4th "From Ziquejie Terraces To The World" Global Farming Culture Exchange and Mutual Learning Conference Opens in Loudi, Hunan

The 4th "From Ziquejie Terraces To The World" Global Farming Culture Exchange and Mutual Learning Conference

‌Loudi, China (ANTARA/Xinhua-AsiaNet)- More than 300 policymakers, researchers and industry leaders gathered this weekend in the lush hills of Xinhua County, Hunan Province, for the opening of the 4th "From Ziquejie Terraces To The World" Global Farming Culture Exchange and Mutual Learning Conference, held alongside the 10th East Asian Agricultural Cultural Heritage Symposium.

Attendees included representatives from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, delegates from Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS) sites worldwide, leading scholars from Chinese and foreign universities, and representatives from civil society groups and private enterprises.

Held under the banner "Technology Empowers Agricultural Heritage, Youth Co-creates the Future," the conference featured keynote addresses that explored how cutting-edge innovation can breathe new life into centuries-old farming traditions.

Featured speakers included ‌Jérémy Mbiaramadji‌, Senior Coordinator of the GIAHS Secretariat at FAO; ‌Kazuhiko Takeuchi‌, Project Professor at the University of Tokyo's Institute for Future Initiatives and Honorary Chairman of the East Asian Agricultural Heritage Studies Association; and ‌Lee Youn-Jae‌, Professor at Pusan National University and Co-Chairman of the East Asian Agricultural Heritage Studies Association. Their presentations spanned biodiversity conservation, the role of heritage sites in rural revitalization, and emerging models for integrating agriculture, culture and tourism - all grounded in the latest research and real-world case studies from across East Asia.

Carved into the mountainside over two millennia ago, the Ziquejie Terraces stand as a living monument to the fusion of southern China's rice-farming civilization with the mountain hunting and fishing traditions of the Miao and Yao peoples. Recognized as one of China's first World Heritage Irrigation Structures and a GIAHS-listed site, the terraces continue to sustain local communities to this day.

In recent years, Loudi City has deployed Internet of Things sensors, big data analytics and virtual reality to monitor and preserve the landscape. Innovative programs - from "adopt-a-paddy" schemes and blockchain-tracked rice farming to immersive agricultural study tours - have turned heritage conservation into a driver of economic opportunity, connecting local villages with global audiences eager to learn from millennia of sustainable farming wisdom.