“As work continues on applying for world natural and cultural heritage status, the influence of Hainan’s ecology on the global stage will continue to grow.”

In the third installment of the 2nd series of “Insight”, a multilingual public lecture series on the theme “The Rainforest at a Glance” produced in conjunction with the UK science show, “Science on Tap”, Xiang Wenqian－a post-doctoral fellow at Hainan University’s College of Ecology and Environment－shares her moving story of biodiversity and cultural heritage conservation through her lecture “The Ecology and Culture of Hainan’s Rainforest”.

Xiang Wenqian－a member of Hainan University’s biodiversity and ecological culture research team－has seen the Hainan Gibbon with her own eyes, on her very first visit to Futou Ridge deep in the Hainan tropical rainforest. In addition to Hainan’s tropical rainforest, over a six-year period, she was also lucky enough to visit rainforests in several countries, including the Philippines and Malaysia, to engage in field research, where she witnessed their remarkably well-conserved rainforest ecology.

Using modern scientific techniques, Xiang Wenqian and her team were able to piece together the Kapok-Rice Paddy Agroforestry System developed over the centuries by Hainan’s Li and Miao ethnic minorities. The system sources its water from untainted, natural springs in the Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park. The root system of the Kapok trees helps prevent soil erosion, filters water, and conditions the soil and microbiome of the rice paddies where they grow. Her team has been engaging in public awareness and research activities and have completed the creative transformation and innovative development this traditional ecological culture. This will not only benefit biodiversity conservation efforts, but also rural revitalization and the construction of an ecological civilization.