materials for new occupations related to embodied intelligence to the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security," Huang Rui said.

According to the "15th Five-Year Plan" outline, China aims at key fields that lead future development, constructs a full-chain cultivation system for future industries, and promotes embodied intelligence and others to become new economic growth points.

"Embodied intelligence is a new field; a technical path that is still being used one day might become obsolete the next," Han Jiahe said. "Our young team grows together with future industries; we will continue to do every debugging and every communication well, allowing more robots to move from being usable to being easy to use. I believe embodied intelligence will eventually迎来 a moment of explosion."

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Talent cultivation and industrial development advance in tandem (Expert Commentary)

By: ​宋锟泰

A profession is the carrier of knowledge, skills, competence, and other abilities. Clarifying job attributes and competency standards enables talent cultivation for new professions to better keep pace with industrial development and enterprise demand. In the early stages of future industry development, mature references are relatively few, and job divisions await further clarification. The release of new professions can regulate the industry ecosystem, unify professional practice standards, and provide clear references for job setup and personnel employment.

The establishment of new professions helps promote higher education institutions and vocational colleges to update their talent cultivation models and form tiered cultivation pathways. Talent cultivation must resonate at the same frequency as industrial development. Taking the embodied intelligence sector as an example, universities deepen their efforts at the R&D end, offering courses such as embodied intelligence technology and multimodal perception, and jointly conducting technological research with enterprises to cultivate R&D and innovation talent; vocational colleges can focus on the operations and maintenance end, centering on robot fault inspection and repair, data security protection, and other areas, combining practical enterprise challenges to carry out hands-on training.

After new professions are released, human resources and social security departments can match them with national professional standards, skill-level assessment, and other evaluation systems, so that talent assessment has a basis and the refined allocation of human resources is promoted. Once new professions are incorporated into the scope of professional title review, practitioners' advancement pathways will become clearer and smoother. Job seekers can consult the new profession catalog to screen for positions with high compatibility and determine their career development track; they should pay close attention to supporting policy documents or refer to the skill standards of similar professions, continuously follow the dynamic adjustments of new professions, keep abreast of industry development trends, and improve their own capabilities in a targeted manner.

(The author is an associate professor at the Business School of Anhui University; this article was compiled by this newspaper's reporter Luo Yangqi from an interview.)

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Total retail sales of consumer goods and services up 2.6% in first seven months

BEIJING, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) — (Reporter Wang Ke) The head of the Consumer Promotion Department of the Ministry of Commerce introduced on the 20th that from January to July, the total retail sales of consumer goods and services increased by 2.6 percent year on year; the total retail sales of consumer goods reached 28.77 trillion yuan, an increase of 1.2 percent, of which retail sales of consumer goods excluding automobiles increased by 2.7 percent. The scale of the consumer market has expanded steadily, and the quality of development has continued to improve.

In July, retail sales of goods increased by 0.5 percent. Sales of basic daily necessities grew steadily, with retail sales of grain, oil and food, beverages, and daily necessities at units above designated size increasing by 5.3 percent, 3.5 percent, and 1.8 percent respectively; some upgraded categories of goods grew relatively rapidly, with retail sales of telecommunications equipment, cultural and office supplies, and cosmetics at units above designated size increasing by 20.4 percent, 7.4 percent, and 6.8 percent respectively.

The potential of summer service consumption was fully released. From January to July, service retail sales increased by 5.0 percent, continuing to outpace the growth rate of goods retail sales. Among them, catering revenue increased by 2.6 percent; retail sales of tourism consulting and rental services, and cultural, sports and leisure services increased by more than 10 percent. The summer movie season was booming, with total box office revenue in July exceeding 5 billion yuan, an increase of more than 20 percent.

The trade-in program for consumer goods drove growth in green and intelligent consumption. In July, the retail penetration rate of new energy passenger vehicles reached 65.1 percent, setting another record high. Ministry of Commerce business big data shows that in July, sales of embodied intelligent robots on key platforms increased by 95.1 percent, sales of exoskeleton assistive devices increased by 39.5 percent, sales of action cameras increased by 24.7 percent, and sales of robot vacuum cleaners increased by 19.4 percent.

The momentum of the county-level consumer market continued to strengthen, with retail sales of consumer goods in counties and townships, including towns and villages, accounting for 39.1 percent of the total retail sales of consumer goods, an increase of 0.3 percentage points over the same period last year. From January to July, retail sales of consumer goods in rural areas reached 3.8 trillion yuan, an increase of 2.4 percent, with a growth rate 1.3 percentage points faster than that of urban areas.

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China's imports and exports with other APEC economies up 21% year on year in first seven months

Our newspaper Dalian, August 20 (Reporter Ouyang Jie) — It was learned at the 2026 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Customs-Business Dialogue held on the 20th that from January to July, the total import and export volume between China and other APEC economies reached 18.03 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 21%, with a growth rate higher than the overall level of China's goods trade during the same period.

According to the introduction, the Asia-Pacific economy now accounts for more than 60 percent of the global economy, and its trade volume approaches half of the global total, with its role as an engine in global economic growth becoming increasingly prominent. China Customs has always cooperated and assisted with the customs authorities of various economies, striving to create a market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized port business environment, and continuously carrying out special actions for cross-border trade facilitation, so that "global good products" can enter China's large market in greater quantity and at greater speed. In the future, it is proposed to strengthen risk warning, information exchange, and mutual recognition of supervision, build an intelligent, automated, precise, and efficient supervision model, jointly promote the construction of smart ports, formulate fair, inclusive, and sustainable customs supervision systems, and help all economies, especially small, medium, and micro enterprises, share in development achievements and deeply integrate into the Asia-Pacific supply chain.

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Photo Story

On August 19, the real-ship testing on the Pinglu Canal in Guangxi continued to advance, with four representative ship types — a 5,000-ton heavy-load vessel, a 5,000-ton empty-load vessel, a 3,000-ton heavy-load vessel, and a 1,000-ton heavy-load vessel — assembled in convoy formation to carry out comprehensive subject testing on the downstream navigation channel from Qishi Hub to Qingnian Hub, verifying the actual navigational performance of the channel, anchorage areas, and the Qingnian Hub ship lock, so as to provide technical support for the opening of navigation in September.
In the photo, test vessels are navigating in an orderly manner.
Text by our reporter Pang Geping, photo by Wei Yaoyin (People's Vision)

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Export-Import Bank issued nearly 500 billion yuan in new manufacturing loans in first seven months

Our newspaper Beijing, August 20 (Reporter Wang Guan) — From January to July, the Export-Import Bank of China issued nearly 500 billion yuan in new manufacturing loans, of which loans to advanced manufacturing totaled nearly 200 billion yuan, accounting for 40 percent.
The Export-Import Bank of China has implemented differentiated policies for the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, the growth and expansion of emerging industries, and the forward-looking layout of future industries, concentrating resources and strength to support "hard technology" and "genuine innovation." It actively meets enterprises' full-chain financial needs of "R&D–production–export," promoting the export of robots, artificial intelligence, innovative drugs, and other products, and facilitating high-end, green vessels in "going global." It has issued green finance credit guidelines, a plan to support the construction of green factories, and other measures to assist project development in such fields as energy conservation and carbon reduction, environmental protection, and resource recycling. Focusing on strengthening and supplementing the manufacturing chain, it has increased support for single champion and specialized, refined, distinctive, and innovative enterprises along the chain, helping to enhance the resilience and competitiveness of the manufacturing industry chain.

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Deeply implement the digital human resources and social security construction initiative.

Our newspaper Beijing, August 20 (Reporter Li Linwei (李林蔚)) HRSS informatization work is 息息相关 (xī xī xiāng guān - "breath to breath, mutually linked," closely bound up with) people's livelihood and well-being. Recently, focusing on the priorities of HRSS informatization work during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period (十五五), the person in charge of the Information Center of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (人力资源社会保障部) introduced the relevant situation.

"During the '15th Five-Year Plan' period, we will deeply implement the Digital HRSS Construction Action (数字人社建设行动), accelerate the application and development of 'AI + HRSS' (人工智能+人社), and take digital-intelligence as a new starting point to support the high-quality supply of HRSS policies and services," the person in charge said.

Ensure the implementation of key reforms. Anchor the goal of high-quality full employment, improve the national employment information resource database, and build the "China Employment" public service platform. Support major reforms in the social security field, comprehensively build an all-insurance-type business "big control" (大管控) system, and realize "nationwide processing" (全国通办) of medium- and high-frequency social security matters, timely transfer of social security relations, and "one-click query" of social security rights and interests. Focus on optimizing the systems and mechanisms for talent development, improve online services for professional title review, continuing education, and returned overseas students, and accelerate digital-intelligent services for personnel file management of mobile workers.

Universally realize the "one-card pass" (一卡通) for social security card resident services. By the end of 2030, the population coverage rate of electronic social security card applications will reach 90%. Vigorously advance "one-card" legislation, improve supporting systems and standards, and promote national and regional "one-card pass". Deepen scenario applications, support the "one-card" distribution of funds benefiting the people and agriculture, realize convenient services for key groups such as infants and the elderly, promote card-based subsidized consumption and preferential payment, and explore integrated applications with digital RMB and other innovations. Improve the electronic social security card service system, and explore opening up social security card identity authentication and "one-card pass" payment capabilities.

Enhance the quality of intelligent HRSS services. Continuously optimize service channels such as the national HRSS government service platform, the national social security public service platform, the electronic social security card, and the Palm 12333 (掌上12333) application, and advance "one-network processing" (一网通办) and "cross-province processing" (跨省通办). Deepen the reform of "efficiently accomplish one thing" (高效办成一件事), and advance "one thing" initiatives such as social security card resident services and flexible employment insurance participation.

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"China gave me the opportunity to keep pursuing my dreams" (My entrepreneurial journey in China)

By: 本报记者 王云娜 王 沛 崔 寅 龚 鸣

As China pursues high-quality development and high-standard opening up, more and more foreigners are choosing to come to China and put down roots here. Turning opening-up policies into momentum for enterprise growth, expanding business in China and even internationally with forestry and fruit machinery technology advantages, and connecting Chinese and foreign markets through diversified businesses such as trade, logistics, and consulting — a reporter recently interviewed three foreign friends, asking them to tell their stories of leveraging their respective strengths, cultivating the Chinese market, and achieving mutual growth for individuals and enterprises.
Beka Mekabolize, Chief Representative of the Georgian Chamber of Commerce and Industry's Guangdong Office —
"The policies keep getting better, and the road to entrepreneurship keeps widening"
"This wine is fermented underground in clay pots buried in the earth, with a mellow and distinctive taste..." At Wanling Plaza in Yuexiu District, Guangzhou, Georgian businessman Beka Mekabolize enthusiastically recommended to visitors wine imported in original bottles from Georgia.
"Last year, the total volume of Georgian wine imported by the Chinese market reached 2.5 million liters. So far, I have imported 15 varieties of wine from Georgia," Mekabolize said. "All of this is thanks to China's opening up. Georgian wine enjoys a zero-tariff policy for entry into China, which lowers costs considerably and makes our products more competitive."
Mekabolize currently serves as Chief Representative of the Georgian Chamber of Commerce and Industry's Guangdong Office and has been in China for more than 20 years. In 2006, while studying in China, Mekabolize worked as a translator for foreign merchants and walked into the Canton Fair exhibition halls. "At that time, I thought Georgia needed Chinese products but lacked 'bridge-builders,'" Mekabolize said. The seed of entrepreneurship was thus planted in his heart. In 2011, he opened an international trading company in Beijing, exporting Chinese-made furniture, lighting fixtures, and small commodities to Georgia.
In 2018, Mekabolize moved his company to Guangzhou. That year, the China-Georgia Free Trade Agreement officially took effect. "My career encountered new opportunities — order volumes kept climbing, and the scope of cooperation kept expanding," Mekabolize said.
In 2019, with the matchmaking of relevant Guangzhou government departments, Mekabolize established the Georgia "Belt and Road" Business Hall, integrating commercial resources from 25 countries to provide solutions for Chinese enterprises entering the Georgian and European markets, while also helping foreign enterprises connect with China's supply chains. Here, representatives of Chinese and foreign enterprises often sit around one table, discussing cooperation and business opportunities, with economic and trade exchange events and cultural experience activities held one after another.
On the terrace of the "Belt and Road" Business Hall, grapevines Mekabolize planted several years ago have now climbed more than two meters up the trellis. "In a world of intertwining change and turmoil, stability is the scarcest resource. China's foreign investment policies continue to improve, the business environment keeps getting better, and economic development momentum is strong. We believe that investing in China has a future!" Mekabolize said.
In 2025, the China-Georgia FTA upgrade negotiations were completed, and Georgia is expected to accelerate its exports to China. "The policies keep getting better, and the road to entrepreneurship keeps widening," Mekabolize said. He plans to sell Georgian honey products to China and also hopes to bring the "Belt and Road" Business Hall model to other Chinese cities, so that more quality Georgian goods can enter China and more quality Chinese goods can reach the world.
Philippe Bonnet, Chairman of Weifang Tuopu Machinery Manufacturing Co., Ltd. —
"We have formed a mutually reinforcing relationship with large agricultural households, and our products are also shifting toward diversified application scenarios"
In the workshop of Weifang Tuopu Machinery Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (hereinafter "Tuopu Machinery") in Changle County, Weifang, Shandong, Chairman Philippe Bonnet was testing a smart weeding machine together with product R&D personnel. This weeding machine obtained a Chinese invention patent in 2024, and Bonnet is adjusting the product according to users' customized needs.
In 2005, French machinery expert Bonnet came to Weifang to work, helping an enterprise sell its products to Europe. The potential of China's economic development and the vitality of its foreign trade gave him the idea of staying to start a business. In its early days, Tuopu Machinery mainly produced components for foreign enterprises. When the 2008 international financial crisis broke out, a major foreign client went bankrupt, and Bonnet's entrepreneurial path hung by a thread.
"The Chinese have always spoken of 'taking the path of independent development,' and this makes a great deal of sense," Bonnet said. At that time, there were already many grain crop machines on the Chinese market, but the degree of mechanization for cash crops was not yet high enough, which made him realize there was a huge market opportunity. Bonnet threw all his energy into R&D, devoting himself to developing forestry and fruit machinery. With the support of the local government, Bonnet applied for the national foreign expert project and Shandong Province's overseas engineer support program, receiving services and support in scientific research in China, team building, and daily living.
Over the years, Bonnet has led his team to obtain 36 nationally authorized patents, including 2 invention patents, and has also undertaken several provincial-level R&D projects in Shandong. The tree-digging machine he developed can dig a tree in an average of 30 seconds, with a work efficiency 50–100 times that of manual transplanting. "At the beginning, we brought in quite a few foreign technical personnel to participate in design. With the development of China's education, more and more outstanding domestic talent has emerged. Now the company's technical team is mainly composed of local talent, and the products they design can better meet local needs," Bonnet said.
Market development is also a hard bone to gnaw. Bonnet said the local government assigned a dedicated service officer to the company. "When looking for sales channels for the tree-digging machine, the service officer worked with us to analyze the soil conditions and tree species characteristics of certain provinces and find cooperation channels." Through the joint efforts of multiple parties, Tuopu Machinery's products are not only sold throughout China but have also expanded into the European market, with exports exceeding 50 million RMB for two consecutive years. "Without the local government's help, the enterprise would not have reached its current scale," Bonnet said.
Bonnet said that as China's agricultural modernization level improves, the row spacing and plant spacing of fruit tree cultivation have come under standardized management, providing opportunities for the development of forestry and fruit machinery. "In the past, we were 'leading farmers along'; now we have formed a mutually reinforcing relationship with large agricultural households, and our products are also shifting toward diversified application scenarios." Bonnet remarked, "China has a vast territory and abundant resources (dì dà wù bó - "vast land, abundant things," a land of broad expanse and rich resources), with many application scenarios. The degree of agricultural intelligence, mechanization, and digitalization is constantly rising, and the market acceptance of forestry and fruit machinery is getting higher and higher. The stable development environment gives us great confidence in the future."
Majason, an entrepreneur from Uzbekistan —
"Through diversified services, helping enterprises from Central Asian countries achieve better development in the Chinese market"
"From studying in Wuhan to starting a business in Shanghai, China has given me the opportunity to keep advancing toward my dreams," said Uzbek entrepreneur Majason, introducing his "Chinese connection": before coming to China, he worked at a British law firm for 7 years, familiar with international business rules and legal systems. "I have always paid attention to China's development — it seems that new possibilities are emerging here every moment." In 2009, he came to China University of Geosciences to pursue a master's degree. During that period, he tested the waters with several micro-startup projects and genuinely felt the pulse of China's economic development and innovation and entrepreneurship.
In 2015, Majason came to Shanghai and, combining his expertise, cooperated with Chinese legal service institutions to provide compliance consulting for overseas enterprises preparing to invest in China. As China and Central Asian countries deepened their joint pursuit of Belt and Road cooperation, industrial cooperation and economic and trade exchanges between the two sides grew ever closer. Majason conceived a new idea: building a two-way trade platform connecting the Chinese and Central Asian markets, so that Chinese products could reach Central Asia more conveniently while quality products from Central Asian countries could enter China more smoothly. In the process of in-depth client engagement, he also discovered: "Many enterprises are eager to take root in China, yet they have limited understanding of China's legal system, business environment, and business culture. I can play the role of a bridge." In 2018, Majason established a consulting company to provide landing services for enterprises from Central Asian countries.
Today, Majason successfully operates 3 companies in Shanghai, covering international trade, logistics and supply chains, and legal and tax consulting. "I hope that through diversified services, I can help enterprises from Central Asian countries achieve better development in the Chinese market." Majason said his career development is inseparable from the nourishment of China's fertile soil. China continues to optimize its business environment and deepen high-standard opening up. "From company registration and tax processing to office space coordination, the government's one-stop services are efficient and convenient, saving foreign entrepreneurs a great deal of cumbersome procedures."
Over the years, Majason's team has served more than 1,000 enterprises, becoming a "dream-helper" for many Central Asian entrepreneurs. A few years ago, a small Uzbek merchant wanted to purchase products directly from Chinese factories but knew nothing about registration, taxation, or logistics. Majason's team built his cross-border business framework from scratch. Now, that merchant ships two or three containers of goods from China every month. "Seeing his dream come true and his career develop, I feel sincerely gratified that I chose to start a business in China," Majason said.

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Why Does China’s Innovation Vitality Keep Surging (International Forum · Understanding China · Understanding Chinese Modernization)

By: 贾亚迪

China's innovative development is reflected not only in the continuous accumulation of technological breakthroughs, but also in the coordinated synergy of long-term planning, institutional safeguards, talent cultivation, and industrial upgrading.

In recent years, a growing number of young Indonesians have come to China for further study, and I am one of them. I am currently pursuing a doctoral degree in public finance in China. My experience of studying and living in China has allowed me to observe firsthand the true face of China's economic and social development, and has also given me a profound understanding that China's innovative development is reflected not only in the continuous accumulation of technological breakthroughs, but also in the coordinated synergy of long-term planning, institutional safeguards, talent cultivation, and industrial upgrading. It is precisely this systematic layout that keeps China's innovation vitality flowing.

Long-term planning guidance and efficient overall coordination are distinctive features of China's innovative development. At present, the international environment is complex and volatile, with increasing uncertainties. Enhancing economic resilience and innovation capacity requires both stimulating market vitality and relying on a stable policy environment and an efficient governance system. China's 15th Five-Year Plan outline places scientific and technological innovation in a prominent position in the overall national development landscape, anchoring the direction of innovative development through top-level design. At the same time, based on the resource conditions, industrial foundations, and development stages of various regions, China promotes regional development to align with national strategies through effective coordination mechanisms, guiding local policies to serve the overall national development landscape. This development model of overall coordination and vertical linkage provides a strong institutional safeguard for China's active pursuit of innovation.

Sustained and stable R&D investment is an important foundation for China's continuously improving innovation capacity. In 2025, China's total R&D expenditure exceeded 3.92 trillion yuan, with R&D intensity reaching 2.8 percent, an increase of 0.11 percentage points over the previous year. Long-term, stable, and growing R&D investment provides solid support for tackling key technologies and industrial upgrading, driving China to make continuous new progress in areas such as high-tech product exports, patent applications, and the cultivation of emerging industries. What is even more noteworthy is that China not only strengthens financial support, but also promotes the concentration of innovation resources in key core fields, accelerates the transformation of scientific and technological achievements into practical applications, and continuously cultivates new industrial growth points.

Deep collaboration among the government, enterprises, and universities is the key to China's sustained innovation vitality. Not long ago, I attended an artificial intelligence development seminar in Haidian District, Beijing, where government department heads, corporate technology representatives, and university researchers engaged in in-depth exchanges on technological breakthroughs, achievement transformation, and industrial applications, allowing me to truly appreciate the important role of collaborative innovation. Innovation never happens only in the laboratory; it runs through real application scenarios such as production lines and industrial parks. Only by connecting the links of scientific research, education, and industry, and promoting the deep integration of scientific and technological innovation with industrial innovation, can the achievements of scientific and technological innovation be rapidly transformed into real productive forces.

Indonesia and China's joint efforts to align strategies and deepen development cooperation will bring tangible benefits to the peoples of both countries. As the core carrier of the "Two Countries, Twin Parks" project between Indonesia and China, the Batan Industrial City economic zone in Indonesia has attracted 27 enterprises, employing approximately 7,000 workers, and is expected to create about 58,000 jobs in the future, injecting new momentum into Indonesia's industrial upgrading and technological progress. At present, the number of Indonesian students studying in China has exceeded 17,000, many of whom have chosen majors such as engineering and information technology. As cooperation between the two countries deepens, these young talents, who understand both China's development experience and Indonesia's national conditions, will not only serve as a bridge for industrial connectivity and investment cooperation, but can also play an active role in policy research, public governance, and scientific and technological innovation, helping Indonesia better draw on China's development experience and contributing more wisdom to the innovation and exchange cooperation between the two countries.

China's practice of innovative development demonstrates that only by connecting talent, innovation, and industry can the endogenous driving force of development be continuously unleashed. For Indonesia, which is advancing its modernization, this is a valuable experience worthy of serious reference and an important focal point for deepening cooperation between the two countries. By upholding the concept of mutual benefit and win-win cooperation and promoting technological connectivity, talent exchange, and experience sharing, both sides will continuously enhance their capacity for independent development, inject sustained momentum into the modernization of both countries, and better benefit the peoples of the two nations.

(The author is an economist at Ammana Consulting Indonesia and a lecturer at Satya Wacana Christian University, Indonesia.)

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Li Zaiming Meets with Wang Yi

Seoul, August 20 (People's Daily) — (Reporters Mang Jiuchen, Wang Siyuan) President of the Republic of Korea Lee Jae-myung met with Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi at the Blue House in Seoul on the 20th.

Lee Jae-myung stated, "When I visited China in January this year, I received a warm reception from President Xi Jinping. Please convey my gratitude and sincere regards to President Xi Jinping. I am very glad to see that Korea-China relations are currently improving and developing rapidly. The momentum of growth in bilateral economic and trade cooperation is strong, and mutual visits between our peoples are expected to exceed 10 million this year. The Korean people's perception of China is continuously improving, and they are full of expectations for strengthening comprehensive cooperation with China. Under the current international circumstances, both Korea and China need each other in areas such as economy, trade, and security. Strengthening strategic cooperation between Korea and China serves the fundamental interests of both countries and is also important for maintaining regional peace and stability. Korea and China should become partners of mutual reliance, mutual benefit, and complementarity. I look forward to attending the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in Shenzhen in November this year, and taking this as an important opportunity to work with the Chinese side to advance the Korea-China strategic cooperative partnership to a higher level of development."

Wang Yi conveyed President Xi Jinping's regards to President Lee Jae-myung, stating that President Lee Jae-myung has made the correct choice after taking office, bringing China-ROK relations back onto the normal track. The mutual visits of the heads of state of China and the ROK within a span of just over two months have provided important political guarantees for the improvement and development of bilateral relations and have also provided strategic guidance for future prospects. The fact that China-ROK relations have fully recovered and made positive progress since the beginning of this year proves that a rational, pragmatic, and positive policy toward China fully serves the interests of the ROK and conforms to the trend of the times. China is an important force for maintaining peace in the world and has consistently advocated that international and regional conflicts be resolved through dialogue and political means; China is also a prominent factor of stability in the world, providing valuable certainty for the international community; moreover, China will become the largest market in the world and is willing to share development opportunities with all countries, especially neighboring countries. To embrace China is to embrace the future, and to walk together with China is to walk together with opportunity. It is hoped that the ROK will firmly pursue a friendly policy toward China, take the 35th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the ROK next year as an opportunity, promote greater progress in the China-ROK strategic cooperative partnership, and contribute to the development of both countries and to regional peace and prosperity. At present, global economic fragmentation is intensifying and trade protectionism is on the rise. China and the ROK should play an exemplary role, complete the second phase of negotiations on the free trade agreement as soon as possible, promote regional economic integration through concrete actions, and advance an inclusive and beneficial economic globalization.

During the visit, Wang Yi held talks with ROK Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul and conducted a strategic dialogue with Director of the ROK National Security Office Wi Sung-lac.

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Photo Report

Recently, the Arusha Comprehensive Stadium in Tanzania, undertaken by China Railway Construction Engineering Group, has passed 90 percent completion, with the main venue entering its final construction phase. The stadium is expected to accommodate more than 30,000 spectators and will become a national-level stadium in Tanzania and a venue for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations, holding significant importance for improving local sports infrastructure and enhancing the capacity to host international events. The photo shows an aerial view of the project.
　　Photo by He Xiaoqiang

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7th China-Africa Media Cooperation Forum Opens in Beijing

Beijing, August 20 (Reporters Liu Yang, Li Yan) — The Seventh China-Africa Media Cooperation Forum opened in Beijing on the 20th. The Joint Declaration of the Seventh China-Africa Media Cooperation Forum, released at the forum, states that China and Africa will continue to uphold the spirit of China-Africa friendship, continuously implement the spirit of President Xi Jinping's congratulatory letter to the Fifth China-Africa Media Cooperation Forum, and deepen exchanges and cooperation between the two sides in the fields of radio, television, and audiovisual services.

This forum was co-hosted by China's National Radio and Television Administration, the Beijing Municipal People's Government, and the African Union of Broadcasting, and organized by the Beijing Municipal Radio and Television Administration. Approximately 400 representatives attended, including radio and television government regulatory departments, radio, television, and audiovisual media, international organizations, diplomatic envoys to China, relevant enterprises, and university think tanks from China and 45 African countries, including 33 ministerial-level guests from African countries, setting a new record high.

The forum was themed "Sharing New Opportunities for Development, Creating a New Future for Audiovisual Services," with Chinese and African guests engaging in dialogue and exchanges around topics such as "Content Innovation Empowering People-to-People Cooperation," "Technological Cooperation Empowering Industrial Win-Win Outcomes," "Audiovisual Services Driving Economic and Trade Development," and "Practices in AI Integration and Application in the Radio, Television, and Audiovisual Sector."

Participating guests believed that since China announced the implementation of the China-Africa "Innovative Cooperation Plan on Radio, Television and Audiovisual Services" at the 2024 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, exchanges and cooperation between the two sides in news, content, dissemination, technology, and personnel have become more extensive and deeper. China-Africa radio, television, and audiovisual cooperation now operates at a higher level, covers a broader range of fields, and delivers more tangible results, making positive contributions to the common development of China and Africa and providing strong support for deepening China-Africa exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations and jointly building a new era of the all-weather China-Africa community with a shared future.

Participating guests stated that Chinese and African media will continue to serve as bridges and bonds for China-Africa people-to-people exchanges, empowering cooperation across various fields between China and Africa through media transformation; actively expand cooperation and development in new business formats such as micro-dramas, strengthen joint production, mutual translation, and mutual broadcasting, and promote people-to-people connectivity between China and Africa through quality content; strengthen cooperation in artificial intelligence application and governance, and promote the common progress of Chinese and African media through technological innovation; and intensify high-level, non-governmental, and youth exchanges, and deepen mutual learning between China and Africa through personnel exchanges.

The forum also released 80 outcomes of China-Africa cooperation in radio, television, and audiovisual services.

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"Connections with China are the story running through my life" (Recipient of the Distinguished Diplomatic Messenger Medal speaks)

By: 本报记者 姜 波 王骁波

"Receiving this medal is an honor of great significance to me, and also an affirmation of the friendly relations between Colombia and China." Sergio Cabrera, Colombian Ambassador to China and recipient of the inaugural "Outstanding Diplomatic Envoy Medal," said this in an exclusive interview with our reporter.

Cabrera's connection with China began more than 60 years ago. In 1963, at the age of 13, Cabrera set foot on Chinese soil for the first time, coming to Beijing with his parents to live. In the more than 60 years that followed, Cabrera's studies, work, and life have been closely linked with China. "My connection with China is a story that runs through my life."

"My experiences in China left a deep impression on me, not only on the cultural level, but also on the spiritual level. During the formation of my worldview, Chinese culture had an important influence on me." Cabrera said that his experiences in China during his youth laid an important foundation for his later diplomatic career. "When one truly understands the other party and builds consensus with them, dialogue becomes smoother, more candid, and more productive."

In 2023, Cabrera arrived in China to take up his post as Colombian Ambassador to China. "Over the past three-plus years, I have visited more than 30 cities in China. What shocked me most was the 翻天覆地 (fān tiān fù dì - "overturn heaven and earth," earth-shaking changes) that have taken place across the entire country." He said that today's China has cities that are 日新月异 (rì xīn yuè yì - "renew daily, change monthly," changing rapidly with each passing day) and technology that is 突飞猛进 (tū fēi měng jìn - "sudden flight, fierce advance," advancing by leaps and bounds). Wherever one sets foot, one can feel 生机勃勃 (shēng jī bó bó - "vitality flourishing," full of life and vigor). "I can feel the confidence and creativity of the Chinese people, which is a true reflection of China's development achievements benefiting the people."

In May 2025, the heads of state of China and Colombia jointly witnessed the signing of the "Cooperation Plan between the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of the Republic of Colombia on Jointly Promoting the Construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road." "During my tenure as ambassador, Colombia-China relations have entered a new stage, with booming bilateral economic and trade cooperation and increasingly rich people-to-people and cultural exchanges. Colombia's formal accession to the high-quality Belt and Road cooperation family has created development space for Colombia in areas such as infrastructure and connectivity."

This year marks the beginning of China's 15th Five-Year Plan period. Cabrera believes that China's five-year plans embody the distinctive characteristics of China's development — taking a long-term perspective and acting after careful planning. "Colombia is also advancing its modernization process, and the practical experience of Chinese-style modernization provides a reference for us. I hope to bring back to Colombia in full what I have seen, learned, and understood during my time in China, and promote more people to learn from China's development experience."

"The complex challenges facing today's world can only be solved through cooperation. The concept of building a community with a shared future for mankind and the four global initiatives proposed by China provide a new perspective." Cabrera believes that these concepts and initiatives focus on exploring a path of win-win cooperation, creating opportunities for developing countries including Colombia to strengthen connectivity and deepen cooperation in various fields, and are worthy of careful study, in-depth understanding, and practical application.

"To this day, I still maintain contact with my classmates from when I studied in China. This friendship that has lasted for more than 60 years is a microcosm of the sincere friendship between the peoples of Colombia and China." Cabrera said that as a witness to Colombia-China friendship, he hopes to continue promoting economic exchanges and people-to-people and cultural exchanges between the two countries in the future, promoting mutual understanding and affinity between the two peoples, and creating a better tomorrow for Colombia-China relations.

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He Wei Attends Opening Ceremony of the Third ASEAN Parliamentary Seminar

Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, August 20 — He Wei, Vice Chairperson of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (全国人大常委会), attended and delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of the third training seminar for parliamentarians from ASEAN countries in Beijing on the 20th. He stated that this year marks the fifth anniversary of the establishment of the China-ASEAN Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. With the theme of "Strengthening exchanges between legislative bodies to contribute to the China-ASEAN Comprehensive Strategic Partnership," China's National People's Congress is willing to deepen exchanges and mutual learning with the parliaments of ASEAN countries and contribute strength to building a China-ASEAN community with a shared future.

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Liu Haixing Meets with Chilean Foreign Minister Perez

Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, August 20 — On August 20, Liu Haixing, Minister of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee, met in Beijing with Chilean Foreign Minister Pérez. The two sides exchanged views on strengthening inter-party exchanges and dialogue, promoting practical cooperation in various fields, and advancing the development of the China-Chile comprehensive strategic partnership.

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China becomes Ecuador's second-largest trading partner

BEIJING, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) -- (Reporters Wang Yuhao (王聿昊), Xie Xiyao (谢希瑶)) Commerce Ministry spokesperson He Yadong (何亚东) said at the regular press conference held on the 20th that in the more than two years since the China-Ecuador Free Trade Agreement took effect, bilateral trade volume has grown rapidly, reaching USD 9.83 billion in the first half of this year, with a year-on-year growth rate exceeding 20 percent, and China has become Ecuador's second-largest trading partner.

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"Export to China" Event Held in Ethiopia

According to Xinhua News Agency, Addis Ababa, August 20 (Reporters Liu Fangqiang, Geng Xinning) — The "Export to China" Ethiopia special event was held on the 19th in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital. At the event, Chinese and Ethiopian enterprises signed a total of 33 cooperation agreements, with a total contract value exceeding 330 million US dollars.

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Stimulate Innovation and Creation, Strengthen Rights Protection

By: 本报记者 易舒冉

By 2030, cultivate and bring up around 1,000 great-power craftsmen, fund no fewer than 3 million industrial workers who meet enrollment conditions to upgrade their educational qualifications and skills, and bring the number of innovation studios at all levels and of all types to 160,000... The "15th Five-Year Plan" for China's Trade Union Movement and Trade Union Work (hereinafter referred to as the "Plan") was recently released, deploying the key work tasks of trade unions during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period by field, and specifying 12 concrete indicators in 8 aspects including the cultivation of great-power craftsman talent, model worker and craftsman innovation studios, trade union employment services, and union establishment and membership enrollment.

Over the next five years, what new highlights will there be in China's trade union movement and trade union work? The relevant person in charge of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions introduced the relevant situation.

Promoting the comprehensive development of industrial workers

In recent years, knowledge-based, skill-based, and innovation-based industrial workers have continuously emerged in various industries. They love whatever line of work they do, devote themselves to it, and delve into it. They study diligently and practice hard (勤学苦练 - qín xué kǔ liàn - "diligently study and painstakingly practice," to study hard and train rigorously), delve deeply into research, are courageous in innovation, and dare to be first (敢为人先 - gǎn wéi rén xiān - "dare to be first among others," to have the courage to take the lead), achieving extraordinary results in ordinary posts and singing the "song of laborers" of the new era.

"The Plan, centering on mobilizing and encouraging the broad masses of workers to make contributions, innovate, and create, makes deployments in three aspects: extensively, deeply, and persistently carrying out labor and skill competitions, stimulating workers' innovation and creation vitality, and giving play to the demonstration and leading role of model workers and craftsmen; centering on promoting the reform of the industrial worker contingent to go deeper and more solid, it makes deployments in three aspects: strengthening the overall coordination of reform, improving the skill formation system for industrial workers, and promoting the comprehensive development of industrial workers," said the relevant person in charge of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions.

The Plan proposes implementing the great-power craftsman talent cultivation project, cultivating and bringing up around 1,000 great-power craftsmen, around 5,000 provincial-level craftsmen, and around 25,000 municipal-level craftsmen by 2030; deepening the construction of model worker and craftsman innovation studios, bringing the number of innovation studios at all levels and of all types to 160,000 by 2030, of which 3,000 innovation studios will be supported as key priorities by the All-China Federation of Trade Unions; extensively implementing the "Study to Realize Dreams" action (求学圆梦行动), funding no fewer than 3 million industrial workers who meet enrollment conditions to upgrade their educational qualifications and skills by 2030.

During the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, the vocational skill evaluation system and the "new eight-grade worker" (新八级工) vocational skill grade system that industrial workers care about will be further improved. Enterprises will establish and improve career guidance plans for industrial workers, and improve the system of mutual connectivity among professional technical posts, operation and management posts, and skill posts.

Solving the urgent, difficult, anxious, and longed-for problems of key groups

In recent years, China has continuously improved its labor legal system, built a multi-level labor rights protection mechanism, and the broad masses of laborers have significantly enhanced their sense of gain, happiness, and security in terms of employment opportunities, income distribution, social insurance, and occupational safety.

The Plan focuses on "trade union rights protection and services" and proposes extensively carrying out trade union employment service actions, providing no fewer than 15 million person-times of online and offline employment services each year; encouraging and supporting enterprises to implement annual salary systems, agreement wage systems, and equity incentives for great-power craftsmen and highly skilled talent; building a "one network" for national worker recuperation and rest, strengthening the planning management and resource coordination of national worker recuperation and rest work, and expanding the scale of worker recuperation and rest; strengthening the construction of trade union service stations, providing basic services such as drinking water, meal heating, rest, and restroom guidance, while also providing expanded services such as policy publicity and legal aid according to local conditions (因地制宜 - yīn dì zhì yí - "adapt measures to local conditions," to act according to circumstances).

Currently, with the rapid development of the digital economy and platform economy, the scale of workers in new employment forms such as food delivery riders and ride-hailing drivers continues to expand; at the same time, workers in new employment forms also face problems such as vague employment relationships, high occupational risks, and insufficient social security participation.

"The Plan, with a view to promoting common prosperity, makes deployments for trade unions to fulfill their basic duties from two aspects: 'improving the quality and effectiveness of trade union rights protection and service work' and 'solving the urgent, difficult, anxious, and longed-for problems of key groups with heart, with feeling, and with effort,' among which it emphasizes doing a good job in protecting the rights and interests of workers in new employment groups," said the relevant person in charge of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions.

The Plan proposes promoting the improvement of the occupational injury protection system for new employment groups, improving the system for supporting flexible employment personnel and new employment groups to participate in employee social insurance; promoting the improvement of policies for vocational skill training, vocational skill grade certification, and professional title evaluation for new employment groups; doing a good job in trade union care for new employment groups, improving precision and adaptability.

Striving to build harmonious labor relations

The Plan proposes carrying out concentrated actions for union establishment and membership enrollment according to local conditions and industry conditions, striving to promote more than 350,000 employers to establish trade unions cumulatively within 5 years; promoting the establishment of unions in platform enterprises and their labor cooperation enterprises by category, striving to newly develop no fewer than 7.5 million members from new employment groups.

"The Plan, focusing on grassroots trade unions as the foundation and key, centering on 'deepening the construction of grassroots trade union organizations,' proposes work measures such as strengthening the construction of trade unions in non-public enterprises, deepening the standardized construction of trade union organizations in state-owned enterprises, and strengthening the construction of 'small three-level' trade unions (小三级工会), and also makes deployments for stimulating the vitality of grassroots trade unions," said the relevant person in charge of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions.

In terms of improving the labor relations consultation and coordination mechanism and building harmonious labor relations, the Plan also lists clear goals: promoting the carrying out of consultations on labor rules and algorithms of platform enterprises and their labor cooperation enterprises, collective consultations on capability-based wages, and special collective consultations on the protection of female employees' rights and interests, and promoting industry-level (regional) collective consultations. For enterprises with more than 100 employees that have established trade unions, the rate of separately signing collective contracts and the rate of signing special collective contracts for the protection of female employees' rights and interests will be dynamically maintained at above 85%.

How to grasp the implementation of the Plan? The relevant person in charge of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions stated that the ACFTU will coordinate the implementation of the Plan, formulate specific plans, establish work ledgers, and strengthen the coordination and connection between the Plan and resource allocation, planned tasks, and policy measures; trade unions at all levels will combine their actual conditions to implement the Plan, refine goals and tasks, form work synergy, and forcefully and orderly promote the implementation and effectiveness of all goals and tasks; at the same time, strengthen monitoring and evaluation, dynamically monitor the implementation of the Plan, coordinate the research and resolution of problems in implementation, and propose improvement measures.

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First blue book on industrial worker workforce development reform released

Our newspaper, Beijing, August 20 (reporter Yi Shuran (易舒冉)) — The reporter learned from the All-China Federation of Trade Unions (全国总工会): the blue book "Report on the Reform of China's Industrial Worker Workforce Construction (2026)" (《中国产业工人队伍建设改革报告（2026）》) was released in Beijing on August 20. This is the first blue book in China to systematically summarize the theoretical achievements of the reform of industrial worker workforce construction and comprehensively display its practical achievements.

The book is mainly divided into 4 parts. The first part is the general report, which elaborates the fundamental guidelines, major significance, experience and practices, and future prospects of the reform of industrial worker workforce construction; the second part is the special topics section, which summarizes the progress and results of reform tasks such as ideological guidance, 建功立业 (jiàn gōng lì yè - "establish merit, establish enterprise," to make contributions and achieve success), quality improvement, status enhancement, and workforce expansion; the third part is the industry section, which displays the distinctive paths of 10 industries in building first-class industrial technical worker teams; the fourth part is the regional section, which presents the vivid practices of deepening reform in 31 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government, and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps.

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Trade unions at all levels nationwide run 48,000 summer daycare classes.

BEIJING, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) — (Reporter Yi Shuran) On August 20, the reporter learned from a press conference held by the All-China Federation of Trade Unions that by the end of August, when the summer vacation concludes, trade unions at all levels across the country are expected to have operated 48,000 loving-care daycare classes for workers' children, serving more than 2.2 million worker children in total.

Since the beginning of this year, trade unions in various localities have continued to promote the improvement of quality and expansion of coverage of daycare services. Hunan, Gansu, Qinghai and other provinces have incorporated daycare for workers' children into local practical livelihood projects. Trade unions in various localities have focused on the urgent difficulties and anxious concerns of workers in new employment forms, launching flexible and convenient exclusive daycare services for groups such as food delivery riders, couriers, ride-hailing drivers, and truck drivers. Tongling in Anhui, Nanning in Guangxi and other localities have implemented free daycare for the children of workers in new employment forms.

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Understanding Development Through "A Quarter Hour" (People's Forum)

By: 崔 妍

A quarter of an hour — how much can one do?

Going downstairs, taking the child to kindergarten; leaving the residential compound, buying vegetables and fruit at the convenience produce stand; walking a few more steps, scanning a QR code to enter the smart gym. The author once timed it — completing all of this takes about 15 minutes.

Today, thanks to the construction of the 15-minute convenience living circle (一刻钟便民生活圈), the people's sense of gain is even stronger. In Beijing, an old shopping mall has renewed its business formats, turning the residents' living circle into a fusion circle of commerce, services, and culture; in Shanghai, a small street 550 meters long links lecture halls, canteens, and reception rooms...

Data show that more than 90% of cities at and above the prefecture level nationwide have carried out convenience living circle construction, serving 189 million community residents.

"The lives of ordinary people are family matters, but even more so, matters of state." From "a quarter of an hour" one can perceive the way of development.

"A quarter of an hour" has warmth.

General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized, "Only when the people 安居乐业 (ān jū lè yè - "dwell peacefully and work joyfully," to live and work in peace and contentment), and live comfortably, can the Party and government rest assured." The 15-minute convenience living circle vividly interprets the people-centered development purpose.

Serving "the elderly and the young," the silver-hair golden street and children's fun park at the doorstep put people at ease; for convenient living, the household service and repair networks around communities are woven ever denser; focusing on the difficulty of dining, community canteens are convenient and affordable... One "circle" accommodates basic livelihood and quality life, with the warmth of everyday life and rich human warmth rising up.

The warmth of development has never been an abstract concept, but is embodied in the daily lives of ordinary people. From nearby childcare solving the "difficulty of raising children," to door-to-door elderly care protecting the "sunset red," to public welfare markets earning "thumbs up," making things tangible and accessible to the people is what real development means.

"A quarter of an hour" shows wisdom.

Within the people's livelihood "small bills" lies the economy's "big ledger." The 15-minute convenience living circle not only resolves matters at the people's doorstep, but also unlocks a trillion-yuan blue ocean, reflecting the dialectic that "grasping people's livelihood is also grasping development."

The more robust the livelihood guarantees, the more abundant the endogenous driving force of economic development. Renovation of old residential communities stimulates domestic demand potential, driving the development of construction, decoration, home appliance, and other industries; new business formats such as community elderly care and convenience commerce flourish, creating nearby employment opportunities. Expanding development space while meeting livelihood needs enables high-quality development and high-quality life to move toward each other.

The super-large market of more than 1.4 billion people is where development potential lies and where resilience lies. Doing well the article of the "small family" is building the foundation for the overall development picture. Deeply tapping domestic demand potential, adapting to new demands and new trends, using full effort and clever effort in grasping livelihood, optimizing allocation and increasing efficiency in grasping development — livelihood gaining color and development gaining value holds great promise.

"A quarter of an hour" lies in method.

An important reason the 15-minute convenience living circle has become a major vehicle for safeguarding and improving people's livelihood and expanding consumption is that it adheres to asking the people about their needs and asking the people for their plans, clarifying what is "lacking" and precisely "supplementing" it, delivering convenience services to the very hearts of the masses.

"Reaching the broad and vast while exhausting the subtle and minute" is the way to accomplish things. From advancing the construction of 15-minute convenience living circles 因地制宜 (yīn dì zhì yí - "according to the land, set measures," to adapt measures to local conditions) with "one circle, one policy," to historically solving Shanghai residents' problem of "carrying chamber pots" with "one household, one policy," doing work solidly and thoroughly requires embroidery-level effort.

At present, China's development places greater emphasis on improving quality and efficiency. How to optimize the increment and revitalize the stock? The key lies in precise effort, precise policy, and precise implementation. Only by enabling various policies and measures to precisely connect with what development requires, what the grassroots expect, and what the people's hearts yearn for can synergy be formed and momentum be shaped.

"A quarter of an hour" is both a measure of time and a yardstick of governance, reflecting the value constant of "adhering to everything for the people" and containing the development variable of "continuously satisfying the people's yearning for a better life." Facing the new expectations of people's lives and the new characteristics of livelihood work under the new situation, maintaining warmth, employing wisdom, and being attentive to method, we can advance 蹄疾步稳 (tí jí bù wěn - "hooves swift, steps steady," to advance swiftly yet steadily) and continuously push our undertakings forward.

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Cut what should be cut, and regulate strictly where strictness is due.

By: 本报记者 常 钦

针对历史流失耕地，不再简单要求立即恢复，而是分类处置；部级层面不再组织开展全国性卫片（卫星遥感图片）执法，卫星遥感产品按月免费发送地方使用……
In response to historically lost cultivated land, there is no longer a simple requirement for immediate restoration; instead, it is handled by category. At the ministerial level, nationwide satellite-image (satellite remote sensing imagery) law enforcement is no longer organized, and satellite remote sensing products are sent free of charge to local authorities on a monthly basis for their use...

