Nation making great strides in ecological conservation

During her visit to China this month, primatologist Jane Goodall marveled at the significant changes China has achieved in ecological conservation over the past two decades.

"When I first came here, (I saw) all the sandstorms. A lot of them are because of the erosion and the sand being swept away by the wind, because the trees have gone," Goodall recalled her memories when she first came to China in 1998.

"But then there are programs for planting trees, which help hold the soil. The government decided to do something about the environment. It was amazing timing. China has changed a lot. I mean, it changed enormously in the protection of the environment," she said during her stay in Beijing early this month.

This is Goodall's 17th visit to China in over 20 years, and according to her each visit unveils remarkable transformations happening in the country.

The changes over the past 26 years are closely tied to environmental initiatives like the "Three North Shelterbelt Program", said Jia Xiaoxia, deputy director of the Department of Desertification Control at the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.

Initiated in 1978, the program has halved the frequency of sandstorms in northern China over the past decade compared to the previous 30 years.

The program has increased forest coverage in Northwest, North and Northeast China from just above five percent in the 1970s to nearly 14 percent last year, protecting over 30 million hectares of farmland from desert encroachment.

China has achieved zero net land degradation globally, aligning with the United Nations' 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. Desertified and sandy areas have continually experienced "dual reductions", Jia said.

Goodall mentioned that in China, the concept of ecological conservation has deeply penetrated people's minds, leading to more individual's willingness to understand and learn about animal-related knowledge.

"People have understood that saving the environment isn't just for wildlife, it's for them as well. So, the trees are back. You don't see bare hills anymore. In China, people are doing a lot with renewable energy. People are beginning to find ways of living in greater harmony with nature," she said.

"China advocates the idea of taking nature as the foundation, which is a very important concept in China's ecological civilization ideology. That is, to follow nature, respect nature and protect nature," said Guo Zhe, director of the China Science and Technology Museum.