Torch festival ignites summer of culture, tourism in Sichuan

Thousands of torches blazed across the night sky in southwest China's Sichuan Province on Saturday as the Yi ethnic group celebrated its traditional Torch Festival, a centuries-old ritual believed to ward off pests, safeguard harvests, and usher in health and prosperity for the year ahead.

As the annual Yi Torch Festival arrived, Xichang, the capital of Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, lit up the night on Saturday. Eighty-six bonfires and tens of thousands of torches turned the city into a sea of fire and joy.

The lighting ceremony carried forward the thousand-year-old traditions of the Yi people. Thousands danced the Dati dance, torch parades filled the streets, and ancient folk customs came alive in a celebration of culture and heritage.

"What I like the most is like the people dancing around. Because even though you don't know these people, they kind of like become your family. It doesn't matter. It feels like you know them from like your whole life. I think this should become like a main thing to do in China," said Neolia Rodriguez, a foreign tourist.

But Liangshan's charm goes beyond the festival. With its unique plateau climate, the region enjoys an average summer temperature of only 21 degrees Celsius. Cool weather and stunning landscapes offer a perfect escape from the heat.

In Jiangzhou Town, local communities are turning their cultural and ecological resources into new opportunities. Rice fields have become stages for fashion shows featuring Yi embroidery. And traditional villages are attracting visitors through a blend of culture, tourism, and summer retreats.

"We planned the follow up operation before starting any construction. We train young locals to run catering, travel photography and tie dye handicraft experiences. Houses belonging to elderly residents are rented out and managed by the company, bringing about 30,000 yuan (about 4,446 U.S. dollars) of additional income per household," said Yang Hu, Deputy Mayor of Jiangzhou Town.

By making the Torch Festival a cultural symbol, Liangshan is integrating traditional customs, ecological tourism and rural development. Festival enthusiasm is becoming a lasting source of tourism growth and rural revitalization.

"We draw tourists with the festival. Local farmers become multi skilled new rural workers, earning income from tourism right where they live. We expect cultural tourism revenue from this Torch Festival to hit around 3 million yuan," said Liu Huajiang, Secretary of Party Committee of Jiangzhou Town.

"This is the first time that I got to come here and experience the torch festival, and you know all sorts of different kinds of E culture, and it's been a lot of fun. Since it's in the middle of August, and most places are really hot, coming here where it's all very cool was a nice change of pace, and definitely recommend," said Eddie O’Brien a foreign Tourist.

This summer celebration is a feast of Yi culture, and a vivid example of Liangshan's journey toward high-quality development. With blazing torches and refreshing mountains, this ancient Yi homeland is shining with new vitality in the modern era.

Torch festival ignites summer of culture, tourism in Sichuan

Rob Hillard, CEO of Deloitte Asia Pacific, underscored the critical role of the Asia-Pacific region in maintaining resilient global supply chains, noting that the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) is becoming increasingly important due to its growing innovation capabilities.

Hillard made the remarks in an interview with China Media Group (CMG) on Sunday in south China's tech hub Shenzhen, as the city is set to hold the 33rd Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting from Nov 18 to 19.

Deloitte has long maintained a strong presence across the Asia-Pacific, particularly in the Chinese market, offering integrated audit, tax, and consulting services to both foreign companies entering China and Chinese firms expanding overseas.

Hillard observed that Chinese enterprises are becoming increasingly adept at navigating a dynamic global environment.

"Clearly, innovation, excitement, but resilience, and resilience is a really interesting word. It's a dynamic world and I think Chinese business has become very, very good at navigating complexities," he said.

Reflecting on his visit to the Greater Bay Area, Hillard said the region left a strong impression with its thriving innovation scene.

"The whole Greater Bay Area has so much culture and history and the other thing is that this is an area that has been almost experimental. Experimental from a policy perspective -- urban infrastructure, drones, robots, driverless taxis. There is just so much to explore and to watch," he said.

He further emphasized that the Asia-Pacific region is critical in maintaining resilient global supply chains, given its large share of global trade, and the GBA, he said, is becoming increasingly crucial for its innovative strength.

"Asia Pacific is a trading region. One of the things, I think, that makes that region so important to the rest of the world is supply chains. Again, I always remind people, more than 70 percent of the world's trade starts, ends or is contained within Asia Pacific. And it does all depend upon resilient supply chains -- being able to get those parts, those components that you need and the information that you need. Increasingly, the Greater Bay Area is crucial to that -- in everything from physical goods right through to the tokens that we are relying on through innovative technology development. So, I think the Greater Bay Area has become well known within Asia Pacific as an important part of the resilience of the region," said Hillard.

Deloitte Asia Pacific CEO highlights GBA's growing role in Asia-Pacific innovation, trade resilience