A bullet train carrying foreign leaders from Tianjin, this year’s SCO summit host city, sped towards Beijing for China’s V-Day parade. Outside the windows stretched the vast North China Plain.
Bathed in a crisp breeze, endless fields of green swayed gently like waves in a quiet dance. Further north on the horizon, lush spruce and larch trees stood bright under the blazing sunshine.
A greener land
Decades ago, the view would have been different: sparse vegetation often meant dusty skies and sandstorms in northern Hebei.
The change began when local communities partnered with forest farms, adopting a shareholding model to plant and maintain new woodlands. Herders, once dependent on livestock, gradually recognized how traditional grazing was degrading the fragile ecosystem. Thanks to patient outreach and dialogue, many came to embrace tree-planting as a more sustainable path forward. Over time, the forests took root and thrived.
A few years ago, a forest farm in Hebei was listed on the China Beijing Environment Exchange and secured the country’s first cross-regional carbon trading deal. Villagers were surprised to learn that trees could become treasures. The flourishing forests also boosted local tourism, providing extra income to households that once struggled to make ends meet. As part of China’s shelterbelt afforestation program for sand control in the north, this forest has not only fulfilled but exceeded its mission.
Such stories of eco-friendly poverty alleviation are becoming increasingly common across China.
Dujie, a sturdy Tibetan from the highland of Shangri-La in southwestern China, lives within the boundaries of Pudacuo National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site. His daily view includes river deer drinking leisurely by azure lakes and snow leopards prowling through their territories.
But life was not always this peaceful. In the late 1990s, Dujie and his community relied on logging and hunting to get by. Each year, more trees disappeared, and wildlife grew wary. Money was tight—by the end of a season, he earned barely 4,000 yuan, hardly enough to survive.
Things began to change in the early 2000s, when plans for a national park took shape. Conservation areas and wildlife preserves were later set up.
The government’s concern wasn’t just ecological: people’s well-being was equally important. Besides subsidies, the park administration offered jobs to Dujie and other villagers who once lived off the land. He became a ranger and his wife took a cleaning job at the park. Their annual income jumped almost twenty-fold.
A better life
Like Dujie, tens of millions across China have risen out of poverty. While some regions pursue eco-friendly poverty alleviation initiatives, others have found prosperity through selling traditional handicrafts, leveraging e-commerce to market local specialties, or working in newly built industrial parks.
Roads, highways and a sprawling railway network now link megacities to small villages across the country, bringing markets closer. Greener industrial parks create jobs, cut costs, and spur economic growth. Experts from cities partner with remote communities to share knowledge on farming, environmental protection, and public health.
One size doesn’t fit all. The government tailors strategies to local conditions:
In Qinghai’s western deserts, a sea of solar panels now stretches across once-barren land. Southern Yunnan glows with eco-friendly tea plantations. Around Hunan’s Dongting Lake, fishing nets have given way to tourist cameras—and grass carp thrive once again.
Throughout the country, no school-age child is left behind. Homes stay warm in winter; taps run with clean water; food, clothing, and safe shelter are now a given.
Over the past 40 years, close to 800 million Chinese people have gone above the World Bank’s international poverty line of US$1.9 per day.
On the horizon
Although China met its poverty reduction target on schedule by the end of 2020, its efforts to combat poverty have not slowed down.
Key poverty alleviation policies remain firmly in place. Effective mechanisms have been established to prevent people from falling back into poverty. Those relocated from inhospitable areas receive stronger follow-up support. Tailored assistance continues to boost local industries and create jobs. The government is also strengthening employment support.
In the first three quarters of 2024, the disposable income of residents in formerly impoverished counties reached 12,384 yuan, up by 6.5 percent year-on-year. The figure says a lot about the Chinese government’s sustained commitment to eradicating poverty for good.
Green mountains are gold mountains. Through consistent and innovative policies, the Chinese government is diligently pursuing this visionary development strategy.
The benefits of this transition continue to unfold: As China shifts towards a new low-carbon growth model, the Chinese people are enjoying both a healthier environment and an improved quality of life.
(Xin Ping is a commentator on international affairs, writing regularly for Xinhua News Agency, Global Times, China Daily, CGTN etc. He can be reached at xinping604@gmail.com.)
原文地址：http://en.people.cn/n3/2025/0922/c90000-20369226.html