October 2009

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From Seed to the Table

October 30, 2009 in Food, On the Road, WildChina Experts by Heather.Graham | 3 comments

Upon reflection, as a ‘city girl’, I guess I never thought much about where my food came from. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I knew apples grew on trees, and a pumpkin had to be way too heavy for that, so most likely grew on a vine … and I even had a mini (albeit fairly unsuccessful) veggie patch in my inner-city Melbourne share house. In fact, to be completely honest, friends of mine back home would probably testify that I investigate the origin of my food more than most, having chosen long ago the life of a ‘pescetarian’ (seafood eating vegetarian) for ethical reasons. However, my knowledge, until now, has been intellectual rather than experience based.

Autumn in Huayang, Shaanxi

Autumn in Huayang, Shaanxi

Living, working and exercising in the town of Huayang has allowed me to watch my dinner grow before my very eyes. I have seen the full process, from seed to harvest of some of my favourite vegetables and grains – including eggplants, corn, pumpkin, beans, carrots, rice and wheat to name just a few. It has had a profound affect upon me, and while saying it is a spiritual experience may be taking it too far, at times it has certainly felt like it.  In the cities of the ‘wealthy west’ so often we fill our days and lives with the pursuit of meaningless things … and to watch farmers at work and vegetables slowly growing through the seasons is a nice reminder of our life sustaining needs and the hard work and reliance upon the elements that is required to obtain these necessities.

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Beijing International Tourism Festival

October 29, 2009 in Culture, Holidays and Festivals by Alex E | No comments

This last weekend celebrated the 11th annual Beijing International Tourism festival. The festival featured regional drum performances and a parade of floats from each of the 18 districts and counties in Beijing.

Drum Procession at the Opening Ceremony

Drum Performance at the Opening Ceremony

Attendance at the festival reached record levels, accompanying a 20% increase in tourism to Beijing since last year. This number is all the more impressive since the Olympics took place in 2008. The festival’s closing ceremony highlights China’s penchant for ornate performance. To see the closing ceremony, click here.

The Olympics were Beijing’s debutante ball, earning it recognition as a global metropolis and the focal point of China’s history. In the post Olympic era, Beijing is creating a new draw for tourism by emphasizing its ancient roots and cultural significance.

How can you save money when traveling to China with an iPhone?

October 29, 2009 in Travel Tips by Mei | No comments

I learned how expensive it is to use my Iphone in China, the hard way!

When I landed at Beijing airport and turned on my iPhone, the first text message popped up:
AT&T Free Msg: International data rate of $19.97/MB applies. Unlimited domestic data rate plan does NOT apply in this location.

I thought to myself, well, I am just checking a couple of emails and I don’t usually open those attachments, so how expensive can that be? So, I stupidly kept the roaming function ON for just the next 3 days. The usage charge for that month, which used to average a few cents every month, came to $350.

So, when in China. turn off your iPhone data roaming function. I found this link offering some very practical advice. http://forums.wireless.att.com/cng/board/messageboard.id=international&message.id=10365#M10365

Here’s a summary of what to do with your iPhone when traveling to China:
Turn Data Roaming “OFF”: Be sure to download and install the latest version of iPhone software from iTunes. By default, this setting for international data roaming will be in the “OFF” position.
To turn data roaming “ON/OFF” tap on Settings>General>Network>Data Roaming
Utilize Wi-Fi Instead of 3G/GPRS/EDGE: Wi-Fi is available in many international airports, hotels and restaurants to browse the web or check email.
Turn Fetch New Data “OFF”: Check email and sync contacts and calendars manually instead of having the data pushed to your iPhone automatically. This way you can control the flow of data coming to your iPhone.
To turn off the Auto-Check functionality tap on Settings>Fetch New Data, change Push to “OFF” and Select to Fetch Manually
Consider Purchasing an International Data Package: Purchasing an international data package can significantly reduce the cost of using data abroad. AT&T now offers four discount international data packages. The 20 MB package is $24.99 per month, the 50 MB package is $59.99 per month, 100 MB package is $119.99 per month, and the 200 MB package is $199.99 per month. See att.com/worldpackages for details and international roaming rates.
Reset the Usage Tracker to Zero: When you arrive overseas access the usage tracker in the general settings menu & select reset statistics. This will enable you to track your estimated data usage.
To reset Usage Tracker to Zero tap on Settings>General>Usage>Reset

China’s Next Generation

October 28, 2009 in Culture by Mei | No comments

I must be out of touch with China’s next generation. The son of a friend of mine called me up for some advice on career. This is how the conversation went:
Son of a Friend (SOF), “Shall I pursue a PHD in engeering?”

Mei, “That depends on what you goal is. What do you want to achieve? What is your goal?”

SOF, “To make money!”

Mei, “Hummm, tell me why that’s so important for you?”