　　针对基层反映强烈的耕地整改恢复简单化、卫片执法“一刀切”等问题，自然资源部门坚持严守红线与尊重客观规律相统一，依托自然资源管理和国土空间规划“一张图”，减少机械整改、重复核查，让基层干部解脱出来，把更多精力用到保护资源、服务发展、解决问题上。
In response to issues strongly reflected by grassroots units, such as the oversimplification of cultivated land rectification and restoration and the "one-size-fits-all" approach of satellite-image law enforcement, the natural resources departments adhere to the unity of strictly holding the red line and respecting objective laws. Relying on the "one-map" (一张图) of natural resources management and territorial spatial planning, they reduce mechanical rectification and repeated verification, freeing grassroots cadres to devote more energy to protecting resources, serving development, and solving problems.

　　分类处置，耕地保护更务实
Handling by category makes cultivated land protection more pragmatic

　　“家里有些耕地在山上，农机上不去，年轻人又在外打工，很难办。”重庆市长寿区葛兰镇天福村村民祖志梅说，过去由于各种因素，山上的耕地栽种了经济果木林。
"Some of our family's cultivated land is on the mountain, farm machinery can't get up there, and the young people are out working away from home, so it's very difficult to manage," said Zu Zhimei (祖志梅), a villager of Tianfu Village, Geland Town, Changshou District, Chongqing. In the past, due to various factors, the cultivated land on the mountain had been planted with commercial fruit and timber trees.

　　林子处在收益期，倘若简单地拔树复耕，将增加工作难度、影响农民收益。如何在守住耕地红线的同时，不让基层干部和群众为难？
The trees are in their income-generating period. If the trees were simply pulled up to restore cultivation, it would increase the difficulty of the work and affect farmers' incomes. How can the cultivated land red line be held while not putting grassroots cadres and the masses in a difficult position?

　　自然资源部耕地保护监督司副司长杜舰介绍，对历史上占用耕地种树种果种茶等造成的耕地流出问题，按照“认定一批、恢复一批、置换一批”的原则分类施策。符合耕地调查规则且适宜集中耕作的，认定为耕地并严格保护；集中连片、具备良好灌溉条件且容易恢复的，结合农民意愿、产业发展和作物生长周期分步恢复；因质量较差或坡度较陡等不适宜恢复的，有序退出耕地保护范围，与宜耕地块置换。
Du Jian (杜舰), Deputy Director of the Department of Cultivated Land Protection and Supervision of the Ministry of Natural Resources, explained that for the problem of cultivated land outflow caused by historically occupying cultivated land to plant trees, fruit trees, tea, and so on, policies are implemented by category according to the principle of "recognize one batch, restore one batch, and replace one batch." Land that conforms to cultivated land survey rules and is suitable for concentrated cultivation is recognized as cultivated land and strictly protected; land that is concentrated and contiguous, has good irrigation conditions, and is easy to restore is restored step by step in light of farmers' wishes, industrial development, and crop growth cycles; land that is unsuitable for restoration due to poor quality or steep slopes is orderly withdrawn from the cultivated land protection scope and replaced with suitable cultivable plots.

　　在此背景下，长寿区通过院坝会、村民代表会听取意见，形成“一村一图”。在长寿区龙河镇，当地群众表示：“小块田变大块田，还挖通了水渠，农作物长势都不错。”
Against this background, Changshou District listened to opinions through courtyard meetings and villagers' representative meetings, forming "one map per village" (一村一图). In Longhe Town, Changshou District, local people said: "Small plots have been turned into large plots, irrigation channels have been dug through, and the crops are growing well."

　　精准聚焦，监管执法更有力
Precise focus makes supervision and law enforcement more effective

　　过去，一些地方开展卫片执法时，习惯于图斑层层下发，基层干部逐个核实、反复举证。
In the past, when some localities carried out satellite-image law enforcement, they were accustomed to issuing map patches (图斑) level by level, with grassroots cadres verifying each one and repeatedly providing evidence.

　　2025年起，自然资源部不再组织全国性卫片执法，改以“四不两直”实地抽查等方式强化执法检查，将卫星遥感产品按月免费发送地方，依托“一张图”系统推动违法占地早发现、早制止、严查处。这一转变，让监测从“大水漫灌”转向精准识别，把该减的负担减下去，把该严的事项管到位。
Starting in 2025, the Ministry of Natural Resources no longer organizes nationwide satellite-image law enforcement, and instead strengthens law enforcement inspections through methods such as "four no's and two direct's" (四不两直) on-site spot checks. Satellite remote sensing products are sent free of charge to localities on a monthly basis, and reliance on the "one-map" system promotes early detection, early stopping, and strict handling of illegal land occupation. This shift moves monitoring from "flood irrigation" to precise identification, reducing burdens that should be reduced and managing strictly the matters that should be strict.

　　江苏统筹省市执法队伍和技术支撑单位组建核查组，以省级实地核查为主，发现问题后移交基层查处整改，不再要求基层反复举证；对典型案件挂牌督办、定期开展已整改问题“回头看”，实现线索提取、实地核查、问题移交、跟踪整改闭环管理。截至目前，移交地方的2030个问题已整改1709个。
Jiangsu coordinated provincial and municipal law enforcement teams and technical support units to form verification groups, focusing mainly on provincial-level on-site verification. After problems are found, they are handed over to grassroots units for investigation and rectification, and grassroots units are no longer required to repeatedly provide evidence. Typical cases are supervised under挂牌督办 (listed supervision), and regular "look-back" reviews of rectified problems are carried out, achieving closed-loop management of clue extraction, on-site verification, problem handover, and follow-up rectification. As of now, 1,709 of the 2,030 problems handed over to localities have been rectified.

　　从“基层围着图斑转”到“上级带着线索查”，工作方法不断优化，助推基层监测更聚焦、执法更有力。
From "grassroots units revolving around map patches" to "higher levels investigating with clues," working methods are continuously optimized, helping grassroots monitoring become more focused and law enforcement more effective.

　　统筹共享，基层治理更高效
Coordinated sharing makes grassroots governance more efficient

　　“以前，每月要分片跑遍全镇，遇上雨季，山路难走，巡查一次要半个月。”谈起山林农田巡查工作，湖南一名基层工作人员说，“现在，国家统一推送月度卫星影像，系统自动标出变化地块，我们只需前往可疑点位，一周就能完成全镇核查。”
"In the past, every month I had to cover the whole town by area, and during the rainy season, with the mountain roads difficult to traverse, one inspection tour took half a month," said a grassroots worker in Hunan, speaking about mountain forest and farmland inspection work. "Now, the state uniformly pushes monthly satellite imagery, the system automatically marks changed plots, and we only need to go to suspicious points—the whole town can be verified in one week."

　　这样的变化，得益于遥感影像统筹共享。以往，各地各部门分别采购影像、建设系统，不仅重复花钱，而且更新频次不同、数据标准不一。基层既要多头申请、重复加工，还要靠人工大范围踏勘。“近年来，自然资源部建立遥感影像统筹机制，建成自然资源卫星遥感云服务平台和一批省级中心节点，推动数据‘应共享尽共享、在线共享’。”自然资源部国土测绘司司长陈军介绍。
Such changes benefit from the coordinated sharing of remote sensing imagery. In the past, various localities and departments purchased imagery and built systems separately, not only spending money repeatedly but also having different update frequencies and inconsistent data standards. Grassroots units had to apply to multiple sources, process data repeatedly, and still rely on manual large-scale field surveys. "In recent years, the Ministry of Natural Resources has established a remote sensing imagery coordination mechanism, built the Natural Resources Satellite Remote Sensing Cloud Service Platform and a number of provincial-level central nodes, and promoted the principle that data 'should be shared as much as possible, and shared online,'" said Chen Jun (陈军), Director of the Department of Territorial Surveying and Mapping of the Ministry of Natural Resources.

　　“一张图”正在变成基层治理的“千里眼”。湖南建立“月发现、季小结、年总结”滚动监测机制，基层从全域徒步巡查转为对可疑点位定点核验；浙江全面构建遥感影像“一盘棋”工作体系，全省遥感影像线上累计调用量突破61亿次，粮食安全专项审计效率大幅提升；湖北武汉将卫星发现、无人机取证、平台上报、现场核查连成闭环，服务自然资源、园林、城管、审计等50余个场景。
The "one-map" is becoming the "clairvoyant eye" (千里眼) of grassroots governance. Hunan has established a rolling monitoring mechanism of "monthly discovery, quarterly summary, and annual review," shifting grassroots work from full-area foot patrols to targeted verification of suspicious points. Zhejiang has comprehensively built a "one chessboard" (一盘棋) work system for remote sensing imagery, with cumulative online calls to remote sensing imagery across the province exceeding 6.1 billion times, greatly improving the efficiency of special audits on food security. Wuhan, Hubei, has linked satellite discovery, drone evidence collection, platform reporting, and on-site verification into a closed loop, serving more than 50 scenarios in natural resources, landscaping, urban management, auditing, and other fields.

　　影像多域复用，采集多方共享。减掉重复采购、生产、踏勘，增加动态感知、智能预警、协同处置，数字技术让基层少跑腿、风险早发现、治理更主动。
Imagery is reused across multiple domains, and collection is shared among multiple parties. Reducing repeated procurement, production, and field surveys while increasing dynamic perception, intelligent early warning, and coordinated handling, digital technology lets grassroots units make fewer trips, risks be discovered earlier, and governance become more proactive.

　　坚持实事求是、因地制宜，自然资源部门持续统筹好保护与发展、监管与服务，依托数字化“一张图”精准施策，持续提升治理效能，为基层干部减去不必要的负担，为筑牢资源安全底线、推动高质量发展贡献力量。
Adhering to seeking truth from facts and adapting measures to local conditions, the natural resources departments continue to coordinate protection and development, supervision and service. Relying on the digital "one-map" for precise policy implementation, they continuously improve governance effectiveness, reduce unnecessary burdens for grassroots cadres, and contribute to firmly securing the bottom line of resource security and promoting high-quality development.

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Ensure monitoring and early warning to protect both people and elephants.

Recently, more than 40 wild Asian elephants visited Zhushan Village (竹山村) in Ning'er Hani and Yi Autonomous County (宁洱哈尼族彝族自治县), Pu'er City, Yunnan Province. The local forestry and grassland department (林草部门) organized a joint monitoring team and adopted measures such as drone monitoring and early warning, installing warning signs and elephant-proof facilities, and conducting publicity on protective knowledge for the public, to ensure the safety of both people and elephants.

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MIIT Approves Another Round of Commercial Trials for Satellite IoT Services

Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, August 20 (Reporter Zhou Yuan (周圆)) — The reporter learned on the 20th that the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (工业和信息化部) has recently approved Zhejiang Shikong Daoyu Technology Co., Ltd. (浙江时空道宇科技有限公司) to conduct commercial trials of satellite IoT services, with a trial period of two years. This is an important measure to further expand the opening of satellite IoT services to the private sector.

During the commercial trial period, Shikong Daoyu may lawfully pilot satellite IoT services on a trial basis, relying on the "Geely Future Mobility Constellation (Phase I)" (吉利未来出行星座（一期）) to provide users with wide-coverage, low-power-consumption, high-reliability IoT connectivity services, and to achieve all-weather, intelligent data collection and remote interaction in fields such as smart transportation, marine fisheries, and energy and water conservancy.

Satellite IoT services refer to a low-data-rate service that provides wide-area IoT connectivity through satellite communication technology for various devices such as data collection terminals, wearable devices, and handheld terminals, as well as for means of transportation such as automobiles, ships, and aircraft. Organizing commercial trials of satellite IoT services is conducive to promoting the formation of economies of scale in satellite IoT and building a development pattern that is standardized and orderly, with coordinated development, complementary advantages, and win-win cooperation. This approval of commercial trials helps to stimulate the vitality of the private economy, support the development of commercial aerospace, cultivate new quality productive forces (新质生产力), and build a modern industrial system.

In the next step, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will coordinate development and security, further optimize market access for satellite communications, strengthen whole-chain supervision and security safeguards, and promote the high-quality development of China's satellite communications industry.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology launched commercial trials of satellite IoT services in November 2025; in May this year, it approved Beijing Guodian Hi-Tech Technology Co., Ltd. (北京国电高科科技有限公司) to conduct commercial trials of satellite IoT services, with a trial period of two years.

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Ministry of Water Resources continues issuing yellow flood warning

BEIJING, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) — (Reporter Deng Jianyang) The reporter learned from the Ministry of Water Resources: It is estimated that from August 20 to 22, affected by the tropical depression over the South China Sea and the monsoon trough, the cumulative areal rainfall in southern Guangxi, eastern Guangdong and the coast, most of Fujian, most of Zhejiang, Shanghai, most of Jiangsu, southeastern Shandong, and other areas will be 30 mm to 70 mm, and the cumulative areal rainfall in Hainan will be 100 mm to 150 mm.

The Ministry of Water Resources estimates that the water level of Taihu Lake will remain above the warning level; the upper reaches of the Heilong River from Huma to Sandao Ka will exceed the warning level, and the river section from Kaikukang to Oupu and the middle reaches below Fuyuan will remain above the warning level; in the Pearl River Basin, the Yu River, Han River, Dong River, and Hainan's Nandu River, Changhua River, Wanquan River, the coastal rivers of Guangxi, Guangdong, Fujian, and Zhejiang, the Lixia River area of Jiangsu, and the Shu River in Shandong and other rivers will experience rising water processes, and some small and medium-sized rivers in the rainstorm area may experience floods exceeding the warning level. The Information Center of the Ministry of Water Resources continues to issue a yellow flood warning, reminding the public in relevant areas to be vigilant.

On the 20th, the Ministry of Water Resources organized rolling consultations and, based on the 24-hour rainfall forecast, issued "one province, one sheet" targeted warnings to 13 provincial-level regions, including Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, Heilongjiang, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Chongqing, Sichuan, Shaanxi, Hainan, Yunnan, and Xizang. The Ministry of Water Resources maintained the Level III emergency response for flood defense for Jiangsu and Zhejiang and the Level IV emergency response for flood defense for Heilongjiang, Shanghai, Anhui, and Henan. Four working groups of the Ministry of Water Resources are currently on the front line in Zhejiang, Henan, Heilongjiang, and other places to assist and guide rainstorm and flood defense work.

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Assisted reproduction programs under medical insurance benefit 139,700 newborns

Report from our newspaper in Beijing, August 20 (Reporter Sun Xiuyan (孙秀艳)): The latest data from the National Healthcare Security Administration (国家医保局) show that in the first half of this year, the number of newborns born with support from medical insurance assisted reproduction programs reached 139,700.

In the first half of the year, a cumulative total of 1.7096 million person-times used medical insurance assisted reproduction programs, with total visits rising steadily. The direct costs of assisted reproduction programs amounted to 2.97 billion yuan, and the cumulative expenditure of the medical insurance fund exceeded 1.9 billion yuan. The burden-reduction effect of medical insurance is solid, and its guarantee role is prominent. From national data, embryo transfer, sperm optimization processing, embryo culture, oocyte retrieval, and intracytoplasmic sperm injection are the five most frequently used programs.

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Page 1 Editors: Hu Anqi, Zhao Zheng, Luan Xinyi Page 2 Editors: Lyu Li, Zhang Anyu, Chen Zhen Page 3 Editors: Han Xiaoming, Jiang Bo, Guan Haoyu Page 4 Editors: Liu Nian, Han Chunyao, Yu Xuan

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Growing cultural gems requires nurturing an industrial forest (Connected Commentator)

Zhou Shanshan: Following "Nezha: The Devil Child Stirs the Sea" previously topping the global animated film box office chart, the animated film "Eight Immortals!" has become this year's summer season dark horse. Why is it that the Chengdu High-tech Zone in Sichuan can always produce phenomenal works?

Yu Shuman: The development of Sichuan's film and television industry is like 八仙过海 (bā xiān guò hǎi - "the eight immortals cross the sea," each displaying their own abilities), moving from fighting alone to cluster collaboration. The Tianfu Changdao Digital Cultural and Creative Park in the Chengdu High-tech Zone has gathered more than 70 enterprises, covering upstream and downstream within a hundred meters, forming a closed loop from original creation, production to post-production — a highly efficient collaboration model. At present, the Chengdu High-tech Zone has gathered more than 6,000 digital cultural and creative enterprises, building a complete industrial chain. When the ecosystem is good, local talent naturally grows, and it also attracts more talent to converge, fully stimulating people's creativity. A relaxed and friendly creative atmosphere, increasingly complete policy support, and a vibrant market environment are making Sichuan a new hotbed for the film and television industry.

Zhou Shanshan: "The distance of a cup of coffee can cover the entire industrial chain of an animated film" — it is precisely the full industrial chain layout and industrial cluster effect that have allowed Sichuan's film and television to bid farewell to "relying on luck for a single hit," forming a stable mechanism for regularly producing quality works and continuously outputting top-tier audiovisual content.

Yu Shuman: The full-chain film and television industrial system is moving from "being built" to "being strengthened," achieving one-click arrival and integrated supply of various elements, running at "accelerated speed" for film and television development. Sichuan Province's "15th Five-Year Plan" outline proposes advancing the construction of pilot zones for integrated development of culture and technology industries, listing film, television and animation as key industries to be vigorously cultivated. "Growing a forest" rather than "planting bonsai" — only by building a complete ecosystem can innovation vitality be continuously released.

Zhou Shanshan: Pandas, hotpot, Sanxingdui, "Sichuan dialect"... In film and television works produced by Sichuan, local elements are regularly embedded, and the communication effects are also good. How can regional culture truly move people's hearts, rather than being a pile-up of cultural symbols?

Yu Shuman: To develop Sichuan's rich regional cultural mine, the key is to do well the article of upholding integrity and innovating. Extracting the spiritual core is "upholding what does not change" — this is the starting point of creation. Only by extracting the common emotions and spiritual values within regional culture can one possess the penetrating power that directly reaches people's hearts. Dialect and local scenery are not just symbols, but the natural expression of Sichuan people's optimistic and open-minded temperament. Innovating modern expression is "seeking ten thousand changes" — this is the key to breaking out of the circle. Empowering visual presentation with new technology, shifting perspectives with youthful narratives, adapting thousand-year-old myths to contemporary aesthetics, making traditional culture "come alive" on the big screen. All cultural elements must ultimately serve the characters and themes — this is the bottom line that cannot be broken. Cultural symbols being rigidly "seen" is interference; being silently "perceived" is immersion. Only when elements serve the story and shape characters can there be both recognizability and no sense of incongruity.

Zhou Shanshan: From "traveling Sichuan following film and television" to "one drama makes a city popular, one city feeds back a hundred dramas" — how can film and television and tourism move from "physical stacking" to "chemical reaction"? Facing common pain points such as short-term traffic surges and insufficient visitor retention brought by film and television popularity, what good methods does Sichuan have?

Yu Shuman: Make services better — the effort lies in ordinary times. When film and television explode in popularity and bring a surge in visitor flow, only by improving supporting facilities and services on a daily basis can one receive the heat and retain tourists. Make products trendy and increase sustained interaction. With forward-looking planning and careful curation, use cultural and creative products in categories such as intangible cultural heritage and trendy toys to connect emotions and drive repeat purchases, better converting one-time traffic into sustained consumption. Make experiences new and unlock new ways to play. Launch themed tourism routes, themed tourism corridors, immersive theaters, etc., using new scenarios to extend the sense of experience and activate new consumption. Film and television and tourism moving from "physical stacking" to "chemical reaction" is a difficult problem, but also a blue ocean. Sichuan is continuously exploring. We believe that by maintaining cultural confidence, continuing to exert effort in service optimization, technological innovation, and industrial upgrading, and promoting the transformation of IP (intellectual property) resources into cultural assets, can traffic be allowed to settle and nourish long-term development.

Zhou Shanshan: Sichuan's practice shows that the rise of the cultural industry is never a single-point breakthrough, but a systematic victory. There has never been a phenomenal work that fell from thin air; they are all the inevitable result of long-term deep cultivation of content, patient building of systems, and continuous optimization of the ecosystem. Only by slowing down to polish content can one continuously break out of the circle and produce quality works. Only by settling down to cultivate an industrial forest that can continuously produce content, and deeply rooting the veins of creation in the soil of culture, can traffic settle into long-term cultural assets, ultimately realizing the positive cycle of "producing quality works, nurturing industry, and invigorating a region." Only by upholding integrity and innovating, and persisting over the long term, can cultural resources be turned into industrial advantages, can local IP go nationwide and gain worldwide renown, and can the power of light and shadow tell China's story well and demonstrate cultural confidence.

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Retired but Never Faded, Guarding the Desert with Original Aspiration (China Road, Chinese Dream · Everyone Is a Protagonist)

By: 李 鹏

In early autumn, in the jujube orchard of Ariqi Village, Cele County, Hotan Prefecture, Xinjiang, dense green dates weigh the branches down slightly toward the ground. For a farmer, there is no more reassuring sight than this. A person lives a lifetime and must leave something behind. For the past ten-plus years, I have devoted myself to the jujube forest behind me. The older I grow, the more I feel that time waits for no one. My wish now is to plant a few more forests and sell a few more dates.

In 2009, I officially retired. Many people said I could now enjoy my old age in comfort. But I had a thought in my heart — I could not let my ample time slip away idle; while I could still work, I should do a bit more for the common people. Ariqi Village is located at the "No. 3 Wind Gap" on the southern edge of the Taklamakan Desert. "Cele" means "red date" in Uyghur, but the area had long been besieged by wind and sand. The locals lamented, "Two liang of sand a day — you don't get enough during the daytime, and at night you have to make up the difference." If I was going somewhere, it should be the most difficult place. So I settled in Ariqi Village, ready to "start a business."

The root of Ariqi Village's hardship lay in its ecology. Breaking the deadlock had to start there. Cele's climate and soil are suitable for jujube tree growth; if the trees survived, they could block wind and fix sand, and once the dates ripened, they could bring income. But when the local villagers heard I wanted to plant jujubes to control the sand, they said flatly: "Our ancestors and we ourselves have never been able to tame the sand here. Even if you pour water into the dunes, no crops will grow. And you want to plant jujubes?" I knew — everyone had been frightened by the wind and sand.

In the spring of 2010, I leveled several hundred mu of sandy land and planted jujube saplings. In less than a month, they were all buried by wind-blown sand. Digging them out one by one, I realized that this matter absolutely could not be rushed. I consulted experts, taught myself the techniques, and decided to first plant windbreak forests. I dug wells and channels, planted trees in rings, and then grew wheat to improve the soil. When the wind blew the saplings down, I propped them up and replanted them; when the sand buried the land, I leveled it and planted again... The villagers and I wrestled with the wind and sand at the wind gap for a full three years. More than 50,000 windbreak saplings stood tall, blocking most of the wind and sand outside, and the jujube saplings finally survived!

Planting trees in the desert is no different from contending with heaven. But contending with heaven does not mean fighting against it head-on or going against it stubbornly — it means contending in wisdom and courage. The most crucial thing is to understand the "temperament" of this sandy land and move forward by following its momentum.

Using every possible means to plant jujube trees is for the sake of a good environment, and even more for the sake of a good life. Once the jujube trees survived and the red dates had a bumper harvest, if they could not be sold or could not fetch a good price, it would still be all for nothing. In 2018, with the support of the local government, I built a primary jujube processing plant in the village, took the lead in establishing a cooperative, and brought villagers in as members. The village originally had four villager teams, and our jujube orchard came to be called the "Fifth Team." Earlier this year, a livestream opened our eyes: within one hour of broadcasting, 180,000 orders were completed, selling more than 90 tons of red dates. Many young people even called themselves "harvest partners." More and more people are concerned about agriculture and paying attention to the countryside, and many have a heart for helping farmers. We must not let down such trust and expectation.

There are 17 windbreak forests, totaling 11 kilometers in length; several hundred thousand jujube trees spread out mu by mu, dyeing 3,000 mu of sandy land green. The land has turned green, and the villagers' money bags have grown heavier. Over the years, we have paid out more than 45 million yuan in wages in total and cultivated more than 300 forestry and fruit technical backbone personnel. The per capita income of the villagers has nearly increased tenfold. Just as the name "Cele" signifies, everyone's life has become ever more prosperous and sweet.

Is planting trees in the desert difficult? Yes, it is difficult. Everyone tends every sapling as if it were their own child — that is how we have the forests and the harvests we have today. But no matter how difficult, if you plant one tree at a time and work year after year, the sand line can be pushed back bit by bit. If you don't believe it, just look — with fighting spirit and unity of heart, even the vast Taklamakan Desert has been "sealed at its edges." Do small things well and do them for the long haul, and you can likewise accomplish great things.

In order to plant jujubes, I sold my house and staked my savings. When my father was on his deathbed, he said to me: "After I am gone, bury me here. While alive I watched you tame the sand; after I leave, I will keep you company guarding the green." What patch of yellow earth does not bury a person? My family's support strengthened my choice even more: as a retired veteran soldier, one must not let the uniform fade, and must not let the will retreat.

How can one keep from fading and from retreating? Always ponder new things, and always keep pace with the times. Once the jujube orchard was stable, we introduced honey-wax plums from Guizhou. This year they have already set fruit on a large scale; once the trial planting succeeds, they can be handed over to the villagers for promotion. We have also introduced Manchurian ash, summer oak, black walnut, and other tree species, hoping to make the windbreak forests yield greater benefits. As long as life continues, the original aspiration remains unchanged, and the struggle never ceases.

(The author is the chairman of Xinjiang Desert Jujube Industry Co., Ltd. and the person in charge of the Cele County Smart Fruit Industry Farmers' Professional Cooperative. This article was compiled by People's Daily reporter Aredake.)

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Reading the Economic Upswing Through the 'Electricity Ledger' (People's Daily Commentary)

By: 王云杉

A close look at China's "electricity ledger" reveals several "firsts" that leave a deep impression:
By the end of May this year, China's total installed power generation capacity surpassed 4 billion kilowatts for the first time; in the first half of the year, the share of renewable energy in total national electricity generation exceeded 40 percent for the first time, and the share of coal-fired power generation fell below 50 percent for the first time...
One electricity ledger concerns the warmth and cold of every household and reflects the barometer of the economy. What it records is not only the direction of electric currents and the rise and fall of loads, but also the resilience, the innovation, and the quality of China's economy.
The resilience of an economy often becomes more visible under pressure. Since the start of this year, the international energy market has experienced intense fluctuations, with increased uncertainty in oil and gas supply; since early July, the country has seen widespread sustained high temperatures, with electricity loads hitting record highs one after another, growing by approximately 45 million kilowatts compared with last year's peak. On one front, external "winds and waves" have struck; on the other, internal loads have climbed. Neither the external nor the internal test has defeated us — in the first half of the year, the national balance between electricity supply and demand was maintained overall, and China's economy has moved toward innovation and improvement.
Where does this resilience come from? The massive scale of installed power capacity has played a key role. The installed capacity of 4.01 billion kilowatts exceeds the combined installed power generation capacity of the United States, the European Union, India, Japan, and Russia, accounting for nearly 30 percent of the global total. When external winds and waves strike, we stand firm; when internal loads surge, we hold up. With the reliability of our electricity foundation, we have consolidated the certainty of economic development.
This makes it easier to understand why it is said that "China's economy is a vast ocean, not a small pond." Because China's economy is large enough in size and complete enough in system, it possesses ample stability and capacity to withstand pressure, and it has the ability to dynamically respond to changes in the external environment.
Innovation is hidden in the "increments" of the electricity consumption structure. Where the increments in electricity consumption lie, there the new drivers of the economy often are. In the first half of the year, computing power, new energy, and high-end manufacturing are becoming the new engines of electricity consumption growth: electricity consumption by internet data services grew 44 percent year on year, electricity consumption by the charging and battery-swapping service industry grew 56.9 percent year on year, and electricity consumption by high-tech and equipment manufacturing grew 9.8 percent year on year — all higher than the growth rate of total social electricity consumption.
Behind the data lie trends; changes in electricity consumption map the transformation of the industrial structure. At present, the "AI+" action is accelerating, with intelligent computing centers rising one after another; the number of new energy vehicles on the road continues to climb, and the charging network is being woven ever denser; high-end manufacturing is accelerating its upgrading, with intelligent manufacturing flourishing in multiple fields. Data center servers run day and night, charging piles are continuously installed across streets and alleys, and the mechanical arms in intelligent factories wave tirelessly... The picture of China's high-quality development is gradually unfolding.
Quality is shown in the "shifts" of the power generation structure. The "one declines, the other rises" between coal-fired power generation and renewable energy generation reflects the green transformation of China's economic operations. In the past, development was often inseparable from the massive consumption of traditional fossil energy; now, we support sustained economic growth at a lower environmental cost.
The decline in coal-fired power is a decline in dependence on traditional energy; the rise in wind and solar power is a rise in the confidence of sustainable development. The quality of China's economy lies in the fact that growth does not come at the expense of the environment, but rather keeps accelerating on the track of green development.
The meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee held on July 30 emphasized: "Strengthen confidence, rise to meet difficulties, make good use of all opportunities and advantages, and promote high-quality development to proceed steadily and reach far." Through the "electricity ledger," one can see the magnificent picture of China's economy maintaining its composure amid transformation, accumulating momentum amid change, and forging ahead amid challenges. With green as the foundation, moving toward innovation and improvement, we believe that the great ship of China's economy will surely ride the wind and break the waves and advance steadily on the course of high-quality development.

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Photo Report

The "15th Five-Year Plan" for Building a Strong Tourism Country proposes that by 2030, "inbound tourist arrivals will reach 190 million, with total spending exceeding 150 billion US dollars." Going to Hainan to "see the sea and play in the sea"; seeking cool retreats and scenic vistas in Zhangjiajie, Hunan; venturing into small county towns and mountain villages to savor authentic local customs and culture... This summer, the inbound tourism boom has continued to heat up, demonstrating strong appeal and a powerful driving effect.

Here is a verse:

Splendid is China's charm,
Guests from five continents come afar.
They savor a hundred flavors to their heart's content,
And friendship warms the heart.

Liao Yuanwen

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Scientists Taking Center Stage in Cities Is a Welcome Sight (Across the Nation)

By: 默 达

Recently, in multiple business districts in Shandong, Anhui, Inner Mongolia and other places, a very distinct change has appeared: large screens and billboards that were previously occupied by various commercial advertisements have been replaced with posters of scientific researchers such as Qian Xuesen, Yuan Longping, Tu Youyou, and Nan Rendong. In the prime locations of city centers where land is 寸土寸金 (cùn tǔ cùn jīn - "inch of land, inch of gold," extremely valuable land), scientists who devoted their lives to serving the country have ascended to the "C-position," drawing many citizens to stop and take photos, and related topics have also garnered praise on the internet.

For a long time, advertising spaces in business districts have mostly been used for product promotion and brand marketing. This time, multiple shopping malls have taken the initiative to leave the "C-position" to scientists, and the significance of this is 不言而喻 (bù yán ér yù - "without words, it is understood," self-evident). Star entertainers are spokespersons for commodities, while outstanding scientific researchers can well be called spokespersons for the spirit of the times. They have delved deep and explored, working hard decade after decade as if it were a single day, propping up the confidence for self-reliance and self-strengthening in science and technology, and continuously consolidating the foundation of the people's happiness and well-being. To 广而告之 (guǎng ér gào zhī - "broadly announce it," to publicize widely) these names and faces conveys a spiritual power more enduring than commercial value, and also gives a clear answer to the social topic of "what kind of stars should we follow."

Some people may not understand: will public-interest content occupying prime advertising positions affect the business efficiency of shopping malls? This involves a deeper question — what role should large business districts and commercial complexes play in the city? As important urban public spaces, the value of shopping malls lies not only in selling goods and creating profits; their facades and plazas should also bear certain social responsibilities.

For example, the plazas of many shopping malls are leisure spaces for citizens during the day, and at night transform into children's playgrounds and cultural markets, and on weekends can also provide venues for street-side free clinics, public-interest publicity, and voluntary blood donation. In some well-known business districts, such as Beijing's Wangfujing Pedestrian Street, Guangzhou's Beijing Road in Guangdong, and Changsha's Wuyi Square in Hunan, large screens can be used both for New Year's countdowns and to light up in honor of model workers, and can also serve as a business card for local publicity.

"Scientists ascending to the C-position" is a far-sighted move. During the poster display period, many citizens deliberately stopped to watch, and many parents also brought their children to check in at the sites. Paying tribute to role models has not weakened commercial value; on the contrary, it has gathered popularity for the shopping malls, accumulated reputation, and brought potential foot traffic and business opportunities. Practice has proven that social benefits and economic benefits can absolutely both be achieved. We look forward to more positive energy being widely disseminated through various innovative channels, thereby stimulating broad resonance and creating a positive and upward social atmosphere.

(Excerpted from Nanfang Daily, original title: "Let More Scientists Ascend to the 'C-Position'")

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Decoding the secret of a two-minute appeal (Micro Perspective)

By: 孟繁哲

Around micro-dramas, there has long been debate over whether they are "cultural compressed biscuits" and whether "vertical screens can tell good stories." Recently, director Jia Zhangke, who has long been deeply engaged in film, revealed on a social platform that he has been watching short dramas, remarking with emotion, "When the screen stands upright, creators are not a notch shorter. If two minutes moves people, then it has moved them," sparking heated discussion.

China's micro-drama users have surpassed 700 million, with the 2025 market size exceeding 100 billion yuan, and 33,000 micro-dramas launched and broadcast, with excellent works in realist and other genres emerging continuously. How does this young literary and artistic form harbor such great energy?

Responding to demand, literature and art gain vitality. The rise of micro-dramas stems from a precise response to changes in cultural consumption. The fragmented pace of life calls for short, punchy content with high emotional density (短小精悍 - duǎn xiǎo jīng hàn - "short, small, refined, and vigorous," concise and powerful); lower creative thresholds allow ordinary people to express themselves fully, and more creativity has the possibility of being seen. The micro-drama "Escape from the British Museum" came from the hands of two self-media bloggers, telling the story of a Chinese cultural relic that transforms into a young woman, escapes from the British Museum, and makes a circuitous journey home, earning over 2 billion views through clever conception and genuine feeling. Without big productions or big stars, micro-dramas can equally win recognition through sincerity.

From micro-dramas on vertical screens, to the vast worlds written by 30 million online literature authors, to the immersive cultural experiences emerging competitively across regions, the vigorous demand for cultural consumption is giving rise to unprecedented (前所未有 - qián suǒ wèi yǒu - "never before had," unprecedented) creative enthusiasm. Wherever the cultural needs of the people lie, the direction of innovation should face. Rooted in the people, rooted in life, responding to the concerns of the times with genuine emotion, the space for cultural innovation is immensely broad.

Cross-boundary integration opens new horizons. Micro-dramas linked with tourism bring consumption growth. After the micro-drama "The Tale of the Lone Horse," set against the backdrop of Changshan (常山), Zhejiang, became popular online, many viewers followed the Song-dynasty charm and scenery in the drama to visit this small town in person. Micro-dramas combined with technology release creative potential. "Su Xiaoyou: Emperor Hongwu Roams New Nanjing" integrates artificial intelligence technology to recreate Nanjing's historical scenes, bringing the ancient capital's elegance into viewers' sight with a fresh face. By being adept at stepping beyond one's own field and embracing more business forms, the value space of cultural products is greatly expanded.

Culture leads the trends of the times and is the field most in need of innovation. The game "Black Myth: Wukong" brought a wave of popularity to a batch of thousand-year-old ancient buildings in Shanxi, turning obscure cultural heritage protection units into popular check-in spots; the legal-themed micro-drama "Lord Bao, It's 2025 Now!" turns new types of telecom and online fraud schemes into dramatic conflict, achieving legal education through entertainment (寓教于乐 - yù jiào yú lè - "teaching through entertainment"); the new hall of the Sanxingdui Museum (三星堆博物馆) uses artificial intelligence algorithms to restore cultural relics, giving the exhibition experience a completely renewed feel (焕然一新 - huàn rán yī xīn - "changed into something new," completely renewed). The vitality of new cultural business forms lies precisely in their ability to mutually stimulate with technology, tourism, education, and other fields, generating new momentum and expanding new space through cross-boundary integration.

Facing the world, good works carry their own persuasiveness. Whether cultural products can win overseas markets is an important touchstone for testing their competitiveness. In 2025, the overseas micro-drama industry scale is approximately 4 billion US dollars, and overseas applications carrying Chinese micro-dramas have surpassed 300. On overseas streaming platforms, more and more foreign teams are adopting China's original vertical-screen narrative model to produce local stories; the influence of Chinese micro-dramas has extended from the works themselves to the creative methods. From being watched to being learned from, from exporting content to exporting methods, the influence of good works is evident to all (有目共睹 - yǒu mù gòng dǔ - "visible to all eyes").

The TV drama "The Legend of the Hidden Sea" has been broadcast in 190 countries and regions, with overseas netizens heatedly discussing "Chinese-style aesthetics"; the web novel "Lord of the Mysteries" has been translated into multiple languages, sparking a reading craze among overseas readers. Web literature, web dramas, and web games — the "new three items" (新三样) of cultural going-global — are achieving breakthroughs on multiple fronts, winning more and more kindred spirits globally, with the global dissemination power and influence of Chinese creation significantly enhanced. When Chinese creation and aesthetics naturally integrate into the daily choices of global audiences, cultural confidence grows and strengthens through silent nourishment (润物无声 - rùn wù wú shēng - "moistening things without sound," influencing subtly).

The outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan states: "Prosper the new mass literature and art (新大众文艺) under internet conditions." Today, a new wave of literature and art in which everyone can create and everyone can be seen is surging. Great waves sift the sand (大浪淘沙 - dà làng táo shā - "great waves sift the sand," only the finest survive the test of time); only fine works remain. Centered on the people, upholding the quality yardstick, stimulating the vigorous enthusiasm of "everyone can create," and fostering an industry ecology that supports the excellent and eliminates the inferior, the new mass literature and art will surely see a hundred flowers bloom (百花齐放 - bǎi huā qí fàng - "a hundred flowers bloom") and a myriad of scenes (气象万千 - qì xiàng wàn qiān - "a myriad of scenes," magnificent and varied).

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Editor: Li Zheng, Zhang Fan, Li Tielin

This mailbox: rmrbpl@peopledaily.cn (please indicate the column name in submissions)

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Pursuing Ultimate Precision in the Microscopic World (Carrying Forward the Spirit of Scientists)

By: 本报记者 郭晓龙

Profile

Harbin Institute of Technology's Ultra-Precision Instrument Technology Innovation Team has devoted more than three decades to tackling key challenges with unwavering determination, deeply cultivating the field of ultra-precision measurement and instrument engineering. It has successfully developed 6 types of national-level metrological standard devices and more than 50 types totaling over a thousand sets of large ultra-precision instruments and equipment, solved more than 30 ultra-precision measurement problems in the development and production of high-end equipment, formed more than 600 invention patents at home and abroad, and led the formulation of more than 40 international and national standards, achieving China's first-ever leadership in ISO (International Organization for Standardization) standard formulation in the field of product geometrical specification. The team has successively won 1 first prize and 4 second prizes in national science and technology awards, 1 first prize in national-level teaching achievement awards, and has been named a 2026 China Youth May Fourth Medal collective, a National University Huang Danian-style Teacher Team, and a National Youth Civilization Unit.

In the laboratory of the Ultra-Precision Instrument Technology Innovation Team at Harbin Institute of Technology, a nearly austere stillness supports researchers in exploring the precision of ultra-precision measurement. Outside the laboratory building, a vibration isolation trench more than 2 meters deep cuts off ground disturbances; on the experimental platform, an ultra-low-frequency micro-vibration isolation system steadily holds the platform aloft; inside, constant temperature and humidity are precise to two decimal places, and air cleanliness reaches the Class 100 standard...

Here, Tan Jiubin, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and team leader, leads a hundred-person innovation team relayed across three generations, "contending for every millimeter" at the nanometer and picometer scale, deeply cultivating the field of instrument science for more than 30 years, achieving the leap from technology follower to international leader.

Overcoming arduous conditions to establish a research group of only three people

Tan Jiubin's connection with ultra-precision instruments began with a science fiction novel he read as a youth — "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea." The instrument cabin in the book, capable of detecting the unknown and measuring the world, planted a seed of science in his heart. In elementary school, he wrote in a composition his wish to "grow up to be a scientist and manufacture precision instruments," and the teacher's affirmation made the dream take root.

After being admitted to Harbin Institute of Technology, Tan Jiubin chose the precision instruments major. At that time, China's ultra-precision measuring instruments were almost entirely dependent on imports, affecting the development of major national equipment and high-end manufacturing. Facing numerous technical barriers, Tan Jiubin did not retreat, and was determined to develop ultra-precision instruments of China's own.

In the early 1990s, a task for developing a large cylindricity measuring instrument urgently needed by the country was placed before him. This was a core measurement device for ensuring the accuracy and performance of major national high-end equipment. Foreign experts bluntly stated that "China does not possess the capability to develop it," and after assessment, multiple domestic teams successively backed away.

"We must succeed!" Tan Jiubin, who had just completed his doctorate, 挺身而出 (tǐng shēn ér chū - "straighten the body and step out," to step forward bravely), establishing a research group of only three people. How difficult were the conditions? Tan Jiubin would later often recall those days of "borrowing tables": "We had no laboratory, not even dedicated office desks. As soon as the students' experimental class ended, the three of us would immediately move aside the instruments, gather around the classroom desks to rush out drawings; when the class bell rang, we would pack up and move to the corridor, finding a corner to continue our discussions."

Tan Jiubin and his members ate and slept in the laboratory, completing the full set of drawings in just over a month, and achieving the complete machine breakthrough in more than two years, becoming the key project in the entire major project that "started the latest and finished the earliest."

Proposing original theories through independent innovation, overcoming multiple technical bottlenecks

Ultra-precision instruments pursue extreme precision below one ten-thousandth of a hair's diameter. One nanometer is one-billionth of a meter. At this scale, air disturbances and temperature fluctuations can cause measurement to 功亏一篑 (gōng kuī yī kuì - "the work fails for want of one last basket of earth," to fall short at the final step). This team's battlefield lies in this invisible, intangible microscopic world.

After the first battle was won, the team charged toward higher precision and more cutting-edge fields — special-shaped ultra-precision measuring instruments for major national high-end equipment. Foreign countries had iterated for more than 20 years without breaking through the 10-nanometer precision barrier, and domestically the field had long been a "no-man's land," with extremely scarce reference materials.

Facing this challenge, the team did not follow the mature technical path of foreign countries, but instead overturned the original plan and reconstructed the process system. They ultimately stabilized precision at 8 nanometers, greatly surpassing the international level. This research achievement also won the 2006 National Technology Invention Award First Prize.

The moment the experimental data was successfully produced, team members were so excited they could not sleep all night. In the early morning hours, they came to a restaurant for a simple celebration. "At that time we only ordered cold dishes and beer, but that was the happiest meal I have ever eaten!" Tan Jiubin said. This joy of overcoming a major problem became a precious memory on the team's research path, and further strengthened their confidence in independent innovation.

Facing the major needs of building a space power, the team once again shouldered heavy responsibilities, striving to overcome the technical challenge of ultra-large-size detector splicing measurement. "Because this technology had long been tackled without success, it became a prominent pain point constraining the development of core space equipment," said team member Wang Weibo.

After receiving the task, the team started from the source of basic theory, proposing 6 original theories and overcoming multiple technical bottlenecks. Today, this equipment has become core equipment for China's satellite development, supporting the development and production of dozens of satellites and multiple types of space cameras, serving key fields such as Earth observation, meteorological monitoring, and national land survey.

Through repeated tackling of difficulties, team members honed their skill of 精益求精 (jīng yì qiú jīng - "refine what is already refined," to constantly strive for perfection). "Once, a core sensor was basically successfully developed, but the signal always had slight interference, like a 'splinter' stuck in flesh that could not be removed. A group of young people toiled for several months, and somewhat impatient, privately discussed that this little 'splinter' was actually 无伤大雅 (wú shāng dà yǎ - "does not harm the refined," not affecting the overall quality), so why not just leave it alone?" said team member Hu Pengcheng.

Tan Jiubin said to the team members: "In ultra-precision measurement, not the slightest flaw can be tolerated. If we compromise on 'splinters' today, high-end equipment will fall far behind tomorrow." The team ultimately pinpointed an extremely minute grounding design problem, guarding the precision baseline with ultimate rigor.

After more than three decades of deep cultivation, the team's "hardcore strength" is 有目共睹 (yǒu mù gòng dǔ - "all eyes see together," obvious to all), and some foreign counterparts have come to exchange and visit the achievements. "From 举步维艰 (jǔ bù wéi jiān - "lifting the foot is difficult," to be in dire straits) to leading the frontier, we have deeply realized that core key technologies cannot be asked for, bought, or begged for; only by solving research problems through independent innovation can we gain greater initiative," Tan Jiubin said.

Using "blank-space" style guidance to help young people temper their research capabilities

For more than 30 years, the team led by Tan Jiubin has grown from the initial three-person group into a national-level innovation team of more than 100 people, forming a talent echelon of "academician — backbone — young teachers — students." "In my heart, the greatest achievement is not the instruments, but the people," Tan Jiubin said. Ultra-precision instrument research has no shortcuts; young people must be tempered through "real battles" in practice.

Doctoral student Shao Chunyu has deep experience of this. Once, while conducting an error separation experiment, she spent more than half a month repeatedly investigating data anomalies, ultimately identifying the problem of insufficient repeatability of the rotary reference. Only when reporting did she learn that Tan Jiubin, when reviewing the experimental plan, had predicted from experience that this problem might occur, but had never pointed it out: "If I had directly told you the conclusion, you would have missed a complete research exercise." This "blank-space" style guidance allows young people to develop real skills through independent exploration.

When young members report on stage-by-stage results, Tan Jiubin never directly draws conclusions, but instead follows the scientific logic to question layer by layer — "Why was it designed this way?" "What is the basis?" — pushing everyone to dig deeper into principles and move toward engineering practice. The ultimate rigor toward experimental data and structural details has also been quietly engraved into every member's research habits.

After years of accumulation, the team has formed a mechanism of mentoring and transmission: driven by major projects, senior teachers lead young teachers and students through the entire process of scheme design, technical tackling, and experimental debugging; promoting students to "enter research topics early, enter laboratories early," tempering research capabilities in real research scenarios; when encountering technical bottlenecks, organizing multiple rounds of special discussions, repeatedly deliberating from theoretical analysis to experimental verification, helping young people gradually master the underlying logic of research.

Predecessors lead the way, and backbone members carry the relay. Liu Jian, who participated in China's first leadership in formulating an ISO standard in the field of product geometrical specification, Shi Jian, who broke through nanoradian measurement technology, Shao Chunyu, who is determined to conquer the roundness reference device problem... generation after generation of young people have taken up the baton from their predecessors. Today, this team is aiming at cutting-edge fields such as atomic-level measurement for continued tackling, writing higher research precision through successive struggle.

(Li Shuangyu participated in the reporting)

Extended Reading

Precision instrument research: what does it mainly study?

Many people feel that precision instruments are far from daily life, but in fact they are the "invisible foundation" supporting modern technology and industry, playing an important role in scientific research, engineering technology, modern industry, modern agriculture, medical and health care, and environmental protection.

