Azheke's Shared Prosperity

Onceapoverty-strickenvillageinthemountains of Yunnan，Azhekehasturnedtourismintoalifeline， distributing dividendsamong locals while preserving its UNESCO-recognized heritage

年從貧困山區到世界“最佳旅游鄉村”，云南哈尼族古村阿者科經歷了什么？

twasasunnydayinMarchwhenIarrivedat Azheke，aremote rice-terrace village nestled in Yuanyang county， deep in the southwestern province of Yunnan.People were buzzing aboutmoney around their mushroom-shaped houses.Earlier that morning， the village had held its latest dividend payment ceremony， and the sound of currency-counting machines fluttered through the chatteras the last few villagers lined up to receivetheirred packets.

Onceasubsistence-level farmingvillage，Azheke hasridden the 2lst-century wave of eco-tourism to become a popular destination for vacationers looking for an off-the-beaten-path locale.But unlike so many tourist hot spots where the hunger formoney flattens out the local culture and leaves residents behind， the village'spath to prosperity has been built through a unique cooperative scheme，known as the‘Azheke Plan，”designed to enrich the villagers and preserve their heritage.

Where the bamboo grows

ReachingAzhekeisno simple journey.Most touristswould have to makea four-hour trip from Kunming， the provincial capital， first traveling to Nansha， a small town at the base of the Yuanyang Rice Terraces.From there， they must take a onehourbus ride up the mountainside to the resort areaand finally to Azheke village.But once there，visitors can relish the mistyhills of the rice terraces，cultivated for over1，3OO yearsby the local Hani people and recognized asaUNESCOWorld Heritage site in 2013.

Azheke sitsatop the terraces，populated by 65 households that now include over 4Oo villagers from the Hani ethnic group.Its name in the Hani language translatesto“aplacewherebamboo grows inabundance.\"Established in1988， the village is enveloped byits own spiritual aura. Wooden signs hang from trees alongside stone pathsleading to the village，warning visitors that spirits live within its forest and to not trespass. Furtherup，fountains labeled“The Sacred Mountain Water” peacefully spout water into stone basinsthatflowsintoAzheke'smazeofditches，like blood streaming through veins.

The village itself is a cluster of yellow thatched-roof“mushroomhouses，\"where village elders，smoking water pipes， nodded to me as Iwandered the narrow paths between them.Nearby， a woman hoisted a massive sink unit onto her shoulders with practiced ease while an older lady sat before her home， delicatelyweavingroyal navy-dyed fabrics. On the single-ring road that loops around the county's terraces，Hani farmerswhipped their slowly trotting water buffalo at a pace no faster thanacenturybefore.

TheAzhekePlan

Ten years ago，Azheke was a remote village struggling with underdeveloped transportation， outdated farming practices，and deteriorating infrastructure.Most villagers，with limited education， lived on minimal means， surviving onan annual per capita income of just 2，800 yuan.Amid these hardships，the people ofAzhekeled traditional lifestyles that

inadvertently safeguarded the village's heritage， preserving the Hani-style mushroom homes better than anywhere else in Yuanyang.

In 2018，as part of the country's poverty alleviation efforts， the Yuanyang county governmentselected and approved the‘Azheke Plan.”Proposed by Professor Bao Jigang and his team from Sun Yat-sen University， the plan made Azheke residents both the owners and beneficiaries of the local tourism resources，while providing incentives to preserve the cherished heritage，from theHani mushroomhomes to the surroundingnatural environment.At the same time，university researchers and students would collaborate with the villagers on eco-friendly tourism strategies，aiming to transformAzheke intoarural tourism destination.

Yang Bing，a post-doctoral fellow from Sun Yat-senUniversity's School of Tourism，was among the first cohorts of students tovisit AzhekeinJanuary 2O18.That June，he became the village's first resident graduate student and was assigned to begin establishing the foundational frameworkoftheAzhekePlan. Astheproject was still in its infancy，Yang committed to its long-term success，spending 14 months in the village during his first stay. “We had a setamount of foundational work to complete.This included traininglocal villagers， managing the tourism company， developing new tourism products，and receiving guests such as government officials and social organizations. Additionally， we played a role in managing the village's public affairs and establishing regulations for community governance，\" hetells TWOC.

TheAzhekePlan introduced four keyrules for villagers： they cannot rent， sell， or destroy their traditionalHanihomes; outsideinvestmentis not accepted; all tourism-related matters must be managed bya co-owned enterprise， with unauthorized businessactivities prohibited; and preserving thevillage'scultural heritageremains the top priority.

But the rewards are as plentiful as the rules. Under theplan，Hani villagers formedacollective.

The people of Azheke led traditional lifestyles that inadvertently safeguarded the village's heritage， preserving the Hanistyle mushroom homes better than anywhere else in Yuanyang.

tourismpartnership with the Yuanyanglocal government，which made the initial investment， becomingco-owners ofanewcommercial enterprise，YuanyangMoshang Rural Tourism DevelopmentLtd.Around 7O percent of the company's profitsare allocated to the villagers， with the remaining 3O percent going to the coowned enterprise.To distribute the 7O percent ofrevenue，the Azheke Project adopted a“4-3- 2-1\" dividend payment model. In this system， 40 percent goes to villagers who protect and maintain traditional Hani houses，3O percent supports those maintaining the rice terraces， 20 percent to villagers currently residing in Azheke， and1O percent to those who retain their hukou， or household registry，in the village.

