On October 20, Tsinghua University’s Rural Revitalization Work Station signed a collaboration agreement with Du Xiaoman in Cili County, Zhangjiajie City, Hunan Province. This partnership aims to deepen cooperation in supporting rural entrepreneurship and cultivating talent in rural areas. Notable attendees at the signing ceremony included Liu Xiaoshan, former deputy director of the Development Guidance Department of the National Rural Revitalization Bureau; Li Yong, Secretary of the Cili County People’s Congress Standing Committee; Zhang Hong, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of the Tsinghua University School of Architecture and head of the Rural Revitalization Work Station; and the person in charge of corporate collaborations at Du Xiaoman.
Under the agreement, Du Xiaoman will act as a “partner” to Tsinghua University’s Rural Revitalization Work Station, leveraging Tsinghua’s 32 nationwide rural revitalization work stations and over 900 rural service teams to provide interest-free loans to “new farmers” and rural entrepreneurs in the area.
The partnership will also harness Tsinghua’s talent resources to offer public welfare training for rural entrepreneurs. This support will include mentoring, course training, practical assistance, and financial backing to encourage young people to return to their hometowns and start businesses.
Liu Xiaoshan remarked, “The collaboration between Tsinghua University’s Rural Revitalization Work Station and Du Xiaoman in supporting young rural entrepreneurs leverages Tsinghua’s talent advantage and financial empowerment. This initiative breathes life into rural economies by turning good ideas into reality.”
Zhang Hong echoed this sentiment, stating, “Rural revitalization is a challenging yet essential endeavor. To effectively serve rural revitalization requires us to pursue difficult yet correct actions in the right way. Through our partnership with Du Xiaoman, we will explore a model of ‘talent empowerment + technology empowerment’ that utilizes financial technology to energize micro enterprises and promote industrial growth, ultimately driving rural revitalization.”
The Zhangjiajie (Cili) Work Station is the first officially established rural revitalization work station for Tsinghua University in Hunan Province. On that same morning, the Cili Work Station also launched the sixth session of the “Rural Innovation +” talent cultivation program, which attracted dozens of young entrepreneurial representatives from across the nation.
Launched in 2021, the “Rural Innovation +” program aims to cultivate innovative, creative, and entrepreneurial talent focused on rural themes, supporting young people in returning to their hometowns to start businesses. The sixth session of the entrepreneurship camp accepted 30 entrepreneurial teams, with participants not only from Tsinghua University but also from renowned institutions such as Peking University, Renmin University of China, China Agricultural University, and the Central Academy of Fine Arts. The entrepreneurial projects span various fields, including smart agriculture, rural wastewater treatment, and rural cultural tourism.