The field of precision instruments revolves around "ultimate precision measurement," clearly divided by precision magnitude: measurement accuracy at the level of 1 micrometer to 0.1 micrometer is called precision measurement; accuracy better than 100 nanometers, even reaching the level of one-thousandth of a nanometer (picometer), is the ultra-precision measurement field in which this HIT team has deeply cultivated.

Only what can be measured can be manufactured. For modern industry, precision measurement is called the "multiplier of industrial production." Currently, the global industrial chain division of labor is highly refined — the tens of thousands of components of a high-end piece of equipment are often collaboratively produced across hundreds of factories around the world. Only by measuring to a unified standard can the precise interchangeability and smooth assembly of different components be ensured.

Taking the ultra-precision lithography machine as an example, among tens of thousands of optical and mechanical components, more than 80% are of precision and ultra-precision grade, requiring several hundred types of specialized precision measuring instruments to control manufacturing accuracy. Without a systematic ultra-precision measurement capability, it would be impossible to produce qualified components, let alone complete the development of the complete machine.

For the general public, the value of precision measurement is hidden in product quality: a complete measurement system controls the manufacturing precision of the entire industrial chain, and ultimately, what we get is industrial products that are more reliable and better to use. It is precisely for this reason that precision measurement capability affects the development level of the manufacturing industry and is an important support for building a manufacturing power and a quality power.

(Compiled by staff reporter Guo Xiaolong)

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Riding a Thousand Li Along the Huai River, Devoting His Heart to the Art of Drumming (Master Craftsmanship)

By: 本报记者 李俊杰

Highlights of Masterful Skills

Having recorded nearly 10,000 folk lantern songs, more than 400 dance vocabulary items, and over 50 basic steps... Jin Ming (金明), national-level representative inheritor of the intangible cultural heritage of flower drum lantern, has been rescuing cultural treasures on one hand while passing on traditional skills on the other. Skilled at artistic creation, he weaves the changes of the times into every beat of the drum, and has promoted flower drum lantern from the grassroots into university classrooms and onto the international stage, allowing more people to feel the warmth of everyday life in traditional folk art.

As the morning sunlight just spilled over the flower drum lantern intangible cultural heritage inheritance classroom on the third floor of the People's Mall on Zhongrong Street in Bengshan District (蚌山区), Bengbu City, Anhui Province, a burst of crisp drumbeats drifted out through the window cracks. Stepping into the classroom, Jin Ming, now in his seventies, was bending over, personally teaching 9-year-old boy Liu Zixian (刘子贤) to adjust his steps: "Lift your heels a bit more, as if walking on the crest of the Huai River's waves — be light, be lively."

Every weekend, this scene unfolds on schedule in the flower drum lantern inheritance classroom — even if he was teaching at a university in Beijing the day before, Jin Ming would rush back overnight, unwilling to make the "lantern children" by the Huai River wait a single moment longer.

As a typical representative of folk art, flower drum lantern carries profound cultural memories of the Huai River. In 1960, six-year-old Jin Ming came with his father from Beijing to Bengbu and saw villagers dancing flower drum lantern for the first time. Though they wore worn-out shoes, they danced joyfully, and that vibrant energy was deeply etched into his heart. He took the stage at age 9, was admitted to the Bengbu City Cultural Troupe at 15, and became a disciple of flower drum lantern master Feng Guopei (冯国佩). In 1973, his first work won a full house of applause, but for a long time afterward, he fell into a creative bottleneck.

"Along the Huai River, every village has flower drum lantern, and every household has lantern players!" Teacher Feng's words awakened him. In 1973, Jin Ming, only 19 years old, carrying a tape recorder and notebooks, set out on the road of "traveling a thousand li along the Huai River." From Zhengyangguan (正阳关) in Anhui in the middle reaches, to Hongze Lake in Jiangsu in the lower reaches, he spent decades visiting hundreds of villages, searching for the flower drum lantern master techniques hidden in countless households.

In Zhangba Village (张坝村), Huaiyuan County (怀远县), Anhui, Jin Ming lived for half a month in the woodshed of an old artist's home in order to learn the 鹞子翻身 (yào zi fān shēn — "sparrow hawk turns over," an agile somersaulting move). Every day before dawn he followed the old man to the fields to transplant rice seedlings; only after the farm work was done would the old man teach him the movements under the moonlight: "This isn't showing off — it's imitating the force of a water bird diving into the water to catch fish." Jin Ming knelt on the muddy ground following along, wrapping cloth strips around his worn knees. What the tape recorder captured was not only drumbeats, but also the sound of the Huai River's flowing water and the work chants of fishermen.

After more than a decade of trekking, Jin Ming made rescue recordings of nearly 10,000 folk lantern songs, more than 400 dance vocabulary items, and over 50 basic steps. These treasures "picked up" from the banks of the Huai River later became the source of Jin Ming's creative inspiration. At the warm-up program for the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, his choreographed work "Drum Country Charm" (《鼓乡情韵》) dazzled the audience. On stage, the performers' "drum frame" (鼓架子) movements concealed the vigor of fishermen hauling nets, the "orchid fan flower" (兰花扇花) carried the gentleness of farm women picking cotton, and the resounding drumbeats were adapted from the Huai River work chants he had recorded back then.

Over the years, Jin Ming's works have won many major awards. "What a Flower Drum Lantern!" (《好一个花鼓灯》) won the national "Five-One Project" (五个一工程) Award, and "The Jubilant Drum Country" (《欢腾的鼓乡》) took the National Folk Music and Dance Award. He pays particular attention to weaving the changes of the times into the drumbeats: when the Huai River Bridge opened to traffic, he created "The Bridge Connecting Two Banks" (《桥连两岸》); to showcase the promotion of comprehensive rural revitalization, he staged "New Life in the Drumbeats" (《鼓点里的新生活》). "Flower drum lantern is not an antique; it must keep pace with the times, and it must always carry the happy lives of ordinary people," Jin Ming said.

Today, Jin Ming has become a visiting professor at multiple universities including the Beijing Dance Academy and the Shanghai Theatre Academy. Standing in university classrooms, he always brings those yellowed notebooks and tells students stories from the banks of the Huai River: "The 'fan flower' you dance is the movement of farm women picking cotton back then; the 'turning over' you spin is the force of fishermen hauling nets." In class, he never requires students to memorize movements mechanically, but instead lets them feel the warmth of everyday life in the drumbeats — just as the old artists taught him back then.

No matter how busy his university teaching is, it cannot squeeze out Jin Ming's weekly return to Bengbu. After finishing classes in Beijing on Friday afternoon, he hurries to the high-speed rail station; sometimes he doesn't get back to Bengbu until near midnight, but early Saturday morning he is always punctually in the classroom, the dark circles under his eyes unable to hide the light in them: "The children are waiting — I can't miss class." He has opened public welfare training classes for children in flower drum lantern and self-funded the establishment of a flower drum lantern inheritance base.

Approaching noon, the children who have finished training are reluctant to leave, instead gathering around Jin Ming, eagerly asking what they will learn next week. From meeting flower drum lantern at age 6, more than six decades have passed, and Jin Ming has brought the lantern lights of the Huai River's banks to university classrooms and the international stage. His steps remain as vigorous as when he walked the Huai River back then.

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Clarify the scope of statutory licensing for newspaper reprints.

Reported from Beijing, August 20 (Reporter Wei Zhezhe) — The Supreme People's Court on August 20 issued the Decision on Amending the Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Civil Disputes over Copyright, to take effect on September 1, 2026.

The Decision further refines and improves the standards for application of law, unifies the adjudication standards for cases, provides litigants with clear litigation guidance, provides the market with clear expectations of conduct, and ensures the correct implementation of the Copyright Law, targeting key and difficult issues in copyright judicial practice such as the determination of publication of works, the boundaries of fair use, and the scope of the statutory license for newspaper and periodical reprinting.

The Decision further clarifies the scope of application of the statutory license for newspaper and periodical reprinting, specifying that the "newspapers and periodicals" in the original judicial interpretation means "paper newspapers and periodicals approved for publication by the competent authorities for newspapers and periodicals, as well as digital versions consistent with their content and layout format," in order to adapt to the development needs of the internet and digital technology. At the same time, a paragraph is added, clarifying that mutual reprinting between newspapers and periodicals and internet information service providers, and mutual reprinting of published works among internet information service providers, shall be subject to the permission of the copyright owner and the payment of remuneration.

According to the introduction, at present both the theoretical circle of intellectual property and judicial practice recognize that the disclosure of a work due to another person's infringing act also constitutes making it public. The Decision further clarifies the standard for determining "making public," deleting the qualifier "by the copyright owner themselves or with the permission of the copyright owner" in the original judicial interpretation, and clarifying "making public" as disclosing the work to unspecified persons, without requiring public awareness as a constituent element.

In addition, the Decision further refines the applicable rules for fair use, amending the "artistic works in outdoor public places" in the original judicial interpretation to "artistic works in public places," consistent with the relevant provisions of the Copyright Law as amended in 2020. At the same time, the Decision clarifies that persons who copy, paint, photograph, or record artistic works in public places may reuse the results thereof in a reasonable manner and scope in accordance with law, but may not install, display, or publicly disseminate them in the same manner without the permission of the copyright owner.

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Macro policies gain momentum and efficiency

By: 本报记者 曲哲涵

On July 30, General Secretary Xi Jinping presided over a meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee. The meeting pointed out that "we should implement a more proactive fiscal policy and a moderately loose monetary policy, fully leverage the effectiveness of existing policies, promptly plan and introduce pragmatic and effective incremental policies, and intensify counter-cyclical adjustment."

Since the beginning of this year, macroeconomic policies have been exerted early, implemented with precision, and coordinated in synergy, effectively promoting the sustained development of the economy toward new, superior, and better directions. In the first half of the year, GDP reached 69.6 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 4.7%, with an increment of 3.6 trillion yuan setting a new high for the same period in the past five years. Core indicators such as employment, prices, and foreign trade operated within a reasonable range.

At present, the external environment is complex and volatile, the contradiction of strong supply and weak demand domestically is prominent, and the foundation for the economy to maintain stable growth needs to be consolidated. Macro-control must maintain necessary intensity, responding to environmental uncertainty with policy certainty. This clear policy signal continues to boost the development confidence of the whole society.

Activating existing policies and fully utilizing the policy space

On the shore of the Yellow Sea, the construction of the Oriental Aerospace Port project in Yantai, Shandong, is in full swing. Engineering vehicles shuttle back and forth on the site, welding sparks fly, and special-purpose bonds provide solid financial guarantees for project construction. Once this land-sea integrated aerospace base is completed, it will help the development of the aerospace industry and drive the industrial transformation and upgrading of the Jiaodong region.

In implementing the more proactive fiscal policy, national general public budget expenditure increased by 1.5% year-on-year in the first half of the year, strengthening expenditure guarantees for key areas. Newly issued special-purpose bonds have reached 2.07 trillion yuan, and a large number of major infrastructure projects are accelerating implementation at full stretch. The 200 billion yuan of ultra-long-term special treasury bond funds used to support equipment renewal have all been allocated, covering approximately 11,000 projects in 22 fields, with the leverage effect continuing to be released — in the first seven months, investment in equipment and tool purchases increased by 9.0% year-on-year, and many manufacturing enterprises have taken advantage of this momentum to complete the "renewal and upgrading" of their production lines.

Monetary policy has been implemented with precision, maintaining reasonably ample liquidity. In July, the weighted average interest rate on newly issued corporate loans was slightly below 3%, and financing costs have genuinely decreased, with more medium- and long-term funds flowing at an accelerated pace toward manufacturing, small and medium-sized enterprises, and technological innovation.

The 2026 "race" is more than half over, and many existing policies are at a critical stage of implementation and refinement — funds are going through procedures, and projects are awaiting commencement. Going forward, it is necessary to continue clearing the "last mile" of policy transmission, so that policy dividends can move from "paper" to the "accounts" of enterprises and residents as soon as possible, and effectively transform the "gold content" of policies into the "physical output" of development.

To clear the "obstructions" in implementation and continue releasing policy effectiveness — the Ministry of Finance has clarified that it will accelerate the pace of fiscal expenditure and the use of bond funds; the National Development and Reform Commission has stated that it will strengthen whole-process closed-loop management of ultra-long-term special treasury bond projects, promote the formation of more physical workload as soon as possible, and fully leverage the benefits of central government funds.

Precisely aligning with the needs of market entities, and dynamically improving implementation measures. Many localities have continued to improve the closed-loop handling mechanism for enterprise-related appeals, regularly collecting the difficulties and bottlenecks enterprises encounter in policy implementation.

"We must fully utilize the 'self-review and self-issuance' pilot policy for special-purpose bond projects, continue to reserve and implement a batch of high-quality projects with strong investment-driving effects such as the Weifang-Suqian high-speed railway and the Lyocell fiber supporting projects, and accelerate their construction," said Hou Zhihong, Director of the Government Debt Management Division of the Shandong Provincial Department of Finance.

"Fully activating existing policies can amplify the effectiveness of macro-control at lower cost, accelerate the transformation of bond funds and tax and fee support policy dividends into effective investment and market vitality, and cultivate long-term momentum for economic development," said Li Xuhong, Vice President of Beijing National Accounting Institute.

Strengthening counter-cyclical adjustment, pragmatic and effective, advancing steadily while maintaining stability

During this year's summer vacation, Xu Hao, a citizen of Wenzhou, Zhejiang, planned to buy some furniture for his home. When handling business at the Wenzhou Ouhai sub-branch of the Agricultural Bank of China, he learned that purchasing furniture could enjoy fiscal interest subsidies on consumer loans, and after applying, he obtained a consumer loan on the spot.

"Calculated out, I can save nearly 400 yuan in interest!" What made him even happier was that the bank staff told him that this interest subsidy policy has very broad coverage, and education and training expenditures are also included in the subsidy scope.

"Since the optimization of the fiscal interest subsidy policy for consumer loans at the beginning of the year, the number of customers applying for consumer loans has increased noticeably," said Gong Zhijian, General Manager of the Personal Credit Department of the Agricultural Bank of China Zhejiang Branch. In the first seven months, the bank's newly issued personal consumer loans increased by 29% year-on-year, and the cumulative issuance of personal consumer loans eligible for fiscal interest subsidy policies has reached 7 billion yuan. "Residents' willingness to consume in areas such as home renovation, car purchases, and home appliance renewal is being released at an accelerated pace, and the policy effects are tangible."

This year, counter-cyclical regulation has continued to intensify. Taking consumption promotion as an example, the central government continues to arrange ultra-long-term special treasury bond funds to support trade-in programs for consumer goods, and has optimized the implementation of loan interest subsidy policies for service industry business entities and fiscal interest subsidy policies for personal consumer loans. The policies broadly cover various consumption scenarios such as automobiles, home appliances, digital products, and life services. At the same time, ultra-long-term special treasury bond funds support the construction of cold-chain logistics infrastructure, the central government provides fixed subsidies for the pilot city construction of the modern commercial circulation system, and the invoice lottery pilot is being carried out in about 50 cities... Policies are working in the same direction, empowering both the supply side and the consumption side, better benefiting residents' consumption.

"Practice has proven that counter-cyclical adjustment can effectively hedge against downward pressure on the economy, expand effective domestic demand, and stabilize market confidence," said Tian Xuan, Dean of the Guanghua School of Management at Peking University. He stated that the current economic operation faces challenges from external shocks and internal contradictions of strong supply and weak demand and structural divergence, and it is very necessary to continue increasing the intensity of counter-cyclical adjustment.

Entering the second half of the year, various relevant departments have accelerated the planning, reserving, and implementation of incremental measures —

The National Development and Reform Commission is seizing the golden construction period of the third quarter to advance the planning and construction of the "six networks." According to estimates, the investment scale of the "six networks" and related key areas in 2026 is expected to exceed 7 trillion yuan;

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has successively introduced supporting policies for the digital transformation of manufacturing, promoting the implementation and effectiveness of industrial upgrading policies;

The People's Bank of China has stated that it will continue to implement a moderately loose monetary policy, comprehensively utilizing and timely adjusting various monetary policy tools;

The Ministry of Commerce has clarified that it will deeply implement the special action to boost consumption, strengthen bulk consumption and service consumption, and build the "Shop in China" consumption brand...

Tian Xuan believes that for incremental policies to be "pragmatic and effective," they need to focus on the pain points of economic operation in the second half of the year and target efforts at solving prominent problems. "It is necessary to expand effective domestic demand and optimize supply by clearing bottlenecks, optimizing resource allocation, and filling shortcomings, while simultaneously stimulating the vitality of market entities, accelerating the conversion of old and new growth drivers, forming a virtuous cycle, and injecting strong momentum into the sustained development of the economy toward new, superior, and better directions."

Improving policy effectiveness, coordinating synergy to safeguard development

Walking into the production workshop of Yangzhou Tianjian Machinery Manufacturing Co., Ltd. in Jiangsu, a set of automated visual inspection equipment emits a crisp operating sound, with high-definition cameras scanning precisely like eagle eyes, running 24 hours without interruption.

"Compared with past manual inspection, this 'digital employee' has improved efficiency by 20%." Company General Manager Li Hailin told reporters that when the enterprise decided to undergo technological transformation at the beginning of the year, it encountered funding difficulties. The "Yangchuang Loan" policy-based financial product, optimized and upgraded under the leadership of the Yangzhou Municipal Finance Bureau, precisely targeted the pain points of "light assets and expensive financing" for technology-based enterprises, and a 10 million yuan loan arrived in full within just one month.

Not only that, the guarantee fee was directly reduced by 60,000 yuan, and the loan interest subsidy was 1 million yuan. The Finance Bureau, together with the industry and information technology department, provided on-site guidance for applying for provincial-level "specialized, refined, distinctive, and innovative" status, and the tax department implemented the additional deduction for R&D expenses... "The fiscal, tax, and financial departments jointly launched a policy gift package, making the enterprise's transformation path smoother." Li Hailin said that today, Tianjian Machinery has successfully entered the track of robot reducers and joint components, becoming a batch supplier for leading brands in the industry.

The "chemical reaction" of coordinated policy efforts is giving birth to the transformation and iterative upgrading of countless market entities.

Practice has shown that in doing macro-control work well, it is necessary not only to enrich policy supply but also to optimize the way policies are implemented, enhancing the comprehensive effectiveness of policies through scientific coordination.

Adhering to systematic thinking, forming a fist by gathering fingers —

Strengthening the consistency of policy objectives, cycles, and orientations, and preventing "policy synthesis fallacy." For example, this year, in the governance of the pneumatic industry in Xikou Town, Fenghua District, Ningbo, Zhejiang, a cross-departmental linkage mechanism was established, and environmental enforcement adopted guided rectification, which both safeguarded the ecological bottom line and stabilized employment in the real economy, achieving coordinated policy efforts in the same direction.

Focusing on key tasks, concentrating efforts —

Jiangxi and Sichuan have deployed consumption promotion work for the second half of the year, taking multiple measures to activate service consumption markets such as cultural tourism and housekeeping; Shanghai and Guangdong have introduced supporting measures for artificial intelligence, opening up industry application scenarios... Localities are closely following the main line of high-quality development, concentrating policy resources on tackling core areas.

Improving implementation mechanisms, leaving footprints in the stone —

Firmly establishing and practicing a correct view of political achievements, and seizing the moment to act once the direction is clear. Continuously streamlining approval procedures, establishing a closed-loop mechanism of dynamic monitoring, review and evaluation, and optimization and adjustment... effectively transforming policy dividends into development increments and into people's livelihood benefits that the masses can touch and feel.

Activating existing policies, utilizing incremental tools well, strengthening coordination and linkage, and vigorously grasping implementation and effectiveness — these will surely strongly promote the sustained development of the economy toward new, superior, and better directions, and strive for a good start to the "15th Five-Year Plan."

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East Juyan Lake in Heihe River Basin remains non-dry for 22 consecutive years

Beijing, August 20 (Xinhua) — (Reporter Wang Hao) The reporter learned from the Ministry of Water Resources (水利部): On August 20, East Juyan Lake at the tail end of the Heihe River achieved 22 consecutive years without drying up, an important achievement marking the 25th anniversary of the implementation of the "Heihe River Basin Recent Governance Plan" (《黑河流域近期治理规划》).

The lower reaches of the Heihe River have wide, shallow, and scattered channels with severe seepage and evaporation; the tail-end East Juyan Lake once dried up in 1992. Maintaining a reasonable water surface area of East Juyan Lake is an objective requirement for preserving the dynamic balance of lake water volume and a practical need for protecting wetland biodiversity and maintaining ecological stability. Through years of governance and protection, East Juyan Lake and its surrounding ecology have regained vitality. In the 2025–2026 dispatch year, the Heihe River Basin Administration Bureau (黑河流域管理局) of the Yellow River Conservancy Commission overcame adverse conditions such as generally higher temperatures across the Heihe River Basin and below-normal ice storage in the main channel during winter, intensified monitoring, conducted scientific assessment, implemented spring centralized dispatch measures for 40 days, precisely dispatched the Huangzangsi Water Control Project (黄藏寺水利枢纽) and the various cascade hydropower stations, dynamically adjusted reservoir release flows, and concentrated ecological water transfer to the lower reaches. Since June 2026, the Heihe River Basin has experienced relatively severe drought; the water inflow at the Yingluoxia section (莺落峡断面) has been the lowest for the same period in the past 24 years, and the middle and lower reaches have experienced sustained high temperatures and drought. The Heihe River Basin Administration Bureau closely tracked changes in basin rainfall, water conditions, and engineering conditions, dynamically increased reservoir release flows, and made every effort to ensure emergency drought-relief water for the middle reaches; in July and August, the middle reaches successively organized centralized dispatch measures lasting 7 days and 5 days respectively, effectively ensuring the achievement of dispatch targets and forging a path of water resource dispatch practice featuring whole-basin coordination and multi-party win-win outcomes.

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Green building materials revenue up over 10% year on year in H1

BEIJING, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) — (Reporter Lin Lili) The reporter learned from the State Administration for Market Regulation that the green building materials certification system has continued to improve. As of the end of June this year, the number of enterprises nationwide holding green building materials certification reached 5,725, with 11,094 valid certificates, driving national green building materials revenue to nearly 130 billion yuan, an increase of more than 10 percent over the same period last year. It is projected that by the end of 2026, national green building materials revenue will exceed 300 billion yuan.

The State Administration for Market Regulation, together with the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, has progressively brought 72 types of products in 6 major categories, including building doors and windows, ready-mixed concrete, and stone, into the scope of green building materials certification, implementing full-lifecycle quality control covering raw material extraction, manufacturing, use and circulation, through to recycling and disposal, building a solid line of defense for building materials quality and safety from the source, and enhancing the green and low-carbon attributes of products.

In terms of promoting the application of certification results, the State Administration for Market Regulation, in coordination with the Ministry of Finance and other departments, has vigorously advanced the implementation of the "government procurement supporting green building materials to promote building quality improvement policy," promoting the preferential selection of certified green building materials throughout the entire process of government procurement engineering construction, from design, bidding, and construction to settlement. As of now, the policy has covered 101 cities, with 1,080 government procurement engineering projects implemented, and the total amount of green building materials procurement reaching 380 billion yuan, significantly enhancing the "green content" of urban construction and building quality. At the same time, green building materials certification services have continued to extend to the grassroots, deeply integrated with the special campaign to send green building materials to the countryside, and widely applied in key rural construction scenarios such as rural self-built housing, village roads, sewage pipelines, and improvement of the living environment, effectively driving rural green consumption of more than 20 billion yuan. According to calculations, certified green building materials products can achieve carbon emission reductions of more than 30 million tons annually, providing solid support for the construction of beautiful villages and the comprehensive revitalization of rural areas.

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Editor: Kang Yan, Song Yu, Zhang Zhiqi

Layout and graphics for this edition: Zhang Danfeng (张丹峰)

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'Cool Travel' Heats Up with Immersive Experiences (Visits · Summer Consumption)

By: 本报记者 赵景锋 杨文明 李亚楠

Summer heat makes cool getaways an increasingly popular choice for many. Data newly released by several online travel platforms shows that this year's demand for summer escape travel is markedly diversified: traditional long-haul destinations for beating the heat remain popular, a batch of "cool little towns" are rapidly gaining attention, and cross-region heat avoidance alongside inbound and outbound summer travel demand is rising in tandem.

Not long ago, the China Meteorological Administration released the 2026 national summer climate resource map, covering 45 high-quality summer escape zones spanning plateaus, mountains, coasts, forests, and other cool settings. How are localities leveraging their climatic advantages to drive innovative development of "cool travel"? Our reporters visited new consumption scenarios and new business formats in the summer escape tourism sector on the ground.

Rich programs, off-season skiing offers many delights

Chang Guanghao, a tourist from Jinan, Shandong, did not expect to experience the joy of outdoor skiing during the summer break.

This summer vacation, Chang Guanghao and his family traveled to Hulunbuir in Inner Mongolia. A few days ago, they set out from downtown Hulunbuir and arrived in Yakeshi City, passing wetlands, grasslands, and forests along the way. "Transportation here is very convenient, the weather is cooler than I imagined, and I never expected we could still go skiing!" Chang Guanghao said.

On August 16, the "Summer Snow Fun, One Season Two Enjoyments" — 2026 Hulunbuir Yakeshi Fenghuangshan Summer Snow Carnival series of events opened. Skiing, snow tubing, snowmobiling, and other ice and snow sports were wonderfully varied, with exclamations and laughter filling the air. Standing at the top of the slope and looking out, a pristine white ski trail over 500 meters long and more than 40 meters wide stood out strikingly against the lush green forested mountains.

Where does the snow come from?

"These are all snow stored from winter that can last through three seasons without melting, thanks both to Yakeshi's relatively low summer temperatures and, more importantly, to meticulous wrapping technology," explained the head of the Fenghuangshan scenic area. In the previous winter, the operations team selected 100,000 cubic meters of snow mass and covered its surface with multiple layers of protective materials such as sunshade netting and alfalfa grass, isolating it from outside heat and air circulation to keep the snow white and fluffy.

Yakeshi City is located in the central Greater Khingan Range, with an average summer temperature of only around 17 degrees Celsius and a forest coverage rate of 78.7 percent. However, compared with better-known tourist destinations such as Manzhouli and Erguna, Yakeshi has long lacked a distinctive cultural tourism label. Off-season skiing is becoming its breakthrough for differentiated cultural tourism development.

Inside the ski resort, many professional skiers from home and abroad were racing with abandon. "Using professional competitions as a link, we host the FIS Cross-Country Summer Tour, the National Summer Cross-Country Ski Challenge, and several other major events, attracting ski enthusiasts to watch and play," said He Yang, director of the Yakeshi Culture, Sports, Tourism, and Broadcasting Bureau. He added that the locality also regularly organizes cultural tourism enterprises to hold tourism promotion conferences in major source markets such as the Yangtze River Delta, Pearl River Delta, and Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, promoting mutual visitor flows and market sharing.

After finishing skiing, Chang Guanghao and his family took an off-road vehicle into the "Secret Realm Route 108." Rolling down the windows, they felt the gentle breeze and took in the vast sea of forests. The route runs 108 kilometers in total, threading through forests, grasslands, flower seas, and rolling hills and gullies, with beautiful scenery throughout. "We have carried out comprehensive hardening and renovation of the roads, and built self-driving campsites,驿站 (waystations), viewing platforms, and other supporting facilities along the route as planned, allowing visitors to immerse themselves in the scenery along the way," He Yang said.

It is reported that during the series of events, Yakeshi received over 10,000 tourist visits per day, effectively gathering popularity and driving cultural tourism consumption. Since the beginning of this year, Yakeshi has received a total of 1.9266 million tourist visits, a year-on-year increase of 6.48 percent, with total tourism revenue reaching 2.522 billion yuan, up 9.75 percent year on year.

"Yakeshi will continue to revitalize its advantageous forest and ice-snow resources, constantly enrich the supply of cultural tourism products, innovate activity carriers, extend the ice-snow industry chain, continuously unleash the vitality of the cultural tourism market, and promote quality and efficiency improvement across the city's cultural tourism industry," He Yang said.

Refined services, more comfortable summer sojourns

At 7 a.m. in Qujing, Yunnan, Fu Xiao, a retired teacher from Xiamen, Fujian, opened the window of his apartment and was greeted by a cool breeze carrying the fragrance of grass and trees.

The day's high temperature in Qujing was 19 degrees Celsius. "It almost makes you forget it's summer break," Fu Xiao said. This is already his third consecutive year of summer sojourning in Qujing. "Qujing's wind carries a moist coolness; the sunlight is bright, but there is no scorching heat wave."

Fu Xiao and his wife's residence in Qujing is an apartment on Hebei Commercial Street, Jianning Subdistrict, Qilin District, with a monthly rent of just over 1,000 yuan, fully furnished with appliances and ready to move into. "A few minutes' walk downstairs is the vegetable market, with every kind of fresh produce available and cheap prices to boot," Fu Xiao said.

In Qujing, there are many "migratory bird" visitors like Fu Xiao. Data shows that Qujing's average summer temperature is 19.7 degrees Celsius, and its excellent air quality rate has long remained above 98 percent. The uniquely favorable climatic conditions have made this "City at the Source of the Pearl River" an increasingly popular summer escape choice for visitors.

To ensure that summer visitors from afar feel at ease in their accommodation, safe in their dining, and happy in their recreation, Qujing has rolled out a series of heartwarming measures, creating four service brands: "Migratory Bird Homes," "Migratory Bird Canteens," "Migratory Bird Parks," and "Migratory Bird Stations."

Fu Xiao obtained a Qujing compassionate bus card: "Very practical!" With this card, visitors aged 60 and above can ride city buses for free. Li Ping, deputy director of the Qilin District Culture and Tourism Bureau, said that Qilin District has issued more than 30,000 compassionate bus cards to summer visitors cumulatively.

The "Migratory Bird Canteens" also earned Fu Xiao's praise. "Summer visitors enjoy the same prices as local seniors, and those over 60 get an additional discount. One meat and two vegetables costs 10 yuan, clean and hygienic, and tasty too," Fu Xiao said. "Sometimes when I don't feel like cooking, I can just go downstairs to eat — it's especially suitable for us elderly folks."

In addition, first-time minor traffic violations by out-of-town vehicles are met with warnings only, not fines; during peak periods, parking lots of some government agencies and public institutions are opened free to visitors... Many local measures have enhanced the sense of fulfillment of sojourning visitors.

Comfortable accommodation aside, recreation should also be thoroughly enjoyed. "We have built a 'People's Stage at the Doorstep' for summer visitors from Sichuan and Chongqing," said Xiao Siyao, deputy director of the Jianning Subdistrict office. She said that two art troupes spontaneously formed by Sichuan-Chongqing sojourning residents are now active locally, staging special performances during the summer such as Sichuan opera face-changing, folk song medleys, and ethnic dances. "This allows visitors to entertain themselves and showcase their talents, while also letting local residents experience diverse cultures up close."

As evening falls, music rises in the square. The night breeze is cool, the lights are brilliant, and people from all corners of the country meet and get to know one another here, amid laughter and joy.

Tapping resources, full-region cool experiences

In midsummer, Tianchi (Heavenly Lake) at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains is lush with vegetation and wildflowers in full bloom. Thanks to its high altitude and dense forest cover, the average temperature in the mountains here is only around 20 degrees Celsius, pleasantly cool and refreshing.

As much of the country enters high-temperature mode, more and more visitors are coming to Xinjiang to cool off and vacation. Zhang Fengrui, a tourist from the south, relished the coolness: "Looking up, you see snow-capped mountains; mountain breezes brush your face — it's more comfortable and pleasant than staying in an air-conditioned room." This summer, the Tianshan Tianchi International Ski Resort in the Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture of Xinjiang has introduced paragliding, hot-air balloons, horseback riding, archery, and other diverse leisure activities, building itself into a one-stop suburban summer resort destination.

With vast territory and varied terrain, Xinjiang leverages its unique ecological endowments to string together grasslands, lakes, mountain valleys, and oases, creating high-aesthetic, slow-paced, immersive and diverse summer escape scenes — "full-region coolness, full-region beauty" across the Tianshan range, north and south.

Zhang Hong, a tourist from Beijing, is vacationing in Altay with his family. "The kids especially love playing on the grass, and the adults sit in the cool breeze drinking tea — it's very comfortable."

Responding to summer escape tourism demand, Altay City has transformed Jiangjunshan Ski Resort from a winter ski destination into a year-round, multi-functional cultural tourism destination. Open-air mountain cinemas, sunset parties, bonfire singing and dancing, and围炉烤肉 (barbecue around the brazier) and other summer-appropriate activities let visitors fully enjoy nightlife.

The opening of the Ahe Highway has also brought new traffic to Altay's summer tourism. Many visitors choose to rest in Altay on the first day and cross the Ahe Highway to Kanas Scenic Area on the second. Kanas Scenic Area has an average summer temperature of around 20 degrees Celsius, with lake water as green as jade and Hemu Village shrouded in morning mist, earning it the reputation of "fairyland on earth."

By Sayram Lake, visitors admire the azure waters by day, push open the window at night to see a sky full of stars, and watch the sunrise over the snow mountains in the early morning; along the Duku Highway, one can see spring, summer, autumn, and winter in a single day; by Bosten Lake, one can stroll on the beach or boat on the lake... Data newly released by some online travel platforms shows that this summer, flight booking enthusiasm among parent-child travelers flying to major Xinjiang destinations increased by more than 38 percent year on year, and family summer trips to Xinjiang averaged more than 7 days of stay, up 1.2 days from previous years.

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City Night Tours Shine (New Scenes of Vitality · New Highlights of Summer Consumption)

By: 本报记者 曹玲娟

As night falls, frogs drum and insects chirp, streams gurgle, striking up a summer night symphony.

Riding through the drive-through area of Shanghai Wildlife Park (上海野生动物园) — cheetahs pass by in twos and threes beside the vehicle; Siberian tigers part the grass, their gaze like torches; giraffes lower their heads to look into the car, "framing" an "ID photo" with the window... Under the night sky, many animals are entering their peak activity period, with figures leaping, climbing, and splashing in water visible everywhere, drawing exclamations from tourists from time to time.

Tan Zhihua (谈智华), manager of the Planning and Development Department of Shanghai Wildlife Park, introduced that in hot weather, many animals prefer to forage and be active at night, making nighttime park visits especially popular, with the highest single-day reception reaching about 20,000 person-visits.

Zhang Lu (张璐), a tourist from Jiangxi, specifically chose a night ticket to enter the park: "It's cooler in the evening, and you can see wild animals in their nocturnal state — it's highly immersive."

Strolling along the park's Lakeside Boulevard, among the vegetation, a "firefly galaxy" woven from lights flickers on and off, with children playing under the trees; the "Tiger Restaurant" in the center of the park can seat more than 500 people at once, and through floor-to-ceiling windows, diners can observe the every move of Siberian tigers while eating...

You can tour at night, and you can also stay overnight.

What is it like to pitch a tent beside dinosaur fossil specimens?

"Sleeping with the 'dinosaurs,' very close to the 'mammoth'!" said 10-year-old visitor Wang Zhiren (王之任), who had come with his mother from Huai'an, Jiangsu, so excited that he was 手舞足蹈 (shǒu wǔ zú dǎo - "hands dance, feet stamp," to dance with joy and excitement).

The children picked up African drums, hand pans, and rhythm shakers to simulate rainforest wind sounds, insect chirps and bird calls, and natural rhythms, and a "parent-child concert" opened on the spot; members of the scientists' science popularization team then interacted face-to-face with children in different exhibition areas, explaining exhibits in detail under the light.

As night deepened, parent-child families pitched tents in designated areas of the exhibition halls, creating their own exclusive "overnight camps." Accompanied by fossil specimens over a hundred million years old, the children gradually fell asleep.

Song Xian (宋娴), director of the Exhibition and Education Center of Shanghai Natural History Museum (上海自然博物馆), introduced that the museum's overnight stay activity was first launched in January this year, and every time tickets go on sale, they quickly sell out. "The overnight activity not only extends the museum's service hours, but also provides citizens and tourists with a rich consumption experience." Ge Yongming (葛永铭), division chief of the Museum and Social Cultural Relics Management Division of the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism (上海市文化和旅游局), introduced that this summer, Shanghai's "Museum Wonderful Night" (博物馆奇妙夜) series of themed activities attracted the participation of more than 50 museums across the city, with cultural and museum venues becoming excellent destinations for citizens and tourists' summer leisure consumption and parent-child activities.

From venues to neighborhoods, urban public spaces are transforming into culture-tourism integrated spaces.

Beside the Shikumen houses at Taiping Lake (太平湖) Xintiandi in Huangpu District (黄浦区), various art markets bring a "strolling" nightlife; at the West Bund Dream Center (西岸梦中心) on the bank of the Huangpu River in Xuhui District (徐汇区), riverside music festivals perform from time to time... In recent years, Shanghai has continuously innovated consumption scenarios, comprehensively stimulating the city's nighttime economy potential, and has produced a batch of nighttime culture-tourism scenarios with good tourist experiences and high reputations.

"In the first half of this year, Shanghai's nighttime culture-tourism consumption reached 119.4 billion yuan, and nighttime consumption that integrates social attributes with experiential value is increasingly favored by tourists," said a relevant official of the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism.

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E-commerce multimodal express freight train launched

People's Daily, Beijing, August 20 (Reporter Li Xinping (李心萍)) The reporter learned from China Railway Shanghai Group Co., Ltd. (中国铁路上海局集团有限公司) that a multimodal express freight train loaded with e-commerce goods such as daily necessities, clothing and accessories steadily departed from Wuxi South Station on the 19th, heading north all the way to Tianjin Zhou Lizhuang Station (周李庄), marking the successful launch of the e-commerce multimodal express freight train from the Yangtze River Delta to the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. This is also the first time East China has launched an e-commerce multimodal express freight train directly to the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.

The e-commerce multimodal express freight train launched this time is a specialized railway logistics service product that the railway department, based on industrial market demand, has "tailor-made" for e-commerce enterprises, providing a "door-to-door" integrated full-process service system, greatly reducing the multi-link coordination costs of e-commerce enterprises, and precisely matching the business needs of e-commerce goods for efficient turnover and rapid entry and exit. The railway department has also officially launched a new model of specialized railway logistics supporting services for e-commerce enterprises.

"Compared with traditional road transport models, the average turnover time of cross-regional e-commerce express parcels will be somewhat compressed, and carbon emissions per container transported will also be significantly reduced," said Ma Jian (马荐), manager of the Train Product Department of the Logistics Division of Shanghai Railway Group.

According to reports, this e-commerce multimodal express freight train will achieve regular scheduled operation in the future, with plans to run 6 trains per week on a fixed schedule, providing stable and reliable transport capacity support for e-commerce enterprises in both regions.

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Two departments issue guidelines to advance development of service-oriented social assistance

本报北京8月20日电  （记者吴储岐）记者从民政部获悉：为统筹推进分层分类社会救助体系建设，着力提升社会救助工作水平，民政部、财政部日前印发《关于积极发展服务类社会救助的指导意见》，明确推动社会救助由单一物质救助方式向“物质+服务”综合救助模式转变，更好发挥社会救助“保基本、防风险、促发展”作用。

Beijing, August 20 (report by this newspaper) (Reporter Wu Chuqi (吴储岐)). The reporter learned from the Ministry of Civil Affairs (民政部): in order to advance in a coordinated manner the construction of a tiered and categorized social assistance system, and to make focused efforts to raise the level of social assistance work, the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the Ministry of Finance (财政部) recently issued the Guiding Opinions on Actively Developing Service-Oriented Social Assistance, clarifying the promotion of the transformation of social assistance from a single material assistance method to a "material + service" comprehensive assistance model, so as to better give play to the role of social assistance in "guaranteeing the basics, preventing risks, and promoting development."

意见明确，服务类社会救助是通过提供服务实施社会救助的一种方式，主要面向有需求的特困人员、最低生活保障家庭成员、最低生活保障边缘家庭成员、刚性支出困难家庭成员等社会救助对象，以满足其依靠自身能力难以获取的基本生活方面的服务需求。

The Opinions clarify that service-oriented social assistance is a method of implementing social assistance through the provision of services, mainly oriented toward social assistance recipients in need, including persons in extreme difficulty, members of families receiving the minimum living guarantee, members of families on the margins of the minimum living guarantee, and members of families facing difficulty due to rigid expenditures, so as to meet their service needs in basic living that are difficult for them to obtain through their own capabilities.

意见要求，各地要综合考虑社会救助对象经济、健康、教育、居住、就业、照护、社会融入以及服务诉求等情况，建立服务类社会救助需求评估指标体系，并细化评估标准；结合本地经济社会发展水平、政府财政承受能力、社会救助对象服务需求、服务资源供给能力等因素，编制服务类社会救助供给清单，有针对性地为救助对象提供照护服务、生活服务、关爱服务等，建立健全政府主导、多元参与的服务类社会救助工作机制。

The Opinions require that all localities should comprehensively consider the economic, health, educational, residential, employment, care, social integration, and service demand circumstances of social assistance recipients, establish a service-oriented social assistance needs assessment indicator system, and refine the assessment standards; in light of factors such as the local level of economic and social development, the government's fiscal affordability, the service needs of social assistance recipients, and the capacity for service resource supply, compile a service-oriented social assistance supply list, and provide care services, daily living services, and caring services to assistance recipients in a targeted manner, and establish and improve a service-oriented social assistance working mechanism led by the government with diversified participation.

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"Auntie" Basketball Tournament Kicks Off in Full Swing

On August 20, the 2026 Harmonious and Beautiful Countryside (和美乡村) "Aunty" (孃孃) basketball tournament in Daxi Town (大溪镇), Youyang Tujia and Miao Autonomous County (酉阳土家族苗族自治县), Chongqing, kicked off with great enthusiasm, with women from various villages forming teams and participating eagerly. The tournament sets no strict competitive rules; everyone runs, scrambles, and battles for the ball, and the court is filled with laughter and joy.

The photo shows a scene from an "Aunty" basketball game, where team members compete with all their might.

Photo by Shi Jiali (石嘉黎) (Image China)

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Xinjiang legislates to promote high-quality development of cotton industry

URUMQI, Aug. 20 (Reporter Shang Rongzheng) — Reviewed and approved at the 29th session of the Standing Committee of the 14th People's Congress of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, the "Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Cotton Quality Promotion Regulations" (新疆维吾尔自治区棉花质量促进条例) officially took effect on July 1, safeguarding the high-quality development of the cotton industry through the rule of law.
According to reports, the regulations establish a whole-chain core system of quality supervision, carrying out standardized management over such links as planting and harvesting, purchasing and processing, and sales and storage, and clearly stipulating strict control over the gates of variety selection and standardized planting, strict adherence to harvesting timing, strengthened field clearing, impurity removal, and operational condition standards, strict control over the purchasing, inspection, and pricing gate, strengthened category-based management, and strict control over moisture indicators. The regulations stipulate that cotton sold shall maintain the completeness of cotton bale labeling content and barcode information, and that such information shall be consistent with the actual condition of the cotton; professional cotton supervision warehouses shall meet the conditions prescribed by the state and the autonomous region, and shall cooperate with professional fiber inspection institutions in conducting inbound and outbound warehouse inspections.
According to reports, Xinjiang is China's largest high-quality cotton production base. In 2025, Xinjiang's total cotton output reached 6.165 million tons, accounting for 92.8 percent of the nation's total cotton output.

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Suzhou drives high-quality development through scientific and technological innovation

By: 本报记者 邓建胜 王伟健

At full throttle! In a newly commissioned factory of Ecovacs Robotics Co., Ltd. in the Wuzhong Economic Development Zone of Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, production orders for cleaning robots are already booked through December of this year, half of them from overseas markets.

Using leading enterprises to drive the development of upstream and downstream enterprises such as sensor manufacturers, Suzhou has gathered a cluster of robotics and intelligent manufacturing-related enterprises, striving with full effort to build a nationally important industrial science and technology innovation highland. In the first half of the year, Suzhou's total import and export volume reached nearly 1.83 trillion yuan, up 40.9% year on year; the export value of Suzhou's cleaning robots reached 7.03 billion yuan, accounting for nearly 40% of the national total.

In July 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping said during his inspection of Suzhou: "Suzhou has done very well in combining tradition and modernity. It not only has historical and cultural heritage, but also high-tech innovation and high-quality development, representing the direction of future development."

Thoroughly implementing the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speech, Suzhou continues its thousand-year cultural lineage, builds on its solid manufacturing foundation, accelerates the conversion of old and new growth drivers, drives high-quality development through scientific and technological innovation, and writes a new chapter in humanistic economics.

Entering the optics laboratory of Suzhou HYC Technology Co., Ltd., an industrial-grade laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy online inspection device is operating at high speed. This equipment can precisely inspect the safety and lifespan of lithium batteries. HYC has now taken the lead in forming an innovation consortium, bringing together 12 upstream and downstream enterprises and universities and research institutes along the industrial chain to jointly tackle technical challenges.

Adhering to building the city through industry, strengthening the city through industry, and revitalizing the city through industry, Suzhou has created three trillion-yuan-level industries: electronic information, equipment manufacturing, and advanced materials. In the first half of this year, Suzhou achieved a gross regional product of 1,375.165 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.6% at constant prices; the total output value of industrial enterprises above designated size reached 2,501.76 billion yuan, up 6.9% year on year, of which high-tech industry output value accounted for 57%.

"The continuous vitality of enterprises is underpinned by Suzhou's sustained efforts to professionalize industrial services, with financial resources further tilted toward real manufacturing and high-tech industries," said Sun Yangcheng, director of the Suzhou Municipal Development and Reform Commission.

A slender electrode wire about 1 millimeter in diameter travels beneath the skin, connecting intracranial contacts to a neural stimulator — this is an invasive brain-computer interface product developed by Jingwei Medical Technology (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. Through non-invasive, real-time closed-loop physical regulation, it fills a technological gap in the treatment of opioid addiction.

Vigorously strengthening the position of enterprises as the main body of scientific and technological innovation, Suzhou has densely deployed high-level innovation platforms and continuously raised the level of transformation and industrialization of scientific and technological achievements. It not only has Suzhou Laboratory, 2 national technology innovation centers, and 1 national manufacturing innovation center, but has also successfully obtained approval to build a National New Generation Artificial Intelligence Innovation Development Pilot Zone. Recently, the project "Key Technologies for Green and Intelligent Manufacturing in the Polyester Fiber Industrial Chain," in which the National Advanced Functional Fiber Innovation Center participated, won the First Prize of the 2025 National Science and Technology Progress Award.

There is both high-tech innovation and high-quality development, and historical and cultural heritage. Outside the ancient city, the Suzhou Industrial Park has gathered 3,243 national high-tech enterprises and 73 listed companies, cumulatively generating 1.87 trillion US dollars in total import and export value; inside the ancient city, the Pingjiang Historical and Cultural Block still maintains the traditional ancient street pattern of "water and land running parallel, river and street adjacent."

