From June 10 to 12, 2019, the international conference on the future of 
historical villages and towns sponsored by UNESCO will hold in Meishan, Sichuan 
province, China. Around 180 guests at home and abroad, including government 
officials from participant countries, representatives from international 
organizations, the World Bank, and globally renowned experts and universities, 
will attend the event, according to the People's Government of Meishan.

By sharing paradigm practices and future initiatives from around the globe, the 
conference aims to improve the relationship between small villages and large 
cities against the backdrop of global urbanization, thus realizing flexible 
development in a secure, tolerant and sustainable manner.

Why did UNESCO choose this city in West China? It is because Meishan is the 
prefecture-level city nearest to Chengdu. Neighboring to Shuangliu 
International Airport, Meishan boasts convenient transport and prominent 
location. As an integral part of the state-level Tianfu New Zone, Meishan is 
becoming the highland for opening-up and investment of great vigor, potential 
and business opportunities in West China, where the number of settlers of World 
Top 500 enterprises is only second to Chengdu.

While Sichuan marks an important tourism destination in the world, Meishan 
stands out in the province with its charms in "Culture + Landscape + Food". It 
was rated as the top tourism destination (among second-/third-tier cities) in 
Asia-Pacific region by Pacific Asia Travel Association as early as in 2016.

With a civilization history of over 5,000 years and prefectural existence of 
some 2,300 years, Meishan is home to Su Dongpo, the literary giant in ancient 
China. This is the place where the oldest ever men in Chinese history live, 
where the miraculous bamboo weaving skills were invented, and where over 100 
"intangible cultural heritages" are passed down. With unparalleled natural 
conditions and profound humanistic history, Meishan is home to plenty of towns 
that sustain traditional humanistic features and impressive natural environment 
and feature the Dongpo culture, longevity culture, Taoism culture, Buddhism 
culture, bamboo culture, water culture and food culture. As of today, there are 
5 villages listed as the national traditional villages and 14 as the provincial 
traditional villages in Meishan.

Over the years, local governments and people have accumulated abundant 
experience in boosting the rural development. It has not only well preserved 
the traditional features of the towns and villages, but also enhanced the 
well-being of local residents. This is one of the main reasons why it's favored 
by UNESCO.

The Happy Ancient Village, selected as the Most Beautiful Ancient Village in 
China in 2018, is an exceptional example of traditional village protection and 
development in Meishan. As the outdoor scene of the Corner beyond Reach of 
Love, China's first romantic movie that was staged in 1981, the Happy Ancient 
Village is known for such historic relics as the Tea Horse Ancient Road, Salt 
Iron Ancient Road and stone bridge from the Qing dynasty. As one of the few 
well-preserved ancient villages in Sichuan, this village has become the most 
popular tourism destination in Sichuan for its modern development on 
traditional basis. It has been entitled the "A Specialty for a Village" model 
village in China, the famous village for ecology and culture in China, and the 
famous model village for rural tourism in China.

Apart from the protective development, the heritance and development of 
traditional craftsmanship is also the key to the revitalization of ancient 
towns in Meishan. Qingshen Bamboo Weaving Products, one of Meishan's great 
traditions, are rated the National Geographical Indication Products in China. 
Dating back to 2008, luxurious brands Hermes collaborate with this technique to 
make it part of the fashion. Qingshen bamboo weaving has become the backbone 
industry in Meishan, offering jobs to over 10,000 local farmers.

Liujiang Ancient Town in Hongya County, established approximately 800 years 
ago, features intangible cultural heritages such as cattle lantern, dragon 
lantern and lion lantern and cultural relics including Zeng's Garden. Acclaimed 
as the "Leisurely Slow Life Experience Town in China", it has reserved the 
ancient architectural form of stilted buildings, ancient culinary tradition of 
nine-bowl meals, and a variety of traditional lifestyles. It fully maintains 
the traditional living patterns on one hand, and forms a humanistic scene 
combining the past and the present on the other.

Traditional villages are the root of excellent traditional culture and the 
living heritage of culture and nature. As an old dock on the Minjiang Ancient 
Waterway, Hanyang Ancient Town boasts relatively well-preserved historic 
streets and original customs. Cultural relics such as the Foguang Temple and 
Huoshen Temple are still available now. The privately-owned Hanyang Library is 
known for its exquisite design. The library, post office and comprehensive 
cultural station are perfectly mingled with the ancient town.

Today, the world witnesses a 55% urbanization rate, which is climbing year 
after year. The urbanization development has exerted great influence on the 
lifestyle of urban and rural residents. Now that China has the second largest 
rural population in the world, 578 million in total, the Chinese government has 
accumulated abundant experience in seeking the development paths for historic 
towns. Meishan is the city that does best in this regard.

Source: The People's Government of Meishan