SOF, “well, last time when I was in Beijing, I went to a dinner with my father to entertain a retired chief of China’s Central Bank. He was driving a Nissan, which couldn’t have cost more than 50,000 RMB. I felt really sorry for him. There is such huge difference between being in power and not being in power. I am sure when he was the central banker, he was surrounded and served by tons of people. So, I decided that being a government official is not what I wanted in life. Making money is the best way to go.”

Mei, “ Why do you think a PHD would help you get closer to your goal of making money?”

SOF, “I plan to go back to China to work in transportation engineering. Those are all government projects. So, I have to be chosen by someone in power to win those projects. I believe they would choose the ones with a good resume, good degree from one of the well known schools.”

Mei, “Well, let me tell you what. PHD is probably a long winded way to get to your goal of making money. Being someone who has a good degree from one of the famous school (yes, I do have a Harvard MBA), I know, a good degree might help to open the door for you. But whether you make money or dirt inside the door is entirely dependent on who you are and what you can deliver. “

The snap shot might only provide a snap shot of our conversation, which I am sure didn’t help his decision making. But, it had a huge effect on me. I couldn’t stop asking myself, what’s wrong with me? Just becoming too old fashioned or has money sucked the air of China’s next generation?

Improving Local Practices in Southwest China, Part III: Resource Management Techniques in Jiuzhaigou National Park

October 28, 2009 in On the Road by Alex E | No comments

WildChina recently embarked on a series of initiatives to improve local practices in rural areas in southwest China. This is the final section of the three part series examining efforts to improve life for those in rural areas and the technologies that enable a better standard of living.

Jiuzhaigou National Park sits in the rugged West of Sichuan at 2000 meters elevation on the edge of Tibet. This cluster of virgin mixed forests is home to several endangered animals; giant pandas and golden snub-nosed monkeys traverse amongst the limestone cliffs and the effervescent blue lakes. Despite its natural beauty, Jiuzhaigou has had a tenuous history. It was discovered in the early 1970s, and hurt by large-scale logging efforts. Jiuzhaigou was declared a national park in 1978, and the park’s ecological restoration began.

Leaves turn magificent colors over a crystal lake

Leaves turn magnificent colors over a crystal lake in Autumn

Jiuzhaigou established a formal relationship with Yosemite National Park in 2006 to promote international cooperation that benefits both parks.

WildChina accompanied the Yosemite team on their first official sister park visit to Jiuzhaigou in 2009. On this trip, Yosemite preservationists completed a four day survey trek through Jiuzhaigou valley. Through these trips and related efforts, the sister parks aim to share resource management techniques and cooperate to preserve natural biodiversity. Read the rest of this entry »

Improving Local Practices in Southwest China, Part II: Bio-toilets in Sichuan Province

October 27, 2009 in On the Road, Sichuan-Earthquake by Alex E | No comments

WildChina recently embarked on a series of initiatives to improve local practices in rural areas in southwest China. This is the second of a three part series examining efforts to improve life for those in rural areas and the technologies that enable a better standard of living.

At the upper reaches of the Minjiang river and the edge of the Tibetan plateau sits Shenxi village, the remote home to a group of Chinese villagers. Shenxi village, an hour hike from the nearest paved road, seems a world apart from the rest of civilization. However, the activities of this town profoundly influence the rest of Sichuan province and surrounding areas. Shenxi village sits atop the Sichuan water basin, which stores water runoff from the Himalayas and supplies vital water to Sichuan and regions downriver.

Water cleanliness is a persistent issue for China’s water lifelines that carry snowmelt from the Himalayas eastward to the Pacific Ocean, from which one quarter of China’s population drinks contaminated water every day, according to the United Nations (PDF). These issues with water cleanliness are often the result of unsanitary conditions and practices in human settlements that border major rivers.

Seperated by only a mountain from the epicenter of last year’s earthquake, Shenxi village was devastated by the damage it inflicted. Aside from the toll on human life, many of the buildings in Shenxi collapsed outright and those still standing suffered heavy damage. Villagers who returned to Shenxi village after the earthquake rebuilt their homes with the limited resources available, and the result was a village that lacked adequate sanitation. WildChina recently completed a three day project building bio-friendly toilets in this area.

Students and Villager in front of completed toilet

Students and Villager in front of completed toilet

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Improving Local Practices in Southwest China, Part I: Developing a Model Village for Sustainable Peri-Urban Development in Anlong, Sichuan

October 26, 2009 in On the Road, Sichuan-Earthquake by Alex G | No comments

WildChina recently embarked on a series of initiatives to improve local practices in areas that we visit. This is the first of a three-part series examining efforts to improve life for those in rural Southwest China, and the technologies that enable a better standard of living.

Imagine a beautiful, rural, riverside village that serves as a living relic of China’s traditional agricultural history. Then imagine the trash and pollution that clouts this image – unmanaged sewage, outdated farming practices, and unsanitary living conditions, to name a few.