"Protect well, excavate well, utilize well." In recent years, Suzhou has made persistent efforts to continuously revitalize this thousand-year-old city: launching the "Pingjiang Nine Lanes" urban renewal project and the "Ancient City Protection and Renewal Partner Plan," exploring a sustainable ecological model of ancient city protection. This involves not only the protection and renewal of the ancient city's appearance and its ancient buildings and old residences, but also preserving the unique charm of Gusu within the city, so that the thousand-year-old city has both scenery and soul.

Strolling along Pingjiang Road, distinctive guesthouses and creative bookstores come into view one after another; ancient residences, ancient trees, and ancient wells are protected to the fullest extent; intangible cultural heritage workshops such as Kunqu opera, Pingtan, and kesi silk tapestry are scattered throughout, making the water-town charm of Gusu even more distinctive. In the first half of this year, the Pingjiang Historical and Cultural Block received over 15 million visitors.

Digital technology empowers, and historical culture radiates new brilliance. On a summer night in Gusu, the "Seeking Elegance at the Humble Administrator's Garden" night tour project uses lighting art and interactive projection to bring static pavilions and towers "to life"; at the Lion Grove Garden, artificial intelligence allows historical figures to "travel through time" and tell visitors across time and space about the garden-crafting ingenuity of 咫尺山林 (zhǐ chǐ shān lín - "a foot of mountain and forest," a small space evoking a vast landscape, a classical garden aesthetic concept).

Mindful of General Secretary Xi Jinping's earnest instructions, Suzhou continues to cultivate new industries with new technologies, lead industrial upgrading, balance economic development with cultural preservation, and strive to set an example in reform and innovation and in promoting high-quality development.

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Editor: Ji Yalin, Lu Tao, Zhang Weihao

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Summer Tourism Offers Diverse and Vibrant Experiences (New Era Panorama)

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Deep integration of culture and tourism spawns new scenarios and business forms

By: 王 珂

The outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan proposes "advancing the deep integration of culture and tourism," requiring "enriching the supply of high-quality tourism products, deeply excavating distinctive resources and cultural connotations, and actively promoting the integrated development of multiple business formats."
From skimming the surface to immersive experiences, tourists' pace has become more leisurely and their consumption more diverse. Summer passenger flows drive consumption flows, and the comprehensive driving effect of culture and tourism has been fully released, increasingly becoming an important engine for boosting consumption and expanding domestic demand.
Closely following the trend of upgrading tourist demand, the deep integration of culture and tourism continues to give birth to new scenarios and new business formats. Museums actively introduce digital interactive technologies and launch immersive performances and other activities, making history "come alive"; "traveling with the competitions" achieves resonance between the sports boom and cultural tourism consumption... With supply that is more culturally flavored, more technologically sophisticated, and more experiential, the "newness" of culture and tourism continuously ignites the "excitement" of travel.
The vibrant summer cultural tourism market not only reflects the people's aspiration for a better life, but has also become a window for observing China's consumption vitality and domestic demand potential. In July, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism (文化和旅游部) launched the 2026 National Summer Cultural and Tourism Consumption Season, coordinating with relevant institutions to roll out benefit measures covering sightseeing, summer retreat, travel, and event viewing. Across the country, localities have focused on hot demand points such as summer heat relief, study tours, and other areas, increased the supply of quality cultural tourism products, held more than 30,000 cultural tourism consumption events, and issued over 450 million yuan in consumption vouchers and other consumption subsidies, helping citizens and tourists enjoy their summer vacation time and savor a better life.

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Editor: Ji Jianming, Zhao Xiaoxi, Chi Jiarui

Layout Design: Zhang Danfeng (张丹峰), Shen Yiling (沈亦伶)

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Accurately Grasp the Basic Spirit and Practical Requirements of the Ecological Environment Code (People's Forum)

By: 孙佑海

The Ecological Environment Code is the second law in our country to be named with the title "Code" after the Civil Code, and it officially came into effect on August 15, 2026. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out when participating in the capital's voluntary tree-planting activities: "Our country's promulgation of the Ecological Environment Code has further consolidated the legal foundation for the construction of a Beautiful China." The Ecological Environment Code fully embodies Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization and Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law, and carries the major mission of ecological civilization construction in the new era. To promote the Ecological Environment Code to take root and produce results, it is necessary to thoroughly implement Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization and Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law, deeply understand the basic spirit and main content of the Ecological Environment Code, and accurately grasp the key tasks for implementing the Ecological Environment Code.

The Major Significance of the Implementation of the Ecological Environment Code

Since the beginning of the new era, under the scientific guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for the New Era, especially Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization and Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law, our Party has stood at the strategic height of the sustainable development of the Chinese nation, placed ecological civilization construction in a prominent position in the overall work, adhered to using the rule-of-law mindset and rule-of-law methods, advanced a series of pioneering work, and promoted historic, transformative, and holistic changes in our country's ecological civilization construction from theory to practice, achieving major transformations from key-point remediation to systematic governance, from passive response to proactive action, from a participant in global environmental governance to a leader, and from practical exploration to scientific theoretical guidance, thereby consolidating the practical foundation, institutional foundation, and social foundation for compiling the Ecological Environment Code. The concept that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets has been transformed into vivid practice, and solid steps have been taken in the construction of a Beautiful China; green and low-carbon production methods and lifestyles have taken deep root in people's hearts, and using the strictest systems and the most rigorous rule of law to protect the ecological homeland has become a common consensus; the ecological environment legal system has been continuously iterated and upgraded, with more than 30 ecological environment laws, more than 100 administrative regulations, and more than 1,000 local regulations providing solid institutional support for compiling the Ecological Environment Code. Embarking on the new journey, confirming and strictly implementing the theoretical, institutional, and practical achievements of ecological civilization construction since the beginning of the new era in the form of an Ecological Environment Code has major and far-reaching significance.

It is conducive to thoroughly implementing Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization and advancing the modernization of harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "With the deepening of the practice of ecological civilization construction in the new era, our understanding of the laws of ecological civilization construction has continued to deepen." Chinese modernization is the modernization of harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature, and it is necessary to unswervingly follow the civilized development path of production development, affluent living, and sound ecology. Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization systematically answers a series of theoretical and practical questions such as why to build ecological civilization, what kind of ecological civilization to build, and how to build ecological civilization, and is the fundamental guideline and action guide for ecological civilization construction in the new era. To advance ecological civilization construction, it is necessary to adhere to the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization. At present, our country's ecological civilization construction is at a critical period of superimposed pressures and carrying heavy burdens while moving forward. The implementation of the Ecological Environment Code can effectively promote the complete and systematic transformation of Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization into rigid legal norms and vivid practice of ecological civilization construction, providing solid rule-of-law support for accelerating the modernization of harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature.

It is conducive to implementing the basic strategy of comprehensively governing the country according to law and advancing ecological civilization construction on the track of the rule of law. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "To adhere to comprehensively governing the country according to law, it is necessary to be good at using the rule-of-law mindset and rule-of-law methods to solve reform difficulties, consolidate reform achievements, achieve the unity of reform and the rule of law, ensure that major reforms have legal basis, and promptly elevate reform achievements into legal systems." Since the beginning of the new era, the legal system in the ecological environment field in our country has kept pace with the times, and a comprehensive, practical, effective, scientific, and rigorous ecological environment legal system has basically been formed. At the same time, it also faces problems such as the decentralized legislative model easily producing poor institutional connectivity and insufficient governance coordination. Advancing the comprehensive governance of the country according to law inherently requires improving the ecological environment legal system and implementing the Ecological Environment Code well. This is the inherent meaning of comprehensively bringing ecological civilization construction onto the track of institutionalization and rule of law. The implementation of the Ecological Environment Code not only coordinates and optimizes various institutional rules for pollution prevention and control, ecological protection, and green and low-carbon development, but also effectively enhances the systematic nature, holistic nature, coordination, and adaptability of the ecological environment legal system, and can advance ecological civilization construction in depth on the track of the rule of law.

It is conducive to deeply practicing the new development concept and coordinating high-quality development and high-level protection. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "High-quality development and high-level protection complement and reinforce each other." Promoting the comprehensive green and low-carbon transformation of economic and social development is an important measure for solving prominent ecological environment problems and an inherent requirement for achieving high-quality development. At present, the practice of green and low-carbon transformation is increasingly rich and continuously expanding in various regions. The Ecological Environment Code stands at the strategic height of harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature, adheres to systematic thinking, adheres to the integrated protection and systematic governance of mountains, waters, forests, farmlands, grasslands, lakes, and deserts, and coordinates and balances different ecological environment elements. In response to the difficulties that hinder the coordinated advancement of development and protection, the Ecological Environment Code makes forward-looking arrangements for green and low-carbon development, addressing climate change, and carbon peak and carbon neutrality, and its implementation will certainly further provide rule-of-law guarantees for the coordinated advancement of carbon reduction, pollution reduction, green expansion, and economic growth.

It is conducive to implementing the people-centered development thought and continuously improving people's livelihood and well-being. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "For human survival, gold and silver mountains are certainly important, but lucid waters and lush mountains are an important part of the people's happy life and cannot be replaced by money." Ecological civilization construction is not only a major political issue, but also a major livelihood issue related to the vital interests of the masses. With the transformation of the principal contradiction in our society, a beautiful ecological environment has become an important part of the people's needs for a better life. However, livelihood pain points in the ecological environment field still exist. In some regions, there is a contradictory phenomenon of "governance data meeting standards while pollution problems remain," which shows that there is a gap between the masses' true feelings about the ecological environment and simple indicators. Implementing the Ecological Environment Code helps to actively respond to the masses' ecological concerns, use rule-of-law means to solve environmental difficulties strongly reflected by the masses, and promote the achievements of Beautiful China construction to benefit all the people more and more fairly.

The implementation of the Ecological Environment Code will have an important impact on the socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics with the Constitution at its core. With the Ecological Environment Code as the leading law, together with relevant special laws such as the Forest Law, the Grassland Law, the Fisheries Law, and the Mineral Resources Law, the ecological environment legal department has become the eighth legal department of the socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics, following the constitutional-related laws, civil and commercial laws, administrative laws, economic laws, social laws, criminal laws, and litigation and non-litigation procedural laws. This fully demonstrates that the socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics is not static, closed, or immutable, but is full of vitality and continuously improved in keeping with the development of the times. The major role of the implementation of the Ecological Environment Code in promoting the continuous advancement and improvement of the socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics will become increasingly prominent in practice.

The Distinctive Features and Institutional Content of the Ecological Environment Code

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Only by implementing the strictest systems and the most rigorous rule of law can reliable guarantees be provided for ecological civilization construction." The Ecological Environment Code adheres to taking Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization as the soul and outline running through the entire text, fully embodies its core essence, rich connotations, and practical requirements, and connects it with the implementation of Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law, fully giving play to the Code's normative and guarantee role in ecological civilization system reform and Beautiful China construction. It is a Code with distinct Chinese characteristics, reflecting the features of the times, reflecting the will of the people, and being systematic, standardized, and coordinated.

It is rooted in China's actual development. As a large country with a population of more than 1.4 billion, our country is one of the few large countries in the world that possesses a complete "mountains, waters, forests, farmlands, grasslands, lakes, and deserts" ecosystem, and is currently advancing the great cause of building a strong country and national rejuvenation through Chinese modernization. The Ecological Environment Code is rooted in the practice of Chinese modernization, adheres to the organic unity of the Party's leadership, the people being the masters of the country, and governing the country according to law, takes satisfying the people's needs for a beautiful ecological environment as the starting point and foothold, closely follows the coordinated advancement of the "Five-in-One" overall plan and the coordinated advancement of the "Four Comprehensives" strategic plan, aims at building a socialist country under the rule of law at a higher level, systematically summarizes the practical experience of ecological civilization construction, and carries out comprehensive and systematic compilation, editing, and revision of norms in the fields of pollution prevention and control, ecological protection, and green and low-carbon development. The Ecological Environment Code coordinates the multiple needs of pollution prevention and control, ecological protection, green and low-carbon transformation, and international environmental cooperation, and can not only widely凝聚 consensus from all sides and continuously respond to the masses' new expectations for ecological improvement, but also effectively balance current governance tasks and long-term strategic goals. At the same time, the Ecological Environment Code draws on the wisdom of China's excellent traditional ecological culture, learns from and absorbs the beneficial achievements of human legal civilization, and creates a green Code with both Chinese characteristics and the features of the times. Its implementation has an irreplaceable and unignorable impact on global ecological governance and environmental well-being, and will certainly contribute Chinese wisdom and Chinese solutions to global ecological governance.

It embodies innovativeness and inclusiveness. The Ecological Environment Code is not a simple compilation of laws, nor is it a complete re-enactment of laws, but rather, on the basis of following the laws of legislation and the laws of codification, it innovatively adopts a moderately codified compilation model, distinguishes three types of situations for coordinated handling, and carries out systematic integration, compilation, editing, revision, and integrated elevation of ecological environment legal norms: The first type involves compiling, editing, and revising 10 relevant laws including the Environmental Protection Law, all incorporated into the Code, with the above laws simultaneously repealed after the Code comes into effect; the second type involves incorporating or reflecting into the Code the essential principles and key rules of the current legal institutional norms on natural resources, biodiversity and other ecological elements, ecosystems, circular economy, energy conservation, and other aspects, with the above laws continuing to be retained; the third type involves fields such as addressing climate change, carbon peak and carbon neutrality, and green and low-carbon development, for which there is currently no special legislation, and the Code sets up principled and guiding provisions. Overall, the Ecological Environment Code vividly embodies systematic thinking, straightens out the relationships among various institutional norms inside and outside the Code, incorporates into the Code the systems that are mature in practice and have reached consensus, sets principled norms for those still in the exploration stage, maintains openness and inclusiveness, and effectively enhances the systematic nature, holistic nature, coordination, and timeliness of ecological environment governance.

It is the "great synthesis" of the ecological environment legal system. The content of the Ecological Environment Code is systematic and comprehensive, with a total of 5 parts and 1,242 articles, in order: the General Provisions Part, the Pollution Prevention and Control Part, the Ecological Protection Part, the Green and Low-Carbon Development Part, and the Legal Liability and Supplementary Provisions Part, laying a stronger rule-of-law foundation for realizing the modernization of harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature. The General Provisions Part stipulates the foundational, universal principles and basic systems in the ecological environment field, governs all other parts, and integrates and absorbs the core rules of laws and regulations such as the Environmental Protection Law and the Environmental Impact Assessment Law. The Pollution Prevention and Control Part systematically integrates the relevant rules on the prevention and control of air, water, marine, soil, solid waste, noise, and radioactive pollution, achieving full coverage of traditional pollution and new pollution governance. The Ecological Protection Part highlights the concept of integrated protection and systematic governance of mountains, waters, forests, farmlands, grasslands, lakes, and deserts, coordinates the relationship between development and protection, sorts out and integrates the relevant systems for natural resources, biodiversity protection, and watershed and regional protection, and highlights the systematic and holistic protection of the ecological environment. The Green and Low-Carbon Development Part implements the Party Central Committee's strategic deployment for green and low-carbon development transformation, integrates and upgrades on the basis of the Clean Production Promotion Law, the Circular Economy Promotion Law, the Energy Conservation Law, the Renewable Energy Law, and other laws, and focuses on improving the institutional system for key links in green and low-carbon transformation. The Legal Liability and Supplementary Provisions Part uniformly clarifies the basis of liability, responsible subjects, and paths of accountability, and constructs a more unified, complete, strict, and standardized legal liability system. It is particularly worth pointing out that the Ecological Environment Code elevates the carbon peak and carbon neutrality goals, carbon emission rights trading, and other systems into legal norms, and innovatively establishes the Green and Low-Carbon Development Part, which has forward-looking significance in the history of world environmental code compilation.

Enterprises are not only the responsible subjects for ecological environment protection, but also the practical subjects and beneficiary subjects of green and low-carbon transformation. The Ecological Environment Code not only delineates the red lines and bottom lines for ecological environment protection for enterprises, but also opens broad space for enterprises' green transformation and innovative development. The Ecological Environment Code unifies the three types of legal liability — civil, criminal, and administrative — into one law, stipulates and strengthens enterprises' behavioral norms and statutory obligations in pollution prevention and control, ecological protection, and green and low-carbon development, comprehensively optimizes the punishment rules for ecological environment illegal acts, with more complete systems, clearer standards, and clearer boundaries, providing enterprises with long-term and stable rule-of-law expectations. In addition to "rigid constraints," the Ecological Environment Code also guides enterprises from "passively assuming responsibility" to "actively complying with the law" through various "flexible incentives" such as green finance and tax preferences, which is conducive to promoting enterprises to accelerate green and low-carbon transformation.

The Key Points for Publicizing, Implementing, and Enforcing the Ecological Environment Code

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "The vitality of law lies in its implementation, and the authority of law also lies in its implementation." To promote the Ecological Environment Code to take root and bear fruit, it is necessary to adhere to the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for the New Era, thoroughly implement Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization and Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law, protect lucid waters and lush mountains with the power of the rule of law, continuously safeguard the construction of a Beautiful China, and strive to write a new chapter of Chinese modernization featuring harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature.

Adhere to the Party's overall leadership and maintain strategic focus on ecological civilization construction. Implementing the Ecological Environment Code must adhere to the centralized and unified leadership of the Party Central Committee, take Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization and Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law as the fundamental guideline, firmly practice the concept that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets, unswervingly follow the path of ecological priority and green development, and coordinate high-quality development and high-level protection. Consolidate the political responsibility of Party committees and governments at all levels for ecological environment protection, and strictly implement the ecological environment protection target responsibility system, assessment and evaluation systems, and ecological environment protection inspection and supervision systems. Adhere to the people-centered development thought, promote the comprehensive green and low-carbon transformation of economic and social development on the track of the rule of law, comprehensively advance ecological benefits for the people, ecological convenience for the people, and ecological service for the people, rely on the rule of law to continuously improve urban and rural living environments, and make the achievements of ecological civilization construction more tangible and accessible. Based on our country's major transformation from a participant in global environmental governance to a leader, coordinate the advancement of domestic rule of law and foreign-related rule of law, and deepen international cooperation in the ecological environment field.

Take the Code as the leading law and improve and perfect the ecological environment legal system. Properly handle the relationship between the Ecological Environment Code and the retained separate laws, both maintaining the leading position of the Ecological Environment Code and giving play to the precise governance advantages of various separate laws. Accelerate the improvement of the supporting institutional mechanisms of the Ecological Environment Code, take the basic principles and basic systems established by the Ecological Environment Code as the yardstick, and orderly advance the establishment, modification, repeal, and interpretation of relevant separate laws and regulations. In order to comprehensively and effectively implement the Code and ensure the logical unity and rule coordination of the ecological environment legal system, the State Council has sorted out the relevant administrative regulations and decided to modify some provisions of 12 administrative regulations and repeal 3 administrative regulations; the Supreme People's Court has issued the first supporting judicial interpretation — the Provisions on the Time Effect of the Application of the Ecological Environment Code of the People's Republic of China — which came into effect simultaneously with the Ecological Environment Code on August 15 of this year. Various localities and departments have also promptly sorted out local regulations, government rules, and normative documents that conflict with the principles and provisions of the Ecological Environment Code, maintaining the unity of national rule of law. At the same time, it is necessary to deepen theoretical research on ecological environment rule of law and the construction of an independent discourse system, take Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization and Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law as the guide, carry out systematic and theoretical research and interpretation around the Ecological Environment Code, and promote the accelerated construction of an independent knowledge system for China's environmental law.

Consolidate joint forces and promote the comprehensive and effective implementation of the Code. Extensively and deeply carry out learning, publicity, and education, incorporate the learning, publicity, and implementation of the Ecological Environment Code into the key content of the "Ninth Five-Year" popularization of law, and advance it in an integrated manner with the publicity of Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization and Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law. Carry out special training for Party and government leading cadres and ecological environment law enforcement and judicial teams to enhance governance capacity according to law; use carriers that the masses are happy to see and hear to carry out regular law popularization. Continuously improve the quality and efficiency of ecological environment law enforcement and judicature, with administrative organs at all levels performing their duties according to law, comprehensively advancing strict, standardized, fair, and civilized law enforcement, and seriously pursuing legal liability for acts that pollute the environment and damage the ecology; judicial organs properly adjudicate ecological environment civil, administrative, and criminal cases to effectively protect the ecological environment. Continuously strengthen whole-process supervision over the implementation of the Ecological Environment Code, with the standing committees of people's congresses at all levels comprehensively using law enforcement inspections, listening to special work reports, and other forms to strengthen supervision over law implementation and consolidate the statutory duties of state organs at all levels for ecological environment protection; protect the public's environmental right to know, right to participate, and right to supervise according to law, guide social organizations and the broad masses to actively participate in ecological environment governance, and build a pattern of coordinated co-governance.

(The author is a professor at the Law School of Tianjin University and a member of the Expert Committee on the Compilation of the Ecological Environment Code of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress)

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Advancing People's Well-being Through Implementation of the Ecological Environment Code (Special Commentary)

By: 黄德生 王姣姣

General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "A sound ecological environment is the most equitable public product and the most inclusive benefit to people's livelihood." The Ecological Environment Code (生态环境法典) (hereinafter referred to as "the Code") officially came into effect on August 15 this year. The vitality and authority of law lie in its implementation. To promote the transformation of the Code from legal text into tangible governance effectiveness, we must always adhere to ecology benefiting the people, ecology profiting the people, and ecology serving the people, fully leverage the Code's role of legal support and safeguard for the construction of a Beautiful China, and continuously meet the people's growing needs for a beautiful ecological environment through institutional development.

Promoting the Code's implementation and effectiveness and building a solid rule-of-law foundation for people's livelihood and well-being. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "We must concentrate on tackling prominent ecological and environmental problems around the people, so that the people can truly feel the improvement in ecological environment quality." The Code adheres to the people-centered development philosophy, focuses on prominent environmental problems around the people, and provides a legal basis for improving ecological environment quality through a scientific and complete institutional system. To implement the Code well, we must strengthen livelihood-oriented institutional supply. With the Code as the core, advance the construction of supporting institutions, fully integrate the legislative purpose of safeguarding public health and ecological environment rights and interests into the work related to the formulation, amendment, abolition, and interpretation of ecological environment laws, regulations, policies, and standards, build a whole-chain institutional system of strict prevention at the source, strict management in the process, and strict control of risks, and promote the transformation of supervision from single-pollutant control to overall improvement of the living environment and all-round protection of public health. Tackle and resolve prominent environmental problems at the people's "doorstep." Strictly implement the statutory requirements for supervision of environmental problems around the people and scientific governance of urban and rural greening, routinely regulate the supervision of catering oil fumes, domestic noise, construction noise, and the burning of straw and fallen leaves, and effectively resolve the "vexing matters" at the people's doorstep. Focus on the Code's relevant requirements for continuous improvement of the rural living environment, promote comprehensive improvement of the rural ecological environment, and strengthen institutional development in grassroots governance and segmented fields. Recently, the General Office of the State Council forwarded the Action Plan for the Protection and Treatment of Water Bodies Around the People (群众身边水体保护治理行动方案) drafted by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (生态环境部) and five other departments, which precisely aligns with the institutional requirements of the Code's Pollution Prevention and Control Part regarding the investigation and remediation of sewage outlets into rivers, the treatment of black and odorous water bodies, and the protection of groundwater ecological environment, transforms the principles of rule of law into concrete measures to better promote the fundamental improvement of the water ecological environment, effectively responds to the people's new needs for approaching water, being close to water, and taking joy in water, and is a vivid practice of the Code's institutional implementation and continuous benefit to the people. Weave a tight network for ecological environment risk prevention and control. Accelerate the implementation of the Code's risk prevention and control institutional arrangements, pay attention to new environmental risks, strengthen risk prevention and control of chemical substance pollution, improve standards related to risk prevention and control of soil, groundwater, and emerging pollutants, and improve control systems for electromagnetic radiation and light pollution, so as to effectively safeguard public health.

Improving collaborative governance mechanisms and enhancing the tangible effectiveness of green development in benefiting the people. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "Let a sound ecological environment become a growth point for the people's lives." The Code upholds the concept of systematic governance, comprehensively considering the complexity of ecological environment elements, the integrity of ecosystems, the continuity of natural geographical units, and the sustainability of economic and social development, providing institutional safeguards for building a modernization in which humanity and nature coexist harmoniously. To implement the Code well, we must consolidate the responsibility for coordinated governance across the entire region. Strictly align with the Code's system of rights and responsibilities, fully implement the "dual responsibility of the Party and government, dual duties at a single post" (党政同责、一岗双责) for ecological environment protection, improve collaborative governance mechanisms, layer by layer consolidate governance responsibilities, form a closed loop of responsibility, strengthen coordination in performing duties, precisely cover all types of ecological environment problems, and effectively eliminate ecological environment hazards closely related to the people's lives. Implement differentiated and precise control. Accelerating the comprehensive green transformation of economic and social development and coordinating high-quality development with high-level protection require units at all levels to strengthen goal coordination, regulate precise governance with legal requirements, and prevent simplistic and "one-size-fits-all" phenomena in practice. Persist in coordinated advancement of reducing carbon, reducing pollution, expanding green, and growing, strictly implement the ecological environment supervision and management system of regional, differentiated, and precise control stipulated by the Code, strictly adhere to ecological protection red lines, and build a solid ecological security barrier. Deepen regional coordinated linkage. Continuously promote joint protection and coordinated governance of the ecological environment in key regions, river basins, and sea areas, improve the comprehensive ecological compensation mechanism, expand diversified paths for realizing the value of ecological products, promote ecological industrialization and industrial ecologization, achieve simultaneous leaps in governance effectiveness, industrial development, and improvement of people's livelihood, and let the people share the dividends of high-quality development in the green transformation.

Deepening the practice of whole-people co-governance and consolidating consensus on ecological civilization construction. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "Everyone is a protector, builder, and beneficiary of the ecological environment." The Code clarifies that citizens have the right to obtain ecological environment information and to participate in and supervise ecological environment protection in accordance with the law, providing a solid legal basis for whole-people co-governance and shared outcomes. To implement the Code well, we must safeguard the public's right to participate in accordance with the law. Strictly implement environmental information disclosure, voluntary participation, and public supervision, improve the ecological environment volunteer service system, optimize the ecological environment petition work mechanism, smooth efficient and convenient reporting channels, respond to the people's ecological environment concerns, and safeguard the public's right to know, right to participate, and right to supervise in all aspects. Firmly grasp legal publicity, education, and guidance for the whole society. Strictly implement the legal popularization responsibility system of "whoever enforces the law is responsible for popularizing the law" (谁执法谁普法), incorporate the study and publicity of the Code into the overall arrangement of legal publicity and education and ecological civilization publicity and education, integrate real-time legal popularization and precise legal popularization into the entire process of ecological environment law enforcement and daily supervision, consolidate the statutory responsibilities of enterprises, public institutions, and other producers and operators, urge them to actively practice the concept of green production, and promote green operation. Carry out nationwide green and low-carbon actions. Closely follow the relevant requirements of the Code's Green and Low-Carbon Development Part, encourage citizens to enhance their awareness of ecological environment protection, adopt simple, moderate, green, and low-carbon lifestyles, establish and improve green consumption incentive mechanisms, and lead a new trend of green living. Build a good governance pattern with active public participation, extensively gather a strong joint force for the construction of a Beautiful China, and truly realize participation by everyone and sharing by everyone.

(Author's affiliation: Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization Research Center (习近平生态文明思想研究中心))

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Ecological Environment Code Safeguards Green and Low-Carbon Development (Special Analysis)

By: 邓海峰

General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized: "Green development is the foundation of high-quality development" and "promoting the green and low-carbon transformation of economic and social development is a key link in achieving high-quality development." The "15th Five-Year Plan" outline proposes: "Firmly establish and practice the concept that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets" and "accelerate the green and low-carbon transformation of the development model, forming new green production methods and new trends in lifestyle."
The Ecological Environment Code (hereinafter referred to as the "Code") came into formal effect on August 15 this year. The Code actively responds to the needs of the era of green and low-carbon development, establishing "green and low-carbon development" as an independent part, setting a precedent in world ecological environment legislation. The Green and Low-Carbon Development part of the Code, through systematic sorting and integration of current laws including the Clean Production Promotion Law, the Circular Economy Promotion Law, the Energy Law, the Energy Conservation Law, the Renewable Energy Law, and relevant resolutions of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, has formed foundational and overarching rules for promoting green and low-carbon development, expanding the compilation approach of ecological environment legislation from mere pollution prevention and ecological protection to comprehensively promoting the green transformation of economic and social development, thereby consolidating the legal foundation for green and low-carbon development.
In terms of developing the circular economy, the Code takes the chain of economic activities as its main thread, shaping the backbone content of green and low-carbon development. First, based on the reduction goal of lowering resource consumption from the source, the Code takes the promotion of resource-circulating production models as an opportunity to accelerate the comprehensive green transformation of economic and social development. This requires both enterprises, as the main subjects of clean production, to practice green production methods, integrating technological improvement, equipment upgrading, green packaging, and other links into the legal practice of clean production; and also requires administrative organs, as the main subjects of supervision, to strictly implement systems such as planning formulation and financial support, enhancing the support for and supervision over enterprise clean production transformation efforts. Second, focusing on the basic laws of material circulation and energy flow, the Code aims at reuse and resource utilization, promoting the construction of a waste recycling system. Through measures such as clarifying the harmless disposal requirements for decommissioned wind turbine blades, promoting the development of the high-end equipment remanufacturing industry, advancing the agglomeration of the recycled metal processing and utilization industry, and supporting waste recycling enterprises and other organizations in the collection, storage, transportation, and information exchange of waste materials, the Code consolidates the legal foundation for the intensive, economical, and circular utilization of various resources. Third, the Code promotes the green transformation of consumption patterns by encouraging the consumption of green and low-carbon products. The general public, as the main subjects of green consumption, should seize this opportunity presented by the implementation of the Code, cultivating green consumption awareness through environmentally friendly behaviors such as reducing the consumption of disposable products, actively participating in second-hand goods transactions, consciously resisting excessive packaging, and conserving and rationally using resource-based products, so that individual ecological awareness resonates with the progress of the times and aligns with the requirements of the Code.
In terms of energy conservation and green and low-carbon transformation, the Code takes energy conservation, carbon reduction, efficiency enhancement, and orderly transformation as its keywords, serving the building of a strong energy nation and green and low-carbon development. In the context of China's legal system, energy conservation refers to the process of reducing consumption and losses by strengthening energy use management across all links from energy production to consumption. Therefore, the practical effect of the energy conservation system is typically manifested in the improvement of energy utilization efficiency and the reduction of energy consumption per unit. The green and low-carbon transformation of energy focuses on the development trend of human energy utilization activities transitioning from high-carbon to low-carbon. Natural resources are the material foundation of economic and social development, and energy is an important driving force for the evolution of civilization. The leap from industrial civilization to ecological civilization, at the level of the energy structure, is characterized by the orderly replacement of high-carbon fossil energy with green, low-carbon, and renewable energy. Therefore, in the context of ecological civilization, the green and low-carbon transformation of energy is prominently manifested in the optimization of the energy structure and the cleanliness, low-carbon nature, efficiency, and intelligence of terminal energy consumption. The Code coordinately advances energy conservation and green and low-carbon transformation, establishing multiple institutional measures such as energy conservation review for fixed asset investment projects, energy efficiency label management, contract energy management, tiered pricing, and time-of-use pricing. In essence, these promote the leap of productive forces from the traditional form of high energy consumption, high emissions, and low efficiency to the new qualitative form of high technology, high efficiency, and high quality. The legal practice of coordinately advancing energy conservation and green and low-carbon transformation breaks through the limitations of traditional productive forces, and by incorporating ecological benefits into the evaluation system of productive forces, provides institutional support for the accelerated development of new quality productive forces.
In terms of addressing climate change, the Code consolidates the legal support for climate governance through the legal transformation of local experience and international practice. Global climate change is a common challenge facing contemporary human society, and its far-reaching impacts have touched multiple areas including ecological security, public health, energy supply, and economic resilience. To address this global challenge, the Code establishes "controlling and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, actively and steadily promoting carbon peak and carbon neutrality, and enhancing the capacity to adapt to climate change" as a statutory duty of the state, carrying out top-level design in areas related to climate change including scope of responsibilities, statistical accounting, emission reduction trading, monitoring and early warning, scientific and technological support, and international cooperation, while specific measures may be stipulated by individual laws. The Code transforms the national "dual carbon" commitment and autonomous actions into domestic law that possesses both institutional rigidity and practical feasibility, providing an important model for parties to fulfill their treaty obligations under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and its Paris Agreement; the Code stipulates that "the state adheres to giving equal weight to mitigation and adaptation, taking effective measures to actively respond to climate change." This design of giving equal weight to mitigation and adaptation fully reflects our country's legislation's profound understanding and institutional innovation of the concept of harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature; the Code's coordinated design of the carbon emission rights trading market and the greenhouse gas voluntary emission reduction trading market creates a complete legal ecosystem for carbon market trading; the Code's adherence to the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, the principle of equity, and the principle of respective capabilities, while demonstrating the responsibility of a major country, also draws clear bottom lines for international climate negotiations; the Code encourages international technical cooperation in frontier fields such as renewable energy, energy storage, hydrogen energy, and carbon capture, utilization and storage, fully reflecting our country's open attitude and inclusive mindset in actively participating in and leading global climate governance.
(The author is a research fellow at the Research Institute for Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, Tsinghua University)

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Why the Machinery Industry Keeps Booming (By the Numbers)

By: 本报记者 李心萍

China Machinery Industry Federation recently released the "semi-annual report" of the machinery industry: in the first half of the year, the added value of industrial enterprises above designated size in the machinery industry increased by 6.4% year-on-year, 1 percentage point higher than the national industry in the same period; the industry's export value increased by 20% year-on-year, accounting for 26.3% of the total national trade in goods.
During the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, the average annual growth rate of the added value of China's machinery industry exceeded 7.1%, with rapid development in industrial scale, foreign trade, innovation capacity, and other aspects, laying a solid foundation for advancing new industrialization.
As a typical traditional industry, why has the machinery industry remained "evergreen"?
First, it benefits from the upgrading of hard strength, capturing more global markets.
Exports are the key engine supporting the machinery industry's rise against the trend. In the first half of the year, the machinery industry's exports to countries jointly building the "Belt and Road," the European Union, and ASEAN increased by 22%, 33.1%, and 19.5%, respectively.
Analyzing the structure, high-end manufacturing carries the main load. Exports of automobiles and electric passenger vehicles increased by 53.0% and 76.0% year-on-year, respectively, and the export value of lithium-ion batteries increased by 42.7%... In the machinery industry's export orders, the proportion of high-value-added products continues to rise. With technology as the spear and quality as the shield, China's machinery industry continues to climb in the global value chain.
Second, it benefits from the nurturing of new drivers, with the old industry growing more new branches and new shoots.
New industries give rise to new products. The wave of artificial intelligence is sweeping in, and the machinery industry has keenly captured the pulse of the times, accelerating the development of intelligent manufacturing and AI-related equipment. In the first half of the year, the output of 3D printing equipment, industrial robots, and industrial automatic regulating instruments and control systems increased by 48.5%, 28.0%, and 25.1%, respectively.
New demand creates new tracks. In the first half of the year, the green energy transition drove the output of nuclear power, hydropower, and wind power generating units to increase by 92.0%, 51.9%, and 11.5%, respectively; demand for new energy vehicles and energy storage drove lithium-ion battery production to increase by 39.3%; clean energy equipment grew at a high speed.
If the trends of intelligent and green transformation have opened up new fields and new space for the machinery industry, the machinery industry itself is also striving to achieve new upgrades and activate new demand through digital and green technologies.
The machine tool industry is one such case. In the first half of the year, the profits of the machine tool industry surged by 89.2%. The reason lies in the machine tool industry accelerating its upgrade toward high-end and intelligent directions, effectively matching the new demands of high-end manufacturing and intelligent manufacturing, and opening up new space.
Old products can also open new markets through green transformation. At present, electric forklifts account for 80.2% of all forklift sales, electric loaders account for 31.0% of all loader sales, and among these, domestic electric loader sales already account for as high as 57.5%. Green construction machinery is becoming a new engine driving industry growth.
The "oldness" of traditional industries is a rich mine to be excavated; the key lies in whether they can keep pace with the times, achieve new upgrades, and meet new demands. We need to accelerate the growth of emerging industries such as high-end manufacturing, the digital-intelligent economy, and modern services, opening up new growth tracks; we also need to comprehensively transform traditional industries with digital and green technologies, allowing traditional industries to be reborn. With emerging industries leading the way and traditional industries improving quality, China's economy is continuously strengthening its development momentum.

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Traditional factories achieve two kinds of "accelerated speed"

By: 本报记者 李 蕊

At the production facility of Shandong Kaili Heavy Industry, 245 heavy-duty dump semi-trailers destined for Nigeria are loaded and ready for shipment. This batch of vehicles is custom-built for infrastructure transport in West Africa; the frame steel resists deformation under heavy-load impact, and the suspension system has been specially calibrated for local potholed roads, combining high-strength wear resistance with high load-bearing capacity.

"We adhere to differentiated competition. We sent technical personnel to Africa to conduct on-site research on road conditions and cargo-loading habits. Targeting the complex roads and frequent heavy loads in West Africa, we optimized the entire process for the frame structure and suspension system — the suspension system alone went through three revised versions," said Wu Zedong, deputy general manager of the company.

Thanks to deep cultivation and meticulous work, Kaili Heavy Industry's export scope has expanded from 13 African countries to 42 countries and regions in the Middle East, Southeast Asia, Latin America, and elsewhere. Since the start of this year, the company's exports have shown strong growth momentum — 1,560 units were exported in the first quarter, rising to 2,420 units in the second quarter.

In 2020, Kaili Heavy Industry settled in Liangshan County, Jining City, Shandong. The company's rapid growth is inseparable from the local solid industrial foundation and complete supporting system. Liangshan County has gathered 386 parts enterprises with an annual production capacity of 18 million pieces (sets), covering categories such as axles, leaf springs, air chambers, and wiring harnesses, with a local supporting rate exceeding 70%. In the first half of this year, the county's special-purpose vehicle industry achieved sales revenue of 16.004 billion yuan, up 25.79%.

As an important national base for the special-purpose vehicle industry, Liangshan County focuses on continuously extending, supplementing, and strengthening the special-purpose vehicle industry chain, scientifically planning park supporting facilities, and improving infrastructure such as ports and roads. It promotes the integration of layout optimization and market traffic attraction, solidly advances the construction of public service carriers such as the convention and exhibition center, science and technology innovation center, inspection and testing center, and industrial design center, and promotes the landing of a national-level special-purpose vehicle testing track, expected to be put into use in 2027. "The special-purpose vehicle industry has become a key growth pole for the entire county, driving high-quality development across the entire chain of manufacturing, trade, logistics, and foreign trade services," said Jia Chunhui, member of the Party Leadership Group of the Liangshan County Industry and Information Technology Bureau and director of the Special-Purpose Vehicle Industry Service Center.

In Liangshan County, the synergy of precise government policy and platform support has enabled the extension, supplementation, and strengthening of the industry chain to achieve "accelerated speed." In Shanting District, Zaozhuang City, there is another kind of "accelerated speed."

In the production workshop of Shandong Ruiwo High-End Machinery Intelligent Manufacturing Co., Ltd., fully automated flexible production lines operate in an orderly manner, AGVs (Automated Guided Vehicles) transport components along preset tracks, and the air compressor intelligent testing system displays various parameters in real time.

"In the first half of the year, the enterprise's output value reached 50 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 26%. At present, custom orders are already scheduled through October," said company chairman Shan Rui. Behind this impressive report card is the hard-core confidence that intelligent manufacturing brings to the enterprise in improving quality and reducing costs —

"Relying on sustained investment in technology research and development, we have formed a product matrix of air compressors covering seven major series and more than 200 models, built an intelligent air compressor manufacturing and testing production line, adopted internationally advanced permanent magnet variable frequency, two-stage compression, and oil-free scroll technologies, and through the systematic integration of core technologies such as oil-gas separation and intelligent control, overall product energy efficiency has improved by more than 15%, comprehensive energy consumption has been reduced by 40%, and reliability and durability have reached industry-leading levels," said company production manager Yao Degang. In June this year, the enterprise was successfully selected as a Shandong Province advanced-level intelligent factory.

"Before the intelligent production line was put into operation, parts were entirely transported back and forth by manual carts. Collision damage during material transfer often occurred, and different workstations waiting for materials also consumed production time. In the face of urgent foreign trade orders, there was even the risk of failing to deliver on time," Yao Degang said. Now the workshop is equipped with conveyor tracks and AGVs — raw material warehousing, workstation distribution, and finished product transfer are all intelligently operated, the efficiency of the entire production line has directly improved, and collision damage to materials has been basically eliminated.

Speaking of next-step plans, Shan Rui has clear intentions: "We plan to use five years to connect more than ten production links of air compressors, achieve independent control of core components, and control product quality and profit margins from the source."

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Young Overseas Consumers Fall for Chinese Tea (Chinese Brands Win Hearts Abroad)

By: 本报记者 方 敏 王永战

On the streets of Phnom Penh, Cambodia's capital, the storefronts of Mixue Ice City are bustling with people coming and going, and many young people are buying lemonade and ice cream in the shops. In Cambodia, Mixue Ice City has already opened more than 70 stores.
"During the first 3 days before opening, cumulative store sales exceeded 10,000 cups." Jin Tao, a person in charge of the relevant department of Sichuan Chaji Enterprise Management Co., Ltd., said that since the opening of the first overseas Bawang Chaji store in Malaysia in August 2019, as of the first quarter of this year, the enterprise has successively opened 374 stores overseas, 221 of which are located in Malaysia.
Chinese-style tea drinks are not only popular in the Southeast Asian region, but have also expanded to more overseas regions.
In June this year, three Mixue Ice City stores officially opened for business in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan. The local price of ice cream is approximately 3 yuan RMB, and iced fresh lemonade is approximately 6 yuan RMB.
"You have to stand in a long line to buy it." said Lu An, a local internet celebrity. Data from the stores' early trial operation shows that local customers in Bishkek account for as high as 95%. "Almost no one can refuse it." said a local consumer, noting that this place has his favorite drinks and ice cream. Mixue Ice City has currently opened more than 4,500 stores in 16 overseas countries.
China's new-style tea drink industry is developing vigorously, and more and more tea drink brands are setting their sights on the international stage.
In Southeast Asia, local fruits are abundant in variety, and there are also many tea drink enterprises. "Conducting in-depth research to understand the preferences of local consumers is the key." said Zhang Lei, regional manager of Mixue Ice City in Cambodia. "The flavors, sweetness, ingredients, and packaging design of the tea drinks we launch fully take into account the preferences of local consumers."
Recently, Mixue Ice City's research and development personnel have been busy purchasing products such as dragon fruit, passion fruit, and green limes at local farmers' markets in Cambodia to carry out new product development and testing. "We expect to be able to open 200 to 300 stores in Cambodia, and at the same time we will build a localized procurement supply chain." Zhang Lei introduced.
"The fact that enterprises can develop so well overseas is inseparable from the good local environment." Zhang Lei said. "Convenient international transportation corridors, exchange activities held throughout the year, and visa-free entry policies have all provided great help for enterprises to expand into the international market."
To expand the international market, Chinese tea drink enterprises still have bigger goals.
Bawang Chaji incorporates elements of traditional Chinese tea culture into its overseas marketing. "Southeast Asia has hot weather all year round, and the consumer demand for tea drinks is very strong, with almost no distinction between off-season and peak season, and the market potential is huge." Jin Tao analyzed that Chinese enterprises focus on combining tea culture with modern elements, attracting more and more overseas young people.
"We highlight elements of traditional Chinese tea culture in terms of product names, store design, and product packaging." Jin Tao said. The product packaging includes elements such as opera costumes, traditional embroidery, and seal carving, further enhancing Southeast Asian consumers' interest in Chinese culture. At the same time, when selecting store locations, enterprises tend to choose core locations in popular local commercial districts, which makes it easier to attract consumers to come and check in.
In April this year, Mixue Ice City's first store in Brazil officially opened in São Paulo. In the corridor on the third floor of the city shopping mall, a long line formed early. At the front of the line, the IP (intellectual property) image Snow King from China, wearing a No. 10 jersey, interacted with people. Following the United States and Mexico, Brazil is the third market Mixue Ice City has entered in the Americas. "We will continue to go overseas and bring more good Chinese products to the world." Sun Jiantao, vice president of Mixue Group and chief executive officer of the Americas region, said. "The company is full of confidence in its development prospects, and will continue to advance its globalization layout and tell the international story of the Chinese brand well."
Developing new flavors, promoting health upgrades, creating more tea culture experiences... As overseas consumer demand becomes increasingly diverse, Chinese tea drink brands' services are also constantly innovating. Jin Tao introduced that enterprises will continue to expand the boundaries of tea drink life and create more tea drinking consumption scenarios for consumers.

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China expands 240-hour visa-free transit policy to 57 countries

Beijing, August 20 (Xinhua) — (Reporter Zhang Tianpei) The reporter learned from the National Immigration Administration (国家移民管理局): Starting from August 20, 2026, citizens of Kyrgyzstan and Vietnam may apply the 240-hour transit visa-free policy and the Hainan 30-day entry visa-free policy to come to China. The number of countries to which the 240-hour transit visa-free policy applies has increased to 57, and the number of countries to which the Hainan 30-day entry visa-free policy applies has increased to 61.

Citizens of Kyrgyzstan and Vietnam holding ordinary passports and connecting tickets with confirmed dates and itineraries, transiting through China to a third country or region, may enter visa-free through 65 open ports including Beijing and Shanghai, and stay visa-free for no more than 240 hours within the designated areas. Citizens of the two countries holding ordinary passports may enter through the open ports of Hainan Province and stay visa-free for no more than 30 days within the administrative area of Hainan Province. During the stay under the above two visa-free policies, short-term activities such as tourism, business, visits, and family reunions may be conducted; activities requiring prior approval, such as work, study, and news reporting, should still obtain a visa before coming to China.

A relevant official of the National Immigration Administration stated that implementing the two visa-free policies for citizens of Kyrgyzstan and Vietnam is a pragmatic measure to steadily advance high-level opening up and promote the building of a community with a shared future with neighboring countries (周边命运共同体), which is conducive to further promoting mutual trust and cooperation between the two sides and making tourism, business, visits, and investment more convenient and efficient. In the next step, the National Immigration Administration will coordinate development and security, resolutely maintain a standardized and orderly exit-entry management order, better promote people-to-people exchanges and international exchanges and cooperation between China and foreign countries, and serve the country's high-level opening up and high-quality development.

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Number of villages with new express delivery service rises by 2,244.

Beijing, August 20 (Xinhua) — (Reporter Han Xin) The reporter learned at the on-site work conference on the "express delivery entering villages" postal guarantee pilot work on the 20th: as of the end of July this year, the number of administrative villages in 17 pilot counties that have achieved "express delivery entering villages" by relying on the universal postal service network has increased by 2,244, completing 94% of the guarantee target, with cooperative business volume growing 217% compared with before the pilot.

