From July 17 to 24, 2026, the Inner Mongolia Forest Ecological Survey was conducted immediately after the summer forest survey. While the previous week focused on trees above the ground, this week turned its focus to the ground itself. The main task was to count plant species and numbers on the ground and check the overall vegetation structure. In just a few days, five volunteers and Million Tree Project (MTP) staff surveyed 6 forest plots and 42 sample sites, recording 11,398 plants across 53 species.
Walking through the forest. Photo by Jiayuan Guo
In stark contrast to the cool weather of the previous week, this week was hot and sunny. Walking across loose sandy terrain under the blazing sun tested the volunteers’ physical endurance; upon reaching each sample site, plant identification and counting challenged their mental focus and patience. By doing this work day after day, volunteers quickly learned how tough field surveys really are.
Aerial view of the survey site. Photo by Kai Wang
Volunteers counting plants in the forest. Photo by Jiayuan Guo
Even so, volunteers found simple joys in their work. They saw bright wildflowers after long walks, or lay on the grass to feel the breeze and watch clouds drift by. These moments are the rewarding results of many years of tree planting.
Limonium bicolor (Bunge) Kuntze. Photo by Jiayuan Guo
Volunteers strolling on the grassland beside the forest. Photo by Jiayuan Guo
Sand control and land restoration used to be just words in textbooks for me. I knew what they meant, but I didn't truly understand them. In Inner Mongolia, those words became real, living trees. More importantly, I saw the people behind the forest
Some saplings die in the first year, so people have to replant them in the second and third years. It takes years of trying for a forest to survive. Even after trees are established, we still need to track their growth and check the diversity of ground plants.
The trees we visited were planted 5 to 10 years ago. Under the green leaves, you can still tell it used to be empty sand dunes. This made me realize that environmental protection takes a long time—not months, but decades or generations. People who plant trees today might not even live to see the sand fully turn into an oasis
A corner of the Million Tree Project forest. Photo by Siru Liu
Another volunteer said something I won't forget: 'The volunteers and staff here all have a spark in their eyes.' By the end of the trip, I understood what that meant. I saw it in Kai's eyes when he talked about the forest, in the staff crouching down to teach us about plants, and in the volunteers smiling while working in the hot sun.
Volunteers bending down to count plants. Photo by Kai Wang
Because of that spark, they are willing to plant seeds of hope and wait patiently for them to grow."
Youran Wang, MTP Volunteer
Turning yellow sand into a green forest takes hard work from many people. Thank you to all the volunteers for your help and support!
Group photo of volunteers. Photo by Kai Wang