Highlights from the 2020 Ziyang Summer Camp

Yu-Lai Wang, 2020 Pingli Summer Camp Participant, now pursuing an MA in Anthropology at Sun Yat-sen University / MSc in Internet Social Science at the University of Oxford

My experience at the Ankang-Pingli field camp in 2019 is something I still often recall. Growing up in a city at the foot of the Qinling Mountains, this was the first time I truly slowed down to experience and understand the Qinling region—the people, plants, local legends, ecology, and livelihoods.

During the camp, the anthropological perspective expanded my senses, prompting me to pay extra attention to and reflect on nature: I listened to the sound of flowing water, and for the first time, I picked tea leaves, rolled and pan-fried them, and heard from locals how they turn these mountain plants into products sold across the country and even worldwide. At night, I could discuss our discoveries with classmates and teachers from different regions and backgrounds while sitting on swings. These conversations, accompanied by the sound of flowing water, and the fascinating anthropological theories I learned here, still feel incredibly beautiful to me today. Even when I travel elsewhere, I occasionally recall the theories and anecdotes I encountered there—they help me better understand and feel the world.

Now, in the midst of city life and facing electronic screens, I always look forward to the next opportunity to slow down, to listen, observe, and touch nature once again.

Li Anran, 2020 Ziyang Summer Camp Participant, now a third-year student at Peking University

Even though nearly five years have passed since the summer camp, I still firmly believe it was a pivotal moment in my life. That camp was the first window through which I glimpsed—or was introduced to—a broader world. It taught me how to approach the “Other” starting from myself, and how to reflect on myself through the “Other.” So much time has passed that I may have completely forgotten many anthropological theories, yet the qualities of a “future anthropologist” that I experienced there continue to guide me to this day. This lesson is comparable to any course I have taken during my three years at Peking University.

Forever grateful!