In 2026, a side event of the World Mayors Dialogue · Huangshan was held in Lundu Village, Longmen Township, Huangshan District. City representatives from multiple countries joined the mayor of Huangshan by the shores of Taiping Lake for an immersive discussion centered on ecological prosperity.
Leveraging its high-quality natural landscapes, Lundu Village has transformed from a once-remote impoverished village into a thriving residential community known for its homestay clusters. Following the success of poverty alleviation efforts, villagers’ incomes have risen significantly. Huangshan has unlocked the value of its ecological assets, pivoted toward a leisure economy, and developed distinctive local agricultural brands—turning environmental strengths into tangible benefits for local residents, thereby creating a homegrown model of eco-driven prosperity.
After witnessing Lundu’s achievements firsthand, the visiting mayors and delegates shared insights based on rural conditions in their own countries. The Italian representative highlighted the importance of preserving indigenous populations and traditional cultural heritage. The German delegate praised Huangshan’s integration of homestays and intangible cultural heritage into tourism development. Delegates from Malaysia, Indonesia, and Serbia respectively addressed challenges such as rainforest resource management, youth outmigration, and infrastructure gaps, while expressing strong recognition of Huangshan’s practice of transforming lucid waters and lush mountains into livelihood benefits—and expressed interest in adapting these approaches to their own contexts.
The cross-border dialogue produced a broad consensus: protecting ecosystems, increasing rural incomes, and preserving local culture are central to rural revitalization. Many delegates called for deeper international cooperation and experience-sharing. The lakeside dialogue not only showcased tangible outcomes of rural revitalization in Huangshan but also distilled replicable pathways for rural development through the exchange of global perspectives, offering a practical Huangshan model for sustainable ecological development in rural areas worldwide.
