Standing on a sand dune in Minqin county, Gansu province, 27-year-old Zhong Lin gazed into the distance at the rows of newly planted saxaul saplings.

"Turning a desert into an oasis might not be very realistic, but we can certainly protect the existing oases," he said.

In 2021, Zhong returned to his hometown from Lanzhou, the provincial capital, to start a tree-planting business. Since then, he has become a key figure in local efforts to combat desertification.

His inspiration came from Minqin's long history of battling against encroaching sands.

"My hometown has been fighting desertification since the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties — making it one of the earliest places in China to do so," he said. "But today, with an aging population, it's up to us, the younger generation, to take up the baton."

Zhong's path reflects a broader trend among young people who are breaking away from traditional career expectations. Instead of crowding into civil service jobs or tech firms in big cities, some are heading to deserts, wetlands, and rural areas — turning ecological protection into both a mission and a livelihood.

Of course, these choices come with challenges. "There was a lot of financial pressure," Zhong recalled. "My parents didn't understand, and my friends thought I was 'being foolish'."

The work itself is tough, too. After a sandstorm in March this year, only a few dozen of the 500 newly planted saxaul trees survived.

But Zhong never gave up. In 2022, he started a Douyin (Chinese version of TikTok) account called "Xiao Zhong — Turning Desert into Oasis", sharing short videos of his daily planting work. The account unexpectedly drew attention.

His biggest breakthrough came in 2024, when he appeared on the second season of the reality show Become a Farmer, planting trees alongside celebrities.

Since then, "Minqin Tree Planting" has become a popular public welfare activity among young people, attracting many volunteers. Zhong even built steel-framed houses for the volunteers, which have since evolved into a "Desert Home Base".

"Thinking only gives me problems, but doing brings answers," he said.