Since the implementation of the "express delivery entering villages" project in 2020, urban-rural terminal logistics channels have continued to be opened up, effectively helping consumer goods go to the countryside and agricultural products leave the villages. However, in some areas, challenges such as insufficient network coverage and unstable terminal services still exist.

Starting this year, the State Post Bureau and China Post Group Co., Ltd. have jointly launched the "express delivery entering villages" postal guarantee special pilot work in central and western rural areas, promoting the use of the universal postal service network to solve the problem of express delivery entering villages in central and western rural areas, unblocking two-way urban-rural circulation channels, and helping rural areas basically possess modern living conditions.

Since the pilot was launched, postal management departments and postal enterprises in the 17 pilot provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) have made concerted efforts, with postal enterprises and express delivery enterprises cooperating fully. The Postal Group organized 2,062 county-level branch companies to formulate "one county, one policy" plans, arranging an investment plan of 210 million yuan, of which 21.23 million yuan was special construction funds for the 17 pilot counties, with the vehicle delivery rate rising from 62% to 97%; promoting the integrated development of passenger, freight, and postal services, adding 1,124 cooperation routes between postal enterprises and transportation enterprises, reaching a cumulative total of 7,534, and adding 5,162 cooperative stations, with a cumulative total of 48,952 reused stations.

The State Post Bureau and the Postal Group will further summarize the pilot experience, deepen "express delivery entering villages" in central and western rural areas by relying on the universal postal service network, and continue to improve the three-level county, township, and village rural delivery and logistics system.

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"Robot Consumption Street" Debuts at 2026 World Robot Conference

Beijing, August 20 (Our newspaper) (Reporter Wang Haonan) The 2026 World Robot Conference recently opened at the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area (北京经济技术开发区), with the nearly 10,000-square-meter "Robot Consumption Street" (机器人消费街) making its debut at the same time. The street brings together more than 20 leading enterprises in the robot industry chain, centrally showcasing cutting-edge robot products in the fields of commercial services, household consumption, food preparation, and interactive experiences.

"As the permanent venue for the World Robot Conference, the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area has gathered more than 300 robot-related enterprises and is continuously promoting robot technology from scientific research toward large-scale, life-oriented, and commercial applications. The Robot Consumption Festival and the Consumption Street are important carriers," said Li Dongming (李冬明), director of the Commerce and Finance Bureau of the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area (北京经开区商务金融局). According to reports, enterprises that make bulk purchases of robots at the World Robot Conference site or at robot 4S stores, where the amount of a single procurement contract reaches 50,000 yuan or more, can enjoy a 10 percent discount, and each purchasing unit can apply for special subsidies three times within the activity period; individual consumers who purchase machines at the conference site, Robot World (机器人大世界), and other offline retail scenarios participating in the event, where the total labeled price of goods in a single transaction is 30,000 yuan or less, can enjoy an exclusive 20 percent discount.

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CITIC Bank Taiyuan Branch: Deepening Roots in Shanxi's Soil to Empower High-Quality Development

To do well in the "five major articles" of finance (五篇大文章), serve the development of the local real economy and the safeguarding of people's livelihoods, CITIC Bank Taiyuan Branch takes the deep integration of Party building with business development as its main line, closely follows the overall situation of Shanxi's energy transition, industrial upgrading, comprehensive rural revitalization, and inclusive development of people's livelihoods, continuously increases credit allocation in key areas, innovates digital convenience services for the people, weaves a dense financial security protection network, and, taking warm professional services as the starting point, channels financial living water to irrigate the land of Three Jin (三晋).

Party building leadership activates the momentum of financial services. In recent years, CITIC Bank Taiyuan Branch has deeply integrated Party building work with business development, driving the branch's high-quality development with a "red engine." It has innovatively implemented the "division of areas with contracted responsibility" mechanism (分片包干), with 29 Party member cadres providing paired guidance to grassroots Party branches under its jurisdiction, solidly grasping grassroots Party building work; it has focused on building the "four batches" (四个一批) of pioneer teams — Party member vanguard teams, Party member demonstration posts, Party member volunteer service teams, and Party affairs service groups — and deeply carried out the practical activity of "I do practical things for the masses" (我为群众办实事). Among them, the "leading foreign exchange service bank" Party member vanguard team has conducted in-depth research on benchmark cases of peer institutions, customized exclusive cross-border financial service solutions for enterprises, and helped Shanxi enterprises expand into domestic and international markets.

Precise drip irrigation assists industrial transformation and upgrading. CITIC Bank Taiyuan Branch closely follows the overall situation of Shanxi's industrial transformation, continuously increases credit allocation in key areas, and persistently optimizes its financial service model. In the field of green finance, it focuses on key projects of the energy revolution and low-carbon transformation, and increases medium- and long-term credit allocation to strategic emerging industries and manufacturing. Since the beginning of this year, CITIC Bank Taiyuan Branch's green credit has increased by nearly 1 billion yuan compared with the beginning of the year, with a growth rate of 15.49%; in the field of science and technology innovation, it focuses on the development needs of technological innovation and hard technology enterprises, builds a full-chain, diversified technology financial service system, and supports the development of hard technology enterprises with full-cycle, all-round, all-factor financial services, with various loans increasing by more than 600 million yuan compared with the beginning of the year. At the same time, inclusive finance business and financial services for comprehensive rural revitalization work in coordination, opening up the "last kilometer" of financial services, with inclusive finance loans increasing by nearly 200 million yuan compared with the beginning of the year, and agriculture-related loans growing by more than 1 billion yuan compared with the beginning of the year.

Technology empowerment creates a model of inclusive livelihood. CITIC Bank Taiyuan Branch focuses on the urgent, difficult, worrying, and longing concerns (急难愁盼) of the masses, broadens the boundaries of convenience services through digital innovation, and has successfully acted as an agent for the issuance of third-generation social security cards. For the elderly population, it has built a comprehensive elderly-adapted service ecosystem of "intelligent online, warm offline, community linkage, and safety escort," completed barrier-free elderly-adapted renovations at all outlets under its jurisdiction, opened green channels for silver-haired services, and set up low-position convenience counters; it has launched the "Happiness+" large-print exclusive version of mobile banking, equipped with an intelligent voice assistant, enabling elderly customers to conveniently handle financial business by "moving their mouths rather than their hands."

Building a solid defense line to protect the property safety of the masses. CITIC Bank Taiyuan Branch takes "guarding the people's money bags" as its own responsibility, organizes financial volunteer service teams to go deep into communities, campuses, and enterprises, and carries out differentiated financial knowledge publicity activities for key groups such as the elderly and young people. Relying on the head office's intelligent risk control system to strengthen real-time transaction monitoring, it automatically triggers a special follow-up visit mechanism for elderly customers purchasing high-risk products, building a solid financial risk defense line.

In the future, CITIC Bank Taiyuan Branch will continue to practice the duty and mission of serving the country through finance, adhere to the fundamental principle of financial services serving the real economy, and continue to contribute CITIC's strength to Shanxi's high-quality development.

Data source: CITIC Bank Taiyuan Branch

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本版责编：吴燕 韩文榕 黄金玉

Graphics: Zhang Fangman (张芳曼)

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Repairing a Road to Benefit the Local People (Frontline Livelihood)

By: 本报记者 刘军国

From struggling to gain traction as solo livestreamers to expanding sales channels through collective development, Lan Weijuan, one of the first batch of village livestreamers to settle in the "She Village Livestream · Common Prosperity Creation Valley" (畲乡村播·共富创谷) in Jingning She Autonomous County, Lishui, Zhejiang, has much to reflect on. The locality revitalized idle assets, renovating and upgrading the former traffic police brigade office building into a livestreaming center. The center integrates functions including livestream e-commerce sales, product quality inspection, and on-site settlement. It purchases various farmhouse dried goods at fixed prices, conducts on-site inspection and weighing, and settles payments immediately, effectively solving farmers' difficulties in selling their products. Since it began operation in June of this year, the center has opened 17 fixed livestreaming rooms.

Counties are connected to cities on one side and villages on the other; the county economy is the basic unit of the national economy. The outline of the "15th Five-Year Plan" proposes adhering to the close integration of benefiting people's livelihoods with promoting consumption, and of investing in physical infrastructure with investing in people. In the first year of the "15th Five-Year Plan," how can counties more closely integrate investment in physical infrastructure with investment in people? A reporter conducted a field visit in Jingning County.

Making the preemptive move to solve development difficulties

Inside the greenhouses of the Dongtang Village circular agriculture base in Jingning County, cucumbers, cauliflower, and other vegetables are plump and growing vigorously. Staff members move through them, skillfully cutting vegetables and picking leaves. Outside the greenhouses, 1,000 jin of packaged cucumbers are being loaded onto a truck, which will enter the Jingwen Expressway; five hours later, these vegetables still bearing dew will appear on the dinner tables of Hangzhou residents.

Since the expressway opened to traffic more than three years ago, the radiating effect of the Jingwen Expressway has continued to improve, gradually building a new development ecosystem of "roads open to attract industries, industries thrive to gather vehicles."

"In the past, Jingning's mountains were high and roads distant—resources couldn't get out, and merchants couldn't get in. People guarded their lucid waters and lush mountains but could only make a living by farming. In the past five years, we have successively started renovation and expansion projects for three national highways. The completion of the Jingwen Expressway has enabled specialty products such as high-mountain vegetables, Huiming tea, and She ethnic cultural creative products to quickly leave the mountains." said Zhou En, Secretary of the Party Leadership Group and Director of the Jingning County Transportation Bureau.

On November 2, 2022, the largest single-project investment since Jingning County was established—the pumped storage power station—broke ground in Wutong Village, Wutong Township, southwest of the county seat. After the project was introduced, villagers returned to their hometowns one after another, starting businesses in various industries such as homestays, supermarkets, and catering in the village. "There used to be few people in the village, but since the pumped storage power station started construction, more and more people have come." Chen Lieying and his wife, who had worked away from home for over a decade, returned to the village to run a supermarket, with good daily turnover.

At Yazhi Technology Co., Ltd. in the Jingning Ethnic Entrepreneurship Park, employee Liu Changyuan is measuring components of high-precision electric spindles. In 2024, while still studying at Jingning Vocational Senior High School, Liu Changyuan came to the company for an internship. After graduating in 2025, he was hired as a full-time employee, achieving employment immediately upon graduation. "There are so many enterprises in my hometown, so we have more employment opportunities. Some of my classmates who studied elsewhere also chose to return to their hometown for employment after graduation." Liu Changyuan said.

By building specialty industry platforms, improving park infrastructure, and enhancing industrial carrying capacity, Jingning County has attracted various physical enterprises to establish operations, directly creating employment opportunities for the people, with per capita migrant worker income increasing year by year. Village collective economies have also achieved steady income growth through project equity participation.

Currently, the Jingning Ethnic Entrepreneurship Park has 16 enterprises with investments exceeding 100 million yuan each, and a permanent population of over 8,800. The integration of industry and city has significantly improved, and a new town that retains and drives people through industry is taking shape.

"For a mountainous county like Jingning, investing in physical infrastructure is the preemptive move to solve development difficulties, and it is also the paving stone for people's employment and income growth." said a relevant official of Jingning County.

Seizing the key point of addressing mountainous area shortcomings

Talent is the key support for regional development; the lack of talent is a prominent shortcoming in mountainous area development, and "investing in people" is the endogenous driving force for development.

Zhou Zhiwei is a village cadre and also an "agricultural entrepreneur" who has returned to his hometown to start a business for nine years. During his entrepreneurial process, he discovered that farming households had many distinctive, high-quality agricultural products, but their sales channels were singular. Keeping pace with Jingning County's "Hundred Villages, Thousand Livestreams, Enter Ten Thousand Households" initiative, he boarded the fast train of integrated development of "passenger-cargo-postal + livestream e-commerce," moving his livestreaming room into fields, tea mountains, and orchards, using the camera lens to showcase the high-mountain ecological planting environment, traditional processing techniques, and the authentic flavor of local ingredients. "In order to let more people see Jingning's high-quality agricultural products, we started livestreaming and making videos to sell products in January this year. We have conducted more than 30 livestreams so far, customer repurchase rates are very high, and products are sold to various places." Zhou Zhiwei said.

For infants and young children aged 0–3, Jingning County has advanced the integrated reform of childcare and education, increasing the proportion of kindergartens offering nursery services from 38.67% to 66.12%, with inclusive nursery slots accounting for 100% and 281 nursery slots per 1,000 infants and young children aged 0–3.

According to reports, Jingning County is a pilot area for the integrated reform of basic public services in Zhejiang Province. It has successively carried out distinctive reforms including optimization and adjustment of small-scale schools, "fixed + mobile" circuit diagnosis and treatment, mountain area elderly care butlers, and "add a pair of chopsticks" neighborhood mutual assistance, providing free health checkups for left-behind elderly people over 60 and free medication for "two chronic diseases," effectively solving the elderly care and medical difficulties of mountain area seniors. During the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, a total of more than 10.8 million yuan was invested in related funding.

In the view of Jingning County's cadres and masses, investing in people should empower the people, giving everyone skills and abilities, making the county have talent and vitality, shifting from "relying on projects for blood transfusion" to "relying on oneself for blood generation," forming a virtuous cycle of "investing in people—improving people's livelihoods—people improving further."

Jingning County also relies on chamber of commerce resources to establish 19 out-of-county service centers in various places, providing legal assistance, financial support, and other services for Jingning people outside the county to protect their rights and interests. "We have strengthened cooperation with other local governments, optimized the supply of public services, so that Jingning people outside the county can also enjoy the same services. We arrange for the children of migrant workers outside the county to complete compulsory education in Jingning County public schools, and have also established a liaison mechanism for Jingning people outside the county, conducting regular visits, building bridges for their return to their hometowns to start businesses, so that they can work with peace of mind when they go out, and have a development platform when they want to come back." said Ye Chunqiang, Secretary of the Party Leadership Group of the Jingning County Federation of Industry and Commerce.

"The development of mountainous counties ultimately depends on people. In the past, we lacked people and technology. Even if we had good resources and good facilities, if the people didn't know how to use them or couldn't use them well, merchants couldn't be retained either. This is 'having the physical things, but people not keeping up.' Facing development bottlenecks, we deeply understand that we must do a thorough job of investing in people, empowering high-quality county development and common prosperity." said a relevant official of Jingning County.

Finding the right connection point to match services with needs

As a mountainous county, Jingning County has a weak fiscal foundation and limited available funds. How does it balance "building buildings and roads" with "investing in people"?

"Infrastructure first, people's livelihoods as the foundation, overall planning and coordination, using physical things to gather people"—this is the path Jingning County has explored.

"Before the old hospital renovation project was launched, we walked through every community, conducted door-to-door interviews, and collected more than 200 suggestions on elderly care and childcare needs." Peng Dewei, member of the Party Leadership Group and Deputy Director of the Jingning County Health Bureau, recalled that at the start of the project, how to match services with needs became a challenge.

Revitalizing idle assets was a key step in project implementation. Civil affairs, health, and other departments jointly conducted research. Targeting pain points such as childcare difficulties troubling young people and the lack of activity spaces concerning the elderly, they determined the renovation direction of an integrated "one old, one young" layout, and finally settled on the renovation plan for the former county hospital outpatient building. The renovation was led by the Jingning County State-owned Assets Holding Group, which both achieved the preservation and appreciation of state-owned assets and rapidly promoted project implementation. Today, the former county hospital outpatient building has undergone tremendous changes: the first and second floors are a childcare center, the third and fourth floors are a children's service center, and the fifth through seventh floors have been built into an elderly activity center, realizing "dual-age co-care" of the "rising sun" and "setting sun." The idle inpatient building has been transformed into the Hexi Street Community Health Service Center.

To ensure sustainable services, the project has explored market-oriented operation paths. Peng Dewei explained that through the operation model of "public welfare as the mainstay, market as supplement," it both reduces the cost of livelihood services and meets the personalized needs of the masses, truly allowing idle resources to benefit the people.

From precisely addressing problems by asking the people about their needs, to efficiently implementing projects by revitalizing assets, to long-term guarantees through market-oriented operation, Jingning County is oriented by people's livelihood needs, transforming idle assets into carriers of people's livelihood well-being.

"On the one hand, we cut back on unnecessary infrastructure expenditures, resolutely preventing image projects and projects that merely add icing on the cake, saving funds to invest in education, healthcare, and skills training. On the other hand, we ensure that investment in 'physical things' always serves the development of 'people,' with infrastructure projects prioritizing services to people's livelihoods and industry, letting the benefits of infrastructure feed back into people's livelihoods, achieving mutual support between 'building physical things' and 'investing in people.'" said Cai Weihua, Chairman of Jingning State-owned Capital Control Group.

"In Jingning County, the key to closely integrating investment in physical infrastructure with investment in people is to ensure that projects investing in physical things can provide platforms for the development of 'people,' and that investment in 'people' enables the masses to better utilize 'physical' facilities to achieve development, achieving the goal of 'building one facility, cultivating a batch of talent, revitalizing one industry, and enriching one region's people.'" said Lan Jingfen, Deputy Secretary of the Jingning County Party Committee and County Magistrate.

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Creating New Growth Drivers Through Safeguarding and Improving People's Livelihood (Expert Commentary)

By: 郑功成

In the past, we focused more on investing in physical things, with the nation's public spending concentrated more on economic construction. For example, in the fight against poverty, we improved basic public service facilities at the grassroots level such as township health centers and village kindergartens, and strengthened infrastructure construction including the "village-to-village" road project, expressways, and high-speed railways, all of which achieved great successes. As can be seen from the development practice of Jingning, a mountainous county, these achievements are of fundamental and foundational significance for improving people's livelihoods, and are indispensable carriers and support for enhancing the well-being of the people.
Adhering to the close integration of investing in physical things and investing in people, we must promote a more balanced development between livelihood-oriented investment and production-oriented investment, create new economic growth points in the course of continuously safeguarding and improving people's livelihoods, and form a substantive leap in the well-being of the people and overall social progress in the process of advancing common prosperity. Specifically at the county level, the path explored by Jingning County of "infrastructure first, people's livelihoods as the foundation, overall planning with due consideration to all factors, and gathering people through physical things" has reference value.
Investing in people requires establishing a new concept and treating livelihood investment as investment in national economic and social construction. Investing in people's livelihoods can not only improve the quality of people's lives, but also help drive consumption and promote high-quality economic and social development.
Investing in people also requires further adjusting the structure of public expenditure, shifting from emphasizing infrastructure construction to improving the social security system and enhancing people's well-being. As China continues to deepen the reform of the social security system, the construction of a multi-tiered social security system continues to develop, key institutional reforms continue to be implemented, and the management and handling systems of social security are becoming increasingly mature. Social security has become the basic channel and strong institutional guarantee for all the people to share in the fruits of development.
Investing in people requires strengthening institutional innovation on the basis of existing livelihood safeguard measures, and focusing on solving the urgent, difficult, and anxious problems of the masses. For example, in the social assistance system, it is necessary to improve the comprehensive assistance pattern and perfect the assistance system and implementation mechanisms; in elderly care services, it is necessary to promptly resolve the problems of mismatch and disconnection between supply and demand, vigorously promote the construction of a diversified elderly care service system mainly based on the model of public construction and private operation, adhere to being community-based, provide comprehensive services, and organically link with institutional arrangements such as old-age insurance, long-term care insurance, medical insurance, and old-age allowances; in child welfare, it is necessary to form a major pattern in which material security and spiritual security are given equal weight, and child services, child allowances, and child preferential treatment develop in parallel.
In accordance with the blueprint drawn up in the outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan, our goals are set, and the intensity is increasing. It can be foreseen that the measures for investing in people will become more abundant, the coverage of the population will become more extensive, and they will surely better meet the people's ever-growing needs for a better life.
(The author is the president of the China Association of Social Security; this article was compiled by our reporters Li Linwei and Wang Mingfeng through interviews)

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Aging-friendly design requires more than larger fonts (People's Livelihood Perspective)

By: 吴储岐

Elderly-friendly adaptation is a meticulous task that requires continuous advancement. Only by implementing existing policies and measures in greater detail and responding promptly to emerging problems can elderly-friendly adaptation truly be practical and effective.

Recently, many netizens have complained about the "elderly mode" of some mobile applications: the font size is indeed enlarged, but the menus remain complex, and operations still require navigating layer by layer; after finally teaching the elderly how to use it, a system upgrade changes the interface and button positions again.

The font is larger, but elderly-friendly adaptation is far from complete. Even if the elderly can read the text clearly, they still need to find the entrance, understand the operations, and avoid accidental touches. If it remains difficult to use, then the "elderly mode" can hardly be said to truly be convenient for the elderly.

In fact, governance measures targeting similar problems have long been in place. In 2021, the "General Design Specifications for Elderly-Friendly Adaptation of Mobile Internet Applications (APPs)" issued by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology proposed that elderly-friendly versions of APPs must strictly prohibit advertising content and plug-ins, must not randomly pop up advertisements, and new windows should be equipped with easily closable buttons. Since then, the industry and information technology departments have continuously promoted the elderly-friendly adaptation of internet applications and digital technologies. In response to the problem of complex television operations frequently reported by the elderly, the National Radio and Television Administration has, since 2023, carried out governance in conjunction with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and other departments. A number of bottlenecks affecting the elderly's user experience are being gradually resolved.

Progress has been made in governance, but difficulties objectively remain. APPs are constantly updated and iterated, and the ways advertisements are presented and redirect users are also changing; smart televisions involve multiple links; and the elderly's usage habits and digital literacy vary. Elderly-friendly adaptation is difficult to achieve once and for all through a single revision or a single mode.

Moreover, the "examination room" for elderly-friendly adaptation extends far beyond a single screen. Whether ramps are easy to walk on, whether seeing a doctor and registering for an appointment goes smoothly, and whether banking is convenient all relate to the quality of life of the elderly. The deeper elderly-friendly adaptation goes, the more these details need to be taken care of comprehensively.

How should this question be answered well?

First, the elderly must be given choices. Digitalization can improve efficiency, but "handling matters online" should not become "only handling matters online." Traditional methods such as manual service windows and cash payments remain indispensable for some elderly people. Those who can scan QR codes can do so, and those who cannot operate the devices must also have someone to help them; those who can handle matters online can make fewer trips, and those accustomed to handling matters offline must also have a door to enter.

At the same time, the elderly should be more involved in designing elderly-friendly products. When designing products, conduct surveys among elderly users; after facility renovations, let the elderly try them out. Only by allowing the elderly's feedback to enter the design, improvement, and evaluation processes in a timely manner can elderly-friendly adaptation be made more precise.

Regulation must also adjust promptly in response to new situations. Problems such as malicious pop-ups, induced redirects, and fake close buttons should be discovered in a timely manner and rectification urged; for products that have already launched "elderly versions" or "care versions," attention should also be paid to whether they remain easy to use after upgrades. Only by checking both whether the renovation meets standards and whether it deviates from the standard during long-term use can the results of governance be consolidated.

Elderly-friendly adaptation is a meticulous task that requires continuous advancement. Only by implementing existing policies and measures in greater detail and responding promptly to emerging problems can elderly-friendly adaptation truly be practical and effective.

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Evergrande Group, Evergrande Real Estate, Xu Jiayin and Others Receive First-Instance Verdicts

Beijing, August 20 (Reporter Wei Zhezhe) — On the morning of August 20, 2026, the Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court of Guangdong Province publicly pronounced its first-instance judgment in the case of defendant unit Evergrande Group (hereinafter "Evergrande Group"), defendant unit Evergrande Real Estate Group Co., Ltd. (hereinafter "Evergrande Real Estate"), and defendant Xu Jiayin. Evergrande Group, for multiple crimes committed concurrently, was sentenced to a fine of RMB 8.82 billion; Evergrande Real Estate was sentenced to a fine of RMB 7 billion; Xu Jiayin, for multiple crimes committed concurrently, was sentenced to life imprisonment, deprived of political rights for life, and ordered to have all personal property confiscated; the pursuit of illegal gains shall continue, and any shortfall shall be ordered to be returned and compensated.

The court found through trial that defendant Xu Jiayin was the actual controller of defendant unit Evergrande Group, with overall responsibility for the group's operational activities, managing and controlling defendant unit Evergrande Real Estate and multiple enterprises including Evergrande Wealth and Evergrande Nanchang, with investments in real estate, property management, finance, and other fields. Between 2016 and 2021, Evergrande Group, Evergrande Real Estate, and Xu Jiayin, in violation of national laws and regulations, employed means such as sustained, large-scale financial fraud to inflate assets and conceal liabilities, and respectively committed criminal acts including illegal absorption of public deposits, fundraising fraud, fraudulent issuance of securities, and illegal disclosure of important information; Evergrande Group and Xu Jiayin obtained control over financial institutions through bribery and other means, illegally extracted credit funds and insurance funds for use by Evergrande Group, and committed criminal acts including unit bribery, illegal granting of loans, and illegal use of funds. Xu Jiayin also exploited his position as chairman of Evergrande Real Estate to organize financial fraud and misappropriate company property in the name of dividends.

The court held that the conduct of defendant unit Evergrande Group and defendant Xu Jiayin constituted the crimes of illegal absorption of public deposits, fundraising fraud, illegal granting of loans, fraudulent issuance of securities, illegal disclosure of important information, and unit bribery; the conduct of Xu Jiayin additionally constituted the crimes of illegal use of funds and embezzlement by taking advantage of position; the conduct of defendant unit Evergrande Real Estate constituted the crime of fraudulent issuance of securities. Evergrande Group and Xu Jiayin shall be punished for multiple crimes concurrently in accordance with law. The criminal conduct of Evergrande Group, Evergrande Real Estate, and Xu Jiayin seriously disrupted the order of the socialist market economy, infringed upon public and private property rights and interests, and undermined the integrity of state functionaries in performing their duties; the amounts involved in the crimes were especially huge, the circumstances were especially egregious, causing especially major economic losses and especially serious social harm, and they should be severely punished in accordance with law. The court rendered the above judgment in accordance with law based on the facts, nature, circumstances, and degree of social harm of the crimes of the defendant units and defendant. In accordance with the provisions of laws and judicial interpretations, the return and compensation of losses takes precedence over the execution of fines and confiscation of property penalties.

On the same day, the Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court and the Shenzhen Nanshan District People's Court also publicly pronounced judgments in cases involving related personnel of Evergrande Group for illegal absorption of public deposits, fundraising fraud, illegal use of funds, and other offenses, sentencing Zhen Litao, Ke Peng, Xu Tenghe, Xu Zhijian, Du Liang, Liang Dong, and 56 other individuals to prison terms ranging from eighteen years to one year and ten months, along with fines or confiscation of property; the pursuit of illegal gains shall continue, and any shortfall shall be ordered to be returned and compensated.

Some deputies to people's congresses and members of political consultative conferences, relatives of the defendants, and representatives of fund-raising participants observed the pronouncement of the judgments.

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Distinctive blocks offer a slow-paced lifestyle

At the Xiaolongkou Characteristic Block (小龙口特色街区) in Digang Town (荻港镇), Fanchang District (繁昌区), Wuhu City, Anhui Province, tourists watch a band performance in the courtyard of a guesthouse converted from abandoned factory buildings, experiencing the slow life.

In recent years, Digang Town has actively revitalized idle rural houses and abandoned factory buildings. Following the concept of "inheritance through protection" and focusing on "renewal + cultural creativity," it has built the Xiaolongkou Characteristic Block through deep integration of agriculture, culture, and tourism, driving the development of agricultural product sales and the guesthouse and catering industries.

Photo by Xiao Benxiang (肖本祥) (Image China)

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Measures for Network Data Security Risk Assessment Take Effect August 20

By: 本报记者 张天培

The Measures for Risk Assessment of Network Data Security are an important initiative for implementing the deployment of the Party Central Committee and the State Council on data security governance work, and a powerful measure for implementing the requirements of laws and regulations such as the Data Security Law and the Regulations on the Administration of Network Data Security. They aim to regulate network data security risk assessment activities, improve the data security management system and mechanism, and safeguard data development, utilization, and industrial development with data security.

The Measures for Risk Assessment of Network Data Security shall come into force on August 20, 2026. A relevant official of the Ministry of Public Security answered reporters' questions on matters relating to their implementation.

Reporter: How does one apply for certification of network data security risk assessment services?

Relevant official of the Ministry of Public Security: Article 8 of the Measures for Risk Assessment of Network Data Security provides: "Relevant assessment institutions are encouraged to obtain certification. The certification of assessment institutions shall be carried out in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Regulations on Certification and Accreditation of the People's Republic of China." Certification institutions such as the Data and Technology Support Center of the Cyberspace Administration of China, the Third Research Institute of the Ministry of Public Security, and Taier Certification Center Co., Ltd. have filed the Certification Rules for Data Security Risk Assessment Services with the Certification and Accreditation Administration of China. The relevant certification institutions will implement certification in accordance with the certification rules and relevant standards and specifications. Assessment institutions may apply for service certification to the above-mentioned certification institutions.

Reporter: What statutory duties do public security organs undertake in network data security risk assessment work? What specific implementation measures are there?

Relevant official of the Ministry of Public Security: In accordance with relevant laws and regulations, and under the guidance of the national data security work coordination mechanism, the Ministry of Public Security will, together with the Central Cyberspace Administration Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and other relevant departments, establish a special working mechanism for network data security risk assessment, and guide and supervise network data security risk assessment work.

To ensure that the Measures for Risk Assessment of Network Data Security take effect and produce results, public security organs will, based on their statutory duties, establish a whole-process supervision mechanism. Relying on basic work such as filing for cybersecurity classified protection, they will grasp the relevant circumstances of network data processors within their jurisdiction, and establish and improve dynamic supervision ledgers. They will inspect and verify the authenticity and accuracy of the risk assessment reports of important data processors. Where circumstances such as the discovery of relatively major security risks or the occurrence of data security incidents are found, they will, in accordance with the law, urge network data processors to entrust certified third-party assessment institutions to carry out risk assessment. Where it is found that the important data processing activities of important data processors may endanger national security or public interests, they will, in accordance with the law, order rectification; where rectification is refused or the rectification requirements are not met, they will, in accordance with the law, take measures such as ordering the cessation of processing of important data. Network data processors that fail to carry out risk assessment as required will be dealt with in accordance with the Data Security Law of the People's Republic of China, the Regulations on the Administration of Network Data Security, and other relevant laws and administrative regulations; where third-party assessment institutions carry out risk assessment in violation of the Measures for Risk Assessment of Network Data Security, public security organs will deal with them in accordance with the law.

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Editor: Cheng Chen, Bai Zhenzhi, Min Fangzheng

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New Form, Fully Unfolded: Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra | Fold8 | Flip8

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Stabilizing Employment: How Henan Is Making Efforts (People's Eye · Promoting High-Quality and Full Employment)

By: 本报记者 王乐文 方 敏 毕京津

Prologue

In Henan, when it comes to stabilizing employment, government department staff frankly admit the "pressure is heavy" — the working-age population has long remained at nearly 57 million; this year's college graduates number 996,000; rural transferred labor stands at 30.75 million...

Several workers told their own employment stories, exclaiming "never expected this" —

Zhao Jianping never expected to earn more than 5,000 yuan a month at his doorstep; Jia Saiyang never expected to be snapped up by an enterprise before even graduating from university; Shi Zhenrong never expected to become a village-level rural revitalization coordinator, planning to "break into a new world" in the village...

Employment is the foundation of people's livelihood. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "We must stabilize the labor force participation rate, improve the efficiency of human resource utilization, and promote high-quality full employment." The outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan states, "Make high-quality full employment a priority goal of economic and social development." The meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee held on July 30 pointed out that multiple measures should be taken to strengthen livelihood guarantees, increase support for employment of key groups, and do a good job protecting the rights and interests of flexible workers and workers in new forms of employment.

Based on the reality of being a major population province, Henan has taken multiple measures to expand jobs, optimize services, and strengthen guarantees, helping more workers hold their employment "rice bowls" steady. In the first half of 2026, Henan added 715,400 new urban jobs, completing 65% of the annual target of 1.1 million; 165,600 unemployed workers found reemployment; 52,600 people with employment difficulties found jobs; and 404,300 new rural labor transfers were added.

Recently, reporters visited Henan to investigate how to promote high-quality full employment.

Expanding the Increment

Industrial upgrading drives employment, allowing workers to find jobs at their doorstep.

"The factory is close to home; after paying the five insurances and one housing fund, I take home more than 5,000 yuan a month." The speaker, Zhao Jianping, 42, is from Dama Township in the Zhengzhou Airport Economy Zone (hereinafter referred to as "Zhengzhou Airport Zone"). When reporters met him, he was carefully inspecting welding quality in the workshop of BYD's Zhengzhou super factory.

Zhao Jianping had worked outside the province for many years. A few years ago, he wanted to return to his hometown in Henan, but in recent years, Henan has continued to promote industrial transformation and upgrading, making him hesitate: "Production line automation is getting more and more efficient — will jobs be easy to find?"

In February 2025, at a Henan "Spring Breeze Action" job fair, Zhengzhou BYD Automobile Co., Ltd. recruited 20,000 workers at one go. "Automation replaces repetitive labor, not the value of people. Industrial upgrading also creates new employment opportunities," said Ren Yongbin, HR manager of Zhengzhou BYD.

Opening Zhengzhou BYD's recruitment list, demand is strong for positions such as intelligent equipment operation and maintenance and automotive welding. To date, Zhengzhou BYD has absorbed about 60,000 industrial workers, more than 90% of whom come from Zhengzhou and surrounding areas.

"BYD has also driven upstream and downstream enterprises in the automotive industry chain to settle in Henan, bringing a large number of new jobs in parts production, logistics, terminal sales, and more," said Han Ximing, director of the Employment Promotion Bureau of the Henan Provincial Department of Human Resources and Social Security.

As a large number of positions landed, the Zhengzhou Airport Zone fully guaranteed enterprise labor needs through online recruitment information releases, offline job fairs, worker transport buses, and other means. In 2025, 25 job fairs were held.

Recommended by public employment service institutions, Zhao Jianping joined Zhengzhou BYD. However, joining a company does not equal job stability — enterprises need people capable of the positions. Later, he participated in a series of trainings and assessments organized by relevant government departments and the enterprise, becoming a skilled welder. In the four townships adjacent to BYD's Zhengzhou super factory, about 15,000 local residents like Zhao Jianping have joined the company, achieving stable employment at their doorstep.

In the Zhengzhou Airport Zone, rapidly developing emerging industries such as intelligent manufacturing and high-end logistics are bringing more and more jobs, with surrounding residents becoming direct beneficiaries. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the zone added more than 35,000 new urban jobs.

The exploration of the Zhengzhou Airport Zone is a vivid footnote to Henan's use of industrial upgrading to expand employment capacity. In Henan, the development of the micro-drama industry is equally representative.

The micro-dramas Zhao Jianping enjoys watching in his spare time are, in large part, produced by Henan micro-drama companies. Xu Huabo, director of the Online Audiovisual Program Management Division of the Zhengzhou Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism, introduced that Zhengzhou now has more than 820 micro-drama production enterprises, employing over 30,000 people, with industry scale exceeding 9.7 billion yuan, and new positions such as AI painter have emerged.

From manufacturing to the cultural industry, industrial quality improvement and capacity expansion are giving rise to more new employment space. Facing the new challenges and opportunities brought by the accelerated development of the AI industry chain, Henan has implemented a three-year action plan for "AI +" high-quality employment, planning to develop more than 60,000 AI application job positions from 2025 to 2027.

"Wherever industry iteration goes, employment opportunities extend there. Through skills training, human resources and social security departments help workers improve their ability to adapt to new industries and new positions, allowing more people willing to embrace technological change to stand on a new stage of development," said Han Ximing.

Improving Quality

Training closely follows demand, advancing the building of a skilled talent workforce.

With more than a year to go before graduating from university, how was he signed by a major enterprise so early?

"What I studied is exactly what the enterprise needs." During his studies at Henan University of Technology, Jia Saiyang participated in two national-level college student innovation and entrepreneurship training program projects in his major field, accumulating relatively rich practical experience. His experience stems from a profound reform underway at his school — adjusting specialty offerings and strengthening skills training, guided by industrial demand.

In the past, what some universities taught and what enterprises used were "two separate skins." Since 2025, universities in Henan have added 127 undergraduate majors in short supply in society, abolished 41 with low employment rates, and suspended enrollment or switched to every-other-year enrollment for 504.

Adjusting majors alone is not enough — student employment depends on solid practical ability. This requires industry-education integration to "take the baton," connecting classrooms directly to workshops and lessons to production lines.

Walking into the training workshop of Henan Shuanghui Investment & Development Co., Ltd. in Luohe City, the smell of raw meat and spices hits the nose. In front of a huge chopping and mixing machine, 10 students from Luohe Food Engineering Vocational University were carefully observing the operations of Wang Sumei, an engineer at Shuanghui.

"Listen carefully to the sound of the chopper. When the sound gets deeper, it means the viscosity of the meat emulsion is rising — you need to cool it down quickly." Wang Sumei is also a specially appointed teacher under school-enterprise cooperation. She explained that the company, in partnership with the school, carries out engineer training and has opened 12 vocational skills training programs, including frozen prepared food processing.

It's not just Shuanghui. Muyuan Foodstuff Group Co., Ltd. has co-built a smart breeding industry college with Henan Agricultural University, with 21 enterprise experts becoming mentors and bringing smart breeding courses into university classrooms. Students begin batch internships at the enterprise from their first year, and complete graduation projects based on enterprise topics in their fourth year. To date, more than a thousand Henan Agricultural University graduates have found employment at Muyuan.

"With industry-education integration, what the school cultivates is exactly what the enterprise needs," said Qin Yinglin, chairman of Muyuan Group.

Liu Lu, director of the Vocational Capacity Building Division of the Henan Provincial Department of Human Resources and Social Security, said Henan is promoting industry-education integration on a larger scale. "Currently, the province has laid out 10 industry-education-evaluation skills ecology chains, with chain-leading enterprises cooperating with technical colleges, covering the entire chain from junior worker to senior technician training and evaluation."

In addition to school-enterprise cooperation, since 2021 Henan has systematically advanced the "Skilled Henan" initiative for society at large.

At Zhengzhou Yunhe Vocational Skills Training School, a group of trainees are receiving AI skills training. Among the trainees are undergraduates about to graduate, UI (user interface) designers who have worked for years, and workshop workers looking to transition. They share a common goal: to fill skills gaps and achieve better employment.

Wang Shiqing was once one of them. With no prior relevant experience, he enrolled in Yunhe School's large-model application development course. After practical training, he joined a computer technology company. "Everything I learned was technology tailored to enterprise needs, and I could apply it directly to my work."

At Yunhe School, such cross-disciplinary trainees account for about 40%. The school focuses on AI, big data, cloud computing, and other fields, adopting an enterprise project-based training model to ensure trainees are "ready to work upon taking the post." To date, Yunhe School has delivered more than 100,000 digital skills talents to enterprises.

The "Skilled Henan" initiative is a skills improvement campaign covering urban and rural areas across the province, aimed at all workers.

Entering Daxu Village, Zhaoling Town, Zhaoling District, Luohe City, rows of modern solar greenhouses line the roadside; inside the greenhouses, trellis-grown watermelons are already ripe.

"In the past, I farmed by experience — yields were unstable and prices were low. Now the district has high-quality farmer training classes, there's a 'Three Rural Issues Classroom' online, and sometimes university teachers come to the village to give lectures. I learned to grow premium small watermelons using the three-dimensional trellis model, earning more than 4,000 yuan more per mu per year," said grower Xu Yanzhong happily.

In 2025, nearly 740,000 people in Henan obtained vocational skill level certificates at the senior worker level or above. As of the end of June 2026, Henan's total skilled talent reached 21.3919 million, of whom 7.6255 million were highly skilled.

Focusing on Key Groups

Targeted assistance makes precise efforts, stabilizing the basic employment picture.

In Xue Village, Wangcun Town, Xingyang City, Zhengzhou, it is hard to tell from his complexion alone that Shi Zhenrong is a recent college graduate.

"I've gotten tanned, and I've also grown," said Shi Zhenrong. He graduated from Zhengzhou Business College with a degree in construction cost engineering. His job search was once unsuccessful, but fortunately in May 2025 a "timely rain" arrived — Henan Province's special program for village-level rural revitalization coordinators.

In 2025, the Henan provincial finance allocated nearly 400 million yuan to recruit the first batch of 5,100 village-level rural revitalization coordinators, whose duties are to assist, under the leadership of the village two committees, in advancing rural industry development, rural construction, rural governance, and other work.

After taking the written exam and interview, Shi Zhenrong was hired as a rural revitalization coordinator for Xue Village. "In April this year, I participated in planning the cherry blossom season event hosted by Xue Village, which attracted more than one million visits," he said. From planting cherry trees to planning cultural tourism projects, from road repairs to irrigation channel renovations, he has found a stage to display his talents. "I want to take root in Xue Village and break into a new world."

Shi Zhenrong's employment stems from the "502020" plan Henan implemented for the graduate group: 500,000 people employed through enterprise absorption, 200,000 through civil service exams, public institution exams, and grassroots projects, and 200,000 through self-employment and flexible employment. The village-level rural revitalization coordinator special program is part of the grassroots projects. This year, the program has not only expanded its recruitment scale but has also been incorporated into the unified staffing management of township public institutions.

Some stay in their hometowns; some head to distant places. Henan's more than 30 million migrant workers are equally a key group for stabilizing employment. Li Qian, director of the Migrant Workers Division of the Henan Provincial Department of Human Resources and Social Security, said that during visits to the Yangtze River Delta region, they found that Henan-origin workers fear not "hard work" but "unstable work" — "finish today without knowing where tomorrow will be; after finishing work, can't get paid and don't know who to turn to."

In 2023, Henan joined with Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and other places to build a provincial inter-provincial labor cooperation alliance, establishing service stations in areas where outbound workers are concentrated, sending "family members" to the factory gates.

Zhang Pengfei is from Ye County, Pingdingshan City, and has worked in Kunshan City, Jiangsu for many years. In the past, changing jobs or coordinating labor disputes meant relying on friends and waiting for news. "Now, if there's a problem, go to the service station — reliable," he said with emotion.

For migrant workers, without skills, they can only do pure manual labor. To enable migrant workers to "earn a living by their craft," Henan has continuously advanced the "one county, one brand" labor brand initiative.

Li Hongwei from Pingyu County, Zhumadian City, has a fairly representative experience. More than 30 years ago, at 19, hearing that building waterproofing paid well, he picked up an asphalt pot and traveled between Beijing, Zhengzhou, Luoyang, and other places, following construction projects. While others buried their heads in work, he learned while working. "I always insisted on using genuine materials and doing quality projects." In 2016, responding to the call to return home and start businesses, he returned to his hometown and established a waterproofing materials company. With local government support, he pushed the industry from single labor contracting to a full chain extending upstream into waterproofing material manufacturing and downstream into skills training. Today, the "Pingyu Waterproofer" labor brand has absorbed nearly 300,000 workers.

Changyuan chefs, Jiaxian "clever daughters-in-law" housekeeping, Luoyang Hanfu makeup artists... Henan has cultivated more than 220 labor brands, driving employment of over 6 million people.

To achieve employment assistance that "leaves no household behind and no person behind," it remains necessary to directly face bottom-line challenges such as zero-employment households.

Zong Lanyun, a resident of Dingcheng Subdistrict, Huangchuan County, Xinyang City, lost her spouse early, and her son and daughter-in-law are ill, leaving the family without a stable source of income. With help from the local human resources and social security department, she was arranged to work at a community elderly care center, and her life has begun to improve.

During interviews in Huangchuan County, reporters noticed that in the local human resources and social security department's screening ledgers, the causes of difficulty for each zero-employment household — due to illness, disability, and so on — were clearly recorded. Refined "iron feet + big data" surveys allow assistance policies to land precisely.

Clarifying the baseline, targeting measures accordingly. Hebi City, Jiaozuo City, and other places have achieved dynamic elimination of zero-employment households through a triple mechanism of "farmer self-declaration, grid screening, and data comparison." Henan arranges more than 40,000 public welfare positions each year to help disabled people, older unemployed people, and other groups find employment.

Optimizing Services

Services move forward proactively, clearing the "last kilometer" for employment policy implementation.

Arriving at the Zhengzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone, reporters visited a "Happy Employment Station" that nearby residents call an "employment supermarket." What the "supermarket" shelves are not goods but employment opportunities. The station has built a "15-minute employment service circle," connecting residents' employment needs on one end and industrial labor demands on the other.

Here, reporters met citizen Chen Fengxia. With the station staff making the connection, she obtained a housekeeping job in less than 10 minutes and was also arranged to receive pre-job training at the housekeeping company. Now, Zhengzhou's Economic Development Zone has built eight Happy Employment Stations, publishing job openings in real time, with station data and service resources shared.

The "employment supermarket" makes it convenient for urban residents to find jobs nearby. But how do villages and towns far from cities expand employment services?

Zhiyang Town in the Pingdingshan City Urban-Rural Integration Demonstration Zone has a labor force of 19,000, of whom about 5,000 work "when there's work, rest when there isn't" year-round. In response, the town built the "Zhiyang Workshop · Gig Worker Station." "The town has 18 administrative villages, each with one employment service specialist, who both asks idle villagers what they can do and want to do, and runs to surrounding factories to ask whether they lack workers and what kind, and also regularly organizes skills training," introduced Miao Zelin, organization committee member of the Zhiyang Town Party Committee.

"Thanks to the gig worker station, I found a good job." Not long ago, He Erchao, a villager from Hezhuang Village, Zhiyang Town, was unemployed at home. With the help of the gig worker station, he successfully joined Zhengzhou BYD as an operator.

In areas where flexible workers are relatively concentrated, Henan has explored establishing gig worker markets with more complete functions and more standardized operations.

In the lobby of the Lankao County Gig Worker Market in Kaifeng City, electronic screens scroll through various recruitment information, and several flexible workers with tool bags slung over their shoulders gather around service windows for consultation. Here, whether seeking nearby employment or outbound work, one can enjoy one-stop services including job recommendation, skills training, and rights protection. As of the end of 2025, Henan had newly built 84 gig worker markets, newly built or renovated 2,977 gig worker stations and doorstep employment service stations, and cumulatively served 1.83 million flexible workers.

Online channels are also expanding. Logging onto the "Henan Employment" online service hall or the "Yushiban" (豫事办) app, job seekers can complete the entire process online, including real-name authentication, resume submission, job search, and interview booking. From "residents running errands" to "data running," digitalization makes employment services more efficient and more caring.

With online and offline channels advancing in tandem, Henan has added an average of 1.2 million urban jobs annually in recent years. Behind these achievements, some problems in development are also gradually emerging. During interviews, reporters found that the phenomena of "delayed employment" and "slow employment" still exist; in some areas, the actual implementation of post subsidies is on the low side, making positions less attractive; some worker service stations still have blockages in the "last meter," and grassroots service stations face problems such as insufficient funding and a lack of professional personnel.

Stabilizing employment is both a tough battle and a protracted war.

