On October 27, AmCham China held the Rural Revitalization and Sustainability: Rural Charm Experience event at Beigou village, in the Huairou district, north of Beijing, with more than 50 members in attendance.
The full-day program started with a guided tour of the showroom of the village committee. Mr. Wang Quan, Beigou’s Party Branch Secretary, introduced the history of the village and its achievements in rural revitalization under the government’ support. Beigou used to be a dying village, Wang said, as many people had left to work in the city, while those who stayed, for the most part, lived in poverty. But in 2005, an American couple – Jim Spear and Liang Tang – came to Beigou and fell in love with the place. Jim has since renovated many abandoned places, including a school and a glass factory. Their most famous renovation project has been the Brickyard retreat, a former tile factory in Beigou. The Brickyard has since blended into the local community and maintained as much of the original structures as possible, adding a unique cultural layer to the peaceful village, which – crucially – provided a source of jobs and income to those in the community.
The full-day program started with a guided tour of the showroom of the village committee. Mr. Wang Quan, Beigou’s Party Branch Secretary, introduced the history of the village and its achievements in rural revitalization under the government’ support. Beigou used to be a dying village, Wang said, as many people had left to work in the city, while those who stayed, for the most part, lived in poverty. But in 2005, an American couple – Jim Spear and Liang Tang – came to Beigou and fell in love with the place. Jim has since renovated many abandoned places, including a school and a glass factory. Their most famous renovation project has been the Brickyard retreat, a former tile factory in Beigou. The Brickyard has since blended into the local community and maintained as much of the original structures as possible, adding a unique cultural layer to the peaceful village, which – crucially – provided a source of jobs and income to those in the community.
The WA Art Architecture Museum, which opened in 2021, was the next stop for the group, with the building itself a pioneer in rural-cultural construction.
Attendees then enjoyed a buffet lunch at the Brickyard, where American companies shared stories about their rural revitalization projects throughout China. Daisy Zhao (VP at NBA China), Julia Zhu (Vice President of Social Impact at Starbucks), Steven Shi (Director of Government Relations at Cargill), and Rong Shang (Vice President of Communications & Government Affairs at Microsoft Asia-Pacific Research and Development Group) joined the panel discussion, which was moderated by Karen Guo, VP of Public Affairs at Novelis China and Co-Chair of AmCham China’s Business Sustainability Committee.
During the discussion, the panelists shared their advice on how AmCham China can better promote rural revitalization. Julia Zhu from Starbucks emphasized the importance of adopting ‘smart agriculture’, where scientific, high-techtools can be used to increase the quality and quantity of products. She further added that Starbucks will look to work more with tech companies such as Microsoft in exploring innovative ways to visualize and realize the concept of rural revitalization.
Daisy Zhao from NBA China highlighted the urgency in narrowing the gap between rural and city education, especially in sports. She introduced NBA’s ‘Making Every P.E. Lesson Count (上好一堂体育课)’ program, which focuses on cultivating the awareness of physical and mental health. The program includes sports teacher training, competitions, as well as self-protection lessons. Zhao called for joint efforts in promoting rural sports education, arguing that sports is a common language for all of us and expressing the hope that sports can be promoted across different demographics.
Steven Shi from Cargill shared how his company performs corporate social responsibilities such as providing insurance, delivering farmer trainings, helping with sewage disposal, as well as improving rural education. Shi said Cargill has incorporated sustainability into its core services and values and hopes to maximize their influence based on their corporate advantages.
Rong Shang from Microsoft Asia-Pacific Research and Development Group (ARD) emphasized the importance of empowering those coming from rural areas with new skills to equip them with essential capabilities for local employment. He also shared details of Microsoft’s incubator project, whereby farmers were provided with meteorological data to better protect biological diversity.
AmCham China President Michael Hart wrapped up the panel by expressing the Chamber’s appreciation for the U.S. Embassy’s support in making the event happen, and for the companies who are doing good work in promoting sustainability. Hart also echoed the point made earlier by Novelis China’s Karen Guo that the personal touch of these ESG efforts is important because of the impact they have on people can be magnified to others.
The last stop of the day’s event was a visit to see Jim Spear’s design studio, part of the Schoolhouse sustainable tourism enterprise, which includes several farm plots, rental homes, and the Brickyard boutique hotel and spa. Jim shared his China story and his passion for designing and building country houses. He expressed the wish to continue providing consulting and planning services for hotels and resorts, with the purpose of promoting sustainable development in art, architecture, and the wider community.
The full-day event received uniformly positive feedback and each guest was given a box of sweet chestnuts provided by the Brickyard to help local farmers in Huairou as a souvenir of the pastoral and modern village of Beigou.
