Where trash was once king

Sonam Dondrub, 40, who graduated from Minzu University of China in Beijing, ran businesses in the capital and in Shenzhen for 15 years, before returning to his hometown of Gannan in 2015. He soon started a tourism and culture development company.

In March 2018 he started renovating 52 houses in Anguo village, Xiahe, into Tibetan-style guesthouses. He also rented villagers' grassland.

Seventy percent of Yang's staff in charge of the management of the guesthouses in Anguo are from the village, and they are paid a basic monthly wage of 2,800 yuan.

These villagers received a total of 350,000 yuan in bonuses at the end of 2018, and a year later the bonuses paid amounted to 650,000 yuan.

In addition to the guesthouses, with government support Sonam Dondrub has also opened a tent hotel on the grassland, charging from 3,280 yuan to 9,800 yuan a night.

To protect the grassland, floors of the tent are suspended above the grass. Since it opened on June 28, the hotel has been so popular that on many nights all the rooms have been booked.

Although tourism is still not well developed in Gannan, the autonomous prefecture has many travelers pass through it, Sonam Dondrub says.