What works in China

China has implemented several large-scale development and sustainability initiatives. The Spring Bud Project has supported 4.22 million disadvantaged rural girls across all 31 provinces with schooling, vocational training, and mental-health support since 1989, raising over US$451 million. The Grain for Green programme converted 34.3 million hectares of sloped farmland to forest and grassland since 1999, paying 535 billion yuan to over 41 million rural households and reducing soil erosion by 17.3% in Shaanxi. Taobao Villages grew from 3 villages in 2009 to a peak of 7,780 by 2022, generating over 1 trillion yuan in combined sales and linking 8.28 million jobs, though quasi-experimental evidence shows income benefits concentrated among younger, wealthier participants rather than the average rural producer.