Envelope #3: Open after you have had a particularly productive day related to your fellowship

Prompt: What made this day productive? Was the success more for you, the agency, the community, or another individual?

In answering this prompt, I am thinking back to my second time in Anlong village, when I had the chance to convey what I learned during my first visit to a group of high school students in the program Where There Be Dragons. The students stayed in Anlong for a total of 4 days, getting a taste of rural life as they helped prepare steamed buns for breakfast, did some farm work, and even participated in the nightly plaza dancing. I enjoyed getting to know the bright and enthusiastic students over meals with them, answering their questions while also hearing their own impressions of Anlong. Anlong is the village that CURA has directed much of their environmental efforts these past few years, installing biogas digesters, compost toilets, wetlands, and empowering farmers to switch to organic farming. Though this is just one village among many, it is meant to serve as a model to encourage other villages to follow suit, ultimately improving the water quality of the rivers that serve as the source of drinking water for millions in Sichuan. 

During the group’s time in Anlong, we arranged for them to have the chance to talk with the organic farmers and hear their experiences firsthand. That day, reporters from the local newspaper also came to meet the high school group. On top of that, another group students attending China’s Southwestern University of Finance and Economics also came to the village to implement a project of their own. This made for an especially interesting afternoon conversation as we gathered in the spacious CURA classroom. After a round of introductions, giving the high school students a chance to practice their newly learned Chinese phrases, we moved in to the Q&A session. The students had prepared questions ahead of time, and took turns asking. This is where I came in, translating their questions into Chinese for the panel of farmers, listening to their answers given in Sichuan dialect, and then translating it back into English for the students. It was a bit daunting translating the farmer’s responses; as they were not used to having a translator, they answered the question all at once, rather than stopping to let me translate every few sentences. Nevertheless, it went quite well overall. It was rewarding to know that I was able to help the students, serving as a literal bridge of communication. Seeing the students eyes widen in disbelief as I translated that one of the middle-aged farmers was in fact 73 years old was priceless. Even better was the collaborative environment that afternoon. When one student inquired about the health system in China, one of the reporters piped up and answered her question. This goes to answer the second question—that day the success was shared by all who were present. I considered it productive not only because I had a chance to challenge myself and serve as a translator, but also because I learned a lot from the questions asked and answers posed, as did the students and reporters. And, although the farmers largely answered questions, they enjoyed having the chance to share their experiences with the students—both the good and bad.

The man front and center in the picture is the 73 years old; 

the man in the back left is holding his grandson. In the middle back 

wearing a green shirt is Dong, a CURA staff member. 

 Later that night, the exchange continued as both groups of students joined in the plaza dancing festivities. Given the special visitors, the ladies continued dancing long past their standard 1 to 2 hour routine. Even better, no translation was needed for this activity; the lively synchronized movements and laughter could be understood by students and villagers alike. 

Plaza dancing!

 A particularly capable and bold villager dancing with the women

Envelope #2 : 'Open 3 Days After Your Arrival'

My time with CURA has really flown--I'm due to head back in a matter of weeks! We recently completed our health survey in 水田坪 (shui tian ping) village, leaving me with some down time to contemplate the neatly enveloped Loewenstern prompts.

Prompt: take one hour today to talk with a community member (NOT a non-local staff member from your host agency) about the social issue/research question you are addressing. Take the time to listen to their point of view, without imposing yours. What do they have to say?

Since it's long since past three days after my arrival, I've had more a few hour-long conversations with the people I've encountered. These conversations are not solely limited to the topic of environmentalism, but have spanned over other aspects of society--education, corruption, local culture, Chinese history. One of the first conversations I had specific to the issue of environmentalism was with Yuling, a Rice alum living in Chengdu. While speaking with Dr. Li, a civil and environmental engineering professor at Rice, she put me in contact with Yuling, who now worked with the EPA equivalent in Chengdu.Without much exposure to the issue beforehand, I was eager to learn more, and gained a lot of insight on environmental efforts and perceptions in China from her.

On a sunny Saturday morning, we sat outside a cafe to enjoy the comfortable weather. I learned that Yuling grew up near Chengdu and went to the States for a total of 9 years for her bachelor's and PhD in environmental science. Missing home and the relaxed pace of life, she came back to Chengdu, working with the 'EPA' at the administrative level. She explained the differences she noted between working in the environmental field in China and in America. One of the hardest things to do here was research, given the difficulty in obtaining reliable data. Furthermore, she mentioned the difficulty of getting data or reports from other departments if one did not personally know someone in the department. Rather than emails, QQ was the more prevalent form of communication even at work. This has been true from my own experiences. While I haven't used QQ, WeChat tends to be the more prompt way of reaching someone even if you don't know them, such as when requesting a driver for a day trip.

