The Institute's Partner, He Yiqing, Helps Her Hometown Adapt To A Changing World
Changing the world is hard, particularly if you are one of more than a billion people in your country. Yet, we always remember that a small group of dedicated people can change the world, because that’s the only thing that ever has. He (Aqing) Yiqing knows this firsthand.
Back in 2010, she looked around her hometown of Xiaolan, a small, but industrial town in the province of Guangdong, not all that far from Hong Kong, and realized the town needed to transform to adapt to a rapidly changing world. While some people point out problems, leaders find ways to solve them.
I bet you can guess what Aqing is.
Knowing what she wanted to accomplish, but not fully understanding how to get it done, she reached out to the Institute through the “US-China Partnership for Climate Action (PCA)” program to gain access to the skills and knowledge she needed to push Xiaolan toward a low carbon future. It was tough at first. He Yiqing saw how city officials and residents in her region struggled to transform national climate commitments to action; and how could they, when there was no plan in place tailored to the unique economic and environmental makeup of her community? She saw a need to improve literacy on low-carbon topics and partnered with the Institute to found the Xiaolan Center, a nonprofit dedicated to engaging with local residents and giving them the tools they need to change Xiaolan in a way that benefits every citizen, not just a select few. In just its first few years, the center’s achievements are nothing short of remarkable. Rooftop solar panels continue to pop up across Zhongshan. The community is striving to build a pilot net-zero carbon community, leading by example to showcase how it could be done.
I want to see [Xiaolan’s] skies blue and pollution-free. That’s why I devote myself to this low-carbon community work.
