Starting from 3,000 yuan

Author: Liang Qu, Editor-in-Chief
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-11-01
Features: "We all have something to contribute. We often focus on grand goals but forget that no matter where we are, we can make a difference. Sometimes I tell myself, I might just plant a tree here, but imagine if billions of people start taking action—what incredible results that would create?" Dr. Wangari Maathai, 2004 Nobel Peace Prize laureate. This is a storybook about NGOs/NPOs published openly in mainland China. In this sense, they belong to a certain profession, but this profession can be pursued by everyone. Therefore, these stories and this book belong to people of all industries, ethnicities, countries, ages, and beliefs. Starting with 3,000 yuan, it teaches you an entire life, making it richer than any book about financial management. Starting with 3,000 yuan, it gives you a full life, making it more realistic than any youth motivational book. Starting with 3,000 yuan, the stories of "Returning Love to China" are the result of people's actions, not designed ones. Life is far more beautiful than anyone could imagine, and thus even more lovable. That's why I wrote in the preface: "The ancients said, 'When rites are lost, seek them in the wilderness; when music is lost, seek it in the suburbs.' I thank those who created life and those who recorded these stories. Without their efforts, this book would not exist." "Starting with 3,000 yuan" is a story that moved me deeply and will move you too, as well as all Chinese people. These stories come from life, and these people are around you. They show me a completely new way of living, a new space, where those who seek a journey will find a way home. Life is so rich, life is so wonderful, and life is so great. Yet in our worn-out hearts, clouded by doubt, faith, hope, and love, we remain unaware of all this. "Those who know the roof leaks know it from under the eaves; those who know governance is lost know it from the grasslands." Life always teaches us that the pressures of life and the dignity of life are eternal themes we must face. For the dignity of life, our ancestors learned to hunt and farm. From the hard labor of clearing land with fire and tools, the descendants of Yan and Huang walked along the Silk Road, which has become a legendary song of humanity. Amid thousands of years of life's pressures and the dilemma of life's dignity, our ancestors created the brilliant East Asian civilization. The title "Starting with 3,000 yuan" and the preface's subtitle "The Moment of Action" were decided upon almost as soon as the book was being compiled. The upper part, "Returning Love to China," and the lower part, "Everyone Has This Thought," were almost naturally settled during the editing process. It seems I should be very clear about what this book is about, and there's no need to spend nearly half a year pondering its meaning. "Starting with 3,000 yuan" is a book about China's NGOs and NPOs. As we all know, China's reform and opening-up began with "economic construction as the center" and was fully rolled out after the establishment of special economic zones. In a socialist society where the state covers the entire society, special economic zones were experiments in "one country, two systems" in terms of the economy. Their model was a large society with a small government, where the relationship between the government and enterprises was one of service. It was a limited and rule-of-law government, not an all-powerful and autocratic one. Unlike the planned economy outside the special economic zones, this was a new living space centered on capital. This new space accommodated billions of "floating" capital and "floating" people, forming a new living and social space. This incremental reform outside the system, as scholars call it, is completely different from the variable reform within the system. It does not touch the existing structures. Under the isolation of the special economic zones, these two systems coexist peacefully, and the old and new spaces evolve harmoniously. This is very pragmatic and also great political wisdom. I believe that China's reform and opening-up experiment is a precious asset for human society.