China's straw checkerboards guide global ecological governance

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Locals are laying straw checkerboards, Zhongwei, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, northwest China, September, 2023.

In Zhongwei, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, the once-rampant sandstorms have been tamed by straw checkerboards. Generations of desert fighters have transformed this barren land into a green network, creating 430,000 mu (28,667 hectares) of straw grids over 70 years to build a 42-kilometer-long "Green Great Wall." This ecological marvel not only testifies to China's seven-decade perseverance in desert control, but also stands as a model case for the UN Convention to Combat Desertification.

The one-meter square straw checkerboards – the most effective sand fixation at lowest cost, Zhongwei, September, 2023.

Large-scale straw checkerboard are installed in Tengger Desert, Zhongwei, September, 2023.

Oases flanking roads near Tengger Desert, Zhongwei, September, 2023.

As the United Nations celebrates its 80th anniversary this year, Zhongwei's straw checkerboards represent more than anti-desertification engineering – they embody the living practice of UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. Each stabilized grain of sand carries hope for the future.

(All photos via CGTN)