"Henan has a permanent population of about 100 million — any livelihood issue multiplied by this population base becomes a major matter and a major livelihood concern," said Zhang Wen'an, deputy director of the Henan Provincial Department of Human Resources and Social Security. "During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, Henan will continue to make sustained efforts in the attractiveness of policies, the effectiveness of training, and the refinement of services, going all out to stabilize the province's basic employment picture."

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Multiple Measures to Resolve Structural Employment Contradictions (Reflections)

By: 方 敏

Employment is a family matter, and even more so a national matter. At the end of 2025, China's population aged 16 to 59 stood at 851 million, with abundant labor resources. The "15th Five-Year Plan for Implementing the Employment-First Strategy" (实施就业优先战略"十五五"规划), issued in June this year, states: "During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, employment will remain generally stable, and new progress will be made in high-quality and full employment."

At present, China's employment market faces the structural contradiction of "there is work but no one to do it" and "there are people but no work to do." From Henan's practice, resolving this contradiction requires efforts on multiple fronts: expanding the increment, improving quality, grasping key points, and optimizing services.

Expand the increment to enhance development's employment-driving force. The process of high-quality development is also a process of improving employment quality and expanding capacity; only with a solid industrial foundation can employment positions be continuously created. BYD's settlement in Zhengzhou has brought new positions such as intelligent equipment operation and maintenance and automobile welding and assembly, which shows that industrial upgrading will reshape the employment structure and promote the transformation of labor-intensive positions into technology- and skill-based positions. We must make every possible effort to advance industrial development, make the "cake" bigger, and let more strivers have a stage on which to pursue their dreams.

Improve quality and solidly advance the building of a skilled talent workforce. At present, industrial upgrading is accelerating and technology iteration is speeding up; if workers' skills cannot keep up with job requirements, employment is out of the question. As of the end of June 2026, Henan's total number of skilled talents exceeded 21 million, strongly supporting the needs of industrial development. This teaches us that only by precisely aligning skills training with market demand can workers win the initiative in employment and can industry obtain talent support.

Grasp the key points and increase policy assistance and precise services for key employment groups such as college graduates and migrant workers. Taking college graduates as an example, data previously released by the Ministry of Education (教育部) shows that the number of 2026 national regular college graduates is expected to reach 12.7 million, an increase of 480,000 year-on-year. Their employment carries personal ideals and family expectations and draws attention from all sectors of society. Only by stabilizing key employment groups through multiple measures can the basic employment picture be stabilized.

Optimize services and open up the "last kilometer" of policy implementation. For many job seekers, employment services are not 锦上添花 (jǐn shàng tiān huā - "add flowers to brocade," to embellish what is already good) but 雪中送炭 (xuě zhōng sòng tàn - "send charcoal in the snow," to provide timely help in times of need). If one step falls behind, one may fall behind at every step. Only by weaving the employment service network more densely can more people's employment "rice bowls" be safeguarded. Relevant departments must open up the key links in the implementation of employment policies, so that information flows more smoothly, rights and interests are guaranteed, and assistance is more precise.

Stabilizing employment is both a tough battle and a protracted war. It requires Party committees and governments at all levels to treat it as the top priority in people's livelihoods, and it also requires all parties to build consensus and form joint force.

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Editor: Yang Yan, Sun Zhen, Dai Linfeng, Liu Yurui

Layout design: Shen Yiling (沈亦伶) Wang Zheping (汪哲平)

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Chinese EVs Win Favor Among Jordanian Public (International Perspective)

By: 本报记者 黄培昭

In August, the Jordanian capital Amman is bathed in intense sunlight. At a Chinese electric vehicle dealership on Mecca Street, the scene is equally "hot." Several brand-new BYD "Dolphin" and ATTO 3 models are surrounded by customers — some leaning in to examine the design, others sitting in the driver's seat testing the central control screen. In recent years, Chinese-brand electric vehicles including BYD, XPeng, Changan, and Dongfeng have successively entered the Jordanian market, offering local consumers diverse choices and supporting the local green transition in transportation.

Just a few years ago, Chinese electric vehicles were rarely seen on Jordanian streets. Jihad Nasser, automotive industry representative of the Jordanian Zarqa Free Zone Investors Management Committee, told reporters that the Zarqa Free Zone, an important vehicle import hub for Jordan, cleared only 72 Chinese electric vehicles through customs in 2019. By 2022, that number had risen to 12,800, and in 2023 it further increased to approximately 33,400. "In just a few short years, Chinese electric vehicles have begun providing Jordanian consumers with more green mobility options," Nasser said.

According to Jordanian customs statistics, Jordan cleared approximately 48,400 imported electric vehicles through customs in 2025, of which 42,300 were Chinese electric vehicles, accounting for 87 percent — a further increase from the approximately 82 percent share in 2024.

The rapid growth in Chinese electric vehicle sales is the result of multiple factors working together. Looking at daily vehicle expenses, domestic gasoline prices in Jordan are relatively high, with 90-octane unleaded gasoline at approximately 1.3 US dollars per liter. Faced with high fuel prices, many Jordanians have begun choosing electric vehicles. Jordanian government employee Hiba Khalid did the math for reporters: previously her monthly gasoline expenditure was about 183 dollars; now, after switching to a Chinese electric vehicle, she only needs to charge once a week, at a cost far lower than gasoline. Local businessman Shadi Zatari told reporters that after switching to an electric vehicle, his monthly personal car-related expenses dropped from 170 dollars to 40 dollars. "For an ordinary family, this money saved makes a real difference."

In recent years, Jordan has made promoting electrification in the transportation sector an important means of reducing sources of air pollution, incorporating it into the overall plan for energy transition and green development. Jordan's transportation sector development strategy for 2024 to 2028 proposes accelerating the green transition in transportation through measures such as increasing charging facilities, encouraging residents to use electric vehicles and electric buses, and expanding government procurement of electric vehicles. The energy sector is also formulating an electric transportation transition strategy to improve relevant policies, infrastructure, and market mechanisms. The Jordanian government's "National Energy Strategy 2025–2035" sets the goal of striving to have electric vehicles account for 60 percent of total new vehicle sales by 2035, with the national electric vehicle fleet reaching approximately 500,000 vehicles. To promote electric vehicles, the Jordanian government applies import tariffs on electric vehicles that are far lower than those on fuel-powered vehicles. At the lowest, electric vehicle import tariff rates are only 10 to 15 percent, while fuel-powered vehicle import tariff rates can reach as high as over 80 percent at the upper end. The preferential rates lower the final selling price of electric vehicles, benefiting more consumers.

At the product level, the high cost-performance ratio of Chinese electric vehicles has earned a good reputation. Jordanian automotive industry expert Hashem Aql believes that the rapid growth of Chinese electric vehicles in the Jordanian market is attributable to reasonable pricing, reliable quality, higher efficiency, and longer driving range. "Advanced technology and high comfort level can cover a broader range of buyer groups." Multiple local electric vehicle importers said that the advantages of Chinese electric vehicles are becoming increasingly prominent — they are less vulnerable to fuel price shocks, and daily maintenance is simpler and more convenient.

Chinese electric vehicle brands have generally established complete official authorized dealer and after-sales service networks in Jordan. Haitham Hassan, sales consultant at the Changan Automobile Amman dealership, said that the dealership's monthly electric vehicle sales have increased from sixty to seventy units to over 100 units. "Currently, a new Chinese electric vehicle agency appears in Jordan every two to three months." Local agent Rami Sahib said that Chinese electric vehicles enjoy high visibility in the Jordanian market, and after-sales service is continuously improving, bringing customers a good experience.

As the electric vehicle fleet continues to grow, Jordan is also accelerating the improvement of its charging network. At present, the number of public electric vehicle charging stations across Jordan has reached approximately 250, with another 1,000-plus charging stations having obtained construction permits or being in the process of applying for operating permits. Charging facilities are extending from the capital to other cities and along highway routes. Energy and mineral resources regulatory bodies are attracting social capital by simplifying charging station construction permits and encouraging investment in fast and ultra-fast charging facilities, while also accelerating approval of residential installation of dedicated home charging equipment. The power sector is also adopting time-of-use electricity pricing to encourage vehicle owners to charge during off-peak hours. As the public charging network and home charging facilities improve in tandem, electric vehicle travel will become even more convenient.

"Jordan needs cleaner, more efficient, and more sustainable modes of transportation, and the development of Chinese electric vehicles has provided us with an important opportunity," said a relevant official from Jordan's transportation department. Chinese electric vehicle technology is mature and the product range is rich, capable of meeting the mobility needs of different consumer groups, helping to reduce Jordan's dependence on traditional energy sources, and providing strong support for achieving the goals of the green transition in transportation. Guo Wei, Chinese Ambassador to Jordan, said that Jordanian consumers recognize Chinese electric vehicle brands, market demand continues to grow, and Chinese electric vehicles will serve the Jordanian market with stricter industry standards, better quality, and superior after-sales service.

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Southern Africa accelerates industrialization process

By: 本报记者 戴楷然

The 46th Summit of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) was recently held in Durban, South Africa. Under the theme "Fostering Resilient, Sustainable and Inclusive Industrialization through Infrastructure Development, Agriculture and Critical Minerals Transformation for a More Just World," the summit discussed topics including regional integration, industrialization, and mineral resource management. Participants noted that in the face of challenges such as the restructuring of global industrial chains and insufficient development financing, Southern African countries should place industrialization in a more prominent position in regional development, and strive to convert advantages in agriculture, energy, and infrastructure into industrial competitiveness.

Infrastructure connectivity is becoming an important pillar supporting industrialization in Southern Africa. In recent years, regional countries have accelerated the construction of economic corridors including the North-South Corridor, the Lobito Corridor, the Maputo Corridor, and the Beira Corridor, promoting the alignment of railways, highways, ports, and border facilities with industrial development. In 2025, SADC proposed upgrading the North-South Corridor connecting the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Africa into a "Smart Economic Corridor," which is expected to unlock approximately US$16.1 billion in regional GDP and create more than 1.6 million jobs. South African President Ramaphosa stated that economic corridors are not just roads and railways, but should also encompass customs, border management, electricity, digital networks, and industrial planning.

Regional power infrastructure construction is accelerating. In the 2025-2026 fiscal year, the 12 mainland member states of SADC added 3,253 megawatts of installed power generation capacity, and the 4 island member states added 1,611 megawatts, bringing total regional installed power capacity to approximately 88,000 megawatts. The regional electricity access rate rose from 56 percent in 2024 to 60 percent in 2025. However, the region still faces challenges such as insufficient grid coverage, and there is an urgent need to strengthen cross-border power transmission and develop off-grid and renewable energy.

Agricultural transformation and value addition of critical minerals have become important levers for SADC member states to extend industrial chains and raise the level of industrialization. The SADC Industrialization Week held in late July designated agro-processing as a priority for regional industrial chain development, promoting the integrated development of agriculture with food manufacturing, logistics, and other industries. SADC Executive Secretary Elias Magosi stated that countries in the region should strive to shift agricultural policy from simply increasing output toward improving productivity, developing agricultural product processing, and building regional value chains, while strengthening irrigation, agricultural science and technology, seed industry, and climate resilience development. In the field of critical minerals, SADC is placing greater emphasis on the transition from "mining" to "processing." Zimbabwe has tightened export policies for lithium concentrate to promote local processing of lithium resources; the Democratic Republic of the Congo has further reduced exports of copper and cobalt concentrate; South Africa is advancing its Critical Minerals and Metals Strategy, encouraging local deep processing of manganese, platinum group metals, chromium, and other resources.

In 2026, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and SADC jointly launched a regional value chain project for critical minerals, covering the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Claver Gatete, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, stated that the minerals sector currently accounts for 10 percent of SADC's regional GDP and 25 percent of regional export value, but generates only 7 percent of direct employment. SADC member states should promote localized "value-added processing" and attract foreign investment to extend from mine development further into smelting, refining, and manufacturing segments.

SADC is also committed to establishing a unified regional market and reducing cross-border transaction costs. Member states continue to advance customs facilitation, electronic trade, cross-border infrastructure construction, and facilitation of personnel movement, striving to remove non-tariff barriers constraining regional trade. In 2025, intra-SADC trade accounted for 20.2 percent of the total, driven mainly by trade in manufactured products, fuels, machinery, automobiles, and agricultural products. During the same period, other foreign direct investment in SADC grew by 44 percent to reach US$11 billion, demonstrating the region's relatively strong attractiveness. SADC is also working to advance regional visa facilitation in the tourism sector, promoting cross-border movement of people to drive the development of service industries such as tourism, transportation, and catering.

At present, countries in the region still face challenges in their industrialization process, including a weak manufacturing base, uneven infrastructure and energy supply, and insufficient development financing. Global geopolitical tensions and reductions in development assistance have also increased uncertainty for regional development. Magosi stated that SADC needs in the future to strengthen trust and cooperation among member states, enhance regional resilience, and advance the development agenda on the basis of its own conditions.

(Our correspondent's report from Johannesburg, August 20)

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Indonesia mobilizes full efforts in earthquake relief and disaster response

By: 本报记者 曹师韵

The latest data from Indonesia's National Disaster Management Agency shows that as of August 20, the 7.7-magnitude strong earthquake that struck waters near Indonesia's Flores Island on the 15th, along with multiple strong aftershocks, has killed 72 people and injured 898. At present, a total of 82,691 affected residents have been dispersed and housed at various shelter sites. According to the latest statistics from the East Nusa Tenggara Provincial Disaster Management Agency, the earthquake has damaged 7,968 houses to varying degrees, with an additional 744 public facilities and infrastructure damaged. Relevant departments stated that disaster damage statistics and verification work is still underway, and the damage figures may continue to be adjusted.

As of 5 a.m. on August 20, Indonesia's Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency had recorded 3,394 aftershocks, with magnitudes ranging from 1.1 to 6.2, of which 26 exceeded magnitude 5.0 and 99 were felt. The agency stated that this earthquake was triggered by fault activity near Flores Island, and is the first strong earthquake above magnitude 7 in the area in more than 30 years. The agency's head, Teguh Fathani, said: "The aftershock activity from this earthquake is expected to take three to four weeks to subside, after which work can begin on repairing, renovating, or rebuilding damaged buildings."

This earthquake affected multiple areas of East Nusa Tenggara Province, and parts of South Sulawesi Province also experienced noticeable tremors. After the earthquake occurred, Indonesian authorities issued a tsunami warning, with waves up to 1.6 meters monitored in coastal areas; the warning was lifted three hours after issuance. The earthquake also triggered multiple landslides, causing road blockages, partial communications disruptions, damage to some airport and port facilities, and the cancellation of multiple flights, hampering disaster assessment, material transport, and personnel search and rescue efforts.

After the disaster occurred, the Indonesian government activated the highest-level emergency response mechanism. The Indonesian central government held a coordination meeting to coordinate the joint efforts of multiple departments including the National Disaster Management Agency, the Search and Rescue Agency, the Ministry of Health, and the Ministry of Transportation, and to deploy rescue forces, disaster relief equipment, and materials. East Nusa Tenggara Province declared a 14-day disaster emergency response status, and affected areas successively activated integrated command centers to strengthen disaster damage statistics, personnel search, rescue and evacuation, and relief material allocation. More than 3,500 national military and police personnel have been deployed to affected areas to participate in rescue operations. The National Search and Rescue Agency has dispatched professional forces from Bali, West Nusa Tenggara, and other locations to participate in search and rescue. Public works departments have organized the clearing of roads and river channels blocked by landslides.

Material support and medical treatment work are also advancing in parallel. The Indonesian National Disaster Management Agency announced on the evening of August 19 that the government has distributed approximately 398 tons of relief materials to the earthquake disaster area, with a special allocation of more than 5,300 tons of rice to guarantee the basic livelihood of affected residents. On August 20, Indonesian police continued to use aviation assets to airdrop materials to the disaster area, accelerating delivery to areas with inconvenient transportation. In West Manggarai and other locations, police boats, naval vessels, search and rescue ships, and land vehicles were simultaneously used to deliver rice, drinking water, ready-to-eat food, and other supplies to coastal and island communities. In response to damage to some medical facilities in the disaster area and the shortage of medical resources, Indonesia's Ministry of Health has activated nine health emergency operations centers, urgently deployed field hospitals, emergency medical centers, and mobile medical teams, and transported basic medicines, first aid kits, oxygen concentrators, masks, medical gloves, and medical tents to the disaster area, promptly carrying out treatment of the injured and health protection for affected residents.

While making every effort to carry out search, rescue, and treatment of disaster victims, the Indonesian government has begun initiating post-disaster recovery and reconstruction. The country's Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture, Pratikno, stated that while rescuing affected residents, the restoration of key facilities such as roads, bridges, hospitals, electricity, and communications must be accelerated. At present, the Indonesian government is coordinating logistics support, resident resettlement, and housing repair work, formulating temporary resettlement and permanent housing plans based on the actual needs of the disaster area, and advancing post-disaster recovery and reconstruction on this basis.

It is understood that a small number of Chinese citizens were injured in the earthquake. The Chinese Consulate General in Denpasar activated the consular protection emergency mechanism to provide assistance to injured Chinese citizens, and reminded Chinese tourists in East Nusa Tenggara Province, especially in the popular tourist destination of Labuan Bajo and its vicinity, to strengthen safety precautions.

(This newspaper's Jakarta, August 20 report)

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Global Scan

Trump Announces "Devastating Economic Action" Against Iran

Xinhua News Agency, New York, August 19 (Reporter Xu Jing) — With negotiations with Iran stalled, U.S. President Trump on the 19th announced "devastating economic action" against Iran.

Trump said in a social media post that Iran had missed a golden opportunity to reach an agreement with the United States, and he announced "the most devastating economic action ever taken against a country," calling it an "unprecedented economic war and campaign of isolation." Trump also threatened that any country that allows its financial institutions, enterprises, airports, or government entities to provide any form of support to Iran will face severe economic consequences. He called on all U.S. allies to join the United States in isolating and defeating the Iranian threat.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent warned last week that "unprecedented" economic isolation measures against Iran would be announced in the coming week, coordinated with a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz to "prevent any goods from being shipped into or out of Iranian ports."

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister: The U.S. Calls Its Next Failure an "Economic War"

According to Xinhua News Agency, Tehran, August 20 — According to a report by the Islamic Republic News Agency: Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Gharibabadi said on the 20th that the United States, having failed to achieve its goals through military action, is now applying further pressure on Iran under the name of an "economic war" in an attempt to cover up its previous failures.

Gharibabadi said the same day in a social media post that the U.S. side, on the one hand, claims Iran is "on the verge of collapse," while on the other hand, it keeps requesting help from its allies.

He said that in order to cover up its failure, the U.S. side has had to manufacture an "even greater failure." "Military war did not work, and now it calls its next failure an 'economic war.'"

15 Japanese Local Governments Jointly Petition to Revise the Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement

According to Xinhua News Agency, Tokyo, August 20 (Reporters Li Ziyue, Chen Ze'an) — According to a report by Kyodo News: The "Council of Governors for External Affairs," composed of administrative heads from 15 Japanese prefectures hosting U.S. military bases and facilities, submitted a petition to the Japanese central government on the 20th, demanding that revisions be promoted to the Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement.

The Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement was signed by the governments of Japan and the United States in 1960. Under this agreement, if U.S. military personnel commit crimes in Japan, the U.S. side enjoys priority jurisdiction, and as a result, cases involving U.S. military personnel often end up being dropped.

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Severe Heat and Drought Devastate European Agriculture

By: 本报记者 尚凯元

Since early summer this year, most of Europe has experienced rare sustained low-rainfall weather, compounded by multiple rounds of extreme heatwaves, dealing a severe blow to agricultural production. In the main agricultural zones of many European countries, withered yellow pastures, curled dry leaves on trees, and interrupted flows in small rivers have become widespread phenomena. The European Commission's Joint Research Centre has pointed out that since spring, drought in Europe has continued to intensify, with water reserves, crop growth, and ecosystems all under mounting pressure.
According to the latest data from the European Drought Observatory, as of late July, roughly half of the land area of the EU and the United Kingdom was experiencing drought of varying degrees, of which 9% was at the "alert" level — that is, below-normal precipitation occurring in parallel with declining soil moisture. France, Germany, Hungary, Romania, and the United Kingdom were the regions where drought was most concentrated. In August, four major European rivers — the Loire, the Po, the Rhine, and the Danube — all recorded historically rare extremely low water levels, severely constraining shipping, irrigation, and ecological water use.
High temperatures and water shortages first struck summer crops in their critical growth period. The agricultural resource monitoring report released by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre at the end of July noted that multiple heatwaves and insufficient rainfall in Western and Central Europe had caused soil moisture to decline continuously, affecting crop growth and flowering, and that expected yields for a range of EU crops had been revised downward, with corn and sunflower down by 6% to 7%. By comparison, winter crops such as wheat and barley matured earlier and to some extent avoided the most severe summer drought, but continuous high temperatures still shortened the grain-filling period, and expected yields were also revised down by 1% to 4%.
As the EU's largest agricultural producer, France has suffered particularly heavy losses in this drought. In August, all provinces in metropolitan France were under drought warning status, with 70% of the national territory subject to water restriction measures, and agricultural irrigation strictly constrained. Agricultural climatologist Serge Zaka stated bluntly that this could be "one of the most severe agricultural disasters nationwide since 1945" in France.
Fruit and vegetable cultivation has become one of the hardest-hit sectors. According to Le Figaro, citing professional estimates, fruit and vegetable output in some French production areas has fallen by 30% to 70%, especially small berries such as strawberries, currants, and blueberries, with some farms facing near-total crop failure after the two heatwaves in May and June. Many farm wells in the Brittany region have run dry, making normal irrigation impossible. This year, harvest time in several wine-producing regions has been brought forward significantly, and the industry expects drought to further depress grape output. In the Deux-Sèvres department, about 30% of fruit and vegetable farms are already facing or about to fall into payment difficulties, with sharply increased cash-flow pressure. To ease farmers' plight, major retailers Carrefour and Coopérative U have recently announced that they will relax procurement payment terms, speed up payments to farmers, and raise fruit and vegetable purchase prices, in order to help farms get through the difficult period.
The livestock sector is likewise under dual pressure. On the one hand, pasture grass and forage have withered yellow prematurely owing to high temperatures and low rainfall, with forage output in some parts of France expected to fall by about 30%, forcing livestock farmers to use in advance feed reserves originally set aside for autumn and winter; on the other hand, animals are suffering from heat stress, with milk output declining noticeably, while pig and poultry farms face problems such as slower growth and rising mortality.
Facing the severe situation, the French government has said it will take multiple response measures. In the short term, the government plans to help affected farms ease funding shortages and resume basic production through targeted financial subsidies, compensation for agricultural disaster losses, and reductions in taxes and social insurance contributions. The French government will also include special arrangements supporting agricultural investment and transformation in the next year's budget to be submitted at the end of September, with emphasis on encouraging the construction of agricultural water conservancy infrastructure, guiding farms to adapt to climate change, and maintaining the overall competitiveness of agriculture.
Against the backdrop of continuously rising climate risk, how to adjust agricultural production methods and enhance agriculture's capacity to adapt to climate change is becoming an important issue in Europe's agricultural transformation. European Commission data show that over the past 50 years, crop losses caused by drought and heatwaves have expanded threefold, and the threat posed by extreme high temperatures to agricultural productivity and food security is increasingly serious. Industry insiders point out that in the future Europe will need to strengthen the resilience of crop cultivation by promoting drought-resistant and heat-tolerant varieties, improving soil water-retention capacity, and raising irrigation efficiency, and to improve the livestock sector's capacity to cope with climate disasters through building new-type livestock housing, ensuring drinking water for livestock, and improving breeding.
(Our newspaper, Paris, August 20, by wire)

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Editor: Yue Linwei, Liu Gang, Wei He

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Rooted in the Soil, Serving the Nation through Agriculture (Running Universities on Chinese Soil)

By: 本报记者 丁雅诵

Chinese-style modernization cannot be separated from agricultural and rural modernization, and the key to agricultural and rural modernization lies in science and technology and in talent.

Facing new and higher requirements, how should agricultural universities in the new era better serve the national strategy and shoulder the heavy responsibility of educating people for the Party and cultivating talent for the country?

On the vast fields, China Agricultural University (中国农业大学) has given its answer: in Quzhou (曲周), Hebei, generation after generation of teachers and students have worked in relay to improve the soil and control alkalinity; in Lishu (梨树), Jilin, research teams have held fast to the black soil for years on end; in more than 230 Science and Technology Backyards (科技小院), young students tackle problems and overcome difficulties...

In October 2025, General Secretary Xi Jinping replied to a letter to all teachers and students of China Agricultural University, pointing out: "On the new journey, I hope you will carry forward the fine tradition of running the school, be steadfastly committed to strengthening agriculture and serving the country, deepen educational and teaching reform, strengthen agricultural scientific and technological innovation and the transformation and application of achievements, and strive to cultivate more professional talents who know agriculture and love agriculture, making new contributions to building a strong agricultural country and advancing Chinese-style modernization."

The earnest entrustment has been transformed into the driving force for progress. Generation after generation of China Agricultural University people are committed to solving people's livelihood problems and pursuing scholarship, blazing a development path that is rooted in China's soil, highlights agricultural characteristics, and benchmarks world-class standards, writing the era's answer sheet of strengthening agriculture and serving the country.

Cultivating professional talents who know agriculture and love agriculture

"Squatting in the fields, only then do you know what farmers need and what the land needs"

"Classmates, back then, the teachers and students of the agricultural university walked unsteadily, carrying their bedrolls into the saline-alkali land of Quzhou, Hebei." In the school history museum, in front of old photographs, amid the teacher's narration, an ideological and political lesson slowly unfolded.

"I have read the sentence 'write the thesis on the motherland's land' many times in textbooks, but when it takes on a specific face and a specific place, its weight is entirely different." Xu Liangsi (徐良嗣), a master's student in the School of Water Conservancy and Intelligent Engineering, was deeply moved.

Forging the soul and educating people begins in the classroom.

In 2020, China Agricultural University upgraded the "teaching syllabi" of more than 2,000 undergraduate courses university-wide to "education syllabi." Behind the change in wording is a renewal of philosophy — every course must not only teach knowledge and train abilities, but also shape character and forge the soul.

Building a "grand ideological and political course" (大思政课) of strengthening agriculture and serving the country, publishing farming-reading education readers, and building a 20,000-mu labor education base... Seeds of knowing agriculture and loving agriculture have quietly taken root.

At the China Agricultural University Science and Technology Backyards, ideological and political education has a more vivid carrier.

At the Quzhou Science and Technology Backyard in Hebei, just as dawn was breaking, Li Kunjian (李坤建), a master's student in the College of Resources and Environment, carried a drone out the door and rode a tricycle bumping along the path, measuring soil moisture, checking for pests and diseases, and diagnosing corn growth.

From knowing nothing about farming when he first arrived in the village, to now being able to teach farmers scientific fertilization and green pest control hand in hand, Li Kunjian said with emotion: "Squatting in the fields, only then do you know what farmers need and what the land needs."

"Teachers and students come to understand farmers by eating, living, and working together with them, find research topics in solving practical problems in field production, and realize the integration of talent cultivation, scientific research, and social service," said Zhang Fusuo (张福锁), academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, professor at China Agricultural University, and founder of the Science and Technology Backyard model.

Striving to cultivate more professional talents who know agriculture and love agriculture relies on a scientific disciplinary layout and a solid curriculum system.

In recent years, facing the talent gap in building a strong agricultural country, China Agricultural University has taken multidisciplinary cross-integration and development as its direction and added the first batch of new agricultural science disciplines (新农科) nationwide, including biological breeding science, agricultural intelligent equipment engineering, and veterinary public health.

At the same time, aiming at new formats in the agricultural science and technology industry, it has upgraded the curriculum system: building platform curriculum systems for five major disciplinary categories — life sciences, engineering and information science, natural sciences, humanities and social sciences, and ecological and environmental science — creating 78 major platform courses, with emphasis on strengthening students' cross-disciplinary thinking and ability cultivation.

"This year, the school continues to expand high-quality undergraduate enrollment, adding or upgrading four top-notch innovative talent cultivation class types — the Smart Plant Protection Innovation Class, the Future Food Innovation Class, the Molecular Science Innovation Class, and the Nutrition and Health Frontier Class — continuously expanding the cultivation channels for top-notch innovative talents," said Ren Jinzheng (任金政), executive deputy dean of the university's Undergraduate School.

Building the scientific and technological foundation for a strong agricultural country

"Only through independent research can we defend the technological sovereignty of China's biological breeding"

Seeds are the "chip" of agriculture, and gene editing tools are like the "scissors" that make the chip — whoever masters them holds the initiative in breeding.

For a long time, these "scissors" were monopolized by foreign patent systems, and domestic seed industry breeding improvement and germplasm innovation were constrained by others (受制于人 - shòu zhì yú rén - "be constrained by others," to be controlled or dependent on others). "The bottleneck is right here." Lai Jinsheng (赖锦盛), director of the National Maize Improvement Center of China Agricultural University, made up his mind: to make China's own gene "scissors."

The team sifted through massive microbial gene data, screening and repeatedly verifying more than 6.5 million Cas proteins one by one. Eight years, 15 terabytes of data, like dragging a needle from the great sea (大海捞针 - dà hǎi lāo zhēn - "drag a needle from the great sea," an almost impossible search), and finally, in the vast as a misty sea (浩如烟海 - hào rú yān hǎi - "vast as a misty sea," immense and numerous) gene bank, they locked onto two "scissors" — Cas12i and Cas12j. "One cuts fast, one cuts accurately," Lai Jinsheng said by way of analogy.

After the national invention patent was authorized and the achievements were transformed, every member of the team felt genuine pride. "Core seed industry technologies cannot be bought or exchanged; only through independent research can we defend the technological sovereignty of China's biological breeding." Lai Jinsheng voiced the mission and responsibility of China Agricultural University people in building a strong agricultural country and promoting high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening.

Creating an efficient haploid breeding technology system for maize, increasing the speed of parental line selection and breeding by more than four times; cultivating the white-feathered broiler breed "Wode 188," achieving the first export of China's independently bred broiler germplasm; breaking the monopoly of the international Cherry Valley duck, developing a low-cost whole-genome selection system for Beijing ducks... One technological breakthrough after another solves industrial problems, empowers agricultural transformation, and injects strong momentum into the high-quality development of modern agriculture.

The wave of digital agriculture is surging, and China Agricultural University has taken the lead in exploring the deep integration of AI (artificial intelligence) with agriculture.

In Beijing's Huairou District (怀柔区), the "Shennong AI Farm" (神农AI农场) has been put into operation. Drones patrol the fields, covering more than a thousand mu in a single sortie; robot dogs conduct inspections, transmitting crop growth conditions in real time; the intelligent irrigation system automatically adjusts water volume based on soil moisture... Relying on the "Shennong Baixiao" (神农百晓) new agricultural science large model developed by the school, the farm has achieved intelligent management and control of the entire process from sowing, management and protection, pest prevention, to harvesting.

"In recent years, agricultural large models such as 'Shennong,' 'Fengdeng,' and 'Fanli' have been released one after another, and intelligent equipment such as embodied intelligent breeding robots and smart farm management and control systems have been successively put into use," said Cui Zhenling (崔振岭), executive deputy dean of the Institute of Science and Technology Development of China Agricultural University. The school will continue to iterate smart agricultural technologies so that new quality productive forces can take root and land on the fields at an accelerated pace.

Rooted at the front line, empowering rural revitalization

"Solving people's livelihood problems and pursuing scholarship are not slogans on the lips, but diligent practice step by step"

In the new era, the countryside is a field of hope and a broad stage for undertaking work and starting careers.

The noonday sun scorched the rice paddies of Gusheng Village (古生村) in Dali, Yunnan. Xu Jiuliang (徐玖亮), associate professor in the College of Resources and Environment, rolled his trousers up to his knees, put on a pair of rubber shoes covered in mud spots, and led his students into the fields. After returning from studying abroad in 2022, he responded to the school's call and settled in this southwestern village to explore green ecological rice planting models.

"Our 20,000-mu trials in the watershed have achieved remarkable results — a 10% increase in yield compared with traditional planting, while reducing carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus runoff by more than 15%, improving the water quality of Erhai Lake." The plateau's ultraviolet rays have tanned Xu Jiuliang dark, but the light in his eyes is growing brighter.

Xu Jiuliang often tells his students: "Solving people's livelihood problems and pursuing scholarship are not slogans on the lips, but diligent practice step by step. Putting technologies that increase production and income into the hands of farmers is what people who study agriculture should do."

Wild geese fly south and return north; crops are sown in spring and harvested in autumn. Generation after generation of China Agricultural University teachers and students pass the fire from torch to torch (薪火相传 - xīn huǒ xiāng chuán - "pass the fire from torch to torch," to transmit knowledge or tradition from generation to generation), and what has never changed is the sentiment of being rooted in the land and strengthening agriculture to serve the country, and the deeds of cultivating the soil and serving the countryside.

On the banks of the Shiyang River (石羊河) in Gansu, Kang Shaozhong (康绍忠), academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and professor in the School of Water Conservancy and Intelligent Engineering, has led his team to take root for decades, systematically revealing the water consumption patterns of 13 major crops and 4 windbreak and sand-fixing plants, and developing comprehensive water-saving, fertilizer-saving, and pesticide-saving crop technologies, causing Qingtu Lake (青土湖), which had been dry for more than half a century, to reappear with blue waves — more than a hundred square kilometers of wetlands have awakened, and waterbirds flit about;

In Lishu, Jilin, Professor Li Baoguo (李保国) of the College of Land Science and Technology led his team to develop the Lishu model (梨树模式) — straw mulching, mechanized planting, rotational fallow, and scaled management — like putting a layer of clothing on the black soil, preventing wind and water erosion and preserving the fertility of the "giant panda of arable land"...

Today, China Agricultural University has cultivated more than 300,000 graduates. The school has also built a social service system: 6 industrial research institutes, 7 rural revitalization research institutes, 302 professor workstations, and more than 100 national-level agricultural experts going down to the front line to precisely connect with the pain points and difficulties of agricultural development in various regions.

"Generation after generation of China Agricultural University people have been devoted to the countryside and committed to serving the country — they are the life role models most worthy of our emulation," said Cheng Jia (成嘉), a doctoral student in the College of Agronomy. "We must cherish lofty aspirations (志存高远 - zhì cún gāo yuǎn - "cherish lofty aspirations," to aim high), stand with feet on solid ground (脚踏实地 - jiǎo tà shí dì - "stand with feet on solid ground," down-to-earth and pragmatic), closely combine classroom learning with rural practice, and render meritorious service and establish a career (建功立业 - jiàn gōng lì yè - "render meritorious service and establish a career," to achieve success and make contributions) on the great stage of rural revitalization."

■ You Ask, I Answer

Yuan Fubang (袁福榜), master's student at China Agricultural University: Agriculture is a discipline that emphasizes practice. Can we use practical achievements to replace theses when applying for degrees?

Guo Xin (郭鑫), executive deputy dean of the Graduate School of China Agricultural University: Earlier this year, the revised "Implementation Measures for Degree Conferral of China Agricultural University" was released, clarifying the requirements and procedures for applying for degrees with practical achievements. In June, five agricultural master's students at our school had already obtained degrees on the strength of product designs and research reports. The school has established a teaching reform project for applying for degrees with practical achievements, improving the types of practical achievements and evaluation standards. All professional master's students at our school are trained under special programs, requiring students to go deep into the front line of industry and complete the full-chain practice of "identifying problems — researching and solving problems — producing results — verifying implementation on the ground" in real production environments. At the same time, a whole-process quality control mechanism covering topic selection and cultivation, mid-term demonstration, achievement appraisal, and review and defense has been built to ensure that "changing the form does not lower the standard."

Song Qing (宋青), parent of a high school student in Anhui: In light of future agricultural development trends, what arrangements has the school made in talent cultivation?

Ren Jinzheng (任金政), executive deputy dean of the Undergraduate School of China Agricultural University: Facing future scientific, technological, and industrial changes, our school closely aligns with national needs and systematically arranges talent cultivation. First, optimizing the disciplinary layout, adding emerging interdisciplinary majors such as future robotics and smart water conservancy, and building a "artificial intelligence + grand agricultural science" disciplinary system; second, innovating cultivation models, breaking disciplinary barriers through more than 20 projects such as micro-majors, dual bachelor's degrees, and joint bachelor's degrees, and promoting project-based talent cultivation guided by major scientific questions and frontier industrial topics; third, building highlands for top talent cultivation, relying on platforms such as the Future Technology College, establishing 10 special class types including "Smart+" and the Outstanding Engineers Class, to deliver top-notch innovative talents who will lead industrial transformation for future agriculture.

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Walking the new path of a first-class university in serving the national strategy

By: 钟登华

General Secretary Xi Jinping has profoundly pointed out: "Higher education is an important indicator of a country's development level and development potential." At present, accelerating the building of a strong education system, a strong science and technology system, a strong talent system, and a strong agricultural system has placed new and higher demands on agricultural universities. On how to answer well the question of the times—"when building a strong country, what should universities do?"—we have been thinking and practicing. A world-class university with Chinese characteristics and agricultural features must take root in the soil of China, lead high-quality development with high-quality Party building, take serving the national strategy as its highest pursuit, and demonstrate its mission and responsibility in the practice of strengthening agriculture and serving the country.

Taking root in the soil of China is the foundation of a world-class university with Chinese characteristics. World-class universities have all grown up in the course of serving the development of their own countries. China's universities have their roots in China; only by deeply taking root in the soil of China can they truly become universities with Chinese characteristics, Chinese style, and Chinese bearing. For agricultural universities, taking root in the soil of China has a more specific connotation: the roots of agricultural universities lie in the vast fields, in the hundreds of millions of farmers, and in the strategic needs of safeguarding national food security and serving and supporting the modernization of agriculture and rural areas. It is precisely based on this understanding that China Agricultural University has always insisted on writing papers on the land of the motherland, extending the classroom of education to the fields and furrows, and focusing scientific and technological research on the "chokepoint" problems of agriculture. Long-term practice in running the university has taught us: the deeper the roots are planted, the more steadily the path is walked.

Serving the national strategy is the value pursuit of a world-class university with Chinese characteristics. Whether a university is run well or not ultimately depends on how great its contribution is to the country and to the nation. The greatest responsibility of agricultural universities is to provide solid scientific, technological, and talent support for firmly holding China's rice bowl in our own hands. In recent years, China Agricultural University has continuously deepened educational and teaching reform, vigorously promoted organized scientific research, achieved breakthrough progress in key fields such as seed industry innovation, cultivated land protection, and smart agriculture, and explored effective paths for the deep integration of talent cultivation, scientific and technological innovation, and social service through Science and Technology Backyards. The key pursuit behind these practices is: wherever the national strategy is deployed, the university's scientific research focuses there; wherever the needs of agricultural and rural modernization lie, talent cultivation and social service extend there.

High-quality development is the primary task of deepening the comprehensive reform of higher education in the new era. High-quality development is not simply expansion of scale or growth in quantity, but rather, through quality transformation, efficiency transformation, and momentum transformation, promoting connotative, distinctive, and sustainable development. To promote the high-quality development of agricultural universities, it is necessary to deeply grasp the political attribute, the people's attribute, and the strategic attribute of education, and specifically to grasp several important relationships. First, the relationship between fostering virtue through education and scientific and technological innovation: fostering virtue through education must be taken as the fundamental task, high-level scientific research should nourish high-quality teaching, and efforts should be made to cultivate new generations capable of shouldering the great task of national rejuvenation. Second, the relationship between university development and the overall national situation: university development should be consciously planned and advanced within the overall framework of the national strategy. Third, the relationship between distinctive development and overall improvement: the advantage of agricultural universities lies in agriculture, but this does not mean a single-disciplinary structure; on the basis of strengthening agricultural characteristics, it is necessary to consolidate basic disciplines, strengthen cross-disciplinary integration, expand the horizon while adhering to the original aspiration, and enhance the connotation while highlighting characteristics.

On the new journey of the new era, agriculture and rural areas are undergoing profound transformation, and a new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation is advancing in depth. Agricultural universities have a broad stage and great potential for achievement. China Agricultural University will always bear in mind General Secretary Xi Jinping's earnest entrustment to "carry forward the fine tradition of running the university and be unswervingly committed to strengthening agriculture and serving the country," more consciously take serving the building of a strong agricultural system as an important mission, take root in the soil of China, cultivate deeply in the fertile soil of agriculture, rural areas, and farmers, cultivate talents who understand and love agriculture and rural areas, promote major scientific and technological breakthroughs, participate in global food and agriculture governance, and on the new journey of building a strong country and national rejuvenation, write the answer sheet of the times for strengthening agriculture and serving the country through high-quality development.

(The author is the Party Secretary of the Party Committee of China Agricultural University)

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My alma mater taught me to make science popular and down-to-earth (My university and I)

By: 张辰亮

My online handle is "Wúqióng Xiǎoliàng" (Infinite Little Bright), and I am a 2013 master's graduate of the College of Plant Protection at China Agricultural University. Many people came to know me, probably, from that catchphrase "Let's identify some viral biology videos from the internet." That series has helped me accumulate over 50 million followers across the entire internet, with total likes on my account surpassing 500 million. Wherever I go, the identity I cherish most has always been that of a China Agricultural University alumnus.

Not long ago, I returned to my alma mater to do a science communication exchange. The lecture hall was packed full — not only with junior and senior students, but also many parents who had brought their children along. On the spot, someone brought the little lizard they kept to me, telling me about its shedding habits; someone else brought photos of plants taken in the botanical garden, asking me to identify them. Watching everyone so full of interest, I felt even more that science communication is a very interesting and very meaningful endeavor.

On the China Agricultural University campus, a brand-new Insect Museum has been completed. Inside, the specimens are a dazzling array, and the junior and senior students patiently explain insect knowledge to the children. They told me that the university especially supports everyone in devoting themselves to science communication, hoping that through these vivid narratives, it can promote the scientific spirit, popularize scientific knowledge, and stimulate young people's curiosity, imagination, and desire to explore.

Making science videos — on the surface it's filming and editing, but underneath it all is the basic skill of scientific research. At China Agricultural University, the most precious thing I learned is rigor. That attitude of 抽丝剥茧 (chōu sī bō jiǎn - "drawing silk from cocoons, peeling layers from bamboo," to analyze step by step, getting to the truth through careful deduction) and gradually deducing the truth step by step is the cornerstone of my science communication. The reason the "Viral Biology Identification" series is so popular is precisely because I present the entire reasoning process completely to the audience, letting everyone see "how the conclusion came about," rather than just giving an answer.

How can the theories in the laboratory and the professional knowledge from the fields "break out of the circle" and spread widely? My alma mater's plainness of taking root in the soil, its solidity of burying one's head in work, and the equal, sincere way teachers and students get along with each other — these have given me great inspiration. Science communication is not lecturing from on high, but heart-to-heart conversation. Therefore, in my videos, I strive to use real experiences and plain language to explain principles, without piling up professional jargon.

I have always remembered the tradition of China Agricultural University — "to relieve the hardships of the people's livelihood" (解民生之多艰). It's not only about making knowledge clear, but also about making knowledge usable. Nowadays, growers often send me photos of crop pests and diseases, asking what pesticide to apply and how to prevent them, and I give suggestions based on my professional knowledge. I also frequently record videos teaching people to recognize common agricultural pests and beneficial insects, helping farmers tell whether the "weed-removal folk remedies" found online are real or fake. These seemingly trivial little matters, in my eyes, are vivid footnotes to strengthening agriculture and serving the country.

Looking to the future, I will continue to tilt the focus of my science communication toward the agricultural field — interpreting the planting techniques that farmers care about, dispelling online rumors, and also doing my best to promote the sale of agricultural products. At the same time, I also hope that more junior and senior students will carry the innocent heart of knowing agriculture and loving agriculture, hold the sense of mission of strengthening agriculture and serving the country, and rush off to the vast world.

(The author is deputy editor-in-chief of Museum (博物), the youth edition of Chinese National Geography magazine (《中国国家地理》杂志社).)

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Layout Editor: Wu Yue

Layout design: Zhang Danfeng

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Guangzhou marks 2,240 years of city history and 1,800 years of its name, carrying rich heritage and shining with new brilliance

Casting our gaze into the depths of history, the coordinates of time are especially clear.

In 214 BC, Qin pacified Lingnan, and Ren Xiao, Commandant of Nanhai Commandery, built Panyu City at the foot of Yuexiu Hill on the north bank of the Pearl River. This was the starting point of Guangzhou's founding, and the center of a city site that has not shifted for over 2,000 years.

In AD 226, Sun Quan of the Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period divided Jiaozhou and established Guangzhou. The name "Guangzhou" has been recorded in the annals of history ever since, shining to this day.

When the source is deep, the stream runs long; when the roots are deep, the leaves flourish. This year marks the 2,240th anniversary of Guangzhou's founding and the 1,800th anniversary of its naming. From the mighty commandery of Lingnan opened by our ancestors to an important central city of China, from one of the important starting points of the Maritime Silk Road to the core engine of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area — after more than 2,200 years of wind and rain, Guangzhou's city site has not shifted, its cultural thread has not been severed, and its countenance has not aged. In the new era, it radiates new brilliance and surges with new vitality.

City site unmoved, city heart ever-continuing

"Three rivers enter Guangdong, eight gates go out to sea." Guangzhou rose because of the sea and strives toward the sea — the surging Pearl River flows southward, meeting the vast ocean in alluvial embrace, creating this millennia-old famous city between mountains and sea, every fiber of whose fabric is steeped in the dual nourishment of inland and ocean.

Guangzhou "is backed by mountain defenses and barred by the South Sea," naturally endowed with strategic advantage. From Ren Xiao's building of Panyu City here, to Emperor Wu of Han's restoration of the commandery seat after pacifying Nanyue, to Bu Zhi, Inspector of Jiao Province during the Three Kingdoms period, moving the provincial seat to Panyu, bringing the three levels of government — province, commandery, and county — into one city, and to Sun Quan's division of Jiaozhou and establishment of Guangzhou, Guangzhou's position as the political center of Lingnan was thus established.

Since the Six Dynasties, as scholar-officials and commoners from the Central Plains migrated south, the city walls continued to expand. During the Tang and Song dynasties, a spatial pattern of three cities standing side by side initially took shape; in the Ming and Qing dynasties, the three cities were merged and expanded northward and southward. During the Republic of China period, Guangzhou for the first time established municipal status. Since the founding of New China, Guangzhou's urban territory has expanded at an accelerated pace, and the city's appearance has changed with each passing day 日新月异 (rì xīn yuè yì - "daily new, monthly different," changing rapidly with each passing day), transforming into today's modern metropolis of 7,434 square kilometers.

What is even more remarkable is Guangzhou's "growth in place" — after a thousand years, the city site remains unmoved and the city heart unchanged. The thousand-year-old road on Beijing Road Pedestrian Street has eleven layers of pavement stacked one upon another, belonging from top to bottom to five historical periods: the Republic of China, Ming-Qing, Song-Yuan, Southern Han, and Tang. The adjacent Nanyue Kingdom Palace Site (南越国宫署遗址) on Zhongshan Fourth Road even more densely preserves remains and relics from Qin to the Republic of China — meandering water channels, palace gates and garden pavilions, multi-story terraces with triple stairways. More than 2,000 years pass like a white colt flashing past a gap 白驹过隙 (bái jū guò xì - "white colt passing a gap," time flies swiftly), yet this city has continued to grow ceaselessly, regenerating without end 生生不息 (shēng shēng bù xī - "born born not cease," continuous regeneration).

