In the second week of July, 2014, a team of 52 students led by some teachers, went to Changtin, an underdeveloped county in Fujian province, to do social studies. The subject was about Changtin’s ecological environment. 

The Party Secretary of Xiamen University meets the students in Changtin

Changtin is a small county in the western part of Fujian province which is one of the worst soil-eroded areas in China. The soil is not suitable to grow crops, so, historically, the county is one of the poorest counties of Fujian. However, since the 1980s, Changtin’s ecological environment has greatly improved because of the local government’s efforts to bring soil erosion under control. The result is that now the economic growth has become steady and sustainable. The major focus of the study was on the links between economic development and the development of an ecological environment to help control soil erosion.

The team was composed of students from different majors, including undergraduates, graduates and PhD students, which made it possible to use diverse research methods. In the research process, students were divided into several groups. Some were responsible for data collection and analysis while others interviewed local representatives. One group interviewed a farmer and learned about his sincere impressions and success in growing a thousand mu of crops on the previously barren soil. “This study and the experiences taught us a lot which cannot be learned in classroom.”, commented one of the students. 

Studies like this, have been an important part of education at Xiamen University as the university accepts this as part of the university’s social responsibility. Just recently, on July, 12, Yang Zhenbin, the Party Secretary of Xaimen University, signed an agreement with Changtin's local government to add Changtin as another one of the the bases of the university’s social studies program. At the agreement signing ceremony, XMU donated 2000 thousands books and 100 computers to the Changtin base.