American teacher's $5,000 donation transforms Mongolian desert into forest in 26 years

A retired American English teacher has returned to Inner Mongolia to discover that his US$5,000 donation a quarter-century ago helped plant more than 50,000 trees across what was once barren desert.

Ronald Sakolsky, 67, reunited with Chinese farmer Yin Yuzhen in May, 26 years after their first meeting at a donation ceremony in the Mu Us Desert in 2000. The landscape he remembered as sandy wasteland has been transformed into a lush green environment.

From donation to forest

Sakolsky was teaching English in Luoyang, Henan province, in 1999 when he learned about Yin's work fighting desertification. Moved by her efforts, he contributed $5,000 to support the mission. After meeting Yin at the ceremony the following year, Sakolsky returned to the United States while Yin used the funds to plant the tens of thousands of trees.

Today, vegetation covers more than 80 per cent of the Mu Us Desert, one of China's four major sandy regions. Yin, now 60, reconnected with her American benefactor through a video call in May and invited him back to see the "green miracle" his contribution had helped create.

"You gave the trees life and watched them grow, just as parents take pride in their children," Sakolsky said.

The reunion highlights the long-term impact of China's decades-long battle against desertification in the Mu Us region, where individual donations and local persistence have contributed to reversing environmental degradation across vast stretches of sandy terrain.

Source: South China Morning Post