Desertification battle inspires international visitors to Ordos

A group photo of a media tour in Ordos, Inner Mongolia autonomous region, taking place on Sept 27-28. LIU YANAN / FOR CHINA DAILY'

Ordos, one of the 12 major subdivisions of the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, has wowed international visitors with its advanced efforts in fighting desertification, along with other achievements in modern development.

Diplomats, think tank scholars and journalists from China and abroad got a first-hand sense of the city's charm and its progress in socioeconomic and green development during a media tour themed "Green Empowerment and Creating a Future Together: Practices of Chinese Modernization in Ordos" on Sept 27-28.

"It's the first time we have come to Inner Mongolia. I didn't expect to see such a beautiful, open and modern city," said Salvador Moncada, ambassador of Honduras to China.

The Dalad Photovoltaic Power Base in the middle of the Kubuqi Desert in Dalad Banner was a highlight of the tour.

The base, which is a sand control and wind-solar photovoltaic integrated engineering project, has a construction scale of 1 million kilowatts and is only 15 kilometers north of the Yellow River. It serves as a national demonstration base for photovoltaic power generation and incentives, as well promotes long-term ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River basin.

"It is remarkable to see the scale and energy output of the photovoltaic base, as well as the significant strides made in combating desertification and promoting sustainable agriculture in the region," noted Moncada, adding: "The eco-management in all those regions is very impressive, which is a lesson to the world."

As one of the developments in the Kubuqi Desert "Photovoltaic Great Wall" project that Ordos is currently planning and constructing, the photovoltaic base was completed in two phases, with full grid connection and power generation achieved throughout. It generates up to 2 billion kilowatt-hours of green electricity each year, and saves 680,000 metric tons of standard coal annually.

Hailed as the "cashmere capital", the Erdos Modern Cashmere Industrial Park led by local cashmere manufacturer Erdos Group stands as a landmark. Founded in 1980, Erdos Group, a giant in the deep processing of cashmere, has grown from a local production and processing enterprise to an industry leader, with over 70 billion yuan ($9.98 billion) in total assets over the past four decades.

"The cashmere factory is unparalleled in the world. All the products are of top quality and the cashmere fabric is very comfortable to the touch. The factory has more than 40,000 employees, which means that Ordos has made great contributions to pushing forward China's development and promoting China to become a modern, socialist and advanced country by leading its enterprises, employees and factories," said Maria dos Ramos, minister counselor and deputy head of mission of the Embassy of Venezuela.

The media tour also visited the Ulan Mulun Lake in Kangbashi district, witnessing the magnificent musical fountain in Ordos.

A parallel event of the tour, the award ceremony of the International Cartoon and Illustration Exhibition on a Community with a Shared Future for Mankind 2024 was held in Ordos, on Sept 29.

One gold, two silver and three bronze prize winners were chosen based on artwork focusing on global environmental issues and the protection of the planet, as well as the use of artistic skills to create unique and compelling messages.

With the theme of "One Earth", the exhibition was jointly organized by China Daily and the Publicity Department of the Ordos Committee of the Communist Party of China, calling for global cooperation to tackle environmental issues such as climate change, pollution and biodiversity protection, and to contribute to the United Nations' 2030 sustainable development goals.

According to organizers, who launched the call for submissions in May, the exhibition received around 3,700 cartoon and illustration works from nearly 60 countries and regions, with more than 1,400 submissions from overseas.

Through initial evaluation, re-evaluation, review and final assessment, the exhibition included 135 award-winning cartoon and illustration works, including the winners of gold, silver and bronze prizes, the Eco-Friendly Ordos Prize, the Prize of Excellence for AI-Assisted Works, and shortlisted awards.

According to organizers, nine works were awarded the Eco-Friendly Ordos Prize, which is a specific award to recognize the remarkable achievements of Ordos in combating desertification, promoting ecological conservation, and advocating a green and energy-efficient lifestyle.

The award-winning artworks, with most of the selected exceptional pieces, are being exhibited at the Ordos Art Museum, which will last until the end of October.