Regarding environmental awareness among the general public, it's still needs work. All around the city are signs saying something along the lines of being civilized and contributing to society. A good  number are specific to being environmentally-friendly ('Everyone is responsible for protecting the environment'). As I mentioned earlier, most trash cans have both a 'recyclable' and 'non-recyclable' bin. However, it's really just surface level. Posting signs and such are easy to do; changing people's attitudes and outlooks are not. This is where efforts need to be focused. Another common sight in the city are the neon-orange-vested men and women posted on every block, or every 1km of public roads to be exact. Armed with a straw broom and metal dustpan, they're responsible for keeping the street clean of all litter, essentially picking up after people who didn't bother to throw away their trash in the trash can. Thus the reason for the constant reminders--on billboards, on the subway, on the small display banners of taxis--in the hopes of improving the public moral code.

We also discussed how people perceived the pollution in the city and how, if at all, they dealt with it. I had noticed the occasional individual, usually a woman, wearing a face mask in the streets, but they were all the thin blue disposable surgical masks, useless in terms of preventing the inhalation of particulate matter, or PM. I mentioned this to Yuling, and she said the main reason was that they just did not know about proper protection (this NY Times article outlines the situation in further detail). When I asked if this was the government's job to disseminate the information, she thought it should be, but that it likely would not be anytime soon. She felt that the government was structured such that those lower down only did what they were told rather than being self-motivated to address an outstanding problem. Furthermore, the government workers themselves, namely the police were unprotected against such pollution when they directed congested traffic from the middle of the street. Having done research on PM 2.5, or particles less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter, Yuling pointed out that such occupations had high exposure to PM 2.5, considered one of the most damaging for its ability to lodge deep within the lungs. Regarding this issue and need for more public awareness, I thought it might be the perfect work for an NGO to tackle some day, hopefully soon.

Speaking of connections, thanks to our meeting that day, I was invited to a get together later that night. Luckily Karen and Thomas were free as well, and we had a blast getting to meet more Chengdu locals over smoothies and tapas with a distinctly Chinese streak.

From left: Yuling, myself, Karen, Thomas 

Trip to Anlong--extended version

During my second week with CURA, I had the chance to go out to Anlong village with CURA to see the work they'd been doing in the village. It was absolutely incredible experience seeing and learning about the sustainable practices implemented in the village, doing our part to help, talking to the villagers, and getting a taste of the local culture, both through cuisine and dance!

Anlong Village is about an hour-long bus ride from the outskirts of Chengdu. We arrived around noon, just in time to have lunch at Mr. Zhao's:

Featuring potato salad, twice-cooked pork, eggplant, string beans, soft-boiled cabbage 

The feast before us was impressive not only in terms of flavor and variety, but also for the fact that everything was sourced straight from Mr. Zhao's farm, including the rapeseed oil the dishes were cooked in. The dish in the middle, soft-boiled cabbage was something new to me; on it's own, it's very plain, but is delicious when dipped in spicy oil. 

After lunch, we went went out to see the wetlands and dry composting toilets. We were lucky to get the chance to meet Daniel, a Swiss man teaching hugelkultur practices to the villagers. He was working on his 'compost raised-beds.' Mimicking nature, these beds were self-sustaining food forests teaming with diversity. His explanation of how they worked was amazing. Essentially, he makes a pile of branches and covers it with compost and mulch, interspersed with rocks (to promote insect life, reflect sunlight, and add trace minerals). The seeds are planted and left on their own. The composition of the raised bed holds moisture and air very well. As Daniel described it, it was a dynamic environment, expanding and absorbing water in the rain, and slowly shrinking as the water is released. The productivity of this approach was readily visible when compared to the neighboring plot of corn planted at the same time: 

Left: 'compost raised bed' corn; Right: regularly grown corn

I admired Daniel for his passion in what he did, but even more so for his realism--he made sure his methods not only sustainable but also profitable to the farmers, as is the case with his compost raised-bed. His philosophy of mirroring nature and letting things take care of themselves was exciting to see in practice. And, his initiative to lead by example and demonstrate was certainly a lesson applicable to other things. 

