A little bit of Sunshine in rural China

The largest human migration in history happens every year during the great Spring Festival in China. Over 130 million Chinese leave the cities where they work to return to their home towns and villages. It is a phenomenon which has evolved over the past 30 years as China has grown into the world’s largest industrial power.

But the rise and rise of China’s manufacturing might has come at a price. In 1949, the Chinese revolution promised to bring education to millions and schools were set up in rural settings all over China. Over the past three decades, men and women have moved to cities to find work, but their children had to stay to be educated where they were born. So began the biggest unintended consequence in modern history – the breakup of the millennials-old culture of Chinese family life.

We in the west have been beneficiaries of Chinese low-cost manufacturing, paying relatively less for our goods than we did two decades ago.

In 2017, Project Sunshine embarked on its first expedition to rural China, three hours west of the bustling city of Beijing among stunning, snow-capped mountains. Over the course of a week, the team met and worked with over 200 hundred children to create and perform an all singing, all dancing show to be performed to family and friends.

The team went with the intention of bringing a little bit of sunshine and a better understanding of the English language to the children in these remote villages. They would bring the joy of performance and song to the children. The team came back with a deep appreciation of the innocent joy these children showed in one action packed week.

In both 2018 and 2019 the team returned and once again produced a stunning concert with 200 children on stage. We also now pay for a doctor to give regular medical check-ups.

In 2020 we will return.