Courage and dreams: The aerobic library on the plateau opens its doors

"Yushu City is part of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau and it boasts an average altitude of over 4,000 meters. The oxygen content in the air is only about 60 percent of that in Hangzhou, but as long as I sit in an aerobic library for a short while, my blood oxygen saturation will rise from 88 to 94," said Li Haixian, a member of the Party Group of the Education Bureau of Yushu and the "Lighting-up Yushu" public welfare team of the State Grid Hangzhou Power Supply Company.

On June 25th, Li went to Haxiu Township Central Boarding School to unveil the plaque for the fourth aerobic library in the city.

Along the way, Li said a large amount of research has shown that although children growing up at high altitudes have adapted to low air pressure, lower blood oxygen levels still slow down their thinking.

"So, the children in Yushu need a place to learn where they can have sufficient oxygen, that place is the aerobic library."

Oxygen and books

"Do you know why places bitten by mosquitos itch? This book says it's because mosquitoes leave saliva on us."

Before the official unveiling, several students from Haxiu Township Central Boarding School eagerly walked into this brand-new library. Sixth-grader Yongzhuoma was holding a book called One Hundred Thousand Reasons and sharing interesting bits of information with her classmates.

"The children seem to really like this library," Li said.

The library was created out of an 18-square-meter container, and the exterior painted in white, green and blue. Inside the space, facilities such as oxygen production machines, heating and multimedia are available to the public.

According to Xu Guofeng, a volunteer of the "Lighting-up Yushu" public welfare team, there are currently more than 1,000 books in the library, including cartoon picture books and classic literary works, suitable for students of all grades to read.

Yongzhuoma told reporters that there was a reading corner in the school, but it was not well supplied and the number of books was limited. "Reading in the new library feels very cosy and relaxing," he commented.

Yongzhuoma's classmate Cai Rensang Zhou said, "The reason why I like it is  simple. There are no tables or chairs in the school's reading corner, so I can only read standing up, but here I can sit and read in peace."

Cai Rensang Zhou pulled out a picture book called Marine Life from the bookshelf. After carefully flipping through a few pages, he pointed to a pine leaf crab and said, "Look, this crab has long legs. I really like the ocean, but I haven't been to the beach. This book allows me to see many animals that are only found in the ocean."

Continuous endeavor

The concept of building an aerobic library was proposed by Li to the "Lighting-up Yushu" public welfare team in 2018. After multiple revisions to the plan, the first aerobic library was established in 2020 at Dejiling Primary School in Longbao Town.

"Our original intention was to provide a place for children to calm down and read books. On the plateau, a suitable oxygen concentration is a prerequisite to learning," said Li. "We hope that children can be empowered by books and one day step out of the mountains to see the outside world."

Ang Ga, the principal of Dejiling Primary School at the time, said that before 2018, the school did not have funds to open a dedicated library. Since the opening of the aerobic library in 2020. However, the school has arranged dedicated librarians to take care of the reading materials and manage the space.

"We have assigned full time staff to the library in order to make the most of this library and extend its opening hours as much as possible," Ang Ga said. The librarians also fulfill a teaching role, providing children with reading classes.  "Every Wednesday afternoon, students can take books out of the library to read, or bring them home," Ang Ga explained.

At present, there are tens of thousands of books of various types in the aerobic library of Dejiling Primary School, and they are updated every year, mostly through donations.

With the continuous efforts of the "Lighting-up Yushu" public welfare team, there are now four aerobic libraries serving thousands of students on the plateau at an altitude of over 4,000 meters, allowing them to read any books they like in a comfortable environment.

"Our plan for the future is for Yushu to add one more aerobic library to the existing ones every year, said the volunteers of the" Lighting-up Yushu "public welfare team.