Rebirth of ancient villages at the foot of the Great Wall: Shixia Village in Yanqing, Beijing explores the integrated development of agriculture, culture and tourism

China News Service, Beijing, September 10 (Reporter Ying Ni) From the protection of the Great Wall to the revitalization of ancient villages, Shixia Village, Badaling Town, Yanqing District, Beijing, this ancient village at the foot of the Great Wall is revitalizing with the help of Great Wall culture.

"I have guarded the Great Wall all my life, and now the whole village is working together to protect it. The wall is getting more energetic every day." Mei Jingtian, an 82-year-old Great Wall protector, said this to everyone he met.

Since the 1980s, he has consciously protected the Great Wall near his hometown. For more than 40 years, he used a sickle to carve out a dozens of kilometers of mountain patrol paths leading directly to the ancient Great Wall, picking up garbage and clearing weeds, and enthusiastically explaining the relevant knowledge of the Great Wall to tourists.

Liu Hongyan, a "post-80s generation", passed the exam in 2019 and became the first batch of Great Wall protectors in Shixia Village, taking over the baton from her uncle Mei Jingtian. Climbing the Great Wall, carving graffiti, littering, and having picnics and barbecues on the Great Wall were the biggest headaches for the uncle and nephew. Liu Hongyan told reporters that as the Great Wall protection publicity has become more popular, uncivilized behaviors have decreased a lot in recent years. Some tourists also actively pick up garbage along the way and actively participate in the protection of the Great Wall.

The Great Wall resources in Shixia Village are very rich, and the original style of the Great Wall is well preserved, including Luoguo City, Nantianmen, Yuanyang Tower, Jiangjun Tower and other Great Walls; there are also the remains of the ancient castle wall, the foundation stone of the ancient castle gate, the horse blocking wall, Tangying Mansion, Tianshui Well, brick kiln and other ruins. Strolling through Shixia Village, you can experience boutique B&Bs, coffee houses, Great Wall Bookstores, wine shops, and teahouses. Staying in the village, tasting skullcap tea, drinking crabapple juice, eating "stone cooking banquets" and participating in workshop activities attracts a large number of tourists from home and abroad every year.

With the help of the cultural resources of the Great Wall, the characteristic cultural tourism industry represented by homestays has driven the economic development of Shixia Village, and the income of villagers has been greatly improved. The village has set up the "Shiguang Great Wall" brand to connect the agricultural, cultural and tourism industry chain and drive villagers to operate supporting workshops such as wine shops, oil shops, and camellia shops.

In June 2025, the country's first Great Wall protection-themed "Impression of the Rule of Law" legal education base was completed in Shixia Village. The Great Wall Legal Cultural Park was simultaneously opened to the public. Laws and regulations such as the Cultural Relics Protection Law of the People's Republic of China and the Beijing Great Wall Protection Regulations were transformed into popular legal education content.

On September 9, the launch ceremony of "Lighting the Edge of the Great Wall·Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Great Wall Protection and Village Revitalization Public Welfare Action" jointly sponsored by the China Cultural Relics Conservation Foundation and Bank of China was held in Shixia Village, Yanqing District, Beijing. This activity takes Shixia Village as the starting point for practice, solidly promotes various tasks such as heritage protection, village quality improvement, and cultural activation, and summarizes and forms practical experience that can be used as a reference and replicable.

In the first phase of the project, a total of four stations were selected for implementation, namely Shixiaguan-Shixia Village in Beijing, Huangyaguan-Huangyaguan Village in Tianjin, and Shanhaiguan-Beiyingzi Village in Hebei Province. At the same time, it extended to the west, starting from Huangcaoying Village at the foot of the Jiayuguan Great Wall in Gansu Province, and launched the "Silk Road Great Wall Protection and Village Revitalization Public Welfare Action".

Liu Yuzhu, chairman of the China Cultural Relics Conservation Foundation, said that the first batch of actions focuses on the protection of the Great Wall heritage and the revitalization of ancient villages, exploring practical paths for the deep integration of public welfare of cultural relics protection and rural revitalization, and is committed to creating a replicable, promoteable and sustainable demonstration model. The next step will be to expand to the ancient Silk Road, "let the protection of the roots of the Great Wall and the illumination of the future of the countryside mutually reinforce each other and shine."