A bird's-eye view of Zibo, which is celebrating its enduring links to Qi culture. [Photo provided to zibo.gov.cn]
Qi culture is an enduring cultural legacy of Zibo, a prefecture-level city that is located in East China's Shandong province.
Zibo was the capital of the ancient state of Qi, which was one of the most powerful states during the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC) and the Warring States Period (475-221 BC).
To celebrate this, the city has rolled out 24 projects to establish a Qi cultural heritage and innovation demonstration area, to honor and popularize the culture.
The projects will aim to advance the research and interpretation of Qi culture, protect Qi cultural heritage, raise the profile of Qi culture, as well as promote the development of Qi cultural-related tourism, among other things.
Zibo has established an academic alliance to carry out Qi culture research and joined forces with the graduate school of Peking University, to set up a Qi cultural research institute in Beijing.
In addition, Zibo has carried out projects to build Qi-style scenic and tourist spots. In one of them, the city plans to invest 5 billion yuan ($750 million) to build a Qi-style scenic spot in the Wenchang Lake tourist resort.
In addition, the city continues to hold the Qi Culture Festival, established in 2004, which organizes a host of activities related to Qi culture.
