I took this photo when I walked up Taiping Nan Lu on 8th March on the way to Daxinggong metro station. I was on my way back home from working at Nanjing Foreign Language School. I liked the way all the workers were sleeping. I thought it was a shame that they were cutting down the ancient, beautiful trees which have lined this street and given important summer shade for many years.
Then on 16th March I had cause to walk back down the same road and was surprised to see the pavement and trees gone and replaced by a 4 lane highway. The pace at which things change here is incredible. I am always surprised although I should be getting used to it by now.
This afternoon I had to be at school again and chatted to a couple of my students in the playground. They asked me whether they could start a petition to the Nanjing govt. I asked them what it would be about. They said that they were horrified at the destruction of the trees on Taiping Nan Lu and that although there had been an online campaign by the people of Nanjing, the trees had been uprooted anyhow. The reason the govt. gave is that they were preparing the city for new metro stations for the Youth Olympic Games in 2014.
The students were passionate about the issue and told me that the govt. planned to kill more trees in the name of the YOG. They wanted to know what I could to help them. They wanted to start a petition. So, at the risk of being chucked out of the country I will help them word a petition and they are keen to take it to the streets of Nanjing to get thousands of names in order to stop anymore destruction of the trees for which Nanjing is famous.
Surely to have a YOG which is marketed as “A Green YOG”. We need to have a green Nanjing. Levelling the old buildings and ancient trees in the name of shiny skyscrapers and concrete bollards is surely a step to far. I’m sure the visitors to the games would rather walk in the shade of a huge tree than bear the scorching heat and trip over the bollards and dodge the speeding horn-honking traffic.
To watch out progress look here We will be posting a new campaign on the front page.