An 11-year-old student from Beijing Experiment Primary School was flying high on Saturday after winning first prize in Bird Knowledge Contest, which constituted a part of the Bird Loving Week.
Xue Chen won the contest - jointly organized by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), Capital Normal University, Friends of Nature, Green Home and China Youth Daily - which marked the 20th anniversary of the Bird Loving Week, which aims at enhancing public awareness of loving birds.
The organizers published 50 questions in China Youth Daily last month. Within two weeks, approximately 20,000 readers, aged 7 to 82, from more than 30 provinces and cities across the country had taken part in the contest.
The prize winners were selected by lucky draw monitored by the organizers. Winners came from Hebei, Henan and Jiangsu provinces and Beijing.
"Birds are very sensitive to their natural habitat," said Liang Congjie, chairman of Friends of Nature. "Whether they live well or not tells the quality of our natural environment.
"When birds sing and flowers blossom, people will also live happy and healthy lives. In this sense, bird watching is also an observation of the quality of our natural environment."
Aster Zhang, IFAW acting director for China, said: "To a certain extent, how much people care about the birds and nature around them shows the level of civilization in a society.
"Besides participating in bird watching activities, Beijing citizens can also show their love for birds by protecting birds in the capital or assisting the IFAW in all possible way."
In September 1981, the State Council issued a circular drafted by the State Forestry Administration to launch a national public awareness campaign for the protection of birds, and to designate a week between April and May as Bird Loving Week.
Following the circular, all provinces and cities in the country have introduced their own Bird Loving Weeks.
(China Daily April 8, 2002)
