Melting Away | Sixth Tone
Wu Huiyuan—Sixth Tone
The Evenki (or Ewenki) are an ethnic minority who traditionally lived in the forests of Inner Mongolia. They were seminomadic hunter-gatherers and earned a living by raising reindeer and harvesting their antlers, which are often used in Chinese medicine and can sell for U.S.$700 per kilogram. Since the 1950s, the Chinese government has launched several resettlement campaigns to relocate Evenki in an attempt to “modernize” the group, according to Sixth Tone. They were given free housing in close proximity to urban areas, an attempt to help them gain access to the market economy. But the effort has disrupted traditional ways of life, particularly by separating herders from their reindeer, animals of cultural and religious importance to the Evenki. Photographer Wu Huiyuan followed some of the remaining Evenki who continue to herd reindeer both to carry on the tradition and as a tourist attraction.
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The Evenki (or Ewenki) are an ethnic minority who traditionally lived in the forests of Inner Mongolia. They were seminomadic hunter-gatherers and earned a living by raising reindeer and harvesting their antlers, which are often used in Chinese medicine and can sell for U.S.$700 per kilogram. Since the 1950s, the Chinese government has launched several resettlement campaigns to relocate Evenki in an attempt to “modernize” the group, according to Sixth Tone. They were given free housing in close proximity to urban areas, an attempt to help them gain access to the market economy. But the effort has disrupted traditional ways of life, particularly by separating herders from their reindeer, animals of cultural and religious importance to the Evenki. Photographer Wu Huiyuan followed some of the remaining Evenki who continue to herd reindeer both to carry on the tradition and as a tourist attraction.