Xinhua Headlines: Xuzhou: How to save an industrial city

Source: Xinhua| 2019-04-19 23:54:05|Editor: Lu Hui
Video PlayerClose

Xinhua Headlines: Xuzhou: How to save an industrial city

Aerial photo taken on April 4, 2019 shows cranes to be adjusted at the Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group Co., Ltd. in Xuzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province. (Xinhua/Li Xiang)

By Roisin Timmins

NANJING, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Walking to the exit at Xuzhou East Rail Station, I remember how nervous I was the first time I made the journey, in February 2012. Almost seven years later I am returning to the place that I first moved to in China.

The difference is immediate. Almost instantly a giant mall comes into view where there was once scrubland. Billboards signal the imminent arrival of a subway system, entire highways have materialized. I always knew that China could get things done fast, but just how fast continues to impress.

Xuzhou is nicknamed "the crossroads of China." This is true in many senses. Geographically Beijing lies to the north, more or less equidistant are Xi'an to the west and Shanghai to the south.

Today, Xuzhou is at a different kind of crossroads. Once faced with the worst air pollution of any city in China, Xuzhou has had to turn its back what has nourished its economy for 130 years: coal.

But what does closing down the mines mean?

LIFE AFTER COAL

In Jiawang District, to the north of the city center, 60 percent of the population once earned their living in coal mines. The mines are now for the most part gone, but the search for new incomes is not easy for families who have spent generations making their money from the mines.

Unemployment has allowed Meng Hui to discover his passion. "After the coal mine closed, I had to find another job," he says outside the community center where he spends most of his time. "I happened to love music, so I joined the village band."

Mazhuang village has had a brass band for 30 years. Funded by the village committee and revenue from performances, it has 30 full-time musicians. "I like my job, because music uplifts people's spirit," Meng says. "I enjoy playing music, plus I have a decent income."

The people of Mazhuang do not have to blow their own trumpets to get into music. Inside the community center, dozens of performers are in dress rehearsal. Dancers in bright costumes chat and laugh backstage, waiting to practice their routines. A singer in a white dress warms up her voice. Children get up to mischief, eyeing me with unrestrained curiosity.

The scale of the show is surprising, but these days the growing tourism industry provides an ample audience.

THE COAL MINER'S DAUGHTER

At Pan'an Lake tourists brave the cold to explore the wetlands. Cranes and geese soar over boats and water birds chatter and forage in the weeds. But it has not always been like this. Less than a decade ago the landscape was scarred by collapsed coal mines exhausted by a century of extraction.

"My grandfather and father were coal miners, and I grew up by a coal mine." says Zhu Xuening, a "boat lady." "The lake is now a tourist attraction, and my family all have good jobs. I can work and enjoy the beautiful scenery at the same time."

As China has developed, many Chinese have realized that earning money is not all they want. On the floors of Xuzhou's remaining factories, things are no different.

THE NEW NORMAL

The most influential company in Xuzhou is the one that bears its name: Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group (XCMG). In the industrial park every other building has the group's logo, and the company has an annual revenue of 100 billion yuan (around 14.5 billion U.S. dollars). Like the city, XCMG has seen its fair share of ups and downs.

These days, one of the problems on engineer Lyu Jinbo's mind is how to attract new talent to the assembly line. "The younger workers, 18 or so, don't want to be welders in the traditional sense," he says. "If we don't move to intelligent manufacturing, we will find it hard to recruit new workers."

And that's what they have done. "Now, only one people needs to work with operation and maintenance here. In the past, such assembly lines required at least 36 people."

Integrating AI and big data, the assembly line is the first of its kind. And it's surprisingly intuitive to use. Lyu says that the training program to operate and maintain the entire assembly line takes just three to six months.

Companies like XCMG are embracing the future, which bodes well for high quality development across Xuzhou. But with all development it is usually the poorest regions that are the last to benefit.

MAKING THE LAND WORK FOR ALL

Wei Yan is soft-spoken and earnest, but far from unimaginative. She is an urban planning expert working in one of the poorest counties in Xuzhou, helping villagers create better lives for themselves.

"I think what is unique about our model is the focus on community and the focus on ecological infrastructure," she says. "It's not only a land type transform and a house type transform, it's making a connection between the job, the people and the land."

With the help of the Xuzhou municipal government, Wei and her team have helped villagers consolidate their land and move into better-resourced houses. But what is striking is the focus on diversity.

"We had consultations with the villagers to find out what they wanted in their communities," Wei says. "What appealed to all types of villagers, what different age groups wanted, what women needed."

Five years on, Suining county has experienced an incredible transformation. "Before, all the young villagers went off to cities to find better jobs," Wei says. "Today you can see a much healthier mix of age groups."