Ladders and sails ten thousand li, broadly connecting with the world

"With continuous waves stilled, long whales rest; with sails reflecting the sun, many treasure ships come." Guangzhou is a great port in China whose foreign trade has never been interrupted for 2,000 years. According to the Records of the Grand Historian, Panyu was already one of the nation's great metropolises in the Han dynasty, where rare treasures such as pearls, rhinoceros horn, and ivory gathered. The Persian silver box, African ivory, and blue glass bowl excavated from the Tomb of King Wen of Nanyue (南越文王墓) prove that Guangzhou was already a key hub of the world trade network as early as the Western Han dynasty.

In the Tang dynasty, Guangzhou established the Commissioner of Maritime Trade (市舶使), pioneering China's system of foreign trade administration. The "Guangzhou maritime route to foreign lands" stretched 14,000 kilometers, worthy of being called the world's longest ocean route at the time. The Maritime Trade Superintendency (市舶司) of the Song and Yuan dynasties inherited and perfected this system. In the Ming dynasty, "sails unfurled across the seven seas," with navigation reaching more than a hundred countries. During the 85 years of the Qing dynasty's single-port trading system, the Guangdong Customs (粤海关) and the Thirteen Factories (十三行) resounded in all directions, and the ancient port of Huangpu traded goods with all under heaven — silk, porcelain, and tea crossed the seas from here, while silver, spices, and clocks flowed in continuously. Guangzhou enamel, Guangzhou embroidery, and Guangzhou clocks merged Chinese and Western aesthetics. After the founding of New China, the Canton Fair took root in the Goat City, becoming a platform and window for "broadly connecting with the world, benefiting all under heaven." To this day, Guangzhou Port's cargo throughput remains steadily among the world's foremost.

Born facing the sea and embracing the world, Guangzhou is not merely a logistics corridor but a bridge for Sino-foreign economic exchange, civilizational dialogue, and cultural dissemination, writing an important chapter in the history of the world's maritime civilization.

The sea receives a hundred rivers, culture and talent gathered

As the political, economic, and cultural center of Lingnan, Guangzhou has absorbed the essence of the Central Plains and taken in the fresh winds of the four seas, forging a distinctive Lingnan culture. Zhang Jiuling, Han Yu, Su Shi, Wen Tianxiang, Tang Xianzu, and Qu Dajun left poetry and prose here; the thought of Chen Xianzhang, Zhan Ruoshui, Kang Youwei, and Liang Qichao shines brilliantly here. Guangzhou in the late Ming and early Qing was even more a key hub for the exchange and mutual learning of Eastern and Western civilizations, with scholarship, literature, language, music, fine arts, drama, folk performing arts, architecture, gardens, and culinary culture resplendent and diverse. The "three carvings, one color, one embroidery" display workmanship that rivals heaven's own craft 巧夺天工 (qiǎo duó tiān gōng - "skill seizes heaven's work," surpassing nature's craftsmanship), and one of the main sources of craftsmen who fired enamelware at that time was Guangzhou.

Guangfu culture, centered on Guangzhou, gathers the great achievement of Lingnan culture, imbued with the cultural qualities of pluralism, pragmatism, openness, inclusiveness, and innovation. It is deeply rooted in the production and daily life of the people of Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao, laying a cultural foundation for strengthening the unity of the Greater Bay Area and consolidating feelings of family and country. At the same time, as a magnificent and unique flower and important branch of Chinese culture, Lingnan culture has spread widely to Southeast Asia and throughout the world on the surging tides of migration. Local cultural brands such as the awakening lion, martial arts, and traditional Chinese medicine have become iconic symbols of Chinese culture's overseas dissemination. The lively warmth of "eating in Guangzhou" and the elegance of "beauty in the Flower City" together bloom with brilliant Guangzhou colors in the garden of world civilizations.

Dare to be first, bravely stand at the tide's head

"What concerns me most is the park road, where ten-zhang kapok blooms as red as ever."

The prologue of China's modern history unfolded on the banks of the Pearl River, and Guangzhou thus bears the distinctive imprint of a city of heroes. More than 180 years ago, the destruction of opium at Humen and the resistance at Sanyuanli (三元里) demonstrated the heroic spirit of the Chinese people in defying powerful enemies and fighting bravely to uphold national dignity and independence. The Huanghuagang Uprising's noble spirit endures forever 浩气长存 (hào qì cháng cún - "vast spirit long endures," noble spirit is immortal). The revolutionary government was established here, the Whampoa Military Academy emerged in response to the times 应运而生 (yìng yùn ér shēng - "respond to fortune and arise," emerge at the right moment), and Guangzhou became the center of the Great Revolution. After the founding of the Communist Party of China, the Third National Congress of the CPC was convened here, the Guangzhou Peasant Movement Institute (广州农民运动讲习所) was founded here, and the Guangzhou Uprising broke out here. Generation after generation of revolutionary forebears struggled here, and the workers' movement, peasants' movement, and women's movement pioneered new trends.

After 1978, Guangzhou seized the opportunities of reform and opening up, and with the courage to "cut a bloody path," created many "firsts in the nation": it opened the nation's first state-run freshwater seafood trading house where goods could be freely traded and prices freely negotiated, and built China's first Sino-foreign cooperative five-star hotel, the White Swan Hotel. As a vanguard of reform and opening up, Guangzhou not only created enormous material wealth but also, through pioneering practice in ideological emancipation, wrote a vivid new chapter for the city.

The years do not age; the ancient city is ever renewed. From one of the important starting points of the Maritime Silk Road to a national comprehensive gateway and international commercial center connecting the world; from the birthplace and center of Lingnan culture to one of the first national historical and cultural cities and a center of science, education, and culture; from the cradle of China's democratic revolution to the vanguard of reform and opening up — for 2,240 years, Guangzhou has always been the "southern gate" of China's opening to the world.

The sea opens wide before the Goat City; the time is right to set sail. In the new era, Guangzhou is drawing wisdom and strength from its profound history and culture, seizing historical opportunities to ride the momentum upward, working hard and pragmatically, stirring the lofty ambition to strive always for first place, tempering the determination to accumulate deeply and release steadily 厚积薄发 (hòu jī bó fā - "thick accumulation, thin release," deep reserves, steady output), radiating a brand-new bearing of renewed brilliance, and with a more confident, open, and composed demeanor, continuing to write the city's legend of ceaseless regeneration.

Data source: Publicity Department of the CPC Guangzhou Municipal Committee

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Dunhuang: Music and Emotion in Harmony (Creator's Perspective)

By: 谭 盾

Symphony of Compassion for Dunhuang (hereinafter referred to as Compassion) is a symphonic work I composed over six years, inspired by the Dunhuang grottoes. Amid the vast sea of Dunhuang murals, I selected stories such as the Bodhi Tree and the Nine-Colored Deer, transforming them from murals into music, so that people can hear the beauty of Dunhuang and understand the Eastern charm embedded in the music. Since its German premiere in 2018, Compassion has toured more than ten countries, including Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, and Italy, and is also slated to be adapted into an opera.

This year, Compassion was invited to Spain. From May 8 to 10, I collaborated with the Spanish National Orchestra and Chorus to give three consecutive performances at the National Music Auditorium in Madrid, each to a full house. After each performance, we returned to the stage again and again amid the audience's applause. For a work so deeply rooted in the fine traditional Chinese culture, the enthusiasm and immersion shown by the live audience — especially many young listeners — moved me, gratified me, and inspired me.

Shared Emotions
Collaborative Creation

This marks my return to perform in Spain after 16 years. In 2010, I performed the Martial Arts Trilogy here. The Spanish organizers told me they still vividly remembered that performance, and after hearing Compassion, they were deeply moved by the distant and beautiful Eastern stories, hoping to let more Spanish audiences hear this "voice of Chinese Dunhuang." Hearing this, I hardly hesitated and decided to return to Spain.

Upon arriving in Madrid, I was deeply impressed by their meticulous preparations. The lyrics of Compassion include Buddhist scriptures and classical Chinese poetry written in Chinese and Sanskrit, and the 100 Spanish singers in the chorus managed to sing these passages with remarkably accurate pronunciation. My Spanish friends told me they had specially invited a Sinologist who had studied at Peking University to participate in the linguistic and cultural preparations.

In my musical exchanges, I rarely feel a "civilizational divide." On the contrary, what I see is Chinese stories taking root anew in foreign soil — an artistic vitality sparked by the collision of different civilizations. Differences in cultural backgrounds naturally produce disparities in understanding, but as long as one finds points of shared emotion, one can draw closer through collaborative creation and build rapport through repeated rehearsals and exchanges.

During my last visit to Spain for performances, local musicians asked me what "the highest good is like water" means, and what the Xiang River and Dongting Lake in my works signify. I did not explain directly, but instead drew analogies from cultural experiences familiar to them. Nearly every people has the concept of a "mother river," which not only nourishes life but also carries people's shared memories and deep feelings for their homeland and land. For example, Spain's Ebro River nourishes vast expanses of land, and the Tagus River flows past one historic city after another — they have long become part of Spain's history and culture. When I explained it this way, they immediately understood the Chinese people's emotional connection to "water."

During this rehearsal of The Nine-Colored Deer, I wanted the chorus to strike Chinese finger cymbals together at the end. Many did not initially understand: how could a hundred people playing simultaneously not become noisy and chaotic? I asked them to begin by imagining "the wind in the Dunhuang murals." This wind does not howl or bite; rather, it flows gently across a thousand years. The sound of the finger cymbals, like this wind slowly telling an ancient tale, carries a power that generates stillness through motion. When they actually played, the cymbal sound was indeed extraordinarily serene and far-reaching — the entire concert hall seemed to enter the scene together, breathing with the characters and sharing their heartbeats.

Another sense of closeness comes from our similar life experiences — Spaniards, like Chinese people, enjoy sitting together and sharing food. Every time I dine with local friends, the table is always filled with small dishes, reminding me of the bold, lively, bustling night markets of my hometown in Hunan. Perhaps for this reason, the Spanish musicians often grasped things immediately in rehearsal — many musical requirements, when illustrated with a metaphor from daily life, they caught on right away. I even used "taste" to help them find the right feeling for Chinese pronunciation. When a passage needed more power, I would tell them: "Here, imagine taking a fierce bite of a Hunan chili pepper — it must be intense, but also leave an aftertaste." They understood instantly.

Chinese Aesthetics
Going Global

The stories in the Dunhuang murals are too numerous to count, and each one is captivating. Using "the life of the Buddha" as the main thread, I selected six stories corresponding to the six movements of Compassion: The Bodhi Tree, The Nine-Colored Deer, Thousand Hands, Thousand Eyes, The Zen Garden, The Heart Sutra, and Nirvana. The central message of the work can be summarized simply: "urging people toward goodness." In The Bodhi Tree, a young prince sacrifices his own flesh to save a bird, awakening to the truth that all beings are equal; the kind Nine-Colored Deer rescues a drowning man, only to face his knife in return, and the one who does evil ultimately reaps what he sows... These philosophical stories from the East contain values shared by all humanity.

The Dunhuang murals document more than 4,000 musical instruments. When composing Compassion, I conceived of restoring ancient instruments depicted in Dunhuang — such as the reverse-held pipa and the phoenix-headed konghou — to sound together with Western orchestral instruments. To recreate the Dunhuang reverse-held pipa, we made a special trip to Yunnan to plant gourds, from sowing to tending, regularly applying organic fertilizer, until we finally cultivated them to the appropriate size. However, such labor was merely a minor episode. Over the six years of composition, I made more than ten research trips to Dunhuang, and traveled to libraries and museums in France, Japan, and the United Kingdom, chasing scattered musical scores, scriptures, and manuscripts around the world. I am deeply grateful to Ms. Fan Jinshi, Honorary Director of the Dunhuang Academy, for the large box of materials she gave me — every volume bore her meticulous notes, and many of the books were even out of print. These precious materials were of tremendous help to me.

The moment I completed Compassion, I realized once again that the more local and national something is, the more likely it is to become universal. Music that can move audiences around the world is often deeply rooted in the spiritual world of a particular land and people. Just as Chinese works of art and intangible cultural heritage techniques are welcomed in countries around the world, what people appreciate is not merely material beauty, but the spiritual temperament accumulated by the Chinese nation over a long history: the Eastern philosophy of "unity of heaven and humanity," the wisdom of "harmony in diversity," and a profound understanding of life, nature, and peace. The Chinese aesthetics and Eastern wisdom passed down through millennia are themselves the most important and most vital cultural products of the Chinese nation — and they are also the "flagship products" I hope to export to the world through music.

At the end of the 18th century, the British Macartney mission brought the melody of Jasmine Flower back to Europe. More than a hundred years later, the Italian composer Puccini heard the tune in a music box at a friend's home, and through his careful design, this Jiangnan folk tune became an important musical theme in the opera Turandot. In the early 20th century, the Austrian musician Mahler drew inspiration from the poetry collection The Chinese Flute and composed the six-movement Das Lied von der Erde. These poems, written by Chinese poets such as Li Bai, Meng Haoran, and Wang Wei, passed through repeated translations and rewritings before reaching Mahler's pen. A folk song, a Tang-dynasty poem, leaves its homeland, is then heard and understood by another culture, and is retold in a new artistic language. The fine traditional Chinese culture once entered the creative works of Western musicians in this way, and I hope Compassion will follow this path, continuing to carry the voice of Dunhuang to the world.

As Ms. Fan Jinshi said: "The Dunhuang murals cannot be taken away, but if they are transformed into music, more people can hear them, and the whole world can feel Chinese culture and gain insights into life." I feel extremely fortunate to have realized this wish in my own way. When the Dunhuang murals become symphony and chorus, when Spanish musicians sing Eastern stories in Chinese, the music on stage no longer belongs to any single person or culture — people from different places sing an ancient legend into a voice shared by all.

(The author is a composer and conductor; this article was compiled through interviews by our reporters Xu Hailin and Yan Huan.)

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Galápagos: A 'Museum of Biological Evolution' (Traveler's Notes)

By: 时元皓

The plane took off from Guayaquil, Ecuador's largest city, flying west along the equator. Outside the window, the Pacific seawater merged with the azure sky, and at the junction of water and sky, several green islands abruptly floated up, breaking the silence of this blue expanse — that was the Galapagos Islands, also known as the living "museum of biological evolution." Millions of years ago, submarine volcanoes erupted continuously, creating 19 volcanic islands at a place nearly a thousand kilometers from the American continent. Over the long years, the islands, 与世隔绝 (yǔ shì gé jué - "with the world cut off," isolated from the world), quietly wrote the epic of life's evolution, and "magical animals" became Ecuador's 独一无二 (dú yī wú èr - "single one, no second," unique and unmatched) tourism calling card.

I first came to Santa Cruz Island. Located in the center of the archipelago, it is the tourism and commercial center. In the nature reserve, Galapagos giant tortoises leisurely wandered among the green grass and trees, with adult shells exceeding 1.5 meters in length and weighing 250 kilograms. More than 400 years ago, it was perhaps seeing such a sight that the Spanish explorers who landed on the islands named this archipelago "Galapagos," meaning "giant tortoise" in Spanish. During the Age of Exploration, and even for a period afterward, these slow-moving giant creatures became "food rations" for navigators and passengers, including the famous biologist Darwin.

In 1835, Darwin arrived at the Galapagos aboard the HMS Beagle, staying for more than a month of investigation, collecting a large number of plant and animal specimens, and loading dozens of live giant tortoises onto the ship when he left. An island resident once mentioned to Darwin that one could identify which island tortoises came from merely by the shape of their shells. Although this did not make Darwin suddenly comprehend the mystery of species evolution, it later became corroborating evidence for this important theory. While organizing the finch specimens from the islands, Darwin gradually realized that isolation between islands was a natural laboratory for species evolution, and closely related species gradually developed differences due to different environments and natural selection. Today, Darwin's statue still stands quietly on San Cristobal Island at the easternmost end of the archipelago, as if asking every visitor who lands on the island: From the book of nature, what have you read?

The archipelago is an admiration of majestic nature and wondrous life. On Isabela Island, the largest in area, the Sierra Negra volcano with a diameter of nearly 10 kilometers remains active, its crater filled with black lava, while outside the crater is full of life; on the west side of San Cristobal Island, Kicker Rock leaps out of the water in isolation, with the water above and below respectively serving as habitats for Nazca boobies and other seabirds and hammerhead sharks and other marine creatures.

In the Galapagos, the animals of all the islands are eye-catching: here there are not only Galapagos penguins living in the equatorial zone influenced by the Peru Current, blue-footed boobies with solemn expressions, a pair of blue feet, and waddling walks, but also the inspiration for the monster "Godzilla" — the marine iguanas that look fierce but are "vegetarians"... Nearly 9,000 species of plants and animals live here, of which more than 2,500 are endemic species. Nature exhausts its imagination to enrich the gene pool of this natural evolutionary laboratory.

On the islands, humans seem to merge into the animal world. Tourists wearing diving masks float with the waves on the sea surface, while schools of dolphins shuttle freely through the water; sea lions crawl on the beach in twos and threes, occasionally diving into the water and suddenly biting a diver's camera; sea turtles ignore the swimming crowd, focusing on nibbling seaweed on the seabed; albatrosses incubate their chicks in nests, 熟视无睹 (shú shì wú dǔ - "familiar gaze, no sight," to look but not notice) the people nearby... The animals of the Galapagos are not afraid of humans; for millions of years they have evolved independently, and humans are only recent intruders. Yet without fear and vigilance, they also become the weak in front of humans.

Human activity and ecological balance are the revelations of this book of nature called the Galapagos. In fact, the arrival of humans has already brought 灭顶之灾 (miè dǐng zhī zāi - "disaster covering the head," catastrophic disaster) to some species. For example, wanton killing and invasive species intrusion have caused a sharp decline in giant tortoise numbers, with a few subspecies already endangered or extinct. In 2012, the last known Pinta Island subspecies giant tortoise, "Lonesome George," passed away, becoming one of the saddest and most symbolic events in the history of global biodiversity conservation.

To balance tourism development and biodiversity conservation, the Galapagos now strictly limits the number of tourists, constrains tourist behavior, and implements a strict biosafety system, covering entry control, inter-island species movement control, invasive species management, and other aspects. Long-term measures such as artificial breeding of endangered species are also being gradually implemented, striving to balance ecological protection and tourist experience.

This is certainly gratifying, but the future of the Galapagos ecosystem remains worrying. During the trip, many locals repeatedly mentioned "global warming" and "El Niño": due to global warming, the abnormal seawater temperature rises caused by El Niño are becoming more frequent, which is nothing short of a catastrophic disaster for organisms that depend on cold-water environments. For the Galapagos, this "museum of biological evolution," to transcend time and continue telling the story of life's evolution in the future, humanity still has a heavy responsibility and a long way to go.

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Jingmeidiyani (Overseas Sights)

By: 戎章榕

Having crossed the vast, wild grasslands of Africa, I saved the final stop of my Kenya trip for the tranquil seaside town of Diani. Located on the coast of the Indian Ocean in southeastern Kenya, it differs from the untamed surging of the Maasai Mara grasslands; here it is gentle and serene, allowing me to understand this country's combination of strength and softness.

Transportation from Kenya's capital, Nairobi, to Diani is very convenient. The Mombasa–Nairobi Railway, constructed by a Chinese enterprise, connects the two major cities of Nairobi and Mombasa, opening up the passage between Kenya's interior and its coast and making the external transportation of this seaside town more accessible. Unlike overly commercialized islands, Diani is simple and natural. Along the long coastline, resort hotels are scattered and hidden among dense coconut groves, preserving the natural curved lines of the coast as it stretches and bends. The hotel where we stayed had a distinctly Swahili style, with wooden beams carved with distinctive patterns, white walls adorned with local handmade textiles and coastal totem decorations, skillfully blending the lively seascape of the Indian Ocean, the vibrant vitality of the tropical rainforest, and local folk customs.

In Diani, humans and nature embrace each other gently. The hotel grounds are lush with vegetation—coconut palms, flame trees, and coastal shrubs layered one upon another, forming a miniature ecological community of their own. Wild monkeys can be seen playing everywhere in the woods, and colorful tropical birds perch lazily on the branches. After days of rushing across the grasslands, we finally shed our fatigue in Diani, peacefully admiring the coastal scenery, basking in the warm sun, and letting the sea breeze soothe our minds.

Along the coastline, layers of greenery embrace the long stretch of white sand beach. The sand is powder formed from the weathering of coral remains from tens of millions of years ago; stepping onto it barefoot, it is fine and soft. I simply took off my shoes and socks and let the white sand wrap around the soles of my feet. Walking on the beach, I thought of the classic film Out of Africa. The original novel of this film records the life of the female protagonist Karen in a bay near Mombasa: the boundless blue Indian Ocean, the long coastline paved with coral rock, and the rising and falling tides lapping against the caves in the reefs. On moonlit nights, a gentle breeze blows across the beach, and fine sand drifts into the small house with the wind. People change, but the mountains and seas remain the same; the East African coast of literature is now slowly unfolding before my eyes.

Wandering at will, I unknowingly walked far. It happened to be noon, the clear sky was cloudless, the warm sun fell gently, and layer upon layer of waves surged back and forth, their sound soft and long, making the entire coastline seem even more tranquil. Palm trees spread their branches and leaves, casting dappled green shade; visitors, in twos and threes, either lay on benches or chatted softly, the whole beach relaxed and leisurely.

People always say Africa is vast and magnificent, but Diani hides its gentler side. It has none of the grasslands' vast harshness, none of the wilderness's barren fervor—only nature's tranquility and purity. Wildness and restraint, nature and humanity coexist here, allowing every traveler from afar to feel that Africa has never been just one face.

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Exploring the Mysteries of the Universe with a Poetic Touch (Reading the World)

By: 于浩然

Whenever gazing up at the vast night sky, people always experience endless reverie and questioning: how immense the universe is, and from where did the galaxy of stars originate? Within the vastness of time and space, exactly what position does humanity occupy? As a classic popular science work that has become a global sensation, Cosmos (see figure, photo provided by Tianjin People's Publishing House) by American astronomer Carl Sagan breaks out of the dull framework of traditional hardcore popular science, using poetic prose to string together the evolutionary mysteries of the vast universe, while simultaneously possessing a rigorous scientific core and a full humanistic warmth; it is a classic reading for the masses to explore the universe and understand the starry sky.

Sagan was an excellent planetary scientist who deeply cultivated the field of deep-space exploration for many years, and his solid scientific research accumulation provides Cosmos with a rigorous basis in astronomical observation and physical theory. The entire book has a clear thread and progresses layer by layer, from the overall evolution of the universe and the birth and death of stars, to the operation of planetary systems and the iteration of the origins of life, and further to the development of human civilization and prospects for interstellar exploration, constructing a complete cognitive system of the universe. The translator, Yu Beiming, has been engaged in the translation and creation of science fiction and popular science texts for many years; the translation inherits the scientific logic of the original work, and complex astronomical processes are decomposed into popular and clear explanations. The temperament of the translation is highly consistent with the original, emphasizing both rational speculation and humanistic romance, which is an important reason why readers recognize this version of the translation.

In the book, Sagan views the material essence of life in this way: "I am a composite of water, carbon, and other organic molecules, named Carl Sagan. You are also composed of almost identical substances, only your name is different. But is that all? Are we merely an aggregation of molecules, and nothing more? Some feel that such a statement damages human self-esteem. However, in my view, if the universe allows molecular machines to evolve into complex and exquisite organisms like you and me, it is actually a great glory." Above the calm material analysis flows an awe for the evolution of life. Speaking of comets, he wrote: "They are like ghosts that occasionally emerge, violating the eternal and unchanging solemnity of the universe. The ancients believed that such spectacular milky-white flame streaks must rise and fall night after night for some reason, and that they must portend certain affairs of humanity." In a few brief words, he weaves together astronomical wonders with the psychology and imagination of the ancients. Before beginning to tell the story of humanity's investigation into the secrets of the universe, the author muses: "Humanity is born of the stars, temporarily resides on Earth, and has now finally begun the long journey of returning home." A metaphor of "returning home" skillfully connects the scientific understanding that life originates from the stars with the spiritual quest of humanity. Sagan is not satisfied with merely stating astronomical conclusions, but instead transforms scientific facts into reflections on people and civilization, allowing popular science to possess a power that strikes directly at the human heart.

"We are all stardust" is the most deeply moving viewpoint of the entire book, and it is also the essence of Sagan's cosmic view. At the beginning of the universe's birth, there were almost only two basic light elements in the world, hydrogen and helium, while heavy elements such as carbon, oxygen, and iron that constitute the human body, the Earth, and all things in the world were all born from nuclear fusion reactions inside stars; they were scattered into interstellar space following supernova explosions, and finally converged into galaxies, planets, and life. This is not romantic literary rhetoric, but a rigorous astrophysical fact verified through observation. The deep connection between humanity and the universe also lies in this: exploring the universe has always been about searching for the origins, destination, and meaning of existence for humanity.

Sagan does not only popularize astronomical knowledge, but also systematically combs through the tortuous process of human exploration of the universe and the core of the scientific spirit. From the simple reverie of the ancients regarding the starry sky, to Copernicus and Galileo breaking through the shackles of cognition to revolutionize the human cosmic view, and then to the rapid breakthroughs of modern and contemporary astronomy, the author uses concise language to demonstrate the original intention of scientific exploration: to be brave in questioning, to respect empirical evidence, and to be persevering. Sagan also pioneered the highly shocking term "Pale Blue Dot": in 1990, as the unmanned outer solar system space probe "Voyager 1," developed by NASA, concluded its mission of solar system exploration and looked back, in the image it captured, the home upon which humanity relies for survival was nothing more than a tiny blue speck of dust in the universe. The thousands of years of human civilization's changes, joys and sorrows, glories and disgraces, and struggles and quests all converge in one small corner of the sea of stars. The grand cosmic perspective does not dissolve human value; instead, it prompts readers to reflect deeply: should humanity break out of narrow cognition and examine the world and the self with an inclusive and long-term vision?

Cosmos upholds a pure scientific original intention, firmly believing that humanity's path of exploration is endless, and that science can continuously break through cognitive boundaries and promote the forward development of civilization. In the discussion of cosmic civilization, the entire book maintains a tone of rational optimism. Differing from the cosmic confrontation or civilizational pessimistic narratives held by many current literary and artistic works, Sagan firmly believes that rationality and cooperation are the core forces of civilizational development, and that mathematics and physics are the universal languages that connect interstellar civilizations; unknown interstellar encounters should ideally be exploration and resonance, rather than conflict and opposition. This broad and inclusive cosmic view is highly consistent with the concept of a community with a shared future for mankind, endowing the popular science work with a humanistic depth that transcends knowledge itself.

A moderate reading threshold, solid knowledge content, and beautiful textual texture make Cosmos an excellent reading material for the popular science enlightenment of adolescents. The entire book discards obscure formulas and stiff terminology, using popular and beautiful language to convey professional astronomical knowledge, which can both help adolescents consolidate scientific cognition and broaden their horizons and patterns, and more importantly, cultivate a scientific way of thinking that is 求真务实 (qiú zhēn wù shí - "seek truth, be pragmatic," to be realistic and pursue the truth), brave in exploration, and in awe of the unknown. While accurately receiving professional knowledge, readers of all ages can also immersively appreciate the majestic grandeur of a universe billions of light-years across and understand the sincere original intention of humanity's exploration of the unknown.

(The author is a professor in the Department of Astronomy at Xiamen University)

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Editor: Wang Jiake, Zhuang Xueya, Li Xinyi

Email: rmrbgjfk@peopledaily.cn
　　Layout design: Cai Huawei

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Making "disguised" breeding practices impossible to hide ("Three Rural Issues" Observer)

By: 晓 熠

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs recently held a press conference to interpret the agricultural plant Essentially Derived Variety (EDV) system, introducing the first batch of implementation catalogues covering 10 crops including rice, wheat, and cotton, supported by matching determination guidelines, determination thresholds, appraisal institutions, and an expert pool.

What is an essentially derived variety? The press conference gave an example: there is a rice variety A that performs well overall but has weak resistance to rice blast. Another breeder makes modifications and improvements to variety A, enhancing its rice blast resistance while keeping other traits unchanged from variety A. Variety B is then an essentially derived variety of variety A.

The implementation of this system makes clear: if a derived variety is to be marketed for sale or promoted on a large scale, permission must first be obtained from the original variety rights holder, and the two parties shall negotiate and agree on the sharing of proceeds.

This means that a good variety developed through the painstaking efforts of a breeder can no longer be casually modified and taken away. Seed industry innovation has from now on acquired a "protective talisman" —

Revenue sharing has legal backing, and original varieties can no longer be used by others for free. Cultivating an original crop variety often requires 8 to 10 years of repeated and continuous experimentation, consuming enormous human resources, germplasm resources, and funding. With this system in place, the enthusiasm for original breeding innovation can be protected to a greater extent, accelerating the selection, breeding, and promotion of breakthrough new varieties.

The determination rules are clear at a glance, and breeders now have guidance for evidence collection and rights enforcement. This new regulation has also issued supporting determination thresholds — that is, the critical values of genetic similarity between varieties referenced in essentially derived variety determination. The comprehensive EDV threshold for rice, wheat, cotton, foxtail millet, peanut, and pepper is set at 90%, while that for rapeseed, Chinese cabbage, faba bean, and peach is set at 85%. Thresholds vary slightly depending on the detection technology used. When genetic similarity reaches the threshold, the burden of proof for EDV determination shifts. This design will directly reverse the past predicament in which original variety rights holders found it difficult to collect evidence and obtain appraisal, substantially lowering the threshold for original variety rights holders to defend their rights.

Whole-process supervision is carried through to the end, leaving "changing-the-vest-style" breeding nowhere to hide. The new regulation is not a solo effort. In recent years, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs has implemented a special action to strengthen whole-chain variety management, strictly enforcing the testing and trial gate, strictly reviewing variety naming, provenance, and novelty, and revoking more than 4,000 problematic varieties and imitation seed varieties. Implementing the essentially derived variety system is an important measure of the special action to strengthen whole-chain variety management, encouraging breeders to settle down and devote more effort to breeding innovation rather than imitative and cosmetic breeding.

The implementation of this new seed industry intellectual property protection regulation will reshape the benefit distribution pattern of seed industry innovation. In the short term, entities that rely on derivative breeding face rising costs and infringement risks, but in the long term, this system will enable breeding entities with genuine original innovation capacity to gain greater market space, accelerating the transformation of new variety selection and breeding from "quantity growth" to "quality improvement."

In the past three years, the number of nationally approved varieties has declined somewhat, while the quality of approved varieties has improved markedly. This is a phased achievement of strict management, quality enhancement, and original innovation promotion since the implementation of the seed industry revitalization action. As variety approval standards continue to rise and whole-chain supervision continues to deepen, combined with the coordinated force of the top-level design of the essentially derived variety system, the industry will gradually bid farewell to the extensive development model of blindly pursuing the number of variety applications, and breeding research and development resources will gradually concentrate on original innovation and breakthroughs in major traits. Only with a steady stream of improved varieties can yield-increasing potential be continuously tapped, risks such as climate disasters and pests and diseases be hedged against, and the seed that safeguards food security be firmly held in our own hands.

The implementation of the agricultural plant essentially derived variety system is not a restraint on the industry, but a strengthening of seed industry intellectual property protection. When every original variety rights holder can fairly share in the dividends of seed industry development, the foundation on which "Chinese seeds" protect "Chinese grain" will be all the more unshakable.

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Famous local specialties gain nationwide fame (developing county economies based on local conditions)

By: 本报记者 史自强

Small-mill sesame oil, wheat flour, peanuts... Daming County (大名县) in Handan, Hebei Province, has no shortage of agricultural products. As a traditional major agricultural county, the various specialty products grown in its fields and made by hand here are all authentic and have a solid reputation.

But for a long time, local good products have been unable to escape an awkward predicament: they are only popular within ten li and eight townships, and cannot cross the county's threshold; the goods are not hard to sell, they just cannot travel far.

Bu's sesame cakes in Daming Town (大名镇) are a time-honored flavor with a resounding reputation locally. Every day there are many regular customers, but most of those who come to buy are only neighbors from the town itself and people from surrounding villages and towns; the "Wuluxiang" brand sesame oil under Daming County Jingfu Black Sesame Small-Mill Sesame Oil Co., Ltd. (大名县京府黑芝麻小磨香油有限公司) has an even deeper heritage — every local household recognizes this flavor — but after more than 20 years since the factory was built, sales have always been confined to Daming and surrounding counties and districts.

The consumer market is so vast, yet the market radius of Daming County's high-quality specialty products is so small. Many farmers and merchants feel unwilling to accept this: "These are all solid, genuine good products — when will we ever break out?"

Breaking the deadlock
Building a livestream e-commerce industry system

Wuluxiang sesame oil had never been able to open up distant markets in the past.

It carries three "gold-lettered signboards": the category to which this product belongs — Daming small-mill sesame oil — is a National Geographical Indication Protected Product; the technique inherited by the company — Daming small-mill sesame oil making technique — is a National Intangible Cultural Heritage; in addition, "Wuluxiang" has been recognized by the Ministry of Commerce as a China time-honored brand.

Li Zhongzhi (李忠志), sales manager of Jingfu Sesame Oil Company, finds this quite vexing, and his voice drops half a notch: "Going offline, warehousing costs elsewhere are on the high side; going online, we don't know how to work it — 'everything is pitch black before our eyes' — and on top of that, if a single company goes to find logistics companies, freight rates cannot be pushed down. After all that effort, we earn a hard-won pittance."

Bu Zhichun (步志春), owner of Bu's sesame cake shop, was born in 1998, has new ideas and a quick mind, and tried several years ago to get his products "on the internet."

The flame in his heart leapt high, but reality was quite "skeletal": the online shop was opened, the links were up, but order volume just would not rise. And the few orders that were finally sold — because this crispy sesame cake is so fragile — sometimes arrived at the buyer's hands already "crushed to bits."

The young man grinned wryly: "High return rate — it gives me a headache."

To be honest, how could this be a matter of just one or two households? Almost everyone in Daming who makes specialty products is stuck at the same hurdle: business entities are "scattered, small, and weak," highly dependent on offline sales channels such as wholesale, local supermarkets, and door-to-door purchasing merchants; the products are not bad, but the packaging is simple; if they want to ship, logistics support is fragmented and circulation costs are high; when it comes to livestream e-commerce, they lack skills and lack talent.

Could these native-born good products really only stay bottled up locally?

The turning point came as soon as it was said.

In early 2025, Daming launched the "One Product One Live Stream" (一品一播) initiative, built an industrial park, and with the innovative model of "matching one category of specialty products with one precise livestream," set up a livestream e-commerce industry system, specifically to cure the old ailment of specialty products "unable to leave the county."

"Our Daming has a strong agricultural foundation, so there is no worry about selecting products for livestreaming, and it sits at the junction of Hebei, Shandong, and Henan provinces, with highways 四通八达 (sì tōng bā dá - "open in all directions," well-connected) and good transport conditions," said Deputy County Head Wang Ning (王宁). "Based on the county's conditions, magnify our strengths, and use a new model to revitalize the old industry."

In early August this year, stepping into the 150-mu Daming County One Product One Live Stream Industrial Park, goods in the logistics zone were being sorted rapidly, vehicles came and went without pause — a scene of 热火朝天 (rè huǒ cháo tiān - "blazing fire reaching the sky," bustling and fervent). Just two years ago, this was still idle factory space that was 无人问津 (wú rén wèn jīn - "no one asks at the ford," nobody shows interest). "Revitalizing idle land saves the initial investment and lets us spend money where it counts," Wang Ning said.

In the e-commerce incubation center, the shouts of livestream hosts could be heard from far away. Daming's specialty products have been sorted into multiple categories, and 12 professional livestream rooms have been opened for small-mill sesame oil, agricultural and sideline products, local snacks, and more, carrying out systematic livestreaming.

Pushing open the small-mill sesame oil livestream room, in front of post-2000s host Chen Ziming (陈梓明) on the table, Wuluxiang, Fuliyuan, Xiangquancheng... several old sesame oil brands were lined up in a row, and he was introducing products to the phone camera.

"At present, 936 types of products have been selected, and 80 percent are native to Daming," said park director Li Yueliang (李曰良).

Empowerment
Carrying out transformation and upgrading of specialty products

To make specialty products sell well, one must not only know how to livestream, but also know how to "transform." In the past, Daming folks did things as simply as possible, hanging specialty products on the internet 原封不动 (yuán fēng bù dòng - "unopened and unmoved," exactly as is) — the rough presentation made it hard to move consumers.

Bu Zhichun has tasted this loss. But now, his sesame cakes are completely different.

The old flavors — white sugar, brown sugar, five-spice, and mala — these four are still there, but on the shelf there is a row of new faces: green Sichuan pepper, scallion, osmanthus, fire-ginger brown sugar... each fresher than the last. The packaging has taken on a "fresh and light" style, with selling points such as low sugar and whole wheat clearly marked. Some new products have also shrunk from the size of a "child's face" to that of a "chess piece," fitting right into a pocket. Shipping is more careful too: a stiff cardboard box on the outside, foam padding inside, wrapped in bubble columns — even after thousands of li of bumping, they still arrive neat and intact.

"The return rate is dropping fast, and sales are climbing fast," Bu Zhichun said happily.

How did the change happen? The One Product One Live Stream Industrial Park has set up an industrial design center, specifically to "tidy up the storefront" of specialty products, connecting at the front end to 37 nationally renowned design resources including the Hebei Provincial Industrial Design Center (河北省工业设计中心), carrying out "internet-adaptation transformation" of specialty products so that customers "take a fancy at first glance."

Once goods are sold, they must also be delivered quickly and delivered cheaply. What once gave local sellers the biggest headache was difficulty in shipping and expensive express delivery. Now, all of this has become a thing of the past.

In 2025, in the One Product One Live Stream Industrial Park, an 8,000-square-meter shared digital cloud warehouse and a 5,000-square-meter express logistics warehouse were built one after another. The cloud warehouse provides free storage for merchants, including freezer and cold-storage warehouses. The logistics warehouse integrates five express delivery resources including ZTO and Shentong, and has completed price-negotiation cooperation with the county.

"For small parcels under 1 kilogram, express fees have dropped from 3 yuan to about 1.8 yuan. After netizens place orders in the livestream room, the cloud warehouse packs and the logistics warehouse ships — 一气呵成 (yī qì hē chéng - "completed in one breath," done in one go)," Li Yueliang said.

Unlike the scattered, 单打独斗 (dān dǎ dú dòu - "fight alone," act single-handedly) livestreaming in many places, Daming's "One Product One Live Stream" system established a "1+1+20+N" systematic architecture from the very beginning: 1 county-level e-commerce industrial park; 1 Hangzhou enclave reception hall, connecting to "Yangtze River Delta" resources, responsible for recruiting talent, introducing technology, and attracting investment; 20 township livestream bases; and multiple differentiated specialty livestream rooms, encouraging farmers, returning youth, and veterans to "show their skills."

Putting down the hoe and facing the camera — easier said than done.

"The park has opened a shared training center, explaining thoroughly and in detail the three parts of livestream operations, host scripts, and traffic acquisition," said Guo Shuai (郭帅), head of the "One Product One Live Stream" host cultivation team in Daming County. "Whether newcomers, beginner hosts, or senior hosts, everyone has suitable courses to study."

Most critically, the training is completely free. If you have the intention, you can sign up and come.

"Each township also invites self-media influencers, e-commerce industry lecturers, and e-commerce college students to teach in the villages, so villagers can learn at their doorstep and practice in the fields," said Huang Xiaohui (黄晓晖), a Daming Town cadre.

Walking through the industrial park, service providers for video editing, traffic operations, and more are 一应俱全 (yī yìng jù quán - "all present and complete"), and business registration, talent services, and other matters are handled in one stop, fully serving the development of livestream e-commerce.

Extending the chain
"One Product One Live Stream" makes a name for itself

30,000 bottles sold in 3 minutes!

In the park's small-mill sesame oil livestream room, Wuluxiang sesame oil was on promotion and achieved a "peak record."

"Since joining 'One Product One Live Stream,' the company's overall sales have increased by more than 20 percent — from 'selling in Daming' to 'selling nationwide,' we've made it!" Li Zhongzhi said.

As sales rose, the brand also became famous. One day, Li Zhongzhi suddenly received a phone call — the caller was actually a leading domestic food company, proactively proposing cooperation with Jingfu Sesame Oil Company. "I never dreamed of it even in my dreams!"

Li Zhongzhi has also built up his own livestream team. "The park helps us with planning, teaches us scripts, and designs backdrop boards — we just do the broadcasting. After customers place orders, the orders go directly to the park's cloud warehouse and are shipped within minutes. We just need to bring our goods over and store them in advance," Li Zhongzhi said. The company's livestream room sells from several hundred to over a thousand orders a day, and the more they work, the more promising it looks.

On the other side, Bu Zhichun has opened a factory.

For many years, his Bu's sesame cake shop was a small shop on Daming County's Fengqing Street, with 5 people busy at work, selling four to five hundred yuan a day. Now, after joining "One Product One Live Stream," the shop floor area has expanded fourfold, 20 new offline consignment points have been added in Handan, Puyang in Henan, and other places, and online sales are also climbing rapidly — online and offline together can sell several thousand to over ten thousand yuan a day.

"The new factory went into production last May and employs more than 60 workers," Bu Zhichun said. "Orders come in like a tide — if we don't expand production, we simply can't keep up." He is also thinking about cultural and creative products, and has already launched a Bu's sesame cake keychain — hang it on a bag and it is a living signboard.

From January to June this year, Daming County's online retail sales reached 707 million yuan, up 26.48 percent year on year; express delivery volume reached 9.3475 million parcels, up 10.06 percent year on year. As of now, the county has preliminarily verified 7,004 e-commerce business entities, of which 1,459 were newly added in 2026.

In Qiantun Village (前屯村), Wandi Town (万堤镇), the reporter met villager host Zhao Huimin (赵惠敏). Two years ago, she was 一窍不通 (yī qiào bù tōng - "not one opening is open," completely ignorant) about e-commerce operations; last year, after professional training under "One Product One Live Stream," her sales of peanuts, sesame oil, sesame paste, and the like have been good, with average monthly income increasing by several thousand yuan.

"Since 2026, 319 sessions of e-commerce training have been carried out, training 25,000 person-times and converting 1,072 livestream hosts, including 386 hosts with more than 1,000 followers and 194 with more than 5,000 followers," Li Yueliang said.

Having sold well domestically, Daming is now thinking about selling goods abroad.

In May this year, the Daming County One Product One Live Stream Cross-border E-commerce Industrial Park was put into use, and the first batch to rush out of the country were Daming's straw weaving and plush toys.

On the fourth floor of the cross-border e-commerce industrial park, several "returnees from overseas" were selling goods to netizens around the world via livestream in English, Russian, and other languages. The park has also launched AI digital human livestreaming, covering more languages and regions.

"Since the beginning of this year, 156 cross-border e-commerce OPCs (one-person companies) have been cultivated, and 46 have physically settled in the cross-border industrial park, driving young people to start businesses and get rich, and selling Daming's good products to the world," Wang Ning said.

Wuluxiang sesame oil can no longer "sit still" either. Li Zhongzhi said: "With the help of the cross-border e-commerce industrial park, the company's sesame oil products have completed English label design, and packaging materials are also being produced. The next step is to go abroad and let foreigners have a taste!"

In the 2025 National Digital Village Innovation Competition, Daming County's "Livestream E-commerce Service Platform for Enriching Farmers" project won first prize.

A small county, through "One Product One Live Stream," is blazing a new path for county economy development 因地制宜 (yīn dì zhì yí - "adapt measures to local conditions").

■ Reporter's Notes
What does it rely on for specialty products to make a new name for themselves?

Daming County has enabled local specialty products such as small-mill sesame oil and Bu's sesame cakes to sell from ten li and eight townships to all over the country and even overseas. On the surface, this is hitching a ride on the fast train of livestream e-commerce, but thinking deeper, it also reveals the universal law of county economies developing according to local conditions.

First, the core of adapting to local conditions is not "what to do," but "how to take the long board to the extreme." Many places developing county economies easily fall into two misconceptions: blindly following trends to launch projects — whatever others do, we do; and leaving "characteristics" at the level of shouting slogans, without digging out real advantages. Daming County's thinking is very clear — not 另起炉灶 (lìng qǐ lú zào - "set up a new stove," start afresh), but making an article out of the existing agricultural foundation and locational advantages.

Second, to break the deadlock in the county economy, building "public infrastructure" is the key. Individual farmers and small merchants naturally face the shortcomings of being "scattered, small, and weak" — not understanding packaging, unable to negotiate logistics prices, unfamiliar with livestream operations. Daming County's approach is to use the industrial park to centrally provide public services such as cloud warehousing, express price negotiation, and industrial design, turning the links that individual merchants "cannot reach" into infrastructure they "can afford to use," reducing transaction costs.

Third, specialty products going out is the whole industrial chain exerting force. Livestreaming is only one link at the sales end; what truly determines success or failure is whether the front and back ends are connected. From product selection, design, warehousing, and express delivery to training and cross-border sales, Daming County has built a complete industrial chain. For a county economy to truly come alive, it depends not on the "explosion" of one link, but on the "smooth flow" of the entire chain.

Pull the long board to its longest, and fill in the shortcomings of the industrial chain. In the tide of the times, find your own position — even a small county can achieve great things.

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Small Village Blazes New Path in Specialty Industry Development (Beautiful Countryside, My Home)

By: 本报记者 刘军国

Summer Black grapes hang heavy on the branches. In Xiuyan Village (秀岩村), Tangxian Town (唐先镇), Yongkang City (永康市), Zhejiang, the Qiushan Xiuyan Nature School (丘山山秀岩自然学校) has moved its summer classroom into the vineyard. Teacher Zuo Huiyan (左慧燕) walks bent over between the rows, teaching the children to identify varieties and trim fruit clusters while murmuring: "Summer Black and Red Fuji ripen one after another; our Tangxian grapes can be sold from June to October."

After trimming grapes, the children carry the fresh fruit back to the nature school, where in the woodworking workshop they twist copper wire around grapevine branches to make handcrafted ornaments. The courtyard is filled with the clear sweetness of summer.

This nature school, converted from an abandoned school building, was officially inaugurated only last August, yet in less than a year it has received more than ten thousand study-tour visitors.

Ten years ago, Xiuyan was still a "hollow village" (空心村) that could not retain people. Old houses sat empty gathering dust, the village collective had little income, and the only two century-old trees at the village entrance were completely blocked by a four-story residential building. That building belonged to the home of Hu Xianzhong's (胡献忠) elder brother, the village Party branch secretary.

