00:00 An interesting phenomenon is taking place in China right now.
00:07 More and more young people are leaving cities and moving back to the countryside.
00:13 As China enters the world stage as one of the most advanced industrial and modern societies,
00:18 why are so many young Chinese people giving up the financial promise of cities to toil
00:24 in the fields back home?
00:25 For about 4,000 years, agriculture has played a key role in China's economy.
00:36 And for millennia, Chinese cultivation practices have led the world while ancient Chinese literature,
00:42 art, and poetry conjures the beauty of the Chinese rural lifestyle.
00:48 And the romance with nature has never left the Chinese psyche.
00:53 From the balconies of their city flats to the gardens of their adoptive land, you will
00:58 find Chinese people growing vegetables even in space.
01:04 Since the 1980s, people in China have flocked to cities for work.
01:08 And China embarked on the most rapid urban migration ever seen.
01:12 Now 64% of Chinese people live in cities.
01:17 The older generation sought bright lives and financial promise of cities.
01:22 But their children are not convinced so.
01:25 How has the younger generation changed?
01:28 Younger Chinese aspirations and attitudes towards work are changing.
01:32 Millennials and gen z say they no longer want to live to work, but work to live.
01:38 Many of them are prioritizing flexibility and work-life balance over financial reward.
01:44 The vast Chinese countryside offers them an affordable alternative to traditional debt-bound
01:49 roles.
01:51 Some of them are being inspired by people like rural lifestyle vlogger Li Ziqi, who
01:56 has got the world's attention by portraying the ideal rural lifestyle, civilized, peaceful,
02:03 and poetic.
02:05 Another huge push factor has been cost of living as the pandemic cast a shadow over
02:11 urban employment.
02:13 Faced with uncertainties, the appeal of big cities like Beijing and Shanghai is fading
02:19 for young people.
02:21 I long for a life where I don't have to work overtime and can see the sunset on time.
02:26 I also bought a small rental apartment.
02:28 After two years of thinking, I finally found the right direction, which is to return to
02:33 the city.
02:34 In the last decade, the number of migrant workers under the age of 30 living far away
02:41 from their homes have almost halved, and over 12 million young Chinese people chose to return
02:47 to their homes to start businesses.
02:49 And there are practical reasons that make rural life more attractive.
02:55 So how has rural China changed?
02:58 China's sustained economic growth, coupled with wealth redistribution through the government's
03:03 rural revitalization policies, have massively improved rural life.
03:09 Digitalization has arrived in rural China, and internet use has doubled in a decade,
03:15 with 60% of rural residents active online in 2023.
03:20 All these changes are essential to bring the young Chinese back to the land, and they intend
03:25 to leave their marks in rural areas.
03:28 How is Gen Z changing the countryside?
03:40 New farmers are embracing the internet enthusiastically.
03:44 Using live streams, they provide a window into growing practices and processes to give
03:50 consumers and buyers across China a missing connection with the food that they eat.
03:56 Using e-commerce giants like Alibaba and JD.com, the world's largest rural e-commerce network,
04:04 they market directly to consumers.
04:07 When these young entrepreneurs choosing to relocate are not just farmers, they're working
04:12 tourism, open up B&Bs, rejuvenating heritage crafts, and renovating ancient villages.
04:20 Is rural migration a sustainable move or a blip caused by an economic downturn?
04:26 Will the attitudes of Gen Z reshape China, giving people the choice of a rural or urban
04:32 lifestyle?
04:33 I guess the answer resides in the life choices of their own children.
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