This is mainly due to improvements in the environment and the ensuing tourist influx. Tourists create desirable jobs, and a more pleasant environment.

Environmental considerations make the Xuzhou post-industrial development model stand out.

The countryside around the city was a wasteland of abandoned coal mines, slag heaps and industrial garbage when I was last here. Now, fertile wetlands and young trees show just how much of nature can be restored. Thirty percent of the city is now covered with trees, more than any city in Jiangsu and part of the reason why Xuzhou won the UN-Habitat Scroll of Honor Award last October.

In ancient China, Xuzhou was a battleground that had to be conquered in order to win any war. Today, the struggles caused by industrialization are far from over, but it seems that Xuzhou might just be creating a model that could change China forever.

   1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next   >>|

KEY WORDS:
EXPLORE XINHUANET
010020070750000000000000011102351379917111
大发彩票 大发app 凤凰彩票app 乐发iv游戏平台 凤凰彩票大厅 乐发彩票 乐发彩票app下载 大发彩票 乐发v官网 乐发lll 乐发lv入口 乐发iv首页 乐发ll登录 凤凰彩票大厅 乐发官网 乐发ii下载入口 乐发ll 乐发v平台 乐发v官网 乐发lll 乐发lv入口 乐发iv首页 乐发ll登录 乐发lv 乐发lll安装 乐发lv 乐发登录入口 乐发iv游戏平台 凤凰彩票登录 网信彩票 彩神 彩神彩票官方网站 彩神彩票官网首页 彩神官方app下载安卓版 凤凰彩票登录 彩神v3 凤凰彩票app下载 彩神官方app下载安卓版 网信快三 一分快3 快三彩票购彩平台 凤凰彩票官方 快3官网 网信彩票 快3app 网信彩票平台 百姓彩票平台 网信平台官网 快3app下载 百姓彩票 每日彩票 快3app 百姓彩票 每日彩票 快3app 百姓彩票平台 幸运5分彩快3 快3彩票app下载 百姓彩票网站网址 大发10分PK10 快3下载 网信彩票平台 网信平台官网 快3彩票官网app 凤凰彩票官方 彩神彩票 大发10分PK10 彩神v3 大发彩票app下载 百姓彩票网站网址 彩神购彩平台 每日彩票 官方正规快三彩票平台 彩神彩票购彩平台 百姓彩票 凤凰彩票购彩平台 凤凰彩票app下载 彩神官方app下载安卓版 网信快三 一分快3 快三彩票购彩平台 凤凰彩票官方 彩神彩票 大发10分PK10 彩神v3 凤凰彩票登录 乐发lv 乐发∨Il 百姓彩票网站网址 乐发彩票 乐发彩票官方网站 乐发lll安装 百姓彩票网站网址 凤凰彩票app下载 大发10分PK10 乐发2 乐发app 凤凰彩票 大发彩票app 乐发登录入口 乐发ll登录 乐发v官网 乐发官网 大发彩票app下载 凤凰彩票购彩平台 彩神彩票 官方正规快三彩票平台 一分快3 百姓彩票网站网址 凤凰彩票app下载 大发10分PK10 乐发2 乐发app 凤凰彩票 大发彩票app 乐发登录入口 乐发ll登录 乐发v官网 乐发官网 大发彩票app下载 凤凰彩票购彩平台 彩神彩票 官方正规快三彩票平台 1分快三平台 百姓彩票平台 凤凰彩票登录 幸运5分彩快3 彩神 乐发彩票 乐发 大发彩票 