\"Beyond economic improvements， the project has also enhanced rural governance by introducing structured propertyrightssystems.

“Taking away the rice planted by villagers is universally and naturally regarded as theft. Why， then， isn't the same true Wwhen their intangible assets are taken？\"

Residents are taking a more active role in managing their community， which has led to many tangible improvements，” says Yang.

Professor Bao，who proposed the Azheke Plan，believes that securing the villagers'rights to these tourism profitsis the keyto sustainable development.“Takingawaythericeplanted by villagersisuniversallyand naturallyregarded as theft.Why， then， isn’t the same true when their intangible assetsare taken？”asked Bao duringaspeechattheWorld TourismAlliance in 2023.“Only by implementing these rights can we ensure that thedevelopmentof rural tourism is not just policy-driven poverty alleviation or a showcase of capital operation.\"

Sun Yat-sen University now continues to utilizeAzhekeasaresearchbasefortheir students and researchers，who usually stay for atleasthalfayear.At the same time， theywork with villagers to improve the village's living standards and develop its overall tourism appeal. Villagers have used their newly learned business acumen to open multiplehomestays，cafes， and restaurants. The village now has its own libraryand hostsa variety of events，ranging from its own Long Street Feast to celebrations of traditional Chinese holidays.

Harvesting the rewards

The dividend payments have steadily increased over the years as the village gained popularity. In March 2O19， the co-owned tourism company distributed its first dividends， totaling 89，000 yuan，with each household receiving between 700 and 1，6oO yuan on average. Since then， villagershavereceived two to threedividend paymentsannually.According to the official Azheke WeChat account，by 2025，the company's cumulative revenue had surpassed 5million yuan， with total dividend payouts reaching 2.33 million yuan，resultinginanaveragedividendofover 30，000 yuan per household.

In November 2024，another milestone was reached，asAzhekewasawardeda“BestTourism Village\"designationbytheUnited Nations World Tourism Organization （UN Tourism），one of only 15 villages in China ever to receive such an honor. Theaward is given to villages thatare trailblazers in preserving cultural heritage，protecting local resources，andmaintaininglocal traditions.

WhenIvisited this year， the1lth and most recent round of dividend payments totaled 448，000 yuan，with most households receiving an average of over 6，8oO yuan.In the village square that day， students from prestigious universities likeFudanandSunYat-senscribbledintheir notebooks，while local government personnel rushed around to attend to guests.Villagers， carrying theirnew hongbao （red packets），roamed the area taking photos-a scene unimaginable justadecadeearlier.GaoMeihua，avillager who works in Azheke's ticket sales department， beamed with excitement as she flaunted her hefty 8，000-yuan hongbao，which was one of the highest dividend payouts.“The more tourists， the more thatis handed out to villagers，” said Gao，content with theprogressand changes the Azheke Plan has brought.“We have to manage and maintain our homes，and the company can help with these costs.\"

Nearby， one of the century-old mushroom homes had been converted into a cafe，with a large strawand coffee mug displayed on its second-floor balcony. Two youngHani boys greeted me as I looked over the menu.“We only have pour-over coffee today.We've sold out of everything else，\" theysaid， theireyeswideandalert.

\"Business must be good. Let me try some Azheke pour-over coffee then！” I replied， scanning thecafe'sinterior，which featured farmingtools and traditional Hani-style seating—round woven bamboo tables and small fire pits surrounded by stone blocks.

NotonlyhaveolderAzhekevillagersshifted torunningbusinesses，buttheHanichildren here are developing their own entrepreneurial mindset.Aclear sign of thisis printed on theback of the 3O-yuan ticket required to enter thevillage center：“Please refrain from giving food or money to the children in the village， so they can grow up learning the value of earning：”

Apart from changing his perspective on rural life and academic research， Yang， the post-doc fellow，hasalsofeltAzheke'sinfluenceonhis outlook toward life.“Their mindset is much more peaceful and unburdened by the pressures of external materialism，nor are they consumed by the anxieties of city life.Apart from shaping my personal views，Azhekehasreminded me that happinessdoesnot necessarilycome frommateria abundance，butfromamorebalancedand contented way of living.”

The Azheke Plan has become a prime model of how rural tourism development and heritage protection can work together to create new

meaningful experiences for the world to enjoy. With plans for the Azheke model to be replicated in the remote Samaba Rice Terraces in Honghe county，and Tuyugou village in Turpan， Xinjiang， rural-tourismdevelopment seems to have uncovered a new path to revive remote regions of the country.

I hopped down toward the rice terraces behind the villageand looked toward thevalleyas the terraces disappeared over the horizon into the low-hanging cloudsbelow.Local farmers toiled away， maintaining the precious crops growing slowlybeneath thewater，as touristsscampered around enjoying their most likely once-in-alifetime trip to Azheke village.An old man hiked up，balancingalong the terrace edges as he coaxed a young toddler tired of the endless walking，reminding me of the countless challenges thisancient village has overcome.