In order to showcase the important role played by tourism villages across the country in the rural revitalization, tell the Chinese story to the world, exchange experiences in combating the epidemic and promoting the rapid recovery of the tourism industry, the second International Village Chief Summit on Tourism Villages with the theme of “Tourism Recovery, Village Leadership” will be held on September 7, 2022, in Huangling, Wuyuan, Jiangxi Province.

This will be the second time the International Village Chief Summit on Tourism Villages is held in Huangling after 2018. Representatives from Kinderdijk in the Netherlands, Barbizon Village in France, and the Van Gogh Village in France will participate in the summit online. Representatives from over 50 tourism villages, cultural and tourism enterprises, professional think tanks, mainstream media, travel agencies, and internet celebrities in China, as well as relevant leaders and guests, will gather together to explore new paths for the recovery and development of rural tourism after the epidemic.

As the host of the “Chief Summit,” Huangling Village in Wuyuan will fulfill its mission and fully utilize the platform of the International Village Chief Summit on Tourism Villages to tell the Chinese story, establish friendship based on resource sharing, information exchange, and complementary advantages, strengthen close communication and cooperation, and let the world see the rural areas of China.

On October 16, 2018, the first International Village Chief Summit on Tourism Villages was held in Huangling, Wuyuan. The first summit was jointly organized by the People’s Government of Shangrao City, the Department of Agriculture of Jiangxi Province, the Department of Culture of Jiangxi Province, and the Tourism Development Commission of Jiangxi Province. Village chiefs from nearly a hundred tourism villages at home and abroad, including Champigny-en-Beauce Village in France, Holloko Village in Hungary, Huangling Village in Wuyuan, Jiangxi, Yuanjia Village in Xi’an, Shaanxi, and Xiaogang Village in Fengyang, Anhui, gathered in Huangling, launching the initiative to establish the China International Tourism Villages Alliance, and setting up the alliance secretariat in Huangling to create a rural tourism collaboration and promotion platform that draws on the strengths and shares resources.

On the day of the event, the villagers of Huangling Village prepared homemade rice wine, traditional folk performances such as the Wuyuan dance “Quna Hui,” tea ceremony, and Jiangwan tofu rack at the entrance of the village to welcome guests from all over the world. Village chiefs from tourism villages around the world, led by Wu Xiangyang, the honorary village chief of Huangling, visited the “Shaiqiu Homestead” in Huangling Village. The village chief from Shangpin Village in France interacted closely with the "Shaiqiu Ladies" and personally experienced rural life.

In addition, in order to strengthen economic and cultural exchanges and cooperation between Huangling and international characteristic tourism villages, a friendly village agreement was signed between Huangling and tourism villages abroad. The summit enhanced mutual understanding and communication among tourism villages from various places, publicized and promoted good experiences in tourism development and rural revitalization from various places, and received wide acclaim.

After four years, the international tourism industry has been severely hit by the epidemic. Faced with a complex development situation, the International Village Chief Summit on Tourism Villages will bring together village chiefs from around the world to discuss strategies and measures to cope with the situation and promote recovery. They will promote tourism brands and anti-epidemic experiences from various places to the world, enhance mutual communication, learning, and friendship among tourism villages worldwide, and further enhance the status and influence of tourism villages.

Tourism villages drive the comprehensive development and prosperity of a village’s economy, society, and culture by developing the tourism industry. Through the format of the village chief summit, the experiences, models, and paths created by tourism villages are provided for rural areas around the world to learn from, which will play a positive role in the development and rise of rural areas worldwide.