This year marks the 20th anniversary of the pivotal concept “Lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets”—a guiding principle that has steered China’s green transition. Visitors from across the globe have flocked to this scenic village of Yucun where the concept was born, eager to trace the evolution of China’s economy from a resource-driven model to one centered on sustainability.
Over the past 20 years, this village has undergone a dramatic transformation. It hasn’t just rewritten its own fate; it has also shown how a nation’s commitment to green development can reshape rural landscapes and transform people’s lives.
Two decades ago, Yucun was known for a very different reason.
In the 1980s and 1990s, the 4.9-square-kilometer village thrived as Anji’s “richest village” thanks to its high-quality limestone reserves. But mining came at a steep ecological cost: “Blasting scared birds from the mountains; sand and gravel filled the air”—a vivid description of its environmental scars.
When the village resolved to shut down its mines and cement factories, few anticipated that this move would pave the way for a whole new development path. Today, the stone stele at the village entrance, inscribed with “Lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets,” stands not only as a symbol of Yucun’s transformed development model but also as a beacon for resource integration.
In 2020, Yucun joined forces with four neighboring villages to form a 43-square-kilometer cluster. By the end of 2022, this expanded to 245 square kilometers, linking one town, two townships, and 23 villages. The “Greater Yucun” framework has turned the once-small village into a cross-regional development hub.
This expansion is far more than a simple increase in area. As Xu Jinjing, head of Tianhuangping Town, explains: “After closing the mines, we started rural guesthouses and rafting activities—that was Version 1.0 of practicing the green development concept. Now, ‘Greater Yucun’ is building industrial clusters for new economy, new cultural tourism, and new agriculture—that’s a leap to Version 2.0.”
The numbers tell the story of this upgrade: In 2024, the average collective operating income of villages in “Greater Yucun” reached 2.82 million yuan, an 11.5% year-on-year increase. Even more striking is the world-class pumped storage cluster here: Tianhuangping and Changlongshan power stations, with a combined installed capacity of 3.9 million kilowatts, have made green energy a new hallmark of “Greater Yucun.”
Industrial reforms have revitalized the countryside’s appeal. What was once a village of 280 households (1,060 people) now covers over 40,000 residents under the “Greater Yucun” umbrella. Tourism hit new heights in 2024, with Yucun welcoming 1.22 million visits and the broader “Greater Yucun” area exceeding 10 million.
This influx of people reflects a diverse landscape shaped by industrial shifts. Tourists come to savor its ecological beauty; new villagers arrive to seize opportunities in the industrial shifts；local residents enjoy expanding prospects right at their doorstep. Additionally, nearly 80,000 online users have registered as virtual villagers, with some 6,000 adopting farmland via the cloud and participating in local development.
“Efficient government services and ecological strengths make this more appealing than any urban office building,” says Duan Yi, CEO of Photoplus, who relocated his company’s headquarters here.
Despite growing larger, diversifying its industries, and welcoming more people, Yucun’s ecosystem remains unharmed—this is both the foundation of the concept of “Lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets” and one of its core goals.
In 2021, Yucun was named one of the first Best Tourism Villages by the World Tourism Organization. Its 10 landmark scenes weave together attractions like lotus pond serenity, Longqing Temple’s spiritual ambiance, and the haunting beauty of abandoned mines.
Visitors can take sightseeing buses or scan codes to rent electric vehicles and explore the lanes. At 1,168 meters above sea level, a fairy town on grassland recreates a celestial realm, where mist-shrouded bamboo forests evoke the ethereal mood of the Oscar-winning film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. An 18-kilometer winding mountain road leads to a year-round scenic spot that has become a must-visit for cyclists.
Beyond its natural beauty, Yucun buzzes with cultural fusion. Last July, French pianist Richard Clayderman performed in an abandoned mine, his music blending with the rustle of bamboo leaves—a perfect metaphor for ecological transformation.
Zhuo Li, who moved from Shanghai, traded the bustle of skyscrapers for a European-style blue villa here, where she runs a mountain biking business. “I came to live and work here because of the stunning scenery and the relaxed rural lifestyle.”
Over 20 years, Yucun has shifted from selling limestone to forging a sustainable path where ecology and industry thrive together—a testament to the vitality of green development.
As early as 2016, the UN Environment Programme released a report on the concept of “Lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets,” highlighting China’s efforts to integrate ecological progress into national planning. Today, the 572 national ecological civilization demonstration zones and 240 green development bases exploring models like “trading green protection for prosperity” and “turning collective green into shared wealth” all trace their roots to this small village.
As “Greater Yucun” continues to grow and more young dreamers arrive, the village is penning more stories of harmony between humans and nature, and of industry and ecology boosting each other.
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