山ndash;Mountain 水ndash;Water.doc

山 – Mountain 水 – Water The wise find pleasure in water; The virtuous find pleasure in mountains.-The Analects The expression “Shan Shui,” which means “Mountain and Water,” has its origins in the Analects of Confucius. The phrase is used widely in traditional Chinese literature and paintings to refer to a well-balanced and harmonious landscape. The words today evoke the geography and animal, plant, and human life that together make up a natural ecosystem. We at?Shan Shui strive for the harmonization of all living things. This harmony is the spring and guarantee of human survival and spiritual, cultural and emotional growth - past, present and future. Shan Shui Conservation Center is a Chinese NGO based at Peking University in Beijing, where it was founded in 2007 with support from Conservation International. ECO-EQUITY Our Ideal The planet which mankind relies on for its existence is imperiled. We have been living beyond our means, and a culture of mass consumption and ceaseless economic growth can be maintained now only with increasing difficulty. Mankind has been passionately engaged in the process of constructing modern life, but a sense of gratitude has not grown in proportion to our accumulating wealth. This asymmetry is cause for deep anxiety. Mankind, relying on the conveniences of industrial civilization and constant improvements in technology, has allowed a fundamental truth to fade from view: without the planet, there is no existence. Our goal is to re-establish ecological harmony within the process of modern development itself. This requires recognizing the full value of natural ecosystems, searching for the essence of traditional cultures, adjusting the relationship of man to nature, and making directed use of modern technology, the modern economy, the market mechanism, and wise governance. We must ensure that our natural ecosystem is accorded more value; and we want local populations to become the masters and beneficiaries of a new kind of conserva