After, we went on to Mr. Luo, who would be hosting us for the night. On our way, we saw where some of the river water was diverted to the village for agriculture, and ultimately returned to the river again. CURA introduced the concept of returning the water the river as clean as they had received it. This is currently being done through the use of wetlands, or letting used water purify in pools of water with various aquatic plants prior to flowing back into the river, comparable to kidneys. The water can be dirty kitchen or shower water, as is the case with the Chen family business by the river. In addition to going to see the wetlands there, we go to enjoy some time wading in the adjacent river. Icy cold, the water took some getting used to, but was a warm welcome on a sunny day. We sat in the shade to dry off, drinking piping hot jasmine tea and sharing stories. Aside from the 'formal learning' we'd received from the day's activities, this afternoon siesta was rich with Chinese culture, touching upon the Cultural Revolution, the general lack of public environmental awareness, and even the joking term 啪耳朵 ('ear pull'), which refers to men who live to serve their wives, as if they were dragged around on their ears all the time. 

When we finished our tea (served in standard glass beer mugs), we headed back to the village for dinner, stopping by Mr. Wang's house on the way. He's one of the sustainable farmers who delivers his produce to city consumers through a community-supported agriculture system. Interestingly, it's not quite similar to those in America. Perhaps better known as co-ops, the customers come to a set place at a set location to pick up their produce share and also get some face time with the farmer(s) that grew their food. However, for the convenience of the customers, who are spread out across the city, Mr. Wang delivers them to door of each customer early in the morning--on the hottest days he'll leave home at 1:30 am to ensure the vegetables do not wilt. On better days, he'll leave around 3:30 am. 

Dinner at the Zhao's, featuring spicy buckwheat noodles
and golden preserved egg

Taking a break after dinner, we joined the family in watching the local news. For some reason, the station thought it news worthy to spend a good half hour on a reporter's quest to find a public bathroom in a small town that a group of tourists had failed to find. Dong then took us out to see 广场舞, or a plaza dance, essentially the Asian version of Zumba. The ladies of two neighboring villages, both young and old gather nightly to dance for an hour or two to some pretty hip music. There is no leader; after having been taught by an instructor CURA had brought in a while ago, the dances are self-propagating. Newcomers like us need only watch the others to pick up the dance over time. We decided to join in the fun despite our utter lack of dancing ability (I really just speak for myself here). The ladies were gracious enough to keep straight faces when we turned the wrong way, stuck out the wrong limb, or looked like lumbering elephants. By the end of it all, the ladies all looked prim and proper in their cheery dresses while we were sweating from overexertion. This has been of my most memorable experiences over the summer. Plaza dance is present throughout big cities like Chengdu. At night, open spaces of street corners or more scenic park areas are occupied by both men and women as they dance together or alone to the beat of the latest hits. 

From left: Virginie, Thomas, and me--we genuinely tried

Having had more than a day's worth of exercise, we called it day.

The next morning I got up early to talk to Mr. Luo while he was cooking. He still has a traditional kitchen with a large wok over a wood fire, and a formidable iron teapot hanging from the ceiling to rest right by the stove top. The design is so that water can be boiled while a meal is made, saving time and fuel. His kitchen also has a touch of modernity; there is a small gas stove powered by the biogas generator CURA installed in his home. As you can see, it's quite effective. 

Powered by the methane from the biogas generator 

 Breakfast was home-grown sweet potato porridge, chives, fava beans, and potato slaw. We shared a few more stories over the abundant meal before heading out and picking up trash around the nearby pond, left there by careless fishermen. Previously, CURA planted some foxtail fern around the perimeter of the pond to help clean it up. They're growing well, which means there's plenty of stuff in the water for them to break down. If the water's very clean, then they would not be thriving as easily. Following the morning cleanup, we headed back to Chengdu.

A few extra pictures I'd taken:

These are posters issued by the government I believe to all the families. From left, harmful food combinations, beneficial food combinations, and healthy foods. For example, one bad combo was lamb and watermelon, due to a bad chemical reaction between the two. A good combo was eggplant and bittermelon. The rightmost poster mostly describes the health benefits vegetables and grains. Just thought this was interesting seeing that it stems from a public health project of sorts headed by the government. Also learned from the poster I needed to stop indulging in quail eggs, a hot pot favorite, given its high cholesterol content (triple that of chicken eggs by mass). 

Update: since this post--I've gone back to Anlong two more times, this time to receive and facilitate a group of high school students predominantly from America as well as a few other groups from China. During these visits, I have since passed on what I have learned to them, while also learning more through the dialogue they initiate with the farmers and villagers. I'm also happy to say they've enjoyed plaza dancing just as much as I have. I'm definitely looking forward to my next trip to Anlong!