Quzhou’s efforts to develop a child-friendly city have opened up new international perspectives. On December 4th, under clear skies and amidst cheerful laughter, the international exchange event “Meet in Southern Confucius: A Child-Friendly Future” took place. Thirty young chess players and their parents from countries including Germany, South Korea, Mexico, Singapore, and the United States came together in Quzhou to build international friendships, discuss child-friendly initiatives, and envision a promising future.

Since 2022, Quzhou has been actively promoting the development of a child-friendly city across the entire region, guided by the “1511” work framework. Through supportive policies, preferential measures, and a nurturing environment, the city has implemented numerous innovative practices across various sectors, establishing a model for child-friendly urban development characterized by courtesy and well-being. To date, over 60 supporting policies have been enacted, 58 pilot units have been established, and more than 200 child-friendly spaces have been created. Additionally, over 330,000 square meters of public spaces have been adapted to be more child-friendly, benefiting over 500,000 children.

“One-Meter Perspective” Shaping Urban and Rural Spaces

Promoting the integration of urban and rural areas while creating more child-friendly spaces tailored to local conditions is one of Quzhou’s key strategies for adapting public spaces to be more suitable for children.

In the specialized art classroom at Cuiwen Primary School in Dachen Township, Jiangshan City, a group of children are participating in a “virtual music lesson.” The teacher on the screen, patiently guiding and demonstrating vocal techniques, comes from Chengbei Primary School in the urban area of Jiangshan City. Thanks to a shared educational model that established an online arts school, rural children without prior vocal training are now able to experience the joy and wonder of choir singing.

In Tian’an Village, located in Tianma Street, Changshan County, the “Father’s Rice Field” experiential learning base has become a popular destination for urban children. The “Gu Wa Gu Wa” Barefoot Kingdom Workshop, spanning nearly 2,000 square meters, integrates primary, secondary, and tertiary industries. This allows children to not only engage in hands-on learning but also experience traditional culture up close, gaining knowledge directly from the fields.

Today, through a combined effort of urban demonstration projects and rural collaboration, Quzhou has developed a path of urban-rural integration and shared development for a child-friendly city. In the city, 10 types of pilot units, including child-friendly demonstration areas, have been established, with over 330,000 square meters of public space adapted to suit children’s needs. In rural areas, 56 play spaces with local characteristics and 189 experiential learning spaces have been constructed. Moreover, natural outdoor resources have been utilized to create 25 safe water play areas and 6 standard swimming pools, turning Quzhou’s scenic landscapes into natural recreational grounds for children.

Across Sanqu, stories abound of urban and rural children sharing high-quality public resources, with rural areas contributing to the enrichment of urban children’s lives.

“One-Meter Perspective”: Children Engaging in Urban Development

“My suggestion to paint colorful crosswalks at the school entrance has already been realized.” At an exchange dialogue between Chinese and international children on child-friendly initiatives, Li Chengxi, a member of Quzhou’s Children’s Observation Group, shared in fluent English how he contributed to the city’s development from a child’s perspective.

As you walk through Quzhou’s streets, alleys, parks, and green spaces, it becomes apparent that the city is becoming increasingly child-friendly. Whether it’s dedicated bus lines for children, reading zones, family-friendly bikes, or “one-meter-high handwashing stations,” these changes are driven not just by government efforts but also by the insights and suggestions of children.

In building a child-friendly city, children are not only beneficiaries but also active participants and contributors. Their voices provide a powerful source of input.

How, then, can children most effectively voice their opinions? To address this, Quzhou formed the Children’s Observation Group, where children explore parks, public venues, and commercial districts, take public buses, and observe every corner of the city from a “one-meter height”—a child’s perspective. Their feedback is directly communicated to relevant departments, where it is addressed through a responsive feedback loop.

For instance, Cui Shanning, a member of the Children’s Observation Group, pointed out that as high-rise buildings increasingly dominate the cityscape, children have fewer opportunities to connect with nature and learn about plants. She suggested that educational facilities be added to parks—a proposal that led to the updating and enhancement of information plaques for ancient and notable trees in the Quzhou Confucius Cultural Park.

Currently, Quzhou has established 169 Children’s Observation Groups, hosting over 1,500 events such as “Little Citizen Dialogues” and capability-building activities for children, resulting in the successful implementation of more than 600 suggestions made by children.

