From July 29 to August 10, 2026, the 17th National Joint Field Practicum for University Geography Programs was held in Guangzhou and Hainan. The practicum was organized by the National University Alliance for Joint Field Practice in Geography and the Ministry of Education's Virtual Teaching and Research Office for National Joint Geography Field Practicums, and hosted by the School of Geographical Sciences, South China Normal University; the School of Geography and Environmental Science, Hainan Normal University; and the Geography Education Alliance of Universities in the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area. More than 270 faculty members and students from 58 universities across China participated in the practicum. Under the theme "Heading to the Blue Sea by Dawn and the Cangwu Mountains by Dusk: Exploring the Mountains and Seas of South China", the 14-day, more than 2,000-kilometer field journey followed the main route of "Nanling Mountains–Lingnan–Hainan–South China Sea" and conducted comprehensive investigations of diverse geographical units in South China, including mountains, rivers, forests, cities, coasts, and islands. Associate Dean Guan Qingyu of the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, was invited to attend the closing ceremony, while Professor Li Zhuolun and Associate Professor Zhang Fen led three undergraduate students from the 2024 cohort of the Natural Geography and Resources and Environment Base Program—Wang Ruisong, Xia Runyu, and Su Mingyu—in participating in the practicum.
Lingnan Cities and Human Geography Field Investigation
During the first stage of the practicum, the faculty and students conducted thematic investigations in human geography in Guangzhou, Macao, and Shenzhen. In Guangzhou, they traced the ancient shoreline of the Pearl River, conducting field surveys of the Qin–Han-period shipyard ruins, the Nanyue Kingdom water gate, and the ancient river-erosion landforms at Poshan. Drawing on sedimentary and archaeological evidence, they examined the southward migration of the Pearl River shoreline by more than one kilometer over the past two millennia. Strolling through Shamian, Shisanhang, and Yongqingfang, they explored the interplay among estuarine location, trade institutions, and urban renewal. In Macao, they walked through the Historic Centre, from A-Ma Temple and Largo do Carmo to the Ruins of St. Paul's and Guia Hill, observing how low hills and coastal terrain shaped port settlements and spaces where Chinese and Western cultures converged. In Shenzhen, they visited the Qianhai Shenzhen–Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone and the Huaqiangbei district, comparing the two spatial production logics of an "institution-driven new town" and "market-driven spontaneous growth", and experiencing the vibrant urban dynamism of the forefront of China's reform and opening-up. These human-geographical sites complemented and corroborated the subsequent investigations of natural geography, deepening the students' understanding of the complexity of human–environment relationships in South China.
Danxia Landforms in Northern Guangdong and Forests in Western Guangdong
Leaving the Greater Bay Area, the group headed north to northern Guangdong. In the Nanxiong Basin, the faculty and students observed the cyclic sedimentation of the Late Cretaceous Zhenshui Formation red beds. The strata dip northward, reflecting the far-field tectonic response to the subduction of the Pacific Plate. Danxia Mountain in Shaoguan is the type locality from which the term "Danxia landform" was derived. The red sandstone and conglomerate were uplifted during the Himalayan orogeny and subsequently shaped by fluvial incision, weathering, and collapse, forming the characteristic morphology of "flat-topped, steep-sided, and gently sloping foothills". In western Guangdong, the group visited Dinghushan, the site of China's first nature reserve. Although much of the region around the Tropic of Cancer falls within the arid desert belt, Dinghushan has preserved a subtropical evergreen broad-leaved monsoon forest under continuous protection for more than 400 years. Based on 25 years of continuous observations, the Dinghushan Forest Ecosystem Research Station has challenged the conventional notion that mature forests have little potential for carbon sequestration.
Leiqiong Volcanic Field and the Physical Geography of Hainan Island
On the Leizhou Peninsula, the faculty and students investigated Huguangyan Maar Lake, which formed 140,000–160,000 years ago when an encounter between underground magma and groundwater triggered a phreatomagmatic eruption. With a closed lake basin and a small catchment, the lake has accumulated continuous sediments over more than 100,000 years. The varved sediments on the lake floor record changes in tropical paleoclimate at annual and even seasonal resolution, making them an important proxy for paleoclimate research. After crossing the Qiongzhou Strait by boat, the faculty and students examined the Ma'anling volcanic cone in Haikou, where they observed the complete structure of the crater, volcanic cone, and conduit, and identified columnar jointing and ropy structures in basalt along the route. Along the volcanic coast of Eman in Danzhou, landforms shaped by lava flows and marine erosion gave the faculty and students a deeper understanding of igneous-rock landscapes. In Bo'ao Town, Qionghai City, they investigated the sandbar–lagoon geomorphic system at the mouth of the Wanquan River, gaining an understanding of the evolution of estuarine sandbars and their impacts on estuarine ecosystems. The final stop of the practicum was the Hainan Dongzhai Harbor National Nature Reserve, which is home to 41 mangrove plant species, accounting for more than 95% of the total number of mangrove species in China. Growing in the distinctive high-salinity, oxygen-deficient environment of the intertidal zone, mangrove plants have evolved unique adaptations, including viviparous reproduction and specialized aerial root systems. These adaptations gave the faculty and students a profound appreciation of the importance of mangrove ecosystems as both natural barriers against storm surges and vital hubs for biodiversity conservation.
On August 10, the closing ceremony of the practicum was held at Hainan Normal University. Associate Dean Guan Qingyu and Liu Xingde of the School attended the ceremony. During the presentation of practicum outcomes, students from the School gave thematic presentations within their respective groups on the comprehensive geographical investigation of South China. Two students, Wang Ruisong and Xia Runyu, were recognized as "Outstanding Practicum Students", while Professor Fen Zhang received the title of "Outstanding Instructor".
From fossils in the red beds of Danxia landforms to forest carbon sequestration at Dinghushan, from varved records in maar lakes to lava structures of the Leiqiong volcanic field, and from the evolution of sandbars at the mouth of the Wanquan River to the mangrove ecosystems of Dongzhai Harbor, the 14-day geographical journey through South China was like a three-dimensional textbook of nature. Through fieldwork, the students of the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences gained an understanding of tectonic uplift and climatic succession; through observation, they grasped the spatiotemporal perspective of geography; through comparisons between northern and southern regions, they deepened their understanding of geographical processes; and through geographical differences, they discovered the vast and diverse world of geography. The geoscience students of Lanzhou University will continue to measure the Earth through a geographical lens, fulfilling their professional mission by exploring human–environment relationships and pathways toward sustainable development.
