Journalist Mauro Ramos Pintos (R front) experiences traditional Chinese folk performance with artists in Gaolan County of Lanzhou City, northwest China's Gansu Province, July 17, 2026. Journalists, online influencers and photographers from 23 countries and regions, including the United Kingdom, Canada, France and Brazil, recently visited Lanzhou City and Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Gansu.(Xinhua)

LANZHOU, July 24 (Xinhua) -- With a notebook full of field notes and a phone gallery of landscape shots, Mauro Ramos Pintos concluded a reporting trip just days ago in northwest China's Gansu Province, where he documented some of the region's social realities and innovative forms of development.

Journalists, online influencers and photographers from 23 countries and regions, including the United Kingdom, Canada, France and Brazil, recently visited Lanzhou City and Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Gansu. During field visits, they gained firsthand insight into grassroots innovation in ecological protection along the Yellow River basin, rural revitalization, and the development of specialized local industries.

Pintos, a 42-year-old Uruguayan, was among the delegation. With more than two decades in journalism, he works for the Brazilian outlet Brasil de Fato and has been living and working in China as a journalist for three-and-a-half years.

He sees journalism as a bridge between China and his native Latin America, two regions of the world separated by vast oceans and shaped by very different social and cultural fabrics. He has spent more than 100 days a year on reporting trips across the country, covering places like Xinjiang, Shaanxi, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Yunnan.

This is Pintos' third visit to Gansu. He had previously been to Jiuquan to cover the launch of the Shenzhou-18 manned spaceship. On that first visit, he mistakenly assumed that the entire province was nothing but Gobi desert. Yet as he traveled through Gansu by high-speed rail, the rolling green mountains and lush scenery made him realize that only through direct observation can deep-rooted stereotypes be truly overturned.

This time, the experience of visiting the Yellow River as it flows through Lanzhou left a lasting impression on Pintos. "I had imagined the Yellow River many times before, but I never expected it to flow so close to such a lively urban area," he said.

At the hydrometric stations along the river, he witnessed the smart management system in action -- fully automated water quality monitors and HD smart cameras running around the clock that track real-time data on electrical conductivity, dissolved oxygen, turbidity and other key indicators.

"China's experience in river protection and ecological governance is worth sharing," he said, while recording footage and taking notes along the riverbank.

In Shichuan Township, 20 kilometers outside downtown Lanzhou, Pintos visited an ancient pear orchard spanning 12,000 mu (about 800 hectares), where more than 9,000 pear trees over a century old are each equipped with GPS positioning and an electronic ID card that documents their growth and preservation.

Even compared with Brazil's indigenous fruit-growing regions, Pintos said such a conservation model is rarely seen. He believes the combination of traditional agricultural knowledge and digital technology provides valuable experience for protecting unique agricultural heritage around the world.

Over the week-long visit, Pintos spoke sincerely, in his still-developing Chinese, with local officials, entrepreneurs, street vendors and farmers, listening to their stories of how life has changed. Their kindness and openness stay with him long after the trip.

"I hope people in Latin America can see the real China through my stories and discover its rich and multifaceted charm," he said. ■

Journalist Mauro Ramos Pintos (3rd L) films a Nuo dance performance, a traditional Chinese ritual dance, in Xigu District of Lanzhou City, northwest China's Gansu Province, July 16, 2026. Journalists, online influencers and photographers from 23 countries and regions, including the United Kingdom, Canada, France and Brazil, recently visited Lanzhou City and Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Gansu.(Xinhua)