Forest cities boosting eco-protection, incomes

Education

The construction of forest cities provides the younger generation with opportunities to learn about wildlife, as many cities have also built forest or nature museums for educational purposes.

In May last year, Jiujiang's first forest museum, located in the Tianhuajing National Forest Park, opened to the public. Entry is free, and the museum, which has more than 1,000 specimens endemic to the city, has attracted about 500,000 people so far.

The specimens are meticulously arranged according to their living habits or based on relations between different species. Some rare specimens can be found in the museum, such as the country's only stuffed female South China Tiger. In the wild, the animal is an endangered species under the top level of protection.

To stimulate interest among children, the museum has installed high-tech facilities to improve the interactive experience, such as four-dimensional digital projections and an interactive lighting design based on distance and blow sensors. Users can wave their hands over, or blow hard onto, sensors to control the power switch or change the lighting patterns and colors.

In a dark hall, visitors can experience a "night in the forest", during which they can see and hear nocturnal animals by following fluorescent indicators. Touching a "sleeping tiger" (a plastic model) activates a projector that shows a silhouette of a tiger waving its tail and an audio system that broadcasts loud roars.

"The purpose of building forest cities is not simply to 'green' urban areas, but also to inspire a love of nature among people, especially the younger generation," said Yu Xiankui, director of the Jiujiang forestry and grassland bureau.

"Only with love and respect for nature can we better protect it and make good use of it."