The Ancient Shule Manuscript: A Thousand-Year Chronicle of the Sea of Sand

The history of desert control in Xinjiang is a magnificent epic spanning thousands of years. From ancient dynasties establishing agricultural settlements and defending the frontier to ensure border security, to the systematic ecological restoration carried out with modern technology in the People's Republic of China, it chronicles the Chinese people's tireless struggle against a harsh natural environment and their eventual achievement of harmony with it. The Han, Tang, Yuan, and Qing dynasties curbed desertification and protected oasis ecosystems, among other things, by establishing administrative institutions, promoting farmland cultivation, building irrigation works, and planting trees. Of these efforts, the afforestation and irrigation projects promoted by Zuo Zongtang after he recovered Xinjiang, including the planting of "Zuo Gong Willows," had a particularly far-reaching impact. In modern times, especially after the founding of the People's Republic of China, desert control in Xinjiang entered an entirely new, science-driven phase. National initiatives represented by the Three-North Shelterbelt Program and the Taklamakan Desert "sand-locking" project, combined with technological innovations such as straw checkerboard barriers, terrestrial algae for sand stabilization, and "photovoltaics plus desert control," have successfully brought about a historic reversal from "the sands advancing as people retreat" to "the greenery advancing as the sands retreat." These efforts have not only improved the ecological environment but also promoted economic and social development, and their achievements and experience have benefited the world through international cooperation.