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“The ‘Shexiaobang’ service market came right to our doorstep — I got a haircut, my shoes repaired, and picked up some seeds, all in just half a day!” said Shen Chunmei, a 62-year-old resident of Jiulong Township in Jingning, as she shared her experience via video call with her daughter in Hangzhou. This regularly scheduled mobile service fair — known as the “Happiness Market” — offers one-stop services ranging from everyday necessities and cultural benefits to rural revitalization support, effectively ending the era of “crossing mountains for basic services” for local residents in mountainous areas.
In Jingning, a She ethnic minority region, a volunteer team called “Shexiaobang” is actively exploring a new path for the high-quality development of volunteer services in mountainous and ethnic areas under the ethos of the new era.
As China’s only She Autonomous County, Jingning has responded to challenges such as a high proportion of left-behind elderly and a wide radius of public service coverage by creating the innovative “Shexiaobang” volunteer brand. The county has built a county-township-village three-tier linkage system to transition volunteer services from isolated efforts to a systematic and scalable model.
To date, over 120 “Shexiaobang” volunteer teams with more than 12,000 volunteers operate throughout the county. These “mobile red pulses” travel across Jingning’s green hills and waters, playing a vital role in emergency response, elderly care, and charitable rural assistance. On average, they serve over 60,000 people each year, injecting powerful momentum into the establishment of a co-built, co-governed, and shared social governance system.
To further stimulate volunteer engagement, Jingning has introduced a “Love Points Redemption” system, allowing volunteers to exchange service hours for household goods. Zhang Minghua, a volunteer from Chenghe Community, has accumulated over 200 hours of service and used her points to redeem a rice cooker. She has since inspired 12 of her neighbors to join the team. “Doing public service now brings both pride and practical benefits. We’re more motivated than ever,” she said.
In an effort to coordinate diverse contributors — including social organizations, private enterprises, and new community actors — Jingning has built a three-level “Shexiaobang” volunteer service system. This structure, consisting of a general team, sub-teams, and local squads, enables county-wide coverage. Complementary measures include a “service points bank”, a “service–points–incentives” conversion mechanism, and dedicated publicity columns, all helping to invigorate the local volunteer ecosystem.
“As a newcomer to volunteering, having a certificate really boosts my confidence when serving the community,” said Xiaolei, a member of the Jun’an Volunteer Team, who proudly showed off her newly acquired emergency responder certificate following a training session. In total, 68 specialized training sessions — covering areas such as emergency response, e-commerce livestreaming, and intangible cultural heritage — have helped 1,200 volunteers earn certification.
During the recent “March 3rd” She Ethnic Culture Festival, volunteers in traditional phoenix attire showcased their services: compassionate taxi drivers offered free rides, She women in traditional dress enhanced photo spots with cultural ambiance, and “mobile charging” volunteers provided rapid phone charging services. These thoughtful gestures won praise from visitors across the country.
“Volunteer red has become the warmest color in the She region,” said a representative from the Social Work Department of the Jingning County Party Committee. Jingning will continue to advance the development of its “Shexiaobang” volunteer brand, focusing on community needs, shifting from event-based to routine services, and evolving from “blood transfusion-style” aid to “blood generation-style” empowerment. These efforts aim to foster a vibrant culture of volunteerism and contribute Jingning’s experience to the national model of volunteer service in mountainous and ethnic regions.