In September, a small village in central China made waves on social media by introducing the idyllic rural life through a video featuring the Dong people singing their traditional songs in Gulun Village, Hunan Province.

Produced by popular vlogger Li Ziqi, the initiative was a part of a rural revitalization project to preserve traditional Dong culture and encourage educational exchanges with local children. Shortly after the video was uploaded, donations, volunteering requests and sponsorship inquiries poured in via online platforms, the organizer told CGTN.

"We were pleasantly surprised by the amount of response the project received, far beyond our expectations," said Tan Yaxing, sustainability consultant and founder of the Hangzhou-based BeVillage Association, which oversees the revamping plan for Gulun Village.

The idea began with the support of a private charitable trust, Tan told CGTN, acknowledging that the internet has been instrumental in raising public awareness of philanthropic causes.

Thanks to the recent "99 Giving Day" annual charity festival, jointly launched by tech giant Tencent and thousands of charity organizations and enterprises in China, many goodwill causes and organizations like BeVillage have been empowered to influence the public through online platforms in recent years.

Since 2015, the charity event has collected 6.2 billion yuan ($958 million) in donations. This year alone, it garnered 3.52 billion yuan ($545 million) on Tencent's charity platform and attracted more than 156 million participants.

As of September 2021, China's Ministry of Civil Affairs has approved 20 online charity platforms, which have registered a 20-percent annual donation growth over the last few years. Still, the number of registered volunteers has risen 10 times from 2012 to 200 million, according to the Ministry.

Common prosperity

The recent momentum of charitable giving has aligned with the national campaign to achieve "common prosperity," as Chinese authorities called on the charitable sector to play a bigger role in narrowing the country's wealth gap.

China has made common prosperity a major goal of socialism, according to a white paper on building a moderately prosperous society released on Tuesday. To this end, the country must ensure that all people share the fruits of its development and no individual, region or group is left behind, the white paper said.

The income gap has widened in China over the past five years due to the rise of technology and financial sectors, said Li Shi, an economics professor at Zhejiang University who has advised the government on poverty alleviation. To address the disparity, the private economy and wealthy individuals should play a positive role and contribute more, Li said.

Forbes reported in 2020 that the Chinese mainland had 389 billionaires, second only to the United States. The rapidly growing private wealth also means enormous potential for philanthropy in the country.

The phrase "common prosperity" received widespread attention in August, when the private sector, particularly China's technology giants, rushed to allocate money toward social responsibility programs or sponsor philanthropy trends.

Data from Bloomberg show Chinese corporations and billionaires have pledged and directed more than $37 billion to charity so far this year through corporate interests, foundations or personal wealth.

Climbing the 'summit of charity'

Jack Xie is one of those who have reaped the fruits of China's economic miracle. Having made his fortunes through various investments, the entrepreneur now focuses on charitable causes.

"I want to contribute and give back to society," said Xie, who traveled to a remote mountainous region in Qinghai Province in 2014 as the supporter of a charity program and saw poverty up-close. 

"Seeing the condition at a rural primary school pained my heart. I realized that many people in this country need help," he said.

Seven years ago, when he read news reports about a Chinese tycoon climbing the top of Mount Qomolangma, the world's highest peak, Xie had the bold idea to support more than 8,848 charitable causes – a number representing the height of Mount Qomolangma.

"If someone had millions to climb the Mount Qomolangma, why not climb the summit of charity instead? As human beings with a common destiny, we should encourage more people to support those in need and light the beacon of charity," he said. 

By the end of August, Xie had supported 8,848 causes via an online charity platform, donating a sum daily since 2014.

All this was made much easier by using the mobile platform, he said. "It is fast, convenient, and anonymous. It also allows everybody to take part."

There is enormous interest among China's wealthy to give back, Xie told CGTN, giving credits to improvements in the country's charity infrastructures in recent years.

Last week, the civil affairs ministry promised to improve supportive measures, such as preferential tax policies, and expand online channels to further leverage the charity service role. The ministry also said it will strengthen regulations on philanthropic organizations to ensure transparency in the use of funds.

"Common prosperity is my intention," said Xie, who is in the process of setting up a charitable trust. "We just need more people to care."

(Cover photo by Zhu Shangfan)