Environmental pressures, climate change, biodiversity, species protection, and pollution.
Recently, Cai Guo-Qiang and Arc’teryx sparked controversy with a “mountain-blasting” art project in the Himalayas that damaged the fragile plateau ecosystem. The relationship between humanity and nature, alongside the exploration of local culture, were featured prominently in the promotional material for the fireworks display. Yet a performance that markets nature…
Foodthink Says As climate change intensifies, rural “natural disasters” are becoming an everyday reality. Yet there are always more ways forward than obstacles. It is not just farmers and government bodies seeking solutions; civil society organisations are also drawing on their local, flexible, and community-embedded approach to help small villages…
I. More Than a Mere Bystander In July, Beijing is at the height of summer. On this land I am soon to leave, seeds sown in spring are now bearing plump fruit. As I immerse myself in the joy of the harvest, I also come to realise how precious the…
The sweltering summer is about to end, but the autumn rains may prove just as chilling. This summer has been far from typical. Extreme rainfall and scorching heatwaves have swept across the country in quick succession. Surface temperatures in Shaanxi peaked at a staggering 72.9°C. Harbin, deep in the northeast,…
Foodthink says *Disappearing Food* is a book that explores the global crisis of food diversity, serving as a vital call to action for the conservation of local germplasm resources and the preservation of cultural heritage. On 9 July, Foodthink and Beiye Books jointly launched the *Disappearing Food* online reading group…
I. A Journey That Began with Bananas Bananas have been one of the plants I’ve encountered most frequently over the past year of travel. From Africa to Brazil, I’ve seen and eaten countless varieties along the way—fried in oil, stewed with tomatoes, pan-fried in butter; as long as an arm,…
I.Leaving it All Behind to Farm On an ordinary morning, walking into the passion fruit fields, I saw vines heavy with golden fruit. The saplings we’d planted at the end of March were already yielding a second flush of blooms, and bees hard at work with pollination hummed steadily around…
Not long ago, Nature Cities published an article detailing how urban residents in China shift the risks of heat exposure onto food delivery riders simply by ordering takeaway. The logic is straightforward enough, but when torrential rain or scorching heatwaves strike, the delivery rider is reduced to little more than…
Foodthink Says Globally, a growing number of scholars, policymakers, and practitioners are championing and adopting the concept of “agroecology”. While this term may still feel somewhat unfamiliar in Chinese-speaking contexts, it is frequently translated as “ecological farming”. Yet “ecological farming” falls far short of capturing the rich, multifaceted nature of…
If you visit Pu’er in Yunnan this spring, you’ll find coffee farmers everywhere in high spirits. Green coffee bean prices have been climbing steadily for a year, jumping from 38 yuan per kilogram in early 2024 to 66 yuan per kilogram by May this year—a surge that has even outpaced…