"Buildings only get taller and taller—who would voluntarily tear theirs down?" At the time, everyone in the village found it 不可思议 (bù kě sī yì - "cannot conceive or imagine," inconceivable), but Hu Xianzhong was resolute. He went to his brother's door again and again to persuade him, and in the end the top floor was removed, letting the ancient trees show their heads.

The ancient trees spread their branches, and the village's vitality grew. Homestays and restaurants opened one after another; everyone followed suit in renovating their own courtyards, and the rural specialty industries grew increasingly prosperous.

In 2023, seizing the opportunity of the province's "one matter, one discussion" (一事一议) fiscal award-and-subsidy pilot program, Xiuyan Village joined with surrounding villages to develop by pooling strength. The Xiuyan village collective took the lead in contributing capital; 20 surrounding economically weak village collectives took shares, and villagers could also voluntarily invest. In addition, Xiuyan Village brought in a professional team to manage operations, and projects such as a children's playground and pastoral go-karts quickly landed, attracting numerous visitors to check in.

With industry thriving, villagers who had been working away from home returned one after another. "Before, I worked in a factory, leaving early and returning late every day, with no time for my family. Now I not only earn more each month but can also take care of the elderly and the children—life is much more settled." Villager Lü Jingjing (吕晶晶) has also bought shares and is waiting for year-end dividends: "Life has more and more prospects."

Wang Hu (王虎), born in 1998, was drawn to Xiuyan Village's pastoral character during a short trip. In the autumn of 2023, his coffee shop opened by the fields.

What truly made Xiuyan Village "break out" was Li Huadong (李华栋), a post-90s youth who returned to his hometown, and his young team. This team, averaging 28 years old, took on the operation of the entire village, revitalizing the Geshanyan Primary School (格山沿小学) campus that had been idle for more than 40 years and converting it into the present nature school.

"Yongkang is China's Capital of Hardware (五金之都); we need to let Yongkang's children understand hardware better," Li Huadong said. The nature school's curriculum is full of ingenious touches: copper wire with willow branches to make kites, steel wire with pinecones to make wind chimes—weaving Yongkang's hardware craftsmanship and the twenty-four solar terms into the nature classroom.

How can young people be made to put down roots? The city, town, and village levels hold regular meetings to discuss affairs; village cadres, Party members, and villager representatives manage affairs by area. While recruiting young people from outside to start businesses, they also cultivate local talent. Through rent reductions and support in attracting customers, more than 50 young people have put down roots here, and the businesses that have landed have created more than 100 jobs.

"At first the villagers just watched from the sidelines; gradually they began to participate actively, and now many have become volunteer promoters for the village," Li Huadong said.

The former "hollow village" now brims with vitality everywhere. Standing on the hillside of Xiuyan Village and looking out: white walls and dark-tiled roofs hidden in green shade, grape gardens wafting fruit fragrance, and not far away the laughter of children.

Li Jiang (李江), Party secretary of Tangxian Town, said that the countryside offers vast space and agriculture has great potential; more and more young people are choosing to return to the countryside and build it, and the beautiful countryside is growing ever more 欣欣向荣 (xīn xīn xiàng róng - "joyful and flourishing," thriving and prosperous) through this two-way endeavor.

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Editor: Deng Jianyang

Layout design: Shen Yiling

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Strengthen medical insurance oversight to safeguard public health

By: 孙秀艳

The National Healthcare Security Administration (国家医保局) released the "15th Five-Year Plan" for Universal Medical Insurance Security (全民医疗保障“十五五”规划) on August 19, making detailed arrangements for improving the medical insurance fund management and supervision system over the next five years, and proposing to strengthen the management of designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions, strictly manage the admission of designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions, establish and improve the performance evaluation mechanism for designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions, implement tiered and classified management of designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions, and innovate agreement management methods. This will further standardize the operations of designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions, safeguard the security of the medical insurance fund, and protect the health of the people.

Basic medical insurance is the largest buyer of medical services in China. Currently, the annual expenditure of the medical insurance fund has approached 3 trillion yuan. Industry data shows that medical insurance settlement funds account for 40%-70% of the medical revenue of public designated medical institutions, with an even higher proportion for designated pharmacies.

The medical insurance department is the maker of many rules for medical behavior. The medical insurance drug catalog defines the scope of drugs accessible to patients, the standardized specifications for medical service price items are the cornerstone of medical institutions' fee collection, and the payment method reform has ended the model of "more examinations, more profits" for individual medical institutions — every rule issued directly affects the business operations and development direction of designated institutions.

The medical insurance department is also the supervisor of the use of the medical insurance fund. Possessing the authority over designated admission and exit, punishment and accountability for violations, and relying on big data screening, normalized flight inspections, and special rectification campaigns, the medical insurance department has achieved whole-process penetrating supervision over diagnosis and treatment, drug purchasing, and fee collection. The medical insurance department has zero tolerance for fraud and insurance deception, swapping items, over-standard charging, and other behaviors. Non-compliant designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions face fund recovery, multiple fines, suspension, and even revocation of designated qualifications.

These factors determine that the medical insurance department has sufficient influence over designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions. Strengthening medical insurance supervision has never been about restricting industry development or making things difficult for designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions. As the "gatekeeper of health" for insured persons, the medical insurance department bears the mission of striving to safeguard the people's health with limited funds, that is, purchasing high-quality, low-cost, safe, and convenient medical and pharmaceutical services for insured persons, and effectively reducing the burden of medical treatment and medication. The realization of this goal cannot be separated from the professional support and efficient cooperation of designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions. Without the standardized services and high-quality supply of designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions, the medical insurance policy benefiting the people would be a 空中楼阁 (kōng zhōng lóu gé - "castle in the air," an illusory or unattainable thing); without the bottom-line guarantee and standardized guidance of the medical insurance system, the medical service industry would also find it difficult to find a balance between public welfare and sustainability. In this sense, the medical insurance and designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions are a community with the same goal.

For the vast number of designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions, what truly requires reverence is the rigid bottom line of laws and regulations, the rules and standards of the medical insurance system, and the welfare of the hundreds of millions of people. The medical industry concerns life and health, with extremely high requirements for public welfare, professionalism, and standardization. Every expenditure of the medical insurance fund concerns the vital interests of the people. Compliant operation is not only the bottom-line requirement for designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions to avoid risks, but also the foundation for their long-term stable development. Designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions should adhere to their original professional mission, strictly implement medical insurance policies and standards, eliminate all kinds of non-compliant operations, and carry out normalized internal compliance self-inspection and self-correction — they can completely face medical insurance supervision with a clear conscience.

In recent years, medical insurance supervision has continuously practiced the governance philosophy of combining leniency with strictness, insisting on both rigid constraints and flexible services. For acts of deliberate, malicious insurance fraud, resolute and strict investigation and punishment will be imposed without leniency; for non-subjective, minor errors caused by policy understanding deviations during the transition period of reform, the flexible enforcement policies of cautious punishment for first violations and exemption from punishment for minor violations will be implemented, with proactive explanation of doubts and guidance for rectification and improvement. At the same time, the medical insurance department continues to promote DRG (by disease group)/DIP (by disease type) payment reform, centralized volume-based procurement of drugs and consumables, optimization of outpatient coordination guarantees, and other measures benefiting the people. While squeezing out unreasonable water from the industry, these reforms also force medical institutions to move toward refined management. Many hospitals have achieved a multi-party win-win of "the people get benefits, institutions get development, and the fund is sustainable" through DRG lean operations.

The "15th Five-Year Plan" for National Health (国民健康“十五五”规划) proposes to comprehensively improve the health level of the people and consolidate the health foundation of Chinese-style modernization. Under the new situation, the medical insurance department and designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions urgently need to completely break the habitual thinking of zero-sum games. Designated medical and pharmaceutical institutions should integrate reverence for the rules into the entire process of daily practice, making compliant management an internal habit; the medical insurance department also needs to continuously optimize supervision methods, making efforts in precise fault tolerance and error correction, strengthening policy publicity, and smoothing communication channels, using compliance to hold the bottom line of fund security, using coordination to improve the quality and efficiency of medical services, and jointly protecting the health and welfare of the people.

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How to Achieve a 0.75-Year Increase in 5 Years? (Health Focus)

By: 本报记者 申少铁

The "Healthy National 15th Five-Year Plan" (国民健康“十五五”规划) issued in July this year proposes that by 2030, average life expectancy will reach 80 years, and major health indicators will enter the ranks of high-income countries.
Average life expectancy comprehensively reflects a country's or region's medical and health care, people's health, quality of life, and social development. Data released by the National Health Commission shows that in 2025, China's average life expectancy reached 79.25 years, an increase of 1.32 years over 2020, leaping to the forefront of upper-middle-income countries, with residents' health levels steadily improving. Over the next five years, how will average life expectancy be steadily raised to 80 years? A reporter conducted interviews.
Preventing disease —
Taking health as the center to do a good job in disease prevention, so that the masses get sick less and do not get sick at all
"Every morning I walk a few laps around the neighborhood, and my spirits are much better..." Aunt Li, 74 years old, who lives in Dongzi Community, Xiangcheng District, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province, although she has no major illness, is overweight and has slightly high blood pressure. This year, she began to pay attention to controlling her weight.
Health promotion entering the community has changed Aunt Li's lifestyle.
"Exercise appropriately, control weight, use less oil and less salt, quit smoking and limit alcohol... maintaining a healthy lifestyle can effectively prevent the 'three highs'." The health science articles in the community bulletin board are very eye-catching. The nearby community health service center has also organized multiple health science popularization activities, attracting many residents to participate.
"Taking health as the center, improving the health literacy of the masses, doing a good job in disease prevention, and enabling the masses to get sick less and not get sick at all is the primary task for raising average life expectancy." Miao Yanqing (苗艳青), deputy director and researcher of the Health Strategy and Service System Research Department of the Health Development Research Center of the National Health Commission, believes that in 2025, China's residents' health literacy level was 33.69%, leaving room for improvement, and the gap between urban and rural areas still needs to be narrowed.
Miao Yanqing suggested that medical institutions at all levels should strengthen health promotion, set up posters and play videos in outpatient halls, wards, consultation rooms, and other places to popularize health knowledge. Doctors are the main force of health science popularization, and more doctors should be encouraged to participate in health science popularization. The focus of health promotion should be placed on primary-level medical institutions. At present, many primary-level medical institutions have specially established health rooms and weight management clinics. These facilities should be made good use of to strengthen health promotion for residents.
The National Health Commission will continue to carry out the Healthy China Action and the Patriotic Health Campaign, advance the "Weight Management Year" action, gradually improve residents' health literacy, and enable health science knowledge and popular science knowledge to "fly into the homes of ordinary people."
Doing a good job in infectious disease prevention and control is an important measure for improving residents' health levels.
At present, China's tuberculosis incidence rate has fallen below 49 per 100,000, and the treatment success rate remains above 90%; schistosomiasis has achieved transmission interruption at the national level, and multiple regions have reached elimination standards... Wang Rongrong (王蓉蓉), deputy director of the Department of Planning, Finance, Regulations and Law of the National Disease Control and Prevention Administration, introduced that in the next step, it is necessary to deeply summarize the experience and practices of infectious disease prevention and control in recent years and continuously improve disease control capabilities.
Vaccination is the most economical and effective means of preventing and controlling infectious diseases. Chen Zhao (陈朝), deputy director of the Department of Health and Immunization of the National Disease Control and Prevention Administration, introduced that the vaccination rate of the national immunization program for school-age children in China has continued to remain above 90%, and the reported incidence of vaccine-preventable infectious diseases has remained at a historically low level. It is necessary to continue to give full play to the important role of vaccines in the prevention and control of major diseases, strengthen the popularization and promotion of vaccination, dynamically adjust the national immunization program strategy, and achieve quality improvement and capacity expansion.
Treating disease —
Promoting the expansion and sinking of high-quality medical resources, making medical treatment more convenient and more efficient
Xiaoming, 4 years old, who lives in Shetianqiao Town, Shaodong City, Hunan Province, was sent by his parents to Shetianqiao Town Central Health Center because of sudden high fever, impaired consciousness, urinary incontinence, cyanosis of the lips, and other symptoms.
Zhang Xiaodi (张筱笛), a general practitioner from Shaodong People's Hospital stationed at Shetianqiao Town Central Health Center, together with the health center team, quickly activated the emergency plan, reported the information synchronously to the general hospital of the compact county-level medical community, Shaodong People's Hospital, and immediately carried out rescue treatment on Xiaoming. Given the complexity of the child's condition, the health center decided to immediately activate the two-way referral mechanism. The pediatric team of Shaodong People's Hospital then opened a green channel and quickly treated Xiaoming. After careful treatment, Xiaoming's various physiological indicators returned to normal.
Miao Yanqing believes that promoting the expansion and balanced layout of high-quality medical resources, making medical treatment more convenient and more efficient for the masses, is an important means of safeguarding people's health and raising average life expectancy.
— Strengthening the construction of national medical centers and national regional medical centers. At present, China has established national medical centers in 13 professional categories and built 125 national regional medical centers in areas with weak medical resources, effectively promoting the expansion and balanced layout of high-quality medical resources. "National medical centers should bravely scale the heights of medicine and continuously make breakthroughs in the fields of difficult and complicated diseases and major diseases, such as rare diseases and malignant tumors; national regional medical centers should focus on improving specialist levels, enhancing the capacity to treat major diseases and critical illnesses within the region, so that the masses can be treated for major diseases without leaving the region." Miao Yanqing said.
— Advancing the construction of compact medical consortia. Compact medical consortia are an important means of realizing the sinking of high-quality resources and promoting hierarchical diagnosis and treatment. At present, China has established more than 18,000 medical consortia (communities) of various forms, compact county-level medical communities have been rolled out nationwide, and urban compact medical consortia have been advanced from pilot projects in 81 cities to a wider scope. In the next step, the National Health Commission will continue to advance the construction of urban medical groups, promote more counties to build compact county-level medical communities, and realize that "common diseases are solved at the city and county level."
— Continuously improving primary-level medical service capacity. Miao Yanqing said that first, it is necessary to strengthen the service capacity of primary-level departments such as pediatrics, traditional Chinese medicine, and stomatology, with emphasis on improving the service capacity of a number of central health centers; second, strengthen medical assistance to remote areas and the primary level, and rapidly improve local diagnosis and treatment capacity through circuit medical treatment and models of encouraging doctors to provide assistance to the western region and the primary level; third, vigorously develop telemedicine so that high-quality medical resources can radiate to remote areas and the primary level through the Internet.
Managing disease —
Providing high-quality health management services, enabling patients to have fewer severe illnesses and recover earlier
Mr. Chen, a resident of Changbai Community, Heping District, Shenyang City, Liaoning Province, discovered during a free community screening that the "culprit" behind his persistent cough was chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
"Since last year, we have successively established family doctor studios led by the center director and chief general practitioners, and formed 8 family doctor contracted service teams to provide integrated medical-preventive health management services for patients with chronic diseases including COPD within the jurisdiction." Chen Yao (陈瑶), director of Changbai Community Health Service Center, said that through standardized treatment, the COPD of many patients has improved.
In September 2024, the National Health Commission and three other departments issued a relevant notice, incorporating health services for COPD patients into the basic public health service program. Primary-level medical and health institutions across the country have actively implemented this, and a primary-level health defense line for COPD has been preliminarily established.
"Chronic diseases such as cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, malignant tumors, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes and metabolic diseases seriously threaten the health of Chinese residents and are major public health problems." Miao Yanqing believes that doing a good job in chronic disease management requires adhering to a primary-level focus, achieving early prevention, early detection, and early intervention, which can effectively reduce the occurrence of complications and improve patients' survival and quality of life.
In October 2025, the "Guiding Opinions on Strengthening Primary-Level Chronic Disease Health Management Services" (关于加强基层慢性病健康管理服务的指导意见) issued by the National Health Commission and five other departments proposed adhering to the combination of prevention and treatment, laying equal stress on traditional Chinese and Western medicine, giving play to the role of compact medical consortia and family doctor contracted services, combining with basic public health service programs, integrating the full-process health management service functions of prevention, screening, diagnosis, treatment, management, and rehabilitation, providing comprehensive, systematic, and continuous services for the masses, and improving the quality and effectiveness of primary-level chronic disease health services.
"All localities should integrate primary-level medical resources, give full play to the functions of various types of medical and health institutions, improve the full-process services of chronic disease management, strengthen medication guarantees and technical support such as information and artificial intelligence, and enhance the chronic disease diagnosis, treatment, and management capabilities of primary-level medical personnel." Miao Yanqing said that it is necessary to improve the chronic disease management capabilities of family doctor teams and incorporate more chronic disease management services into the contracted content.
In addition, doing a good job in health services for "the elderly and children" can significantly improve the health level of the masses.
Strengthening the construction of geriatrics departments. Elderly patients often face problems such as multiple diseases coexisting and decline of organ function. The geriatrics department has the characteristics of being general-practice-oriented and comprehensive, enabling elderly patients with multiple coexisting diseases to receive comprehensive general diagnosis and treatment. In April last year, the National Health Commission required qualified secondary and above general hospitals to establish geriatrics departments, and provided detailed regulations on the construction and management of bed numbers, staffing, working models, supporting examinations, equipment and facilities, department management, and quality supervision.
Strengthening pediatric medical service capacity. The health of children and adolescents directly affects their health in adulthood. In April 2025, the National Health Commission launched the three-year "Pediatric Service Year" action, proposing measures such as increasing pediatric service supply, advancing the construction of pediatric medical consortia, building a collaborative network for the diagnosis and treatment of major childhood diseases, and providing full-process pediatric services.

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What is average life expectancy? (Further Reading)

By: 南开大学人口研究所教授 原 新

Average life expectancy, academically termed "average life expectancy at birth," refers to the average number of years that people born in the same period are expected to continue living, under the assumption that current mortality rates for each age group remain unchanged. For example, in 2025, China's average life expectancy at birth was 79.25 years, which can be understood in plain terms as: infants born in 2025 will survive to an average age of 79.25 years.
The calculation of average life expectancy uses the age-specific population figures and age-specific death figures for a given year as baseline data. From this, the survival probability of those born in that year is estimated year by year from birth onward. A simulated cohort of these newborns is then followed as age advances, calculating indicators such as the number of survivors and remaining years of life, ultimately yielding the expected average number of years that this birth cohort will survive.
Many people feel that those around them die early and do not reach the average life expectancy. This is because average life expectancy refers to the survival duration of those born in a given year — it is a hypothetical figure. The actual age at death depends on the living conditions a deceased person experienced at different stages of life; it is a comprehensive reflection of past living environments, medical conditions, and levels of economic and social development — that is, the real situation. In addition, people are psychologically prone to survivorship bias, as cases of early death are more likely to leave a deep impression.
Average life expectancy is a comprehensive indicator that reflects economic and social progress, and it is influenced by many factors. Beyond improving health and medical work, the means of raising average life expectancy also include promoting sustainable economic development, raising residents' income levels, improving the social security system, improving the living environment, and preventing and controlling public safety risks and accidents.
(Compiled by Han Yaning)

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Moderate exercise can treat lower back pain (Famous Doctor's Lecture)

By: 李树明

Many people, the moment they experience back pain, have a first reaction: "It's over, my back is ruined." Especially after an MRI, when they see words like "lumbar disc herniation," "bone hyperplasia," or "degenerative changes" on the report, they are even more frightened into sleeplessness. In fact, most back pain is not as terrifying as people imagine. In many cases, back pain does not mean the lumbar spine is broken.

Why are more and more people experiencing back pain now? In the past, people thought back pain was a disease of old age, but now many young people in their twenties and thirties are also starting to experience back pain. The reasons are simple: prolonged sitting, staying up late, lack of exercise, long-term head-down posture, and stress. Some people sit all day long, and their lower back seems to be "locked" in place; some people lie in bed scrolling through their phones every day, and their lumbar muscles grow weaker and weaker; others are under work pressure, their bodies remain tense, and their backs hurt as a result.

The human lower back is actually very much like a tree. The bones are the trunk, and the muscles and fascia are like ropes that pull it and hold it stable. If one does not exercise for a long time, has tense muscles, and poor posture, these "ropes" will become increasingly tight and increasingly stiff. Traditional Chinese medicine describes this state as "muscles knotting up" (筋打结) and "qi and blood not flowing smoothly" (气血不通). There is a saying in traditional Chinese medicine: "When it flows, there is no pain; when it hurts, there is no flow." (通则不痛，痛则不通) This means: when the body is unobstructed, it is not prone to pain; once qi and blood do not circulate smoothly, muscles and fascia are too tight, and muscles are knotted, then soreness, swelling, numbness, and pain are prone to appear.

After experiencing back pain, many people become extremely cautious. Some people dare not bend over, dare not walk, dare not exercise, and some even stay in bed for a long time. But strangely enough: the more they rest, the stiffer and more painful their backs become. Why? With prolonged inactivity, the lumbar muscles grow weaker, the joints grow stiffer, and the brain becomes more and more afraid of movement. Gradually, the body enters a vicious cycle of "fear-avoidance": because of back pain, the mind is fearful and dares not move, which in turn weakens the muscles, making the back even more prone to pain.

Moderate exercise can treat back pain. Many people ask: "If my back hurts, should I just lie down all the time?" In fact, what most people with back pain should fear most is not activity, but prolonged inactivity. Scientific research has found that moderate exercise is one of the most effective ways to improve back pain. Walking, swimming, Baduanjin (Eight Pieces of Brocade), tai chi, stretching exercises, core training... these exercises can help patients strengthen muscle power, improve blood circulation, relax tense fascia, and enhance lumbar stability. In simple terms, exercise is like installing a "protective belt" on the lower back anew.

Of course, exercise should not be too intense. The most important principle in recovering from back pain is to proceed step by step. Do not be in pain today and then frantically exercise for two hours tomorrow. Physical recovery is a process of gradually becoming stronger.

Traditional Chinese medicine holds that "the waist is the mansion of the kidneys" (腰为肾之府), meaning that the lower back is closely related to the overall state of the body. In addition to strain, traditional Chinese medicine also believes that cold-dampness, prolonged sitting, overwork, and emotional suppression can all worsen back pain. For example, some people's backs hurt as soon as they are blown by air conditioning; some people's backs become stiff when the weather turns cold; and others, under long-term anxiety, always have tense lower backs. All of these are related to an overall imbalance in the body. Common methods used in traditional Chinese medicine include acupuncture, tuina (massage), hot compresses, moxibustion, Baduanjin, and so on. The purpose of these methods is not to "pop the bones back into place," but to help the body relax, improve circulation, and restore balance. But it must be remembered that no single method is a "universal miracle cure"; what truly determines the degree of recovery is long-term lifestyle habits.

True rehabilitation of the lower back is not merely the absence of pain. Many people think that as long as it does not hurt, they are cured. In fact, true rehabilitation means being able to bend over again, to exercise again, to hold one's child again, and to live a normal life again. Because the most frightening thing about back pain is not the pain itself, but the way it gradually causes a person to lose trust in their own body. So, please remember this sentence: your lower back is not as fragile as you imagine, and most back pain can be gradually recovered from through scientific exercise, improved habits, and adjusting one's mindset.

(The author is the director of the Pain Department at Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine; this article was compiled through an interview by Shen Shaotie, a reporter for this newspaper.)

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本版责编：谷业凯

Layout design: Zhang Danfeng (张丹峰)

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Reading the Classics: A Millennial Tale of Rise and Fall

By: 赵冬梅

If one were to choose a single work to understand the more than 1,000 years of Chinese history before the founding of the Song dynasty, it would be the Zizhi Tongjian (Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance). Beginning with the partition of Jin by the three houses—the dividing point between the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods—proceeding through Qin Shi Huang's establishment of imperial autocracy, the Han dynasty's consolidation of unity, the rise and fall of dynastic states in endless succession, the general trend of the realm ever dividing and reuniting, and continuing until the chaos of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms subsided and order was rebuilt—the rise and fall of states, the gains and losses of men, the transformations of institutions, and the shifts of customs are all contained in this book.

The Zizhi Tongjian was completed in the twelfth month of the seventh year of the Yuanfeng reign of Emperor Shenzong of Song (1084). Its main text comprises 294 juan (chapters), with 30 juan of table of contents and 30 juan of "Textual Critiques" (kaoyi). Its records begin in the twenty-third year of King Weilie of Zhou (403 BCE) and end in the year before the founding of the Song dynasty (959 CE). It is the ancient history and recent history of the Song people, and to this day remains an important book for our study of pre-Song history. Its author, Sima Guang, together with Sima Qian, author of the Shiji (Records of the Grand Historian), are known as the "Two Simas of Historians." The Shiji and the Zizhi Tongjian—two great comprehensive histories, one in the annal-biography form, one in the chronological form, one from the Western Han, one from the Northern Song, separated by a thousand years, standing as twin peaks—are important landmarks of Chinese historiographical civilization.

Sima Guang compiled the Zizhi Tongjian (hereafter the Tongjian) because the historical books of previous eras were vast and numerous, such that scholars could not read them through even after years of accumulated effort, and even if they did read them, they could not grasp the thread of historical development—while human nature tends toward the simple and easy and dislikes the complex and difficult. Sima Guang worried that if things continued this way, people would abandon history and cease to read it, and the memory of the past would be extinguished and lost. He therefore wanted to use a method simpler than the annal-biography form to write a history that was more approachable, using a single book to contain more than 1,000 years of history, gathering together all the various accounts and forming a school of his own.

Sima Guang had three capable assistants—Liu Ban, Liu Shu, and Fan Zuyu—who, under his guidance, "examined all the old histories and broadly collected unofficial accounts," sweeping up and absorbing all extant historical materials; then, following the principle of "better to err on the side of excess than on the side of omission," they adopted the original texts of the old histories as far as possible, compiling "long drafts" (changbian) as working manuscripts. In the process of compiling the "long drafts," the assistants had to discriminate among different accounts of the same events in the old histories, writing separate explanations of "the reasons for adopting this and rejecting that," producing "Textual Critiques" (kaoyi) to lay out the differences among various records and explain the grounds for judgment. When Sima Qian wrote the Shiji, he engaged in both field investigation and the comparison and selection of historical materials, but the text of the Shiji conceals the process of argumentation, presenting only smooth narrative. The method of "Textual Critiques" established by Sima Guang's Tongjian, by contrast, presents the complete process of textual examination to the reader; it "is more given to reasoning"—this is a major advance in traditional Chinese historiographical method: narrative based on "research." The divergent accounts displayed in the "Textual Critiques" also served to preserve historical materials.

Finally, the "long drafts" reached Sima Guang, whose task was to delete from them whatever was not essential to the main themes, so that the Tongjian could present the clear thread of history in fluent prose. The drafts compiled by his assistants and transcribed by copyists—each "long draft" was rolled in sections of four zhang each—were spread out before Sima Guang. As he read, he marked on separate slips of paper the passages that could be revised into the main text: for each matter, he noted only the opening and closing phrases. This stage of draft may be called the "marked draft." The one juan of Zizhi Tongjian manuscript preserved in the National Library of China's National Museum of Classic Books should be Sima Guang's "marked draft." Sima Guang's "marked draft," together with the corresponding "long draft," was returned to the copyist, who transcribed it into a fair copy, which was then carved and printed. Beginning at age 47 and continuing until age 66, especially during the more than ten years after he retired to Luoyang at age 53 and became a "full-time historian," Sima Guang worked in this manner nearly every day. The workload he set for himself was to delete and revise one juan every three days; if social engagements caused delays, he would certainly work extra hours to catch up on the schedule. No one was "pressuring" him—he had long since recognized the compilation of the Tongjian as his "heavenly mandate."

How great was this workload? Taking the Tang dynasty portion as an example: for the 289 years of the Tang in total, the "long draft" for the first 161 years is known to have been more than 200 juan, over 800 zhang in length; for the later 128 years, being closer in time, the historical materials were richer and the information denser, and the draft was certainly more than 600 juan; the "long drafts" for the entire Tang dynasty together amounted to 3,200 zhang. A long scroll of 3,200 zhang, to be read character by character—yet through this prolonged labor Sima Guang maintained unwavering seriousness throughout. Huang Tingjian participated in the proofreading before the block-printing of the Tongjian, going through several hundred juan of it, and he observed that in Sima Guang's annotations, "not a single character was written carelessly."

In the narrative of the Tongjian—what is said, what is not said, and how it is said—everything passed through Sima Guang's discrimination and selection. And the discursive sections of the Tongjian that directly express viewpoints, the "Your minister Guang says" (Chen Guang yue) passages, came even more directly from Sima Guang's own hand. What the entire book presents is history as seen through Sima Guang's eyes, and Sima Guang's historical thinking.

The target readers of the Tongjian were the rulers of the day, with the emperor at their head. After the mid-Tang, the emperor increasingly moved to the front of national political life, "hence arising the necessity that the monarch possess special cultivation," and compiling books suitable for the emperor to read became a need of the time. Before the Tongjian, the Song state had organized the compilation of four great "imperial perusal" books: the Taiping Guangji in 500 juan, and the Taiping Yulan, Wenyuan Yinghua, and Cefu Yuangui, each in 1,000 juan. In terms of compilation purpose, the Tongjian was a continuation of these four great "imperial perusal" books; in terms of compilation principle, the four great books were simple collections of prior relevant knowledge classified by category, whereas the Tongjian is a work of history, better suited to displaying causation in a temporal sequence and presenting the process of order and chaos, rise and fall—"a higher-level mode of historical understanding."

In Sima Guang's mind, historical books were a bridge connecting past and present: "History is that by which the present knows the past, and by which posterity knows its forebears." A serious and earnest reader of history may hope to transcend the limitations of the individual and of the age, and to grasp the intellectual achievements of "all of humanity up to the present." He therefore maintained that the emperor "must not fail to read history," and that when the emperor read history, he could not pick and choose—both positive experience and negative lessons had to be taken seriously: "What is good may serve as a model; what is not good may serve as a warning." Wang Fuzhi, the thinker of the late Ming and early Qing, praised the Tongjian in these words: "What does its being called 'comprehensive' (tong) mean? The way of the sovereign is in it; the state's fundamental policies are in it; the sentiments of the people are in it; frontier defense is in it; the duty of ministers is in it; the integrity of ministers is in it; the scholar's conduct of himself without disgrace is in it; learning's adherence to what is correct without deviation is in it. Even in poverty and solitude, one can thereby improve oneself, can teach others, can know the Way and take joy in it—therefore it is called 'comprehensive.'"

Even while the Tongjian was still in its early stages of composition, it had already entered, together with its author, the emperor's study sessions—the "Classic Mat" (jingyan). Sima Guang told Emperor Shenzong of Song the story of the early Han "Xiao He's regulations, Cao Shen's adherence to them" (Xiao gui Cao sui), concluding that if the Han had kept to Emperor Gaozu's laws without changing them, it would certainly have enjoyed lasting peace and order. The conclusion was drawn too sweepingly, and drew attack and ridicule from Lü Huiqing. Sima Guang won the debate, but left later readers who did not read history carefully with a bad impression of him as conservative and obstinate. In fact, what Sima Guang advocated preserving unchanged was always the Confucian governing principle of benevolent governance and love for the people, and the pursuit of balance between the interests of the court and state and those of the common people under heaven; as for specific policies and measures, he equally advocated promoting benefit and eliminating harm. Sima Guang was a conservative reformer. How could a historian capable of tracing in full detail the rise and fall of a thousand years possibly fail to know that change is the eternal truth of the world?

(The author is a professor in the Department of History at Peking University.)

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In the AI Era, Return to 'Embodied Reading' (The Pleasure of Books)

By: 胡洪侠

Every time I read the passage in Chapter 77 of Dream of the Red Chamber, "A Pretty Maid Wronged and Wronged Dies; A Beautiful Actress Cuts Off Her Feelings and Returns to the Water Moon," in which Jia Baoyu bids farewell to Qingwen, I cannot help but weep. This year, when I reached this point, through tear-blurred eyes, I thought of a question unrelated to the story of the Grand View Garden: if I read a summary generated for me by AI (artificial intelligence), would I be moved as I always have been?
　　In the age of AI, traditional ways of reading face entirely new challenges. In previous years, we often discussed how new modes of reading could coexist with and complement the reading of paper books. Now what we must worry about is the problem of "outsourced reading," "outsourced thinking," and "outsourced experience." That is to say, the original question was what method to choose for reading; now it has become whether we still want to read paper books personally, directly, and in full.
　　I like AI, and for several years I have been trying to learn how to work with AI to improve my reading and writing. Whether it is searching and cross-checking, recommending book lists, or offering scholarly insights, sometimes AI is simply a good companion or even a mentor for my reading.
　　But I have also fallen into AI-generated "traps" more than once. It has provided me with too many book titles, "original texts," and archive document numbers that simply do not exist in this world. More troublesome still, its reading services can be tireless and its offerings inexhaustible, and I have gradually felt a kind of "danger": will I become more and more satisfied with summaries and secondhand interpretations? Am I no longer willing, as I once was, to face the complete original text myself with inexhaustible patience? To what extent can I resist the impulse to hand over the processes of close reading, verification, and deep savoring to algorithms? Will AI turn from a bridge between people and words into a wall between people and books? If this continues, will I sit in my study surrounded by ten thousand volumes and yet grow ever farther from books?
　　I know that what I face is the risk commonly faced by readers in the age of AI. Gradually departing from the complete, immersive, personally engaged process of reading a physical book, relying solely on efficiency and on tools such as AI, alienates the identity of "a reader of books" into "a user of books," and simplifies the standard of "a good book" into "a useful book." The intimate relationship between people and books is becoming estranged: farther from paper books, farther from real reading.
　　A question thus becomes increasingly urgent, namely "embodied reading."
　　What is called embodiment is to let the mind, consciousness, cognition, and aesthetics be truly presented with the body as their carrier. The embodied reading I understand is to select the classics one most wants to read, ought to read, and enjoys reading, to sense the paper pages with the body, to read character by character with the eyes, and to think independently with the brain; it is to emphasize focused and immersive deep reading, to emphasize the process of reading and not merely the result; it is not the machine reading to me, not AI summarizing for me, not algorithms thinking for me, but reading in person, thinking in person, and feeling in person, with no link in the whole process outsourced. Since it is reading the books one loves, one must ultimately read them into "one's own books": not only does the book belong to you, but the process of reading it also belongs to you, and the new experiences born during reading and the memories activated also belong to you.
　　Embodied reading is not something I invented; it is supported by cutting-edge findings in the field of cognitive science. Some research holds that human reading is not merely decoding written symbols; understanding and empathy cannot be separated from bodily memory. When we read "a cold wind strikes the face" or "climb high and gaze far," the brain automatically activates the neural regions responsible for touch, vision, and motor perception, drawing on past bodily experience to complete "mental simulation," from which empathy, discernment, and value judgment are born.
　　There is a consensus in today's "Most Beautiful Books" selection: a good book must not only have good content, but must also, through book design, allow readers to engage all their senses: the typography and colors for vision, the paper and texture for touch, the sound of turning pages for hearing, the scent of paper and ink for smell, and the comfortable grip and reading experience for bodily sensation. This can be regarded as the aesthetic basis of embodied reading.
　　Of course, when I speak of embodied reading, I mainly mean the humanistic reading that I myself enjoy. Humanistic reading places the greatest emphasis on empathy and on perceiving human nature through the body, both of which must be built on embodied simulation. The reading I have designed for myself is this: take a beloved classic, choose a time and space free of disturbance, use no models, engage in no social interaction, do not ask AI to read on my behalf, and do not let the phone interrupt. It is "original reading," it is "offline reading," it is "non-algorithmic reading," "model-free reading," and "reading monopolized by the human brain." I hope that in this way I can regain complete reading, train my brain to become "deep" again, face complex problems directly, and get to the bottom of the underlying logic and hidden structures, rather than drifting all day amid fragmented information, ready-made answers, and swirling emotions. This stumbling, searching, weeping and laughing process may perhaps be not far from embodied reading.

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Open the window, relax.

By: 刘 阳

Open Waiting for Birds: A Birdwatching Journal by Saoba (Chongqing Publishing House), and you will probably find yourself unable to hold back a laugh: so birds can be this amusing. I was genuinely delighted by the expressive little birds in the book, and from the first page to the last, reading it is effortless — bird knowledge and ecological common sense slip into your head without any strain. That, presumably, is the book's intent: birdwatching is, in itself, a relaxed, fun activity that anyone can join.

From the sparrows that come to your balcony to mooch breakfast, to the Asian koels with their astonishingly loud calls in the neighborhood green belts, to the "night shift workers" (night herons) pacing and foraging by the park waterside, birdwatching can begin right in the city. On the very road you walk every day, look up at the sky, take an extra glance at the flower beds — the birds are right there. The book's descriptions of birds' physical features and behaviors, its entertaining records of how they eat, court mates, and "argue" with one another, serve as an excellent introductory guide.

Of course, enthusiasm alone is not enough. How do you choose binoculars? Where do you look for birds? At what times of day are birds most active? The book has answers to all these questions. More importantly, the author also tells us that birdwatching has its "rules": do not chase, do not startle, watch from afar, do not disturb; protect bird habitats, prevent birds from striking glass windows, rescue injured birds... These are the codes of conduct that anyone who approaches nature should observe. You can even become a volunteer in bird surveys, taking part in waterbird counts, recording raptor migrations, tallying nest-building during the breeding season... Every ordinary birdwatcher has the potential to become a "scientist" who guards birds and protects nature. This is something both meaningful and enjoyable.

This book carries a great deal of information, yet reading it never feels tiring. Each bird's distinguishing features are "slapped" in front of you by the author in the most intuitive way — the color of the eyebrow stripe, the spots on the wings, the shape of the tail feathers — you get it at a glance. Paired with the little expressions and little gestures that make the corners of your mouth curl up, one look and you will not forget it. This is also the author's unique skill: turning professional ornithological knowledge into pictures you can understand at a glance and want to look at again after finishing. The earlier Wilderness Notes and Waiting for Birds in Chongqing had this very flavor, and this new book is even more fun, with content that is even more "capable."

There is one more interesting thing. Recent scientific research has found that birdwatching and listening to birdsong can improve the state of your brain, reduce anxiety, sharpen concentration, and leave the whole person relaxed. In this fast-paced era, birdwatching is something that lets you unwind and gain something at the same time. No professional background needed, no expensive equipment needed, no need to set aside dedicated time — open the window, step outside, and wait for the birds. It is that simple.

(The author is a professor and vice dean of the School of Ecology at Sun Yat-sen University.)

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A Dialogue Across Time and Space Under the Starry Sky (Preface and Postscript)

By: 齐 锐

In my work popularizing astronomy, I am often asked: "Stars are inherently undifferentiated, so why is there a distinction between Chinese star officials and Western constellations?" This question speaks to the core of star culture — the starry sky is not merely a collection of celestial bodies, but rather different civilizations' understanding of the universe, their reflections on life, and their construction of social order.

Speaking of star culture, the Western constellation system has long been familiar to the general public. Its origins can be traced back to the Mesopotamian civilization more than 4,000 years ago; subsequently, the ancient Greeks incorporated mythological legends into it, ultimately forming 48 classical constellations. In 1928, the International Astronomical Union designated 88 constellations across the entire sky, a system still in use today. But the starry sky as seen through the eyes of ancient Chinese people was an entirely different realm — here there were no battles among the gods of mythology, but rather a "star system" deeply bound to human social order and cultural genes.

The ancients "transferred" the social structure, scenes of daily life, and bureaucratic systems of the earthly realm completely to the heavens: the Purple Forbidden Enclosure (紫微垣) is the palace of the Heavenly Emperor, corresponding to the Forbidden City on earth; the Supreme Palace Enclosure (太微垣) is the court hall of governance, where star officials such as the "Three Dukes" and "Nine Ministers" are arrayed, symbolizing the order of statecraft; the Heavenly Market Enclosure (天市垣) is the marketplace of the heavens, with its "rows of shops" and "butcher stalls," reflecting the myriad facets of ancient society. Every star and every star official has its prototype in the human world; the starry sky became a "mirror" through which the ancients understood society and reflected upon life.

What is even more exquisite is the rigorous and orderly "systematicity" of the Chinese starry sky. With the "Three Enclosures and Twenty-Eight Mansions" (三垣二十八宿) as the framework, the entire sky is divided with clear organization. The "Three Enclosures" occupy the northern sky, forming the core region of the starry heavens with clear hierarchy; the "Twenty-Eight Mansions" are distributed along the ecliptic and celestial equator, encircling the heavens like a "star belt," and are further divided by direction into the Four Symbols — the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise — corresponding respectively to the succession of the four seasons. By observing the rising and setting and positions of the Four Symbols, the ancients could precisely determine the agricultural calendar and formulate the annual calendar. This systematic wisdom of deeply binding celestial phenomena with natural rhythms and production and daily life is rarely seen in the Western constellation system.

The Chinese starry sky is not only a unique system of astronomical knowledge, but also the root of Chinese civilization. From the marriage scene of "three stars in the sky" in the Book of Songs, to Du Fu's lament on separation, "In human life we do not meet again; our movements are like the stars Shen and Shang"; from the layout of the Forbidden City in Beijing, which takes its image from the Purple Forbidden Enclosure and "models Heaven and patterns Earth" (象天法地), to the concept of "correspondence between Heaven and humanity" (天人相应) in the Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine; even the Book of Changes, foremost of all classics, resonates with the Chinese starry sky — the "Twelve Waxing-and-Waning Hexagrams" (十二消息卦) correspond to the twelve months of the year, integrating the movements of the stars, the flow of seasonal phenomena, the succession of solar terms, and human affairs into one.

This book takes the "Three Enclosures and Twenty-Eight Mansions" as its skeleton, unfolding an interpretation of ancient traditional star culture. Beginning with the origins of the Four Symbols, it traces how the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise marked the changes of time and space. It analyzes how the Twenty-Eight Mansions became the cornerstone for dividing celestial regions and formulating calendars. It presents the ancient concept of "founding capitals in imitation of Heaven" (象天设都) embodied in the three enclosures — the Purple Forbidden, Supreme Palace, and Heavenly Market. We also explore the cultural connotations behind celestial phenomena, interspersing comparisons between Chinese and Western constellations to help readers understand the traditional star system.

The best way to read this book is to combine text with practice. While savoring the cultural stories behind the star officials, step outdoors and look up at the night sky, verifying the knowledge in the book through actual observation. When you identify the corresponding traditional celestial phenomena in the starry sky of each season, you will deeply appreciate the wisdom of the ancients in "observing the patterns of Heaven to discern the changes of the times" (观乎天文，以察时变), and feel the wondrous connection between traditional culture and the natural universe.

(The author is Deputy Director of the Beijing Planetarium and Director of the Beijing Ancient Observatory. This article is the preface to the book Chinese Starry Sky: Chinese Culture in the River of Stars (《中国星空：星河里的中华文化》); this edition has been abridged, and the title was added by the editors.)

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From Feathers to Sugar, Trading Across the Globe (Beyond the Pages)

By: 张乐天

In global trade and exchange, a group of Yiwu people from rural backgrounds and without much formal education have created the celebrated story of "buying globally, selling globally," prompting us to rethink the process of globalization. The book Going Global: Stories of Yiwu Merchants in the Global Market selects nine representative figures and, through personal oral accounts, analyzes "who they are" and "why they succeed," giving readers a glimpse of new developments in globalization.

In December 2025, Ding En, an African merchant, released a short video titled "The Golden Hub in My Eyes": 15 years ago, he came to Yiwu alone; now he has a team, and his goods are sold to 16 African countries. He said: "We have built a global hub. This hub is not only about business, but also about life."

Unlike the imagined "high-end" globalization, Yiwu merchants reach every corner of the world through small commodities, directly entering the daily lives of ordinary people. When we listen to Yiwu friends tell their ups and downs in going global, we feel that past theories of globalization are somewhat like scratching an itch through the boot — missing the burning, warm human touch of everyday life. Thus, we have opened a new perspective for interpreting globalization, namely the "life-world": going global is itself the construction of a dynamic, cross-cultural, pluralistic life-world with its own distinct style.

From this perspective, this book is not a business manual, but a revelation of cultural exchange. The protagonists' paths to going global differ, yet their successes share similar cultural factors.

Hearts connect. In January 2025, I went to Dubai to interview Yiwu businesspeople. After dinner one evening, a merchant walked up to me and offered to help me leave. Somewhat surprised, I said: "My legs are fine; no need to help." He said: "Be careful — we should care for the elderly. Grandma said so…" Afterward, "Grandma said" echoed in my ears several times. Hearing more stories, I seemed to grasp the code of Yiwu people going global: they are good people, and good people are accepted by the majority. Their success relies not only on business skills, but also on traditional virtues such as honesty, loyalty, and kindness to others. And no matter how great the differences in race, ethnicity, or skin color, and no matter where people come from, everyone recognizes the shared human values of goodness, beauty, integrity, and loyalty, which form the "foundation" of sincere communication.

Reason is the same. In short, "when in Rome, do as the Romans do" in daily interpersonal interactions and "acting according to the rules" in economic and trade activities — because local customs are highly complex, achieving both is not easy. Those going global must have empathy: not only must they "stand in the same position" as others, but they must also "express empathy" for local culture to achieve effective communication. In Mexico City, we heard Yiwu people bargaining with local residents; in Dubai, we saw Yiwu people embedding local culture into their products to make them highly popular; and we saw Yiwu cargo owners shuttling through customs with their goods… Once interaction begins, it transcends one-way "obedience" and "compliance," becoming a deep dialogue between different cultures.

Interests are shared. From the nine going-global stories, we read the vitality of the traditional wisdom of "exchanging chicken feathers for sugar." First, do not seek exorbitant profits, but seek the best cost-performance ratio. Among Yiwu's sugar traders, there is a saying called "enter four, exit six" — meaning that when you earn 100 yuan, you should think about giving 60 yuan to others, so that you can always have the opportunity to earn 100 yuan. This is the spirit of sharing in business: being willing to share profits and help partners in order to promote one's own commercial success. In Dubai and Mexico City, Yiwu merchants carefully price every commodity to achieve the best cost-performance ratio. This "sharing of interests" rooted in "exchanging chicken feathers for sugar" has won them the favor of customers worldwide, achieving small profits but quick turnover. Second, do not seek monopoly, but seek broad business networks. In the past, Yiwu people carried shoulder-pole loads and traveled the world, making friends widely and building networks — this was called "opening four doors." Today, "opening four doors" has been carried forward in going global. Around 2013, Dubai merchants came directly to Yiwu to purchase small commodities, competing with the Chinese wholesale business, but the latter did not "encircle and intercept" them; instead, they pushed themselves to transform toward retail. Such pioneering can be described as: "Those who seek only private gain will surely lose; those who keep others in mind will ultimately profit."

At present, the globalization process is encountering a backlash wave. Summarizing the experience and lessons of Yiwu merchants "going global" can strengthen our confidence. Viewing globalization from the perspective of the life-world, as people and small commodities move with increasing speed, many living communities that previously had little connection to global trade are integrating into the "global village." A future of shared beauty and harmony is worth striving for.

(The author is a professor at the School of Social Development and Public Policy, Fudan University.)

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New Book Shelf

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Zhang Mingse

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