Li Shengqiang, a farmer in Jingbian County, Shaanxi Province, has established a fund to encourage his fellow villagers to plant trees.

Li has been planting trees for more than 20 years, and has so far transformed 267 hectares of barren hills and into forests. The experience convinced him that planting trees not only improved the environment, but also spurred the development of the aquaculture industry. Li donated 100,000 yuan (US$13,000) of his savings to create a fund to reward villagers in his and neighboring villages who plant trees.

(Xinhua News Agency June 21, 2007)