Beauty and Sadness
Nigel Sizer’s third post from China.
You know you’re doing the right job when it brings tears to your eyes … even the eyes 
of a cynical middle-aged pair of conservationists, Paul and me.
Three hours drive from Lijiang, floating in a near forgotten valley of the Liming River, nestles the town of Liming. On the edge of town (literally almost falling over the edge of the valley!) perches Liming High School. Dong Yu Cheng is one of the teachers at the 
school. He has set up a “green club” after training from Angela (replicated in ten other schools up the valley).
The school is now covered in conservation slogans, pictures, proverbs and 
exhortations. The children have drawn beautiful pictures of Yunnan golden monkeys, tearful as their trees are chopped, and images of harmony between man and nature. This in one of the poorest parts of China, and yet suddenly conservation is on the agenda of mealtime discussions between parents and their children. The walls of one large room in the school were papered from floor to ceiling with conservation artwork.
But poverty barks at the door like a hungry Chinese dog, and teacher Dong told us of 
the plight of some bright kids whose families can’t afford the roughly $100 per year that it costs to have a child attend the school. Paul and I immediately dug out our wallets and sponsored three children for the next year and promised to help find funds for more (if you’d like to sponsor a child send your $100 check payable to Rare and we’ll make sure it gets right out to Yunnan with zero administrative costs!).
