Farmers weave handicrafts with grass straws to help propel local socioeconomic progress, in Qishan town under Zhaoyuan, Shandong province. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
In the county-level city of Zhaoyuan administered by Yantai in East China's Shandong province, local villagers are incorporating culture and industry as a way to enhance rural vitalization and propel socioeconomic progress.
Using culture as a pen and industry as ink, the villagers paint a vivid picture of "culture revitalizing villages and industry bringing prosperity".
By allowing industry and culture to coexist, its Qishan town has led local socioeconomic progress by blending tradition with modernity — all through the cultural industries, according to Zhang Meimei, a local resident.
While letting the local Qishan Tower — built during the Song Dynasty (960-1279) — serve as an ancient symbol of rich local culture, the town has also developed a modern culture to enrich the lives of residents, she said.
Actors from the Confucius School in North Mazhubu village have created more than 10 operas and conducted over 100 performances, bringing the everyday story of harmonious relationships between mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law to local audiences.
She added that it is now a trend to let cultural and economic development complement each other.
Hu Qi, publicity chief of Qishan town, said the town has integrated culture with its industrial expansion. In 2024, the town's sweet potato cultivation area exceeded 10,000 mu (666 hectares) with an annual output of 30,000 metric tons.
By incorporating cultural flavors into the local sweet potato industry, the villagers produced distilled liquor, sweet potato dolls, and bookmarks, while promoting their sweet potatoes and sweet potato by-products nationwide through APPs or live-streaming, Hu said.
A farmer writes calligraphy in Qishan town under Zhaoyuan, Shandong province. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
Hu claimed that the ultimate essence of cultural revitalization lies in helping improve people's livelihoods.
The town's Houtuan village has transformed its former "dirty and messy" appearance into one that is "clean and beautiful," with cultural activities transforming villagers from bystanders to actors in beautifying the village, Lu Baofang, another local resident said.
In the village park, cherry blossoms and purple-leaf plums brightened the faces of visitors, drawing in more tourists during the harvest season for immersive experiences in the fields, she said.
Lu added that the mighty force of cultural industries has been prominent in Qishan.
