June 5 is World Environment Day. Chinese President Xi Jinping pays close attention to ecological and environmental issues, and has repeatedly underscored the need to protect the ecological environment, including the Kekeya green project in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Located at the northwestern edge of the Taklimakan, the largest desert in China, Kekeya was once notorious for its erratic weather and constant sandstorms. An afforestation project to prevent desertification and to reduce the impact of sand and dust storms on nearby residents was launched in Kekeya in 1986 and completed in 2015. By 2021, afforestation volunteers participated in nearly four million planting sessions, ultimately creating an artificial forest belt that stretches for 200 kilometers.

In 2017, President Xi cited the Kekeya greening project as an example of ecological system restoration feasibility, and encouraged people across China to further advance ecological civilization – a concept that Xi initiated with the aim of achieving balanced and sustainable development.