Mayors From 10 Countries Meet in Huangshan as Visitor Numbers Top 5 Million
Updated
Updated · NBC News · Jun 7
Mayors From 10 Countries Meet in Huangshan as Visitor Numbers Top 5 Million
1 articles · Updated · NBC News · Jun 7
Summary
Huangshan hosted mayors from 10 countries last week for talks on making cities more resilient to climate change and managing overtourism, using the Chinese mountain city as a working example.
More than 5 million visitors came to Huangshan in 2025, and officials highlighted tools such as a 2020 intrusion alarm app that helps protect the mountain’s 1,000-year-old Guest-Greeting Pine from tourists.
Climate risks are also intensifying: eastern China saw wider areas of severe freezing rain in 2024 and 2025 than historical averages, threatening vulnerable mountain ecosystems and forcing more frequent patrols during storms.
Pokhara, Nepal cited flooding, landslides and rapid urbanization as parallel pressures, while Italy’s Gradara—home to 5,000 people but over 500,000 annual visitors—said it wants to emulate Huangshan’s visitor-diversion system.
The gathering also showcased China’s green-city outreach, including interest in its electric-vehicle adoption, even as the country remains the world’s biggest greenhouse-gas emitter and no new U.S.-China climate deal emerged last month.