Fangxiang Township in Leishan County of Guizhou Province is a typical village in Mainland China: around twenty per cent of the population works as migrant workers in other provinces (in this case in Guangdong and Zhejiang). Elderly, women and children have been left behind, and have become vulnerable in the community. Given a substantial number of villagers leaving the community for work, some women in the township have expressed their concern on the current trend. Women are left alone to be responsible for a wide range of roles, maintaining household food production, care for the elderly and education of their children. Moreover, the culture of out migration has been nurtured. Young people who have come to regard out migration as one of the most natural options. Henceforth, some of the myths, legends of the community have been lost and forgotten and most young people do not understand Miao language, folk dancing and music.

Working together with The Hong Kong Zigen Fund and the women’s groups, we came up with the idea of conducting a community-based survey which will help provide a clear picture of what is going on in the community. The survey will act as a platform for the villagers to collectively identify and discuss common problems, analyze the underlying causes of these problems, and then propose and take collective action to solve the problems.

There are nine villages in the township. In the process of preparing the survey, five villages withdrew from the survey. Villagers expressed that urban migration is what they have chosen for their livelihoods; they should tolerate any suffering that comes along with it. They do not see any room for change.

For the remaining four villages, the community survey is in process. The women who speak Miao and young people who are able to take notes are working together to conduct the interviews. What is the driving force for the four participating villages? One woman said, “I would like a village where my children would like to stay and live, not a village they want to leave.” When a village loses too many villagers, its pride and identity are challenged. Although villagers in the survey cannot tell yet whether any solutions can be found to solve the problems they are encountering, they have a vision for the future. Their wish for positive change is what has been holding them together as they seek opportunities and alternatives.