In honor of Women’s Day on Thursday, a few links on those who hold up half of the sky (and then back to our regularly scheduled programming).
Women in China: Two recent New York Times articles highlighted the progress of women in Chinese society. Since the induction of the Communist party, women have increasingly gained power at home and in the work force. These articles are somewhat pie in the sky, but still show a positive progression. Read them here and here.
Left-behind women: Last year there were 47 million left-behind women in China’s countryside. As their husbands go to cities for work, these women face the burden of carrying for children and the elderly alone, while also maintaining farms and homes. This China Daily article tells the story of one woman who is struggling to keep everything together.
Weibo’s new donation page: China’s microblogging site has set up a charity platform to help nonprofits fundraise. Currently in beta, each organization gets a page with information about their work and a meter showing what percentage of their overall goal has been raised. Donors get do-gooder points next to a heart on their username.
Biking coming full circle in Beijing: An interview with Shannon Bufton, an Australian bicycle enthusiast who promotes cycling in China’s capital. Interesting point, “In the old Beijing, bicycles and tricycles would go around the hutongs and ring a bell and people would know that was the flower-seller or someone was there to sharpen your knife. The idea that all you need is a bicycle or a tricycle and then you can service a population or provide a craft is a very sustainable way of thinking.”
A change of weather: China is planning to expand its cloud seeding to cover a wider area to alleviate natural disasters such as the ongoing drought in Yunnan province. According to the article, about 70 percent of China’s natural disasters are caused by weather. Read more on China’s environmental problems at the Seeing Red in China blog.




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