From Surviving to Thriving: Chinese City Fortifies the “Great Green Wall” Located in the heart of the desolate Gobi Desert in northwest China, the city of Dunhuang has faced centuries of harsh environmental conditions. Once a bustling trading hub along the Silk Road, sandstorms threatened to engulf the city and its inhabitants. To combat this formidable threat, the people of Dunhuang have embarked on an ambitious project known as the “Great Green Wall.” This massive afforestation initiative aims to create a protective barrier of vegetation around the city, effectively reducing the impact of sandstorms. For decades, countless trees and shrubs have been planted along the city’s perimeter. Species carefully selected for their resilience have been introduced, such as poplars, willows, and desert cypresses. Over time, these plants have formed a dense network that acts as a natural windbreak, capturing sand particles before they reach the city. The Great Green Wall has proven to be a resounding success. Sandstorms have dramatically decreased in frequency and intensity, providing significant relief to Dunhuang’s residents. The city’s air quality has also improved, with reduced levels of particulate matter. Furthermore, the Great Green Wall has had a transformative impact on the city’s economy. The abundance of greenery has attracted tourists, who come to witness the marvel of this desert oasis. Additionally, the afforestation efforts have created new opportunities for local farmers, who now cultivate vegetables and fruits within the protective embrace of the wall. Today, Dunhuang is a thriving city that has not only survived but thrived in the midst of the sand. The Great Green Wall stands as a testament to the indomitable spirit of the Chinese people and their ability to harness nature for the benefit of humanity. As the world grapples with the challenges of climate change and desertification, Dunhuang’s success story serves as an inspiration. It demonstrates that with careful planning and unwavering determination, even the most desolate environments can be transformed into places of life and prosperity.Through persistent efforts spanning several decades, Zhongwei in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, located at the southern edge of the Tengger Desert, has recovered 1.5 million mu (about 100,000 hectares) of its total 1,68 million mu of desert through afforestation. This effort has expanded its vegetation cover from less than 1 percent to the current 42 percent, effectively pushing back the Tengger Desert by 25 kilometers.Through persistent efforts spanning several decades, Zhongwei in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, located at the southern edge of the Tengger Desert, has recovered 1.5 million mu (about 100,000 hectares) of its total 1,68 million mu of desert through afforestation. This effort has expanded its vegetation cover from less than 1 percent to the current 42 percent, effectively pushing back the Tengger Desert by 25 kilometers. In addition to making notable progress in desert control, the city has taken advantage of the remaining 180,000 mu of desert to develop tourism, photovoltaic, desert farming and farming industries, lifting many out of poverty and improving the livelihoods of the locals. As World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought approaches, it is worth taking a closer look at Zhongwei’s journey from combating desertification to prosperity amid the sands. The city, through its innovative desert control and exploitation practices, stands as a microcosm of the country’s ambitious Three North Protective Belt Forest Program (TSFP), initiated in 1978 to combat desertification. Zhongwei, which serves as a key focal point along the shelterbelt, plays a crucial role as an ecological barrier for northern and northwest China, as well as the middle-upper reaches of the Yellow River. China is among the countries most severely affected by desertification, with desertified areas mainly concentrated in the northwest, north and northeast regions, collectively known as the “three norths.” To combat this challenge, China has proposed transforming the TSFP into a robust and durable “Great Green Wall” and ecological security barrier across the entire north of the country. REINFORCE THE “GREAT GREEN WALL” “When I was a primary school student, a sandstorm broke out one day when I was walking home from school. The strong winds blew many of my classmates into a nearby ditch, and some even lost their lives,” said Tang Ximing, a 60-year-old senior engineer at a state forestry farm in Zhongwei. While Ningxia is surrounded by desert on three sides, Zhongwei is the most affected city and highly vulnerable to sandstorm catastrophes. In 1958, when a railway through Zhongwei was opened to traffic, foreign experts predicted that it would be inundated with sand in less than 30 years. The railway was the first in the country to cross a desert. To protect the rail route, the city embarked on a desert mitigation journey. Scientists at the Shapotou Desert Research and Experimental Station, part of the Northwest Institute of Environment and Ecological Resources of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, together with local residents, developed straw boards to stabilize the sand and prevent the dunes from moving. By partially burying a layer of thatch in sand, the thatch “stands up” as a barrier. When connected into square-shaped grids, these straws form an extensive “checkerboard” that effectively blocks the sand like a giant mesh. Seedlings planted within these checkerboards have significantly higher chances of survival. Tang’s life is intertwined with the desert. Once eager to escape his sand-ravaged hometown, he was assigned a job as a forestry engineer in Zhongwei after graduating from university. Accepting the challenge, he has dedicated himself to transforming his hometown. Planting a tree in the desert is a great challenge, even with the support of straw boards, due to the short reach of the root system. Based on his experiences, Tang has created a steel tool that differs from normal shovels by having two horizontal bars at the front tip. This innovative tool allows you to plant seedling roots 50 centimeters deep in the moist sand layer. This simple tool increases the survival rate of forestry from 25 percent to more than 85 percent. It has been widely promoted and used in forestry projects in other regions of northern China. Tang has also worked together with researchers to develop an improved version of straw boards that can be mass-produced using machinery, thus extending the lifespan of these sand barriers. Tang is one of many Chinese researchers and grassroots sand control practitioners who have committed their professional experience, practical wisdom and strenuous efforts to strengthening the “Green Great Wall.”From Surviving to Thriving: Chinese City Fortifies “Great Green Wall” In the heart of China’s arid Taklamakan Desert, the ancient city of Dunhuang has transformed itself from a mere outpost into a thriving oasis, thanks to the ambitious “Great Green Wall” project. Over the past three decades, the city has planted over 2 million trees and shrubs, creating a lush barrier against the relentless winds and shifting sands. This “green shield” has not only protected the city but has also improved its air quality and water supply. The “Great Green Wall” initiative, launched in the 1970s, aimed to combat desertification and improve the living conditions in China’s arid regions. Dunhuang became a key battleground in this fight against the encroaching desert. Initially, the afforestation project faced numerous challenges, including extreme weather conditions and a lack of water. However, scientists and engineers developed innovative techniques to overcome these obstacles, such as drip irrigation and drought-tolerant plant species. Today, Dunhuang stands as a testament to the power of human ingenuity. The once-barren landscape has been transformed into a vibrant ecosystem, attracting a diverse range of wildlife and providing sustainable livelihoods for local communities. The success of the “Great Green Wall” in Dunhuang has inspired similar initiatives in other arid regions of China and beyond. It demonstrates that with determination and collaboration, even the most inhospitable environments can be turned into places of life and prosperity.