Moreover, Quzhou has become the first city to establish and pilot guidelines for assessing the impact of major decisions on children, making it a “mandatory requirement” to seek and incorporate children’s opinions before significant changes to the city are made.

Across Quzhou, more and more children’s voices are being heard, valued, and put into practice. The launch of the “123” Children’s Civic Participation Platform will further diversify the ways children can participate, creating a direct and effective bridge between children’s proposals and departmental actions.

“One-Meter Perspective of Care”: Mobilizing Social Support for Children

Ensuring the healthy growth of children is a common goal across society. To foster a community-wide environment of care and support for children, Quzhou has been dedicated to creating new spaces and developing innovative models.

Quzhou’s villages and communities host many elderly individuals who often experience loneliness, as well as children left without supervision during after-school hours and holidays while their parents are at work. To address this, Quzhou has pioneered integrated services that bring together “the old and the young,” establishing children’s activity spaces within community elderly care centers. Here, retired teachers and senior Party members offer homework assistance and interest-based mentoring to children. Additionally, “Women and Children Stations” are equipped with “casual labor markets” and “Common Prosperity Workshops,” where women and elderly caregivers can engage in handicraft work, effectively balancing the demands of childcare with the opportunity to earn an income.

This model creates a win-win situation: the elderly stay actively engaged, children receive attentive care, and parents benefit from job opportunities close to home. Preliminary statistics indicate that over 300 spaces fostering interaction between the elderly and children have been established throughout the city, advancing an all-age-friendly approach through intergenerational integration.

Quzhou has also built a needs-based service network that spans all age groups and responds specifically to different needs of children. For example, the city launched the “I Do Practical Things for Children” campaign within governmental departments, continually expanding the provision of inclusive childcare services. The city now has 4.25 daycare slots per 1,000 residents for children under three years old, ranking among the top in the province. The continued development of “Youth Centers at Your Doorstep” and “Mobile Women and Children Stations” has benefited over 40,000 children in recent years. Moreover, the creation of an intelligent school bus network serving both urban and rural areas meets the safe transportation needs of over 10,000 rural students.

To engage more social resources and encourage broader participation in building a child-friendly city, Quzhou established the Quzhou Public Welfare Service Alliance for Childcare. This alliance includes 68 members, has carried out 23 public welfare projects, and has benefited over 5,000 children. Thirteen women’s volunteer teams from various sectors across the city have also come together to form the “Sanqu Mama” Women’s Volunteer Service Alliance, dedicated to supporting children. Additionally, the city’s first child-focused public welfare fund has been launched to address urgent and critical needs that arise during children’s growth and development.

“One-Meter Perspective” Empowering the City’s Brand

On the evening of November 20th, the 2023 Quzhou Child-Friendly Culture Season was officially launched alongside a World Children’s Day lighting ceremony, where an animated version of Quzhou’s “Courteous Children Convention” was unveiled, themed “The City is Friendly to Me, and I am Courteous to the City.”

As the cultural heartland of Southern Confucianism, Quzhou aspires to become “the most courteous city.” Child-friendliness in Quzhou also signifies nurturing a new generation of children who are well-rounded across moral, intellectual, physical, aesthetic, and practical aspects.

To shape the convention, Quzhou conducted a city-wide open call, actively engaging children in the process. This initiative identified the alignment between the historical essence of Southern Confucian culture and core socialist values, resulting in the creation of the Quzhou “Courteous Children Convention.”

The convention is condensed into 180 characters, covering ten key areas, such as appearance, dining etiquette, communication, study habits, and behavior while traveling. It advocates the ethos of “The City is Courteous to Me, and I am Friendly to the City,” promoting an all-age culture of courtesy rooted in the “Land of Southern Confucius.”

On September 5th, during the “First Lesson of the New Semester,” the “Quzhou Courteous Children Convention” was officially introduced to all primary and middle school students across the city. Subsequently, a themed creative season inspired by the convention was launched to incorporate educational values with engaging activities, aiming to instill strong moral principles in children’s hearts through a fun and interactive approach.

In Quzhou, a city rich with a thousand years of history, the gentle passage of time and the breeze of courtesy permeate daily life. Here, “Child-Friendliness” and the “Courteous City” nurture each other, flourishing in tandem and enriching the city’s cultural spirit.