Abstract
This paper examines the large-scale forest regeneration policy implemented by the Chinese government, in which farmland is turned back into forests to recover the natural environment; Conversion of Cropland to Forest Program (CCFP). The paper starts with an examination of the situation before the commencement of CCFP in 2001 and goes on to cover the situation in 2021, now that the program has ended, exploring the changes that the policy brought about in Gusheng Village, Guizhou Province, in the intervening 20 years.
When the village was designated as one of the places where CCFP would be implemented in 2002, 78% of the farmland in the village became subject to the program’s titular objective of being returned to a forested state. For several years after the start of implementation, the livelihoods of the villageʼs residents, who lost the crops required for their way
of life, became even more destitute. However, after support from NGOs and researchers, self-aid efforts instituted by the villagers, and negotiations for support from the regional government that proved successful, the forest coverage rate within the village grew from 8.5% to the current figure of 90.40%. These changes to the natural environment gave rise to two new major industries in the village: tourism and fruit cultivation. The 20-year period studied also saw changes to the provisions of CCFP and to the population of migrant workers. The focus of this paper is on the effects of the policy on the single locale of Gusheng Village, rather than on the macro-effects on all areas in which the program was implemented.
