Minorities & Modernity

Green Alliance of Universi- ties for a Sustainable Future（GAUSF）， a research and teaching alliance， is breaching boundaries in its bid to establish an international platform for eco-civilization construction and education. A GAUSF group of more than 50， who landed in Guizhou University has， after an orientation program， set out on a field trip across villages and small cities in southeastern Guizhou.

Initiated in 2014， GAUSF includes 12 universities from China， America， Israel， Germany， Japan， Britain and Australia. The exploration started with a series of intensive lectures in Guizhou University. The participants are lecturers， students， researchers and activists from different countries with diverse backgrounds. Some of them majored in areas of science and technology such as environmental and materials engineering， agronomy， and forestry， while others are from social science streams such as philosophy， political science， and history. Some of them are graduates undecided on their next step， while others are PhD scholars working in specialized areas. What they all share is curiosity about minority culture， village life and local wisdom on eco-sustainability in Guizhou Province.

The group’s multi-disciplinary background and global outlook was evident during the QA session， students’ discussion， and interpretations and understanding of the summer in southeastern Guizhou.

The Karst Experience

Their exploration started with a visit to Karst Ecological System Observation and Research Station of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Puding County. Here， Prof. Zhang made a presentation that focused on two working programs： one on how to improve plant coverage in the typical stony and arid regions of Puding； the other on how to collect and save water for irrigation in highland farming.

The projects on Karst are designed to take advantage of the mountainous landscape where local resources have played an important role in combining environmental protection and economic development. In Puding， the research station joined hands with the local government to provide funding for farmers and for further research.

The students， who walked to a village near Yelang along with the administrative officer， were interested in the local experience in growing “Suosai Peach.” This is a popular peach variety that has helped improve the living standards in the area.

The students had animated discussions on the nature and impact of modernization.“During the field visit， we have found that the local people actually long for a modern life. With modernization， everybody enjoys better income and living standards. But shouldn’t there be some reflection on the process and changes it might bring about？”a student from Berlin-based Free University asked.

Taste of Minority Culture

After the visit to the village and research station， the GAUSF group moved to Congjiang， a minority county in southeastern Guizhou. The ‘minority culture’trip began with a cultural performance in Xiaohuang Dong Minority Village， after which they proceeded to Huanggang Dong Village for observing the everyday life of the inhabitants. Following the trip in Huanggang， they drove to Basha Miao Village. Thereafter， the group was exposed to another minority group， known as Miao， by being taken to a typical Miao village. This village， funded by the local government， also receives international assistance including from the World Bank. The daily life， including funeral and festival rites， of the Miao ethnic group is documented and exhibited for the benefit of tourists.

The exposure to minorities was followed by a visit to Jiabang Terrace. Here， Prof. Li from Peking University gave a lecture on a mistake made by villagers in the 1980s. They had cut all the trees that were planted near the terrace in pursuit of a decision to plant another type of sticky rice for improving productivity. But， it didn’t work. On the contrary， production fell steeply and the failed experiment cost local people all the terrace trees.

The field trip concluded in Zhenyuan Ancient County， where the students were impressed by the structure of the ancient city and a lecture on traditional Guizhou food.

The experience in southeastern Guizhou was an eye-opener for the group on the transformation in China’s countryside especially in the minority region. This emerged in the concluding session where reports were presented and discussed. Some of the points made in this session merit closer attention and reflection.

One of the students pointed out that much attention was given to villages， while cities are ignored. But villages are not closed communities； they are closely connected to cities. For example， in Huanggang Dong Village， many young villagers are working in the cities， and most return only once a year. Villages operate along with cities and interact closely with cities even when the villages are geographically far away.

For people who have never experienced village life， it’s easy to imagine them in a simplified way， either as living Utopia or closed and backward communities. But villages have many facets. Villages are quiet， but it can be difficult to make a living； they are peaceful， but can never change for ages. What most ordinary villagers care about is how to improve their living conditions； and the minority youth look to cities， since cities represent opportunities， better income， and an exciting life. Therefore， it was agreed among the group that villages should be seen as they are for what they are， and their traditions， practices and decisions respected rather than judged.

Minority villagers also expect a better life and more choices as all humans do. The differences between different cultures and ways of living may remain. But minority people should not be viewed as the “other” or as representing “otherness.”“They are our minority groups， and we should value them as a special part of the social diversity，” one of the lecturers from Free University commented.

What is the local wisdom on ecological sustainability？ In one student’s view， “Mi- nority villagers have realized their advantage and their cultural resources to develop and improve local life. For a province with a mountainous terrain landscape and diversified minority culture， they are developing tourism. For villagers living in the high mountains， they are adapting actively to local ground conditions and cultivating on the terrace. This kind of creativeness is what I see as local wisdom.”

Question of Modernization

The summer in southeastern Guizhou was a week-long learning experience. The GAUSF group’s observations touch upon two important issues related to modernization of rural China. One， urban-rural exchanges and consequent economic changes have a huge impact on local ecological sustainability. Two， as posed by a scholar，“Has subjectivity of the minority villagers changed since 1990s when modernization began？ What is their identity now？ Do they still identify with the original living style now？ If not， what are their concerns？”