31.03.12 – Haidian District. Beijing, China.
Enter The Water Dragon
Tomorrow, Thursday 22nd March, marks the United Nations’ World Water Day. To mark the event, Beijing NGO Thirst4Water has been holding events in schools and universities throughout the city to raise awareness about water issues across the globe.
This morning, in Beijing, we orchestrated nearly 1000 students into the shape of a dragon to mark the day tomorrow. As you can imagine, this was no small task. A team of artists first designed the dragon and then led the students into the correct position. A conveniently place 10 storey building allowed us to get the shot that we needed from above.
Wherever you are for the day itself tomorrow, spread the word about World Water Day.
New Multimedia Coming Soon
Followers here will know that last summer I embarked on a trip to China’s southern province of Sichuan, to report on the threats to China’s forests for the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. In case you missed it, here is a link to the main reporting page on the Pulitzer Center website.
I’m delighted to be collaborating with the Asia Society and China Green again on a new multimedia piece which will be launching soon. My first collaboration with China Green was when we brought together seven multimedia pieces, focused on China’s wetlands. Our new multimedia will be bringing together stills, video and interviews from my travels last summer, highlighting the current state of China’s fragile forests.
Please stay tuned for more updates…
Chengguan Calling – Beijing [Mobile Upload]
The above image is from a street advertisement for the local Chengguan in Beijing, China.
The Chengguan are a local government agency that take care of various aspects of the city’s management, normally enforcing local bylaws. They are a frequent site in the city and are infamous for being the arch-enemy of all street peddlers and hawkers….
Wukesong Camera Market – Beijing [Mobile Upload]
Today I had to visit the Wukesong camera market in the west of Beijing, to pick up a couple if items of equipment. In case you do not know, the Wukesong camera market is the Beijjng Mecca for all camera lovers. Behind the cheery face of Jackie Chan, holding the latest model from Canon, lies a warren of stores selling every kind of camera and piece of photo equipment. It’s a dangerous place if you linger too long. Far to easy to buy things that you really don’t need!
For more info on the market and how to get there, check out my previous blog post “Where is the Best Place in Beijing to buy Photo Equipment“.


















