Giving villages a future

Tourism observatories

Since 2005, Bao's team has worked with the UNWTO and established Sustainable Tourism Observatories across the country, including in Yangshuo, Huangshan in Anhui, Zhangjiajie in Hunan province, the Kanas scenic area in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, Xishuangbanna Dai autonomous prefecture in Yunnan, Changshu in Jiangsu province and Jiangmen in Guangdong province.

"We keep close tabs on the changes in the environment, air and water quality, as well as noise and pollution indicators following tourism development," Bao says.

"We also consider the local residents' attitude toward tourism development, their welfare, whether it brings economic benefits or losses, and the satisfaction levels of tourists. It is a diagnostic assessment of the development of tourism," he adds.

When they observed a decline in local satisfaction that was largely associated with overcrowding and price increases, they talked to local authorities to come up with ways that could involve more people in tourism to generate income.

"So, all things can balance out eventually," Bao says.

Since 2010, Bao has provided training to people in Indonesia, Mongolia, Thailand, Cambodia, New Zealand and Japan that are interested in building UNWTO Sustainable Tourism Observatories, which has boosted international destination exchanges and cooperation.

"The overall position of China's tourism is continuously improving in the world, and the country's tourism scale contributes significantly to the development of global tourism, ranking among the top," Bao says.

"Particularly, outbound tourism has become an important force driving the global economic recovery."

Bao believes the elevated status of Chinese tourism is a crucial support for his winning the UNWTO award.

Bao says he is optimistic about the recovery of China's tourism industry. He says the ultimate goal is to ensure that tourists come and leave with satisfaction.

"The sustainable development of the tourism industry means that local residents, tourists, government and businesses should all fulfill their respective roles and benefit from their involvement," Bao says.

He hopes to spread the experiences of the Azheke plan in other areas of the country.

A workstation has been launched in a village in Turpan, in Xinjiang, to promote sustainable tourism and cultural development in the Azheke way.

"Related work has been going on smoothly for a while, and is expected to pay dividends," Bao says.

The site has also become a teaching spot for his students.

"I hope through field studies, everyone can break free from rote learning and the exam-oriented education, and focus on cultivating independent thinking skills," he says.