Sustainable development for a unique town between two of Yunnan’s tourist hotspots

 Bai woman at Shaxi Yunnan

 Chris with a group of Bai ladies at Shaxi

 Dining with a view - Shaxi Yunnan

Rice fields Shaxi Yunnan

Shaxi valley

    The enchantment of Shaxi

 At the Courtyard Institute in Beijing, Chris Barclay, an American with a long involvement in China recently talked about work he has been initiating at Shaxi in Yunnan. This event, organised by China Building Restoration, focussed on Chris’s dedication towards restoration and sustainable development within some of China’s most beautiful locations. As the country’s economy grows, as people become more prosperous, so there is naturally an increasing demand for travel. China has some of the world’s most amazing physical and human diversity - but the challenge is how to balance the attractions alongside the rapid rise in domestic tourism.

Yunnan until relatively recently was isolated from much of eastern China. When Bruce first explored northwest Yunnan in 1995 horse transport was still common in some locations. Recent years have seen a vast modernisation not only in transport infrastructure but also within accommodation, tourism services and much more.

Shaxi lies between two of Yunnan’s top tourist hot-spots, Dali and Lijiang. A recently completed expressway between both centres runs close to Shaxi. This small, predominantly Bai nationality town has great potential. As Chris says, it feels almost like Lijiang twenty years ago.

The challenge for Shaxi, which lies on the historic Tea Horse Trail up to Tibet,  is to achieve development which is sustainable for the entire surrounding valley but also a development model closely involving the local community.

Discover more about Shaxi and Chris’s work at www.ginkgosociety.org