乐发iv游戏平台 乐发lv 乐发lll 乐发ii下载入口 乐发彩票官方网站 凤凰彩票官方网站 凤凰快3 彩神彩票官网首页 1分快三平台 百姓彩票平台 凤凰彩票登录 幸运5分彩快3 彩神 乐发彩票 乐发 大发彩票 乐发iv游戏平台 乐发lv 凤凰彩票app 乐发app 网信彩票平台 网信彩票平台 乐发iv游戏平台 凤凰彩票app 乐发lv 乐发彩票app下载 凤凰彩票app 网信彩票平台 乐发彩票app下载 乐发lv 乐发app 大发彩票安卓下载 大发彩票安卓下载 大发彩票 乐发彩票app下载 网信彩票平台 乐发iv游戏平台 彩神彩票 乐发彩票中心 极速快3彩票平台 人人快三凤凰 大发彩票app 大发彩票大全 乐发彩票 彩神彩票官方网站 乐发app 酷天堂彩票平台 凤凰彩票app下载 凤凰彩票大厅 凤凰彩票app 极速快3彩票平台 凤凰彩票 凤凰快3 乐发ll官网 乐发彩票中心 正规快三送彩金平台 凤凰彩票官方 乐发ll 乐发 网信彩票 彩神彩票 彩神彩票官方网站 大发彩票app 网信彩票用户 百姓快三 百姓彩票平台 乐发lv 乐发彩票app下载 彩信平台 网信彩票 乐发彩票官方网站 乐发∨Il 人人快三凤凰 凤凰彩票 凤凰快3 乐发ll官网 乐发彩票中心 正规快三送彩金平台 凤凰彩票官方 乐发ll 乐发 网信彩票 彩神彩票 彩神彩票官方网站 人人快三凤凰 乐发彩票 彩神彩票 乐发iv游戏平台 乐发彩票 大发彩票中心 凤凰彩票登录 凤凰彩票app 彩神彩票 大发彩票 乐发ll 大发彩票app 凤凰快3 凤凰彩票 彩神彩票 乐发ll 凤凰彩票 乐发lll 凤凰彩票大厅 网信彩票 彩神彩票 乐发lv 快盈彩票 乐发彩票官方网站 盈彩网投资平台 大发官网 一分时时彩 乐发lv 快3平台 凤凰快3 乐发ll 全民彩票 乐发彩票官方网站 百姓彩票 乐发彩票 大发彩票 极速快3 乐发app 大发官网 乐发lll 快3平台 凤凰快3 乐发ll 全民彩票 乐发彩票官方网站 百姓彩票 乐发彩票 大发彩票 极速快3 乐发app 彩神iv 大发彩票app 大小单双平台 一分pk10 乐发lv 快盈彩票 乐发官网 快彩彩票 百姓彩票 凤凰彩票大厅 网信彩票 乐发彩票中心 网信快3 乐发 彩神xl 三分快3 大发彩票 大发官网 乐发lll 快3平台 凤凰快3 乐发ll 全民彩票 乐发彩票官方网站 百姓彩票 乐发彩票 乐发彩票官方网站 大发彩票 乐发 分分快3 彩神vl 55世纪 55世纪 凤凰快3 乐发彩票 乐发lv welcome凤凰彩票 乐发ll 1分快3 彩神 彩神ll 1分快3官网 1分快3的平台 welcome凤凰彩票 三分快3 彩神x 彩神vl 凤凰彩票 彩神xl 大发彩票 凤凰彩票大厅 乐发官网 乐发ll 乐发lll 乐发lv 大发彩票app 大发彩票 乐发 乐发彩票 乐发彩票中心 凤凰快3 乐发彩票 彩神xl 腾讯快3 大发彩票 彩神xl 大发彩票 乐发彩票 大发彩票app 快3平台 乐发 1分快3 乐发彩票 彩神x 凤凰快3 彩神xl 彩吧助手 大发彩票app 快3平台 大发排列3 彩神iv 彩神vl 乐发IV 彩神x 一分pk10 大发排列3 乐发lv 快3彩票 乐发app下载 三分快3 快三平台助手 乐发彩票ll 彩神iv 乐发lll下载 盈彩网投资平台 乐发Ⅲ 一分pk10 凤凰彩票 乐发Vll 大发官网 乐发ll 大发彩票 乐发1 凤凰快3 彩神vl 乐发lx 百姓彩票 乐发VI 彩神x 乐发IV 极速快3 乐发 凤凰快3 网信快3 乐发lv 快3彩票 乐发app下载 三分快3 快三平台助手 乐发彩票ll 彩神iv 乐发lll下载 盈彩网投资平台 乐发Ⅲ 凤凰彩票大厅 乐发lv 乐发lv 乐发lv 凤凰彩票 大发彩票 大发彩票 凤凰彩票 乐发lv 凤凰彩票 凤凰彩票 乐发lv 乐发ll 凤凰彩票app下载 凤凰彩票 凤凰彩票 乐发lv 乐发ll 凤凰彩票app下载 凤凰彩票 凤凰彩票 乐发lv 彩神x 乐发 乐发ll 极速快3 乐发lv 乐发彩票中心 快3彩票 凤凰彩票大厅 彩神x 凤凰彩票app 分分快3 网信彩票 网盟彩票 凤凰彩票 百姓彩票 乐发 快彩彩票 乐发彩票 快3平台 百姓彩票 大小单双平台 凤凰快3 彩神xl 一分pk10 乐发lv 三分快3 大发彩票 乐发彩票 快3平台 百姓彩票 大小单双平台 凤凰快3 彩神xl 一分pk10 乐发lv 三分快3 大发彩票 极速快3 乐发ll 网信彩票 乐发lv 全民彩票 凤凰彩票app下载 快盈彩票 大发彩票app 大发官网 凤凰彩票 彩神iv 大发彩票 网信快3 凤凰彩票 百姓彩票