In China’s poor rural communities, scenes like this are all too common. However, organizations such as the Chengdu Urban Rivers Association (CURA), a Sichuan-based NGO, are working to change this by building sustainable development practices in these communities from the ground up. In one such community, CURA hopes to make a model of sustainable development that can be applied to similar rural areas of China. WildChina recently had the exciting opportunity to bring a group of school children from Beijing to engage in this endeavor, specifically to conduct water testing as well as improve water and sanitation technologies.

 

A student cleans a new eco-toilet facility, built by students on WildChina's service learning trip to Anlong in Sichuan province.

A new eco-toilet facility, built by students on WildChina's service learning trip to Anlong, Sichuan province.

Located along the banks of the Zou Ma River (one of the Fu-Nan Rivers) near Chengdu, Anlong was once a community plagued by severe water pollution as a result of livestock, chemical fertilizer, and more. Although efforts in the mid-1990s cleaned up the rivers to some degree, the Fu-Nan Rivers Comprehensive Revitalization Project was not entirely effective. As such, communities like Anlong still needed help to rid themselves of pollution and contamination.

CURA has been working with the Anlong community to develop sustainable practices for farming, sanitation, and development. 

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China’s World Heritage

October 23, 2009 in Travel Tips, WildChina Experts, WildChina on the Web by Anita | No comments

China has 38 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, a designation that can sometimes be both a blessing and a curse to these cultural and natural areas due to the influx of tourists. So how can we ensure responsible travel in these sites? WildChina Founder Mei Zhang and The Nature Conservancy (TNC)’s Lulu Zhou tackled this issue on air today during Let’s Travel!, a weekly, global radio talk show hosted by New York-based Susan Raphael.  

First Bend of Yangtze River, Yunnan

First Bend of Yangtze River, Yunnan

Lulu, who oversees sustainable tourism and environmental education projects in Yunnan’s Three Parallel Rivers World Heritage Site, pointed out a major difference between protected areas  in the U.S. and China: whereas in the U.S., no communities reside inside national parks, in China, it’s a different story. In the Three Parallel Rivers area (named after a mountainous region in southwest China where three of Asia’s mightiest rivers, the Yangtze, Mekong and Salween, run parallel), almost 300,000 people reside in the site, with 36,000 people within the core zone. Since relocation of these communities isn’t an option, it’s key to engage the communities themselves in conservation work to help preserve the site. 

Mei agreed, noting that a change in mindset and an education process are required. At WildChina, we hire and train local guides for our journeys, who benefit directly by providing high-end, sustainable travel services. This training allows us to practice green travel, particularly in hiking trips – for instance, we emphasize responsible outdoor practices, such as Leave No Trace, where travelers “pack it in, pack it out.”

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The Tropical South

October 22, 2009 in On the Road, WildChina Experts by Heather.Graham | 2 comments

A deadly cocktail of sun, sand, rainforests, tropical fruits, mojitos, motorbikes, minority villages and street food has distracted me from writing my fourth blog … No, I’m not talking about the Hawaii or even Bali – believe it or not, still China! Hainan Island to be precise.

Ri Yue Wan, Eastern Coast, Hainan

Ri Yue Wan, Eastern Coast, Hainan

The staff at Changqing Reserve work weekends, and the vast majority of them are living away from their families. This means that each month we work approximately three weeks ‘on’ and then get a week ‘off’. So after the Golden Week concluded we all took off – most to see their families, however me to see more of China. I LOVE travelling around China … its quite easily one of my favourite things in the world to do. Every trip is a new and exciting experience. In fact, it recently occurred to me that I threw out expectations on these mini-breaks long ago and now just eagerly await adventure. As a UK friend of mine said recently in his travel blog “No matter where you are, what you’re doing, who you’re with, there’s this feeling that something specials going to happen. It’s hard to explain but visit and you’ll see for yourselves. There is nowhere quite like China.”

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WildChina on Let’s Travel! Radio (Oct. 22, 12 pm EST)

October 22, 2009 in In the News, WildChina Experts by Anita | No comments

You’ve read our blog – now hear us on the radio! On Thursday, Oct. 22, from 12:00 – 1:00 pm EST in the U.S., tune into Let’s Travel!, a weekly, global radio talk show hosted by New York-based Susan Raphael (visit NY Talk Radio.net for live streaming). This week’s show features WildChina Founder Mei Zhang and The Nature Conservancy’s Lulu Zhou on the topic of responsible travel in China, with discussion on some of our favorite areas: Yunnan and Sichuan.

Let’s Travel! focuses on the world of travel and culture. Through a partnership with the United Nations Foundation’s World Heritage Alliance, which supports World Heritage conservation and sustainable tourism, Let’s Travel! broadcasts a monthly segment on World Heritage.

There will be an encore broadcast of the show on Saturday, Oct. 24 at 6:00 pm EST. Check back here for the podcast!

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