July 22 marks “Great Heat” (Dàshǔ) in the 24 solar terms. To celebrate it, Shangcheng Office of the city’s ecology and environment authority, along with the its Youth League Committee and Jiubao administration, staged a hands-on tour for biodiversity experience. The event named “Summertime Scents” is sponsored at the Seawall Museum. It’ll be a destination for kids in summer break.

The heritage hall is about how our ancestors tamed waters with the seawall. A docent will walk visitors through the journey filled with bravery, hardship, and perseverance. Stone embankments and digital sand tables tell you why people chose this and what to do for preserving the eco-balance at the Qiantang River estuary. It signals a harmony between humans and nature.

“What fish is best for making Sichuan fish? How many species live in the Qiantang River? Why protect wild fish?...” A lecture on fish is the next stop. It is chaired by ecologist Liu Yufei. He comes with lots of questions and cases to share about fishes and how they survival such a long time, and why release of wildlife, if without any instructions, might cause an ecological damage.

Kids were invited to make herbal incense balls, incense sheets, and pagoda incense at the next hands-on experience spot. Making them with mugwort and sandalwood to defeat the heat was a custom back to the Song time. They also got the chance to build a wooden ”Great Heat Boat” model together with adults.

“Here’s a good place. My kid learned quite a lot about water control engineering, and he tried folk things and picked up something about biodiversity. It’s good for everyone,” said a kid’s parent.

The 24 Solar Terms has been made an event IP for biodiversity awareness education since 2024 by Shangcheng District. It is China’s first, and quantifiable and replicable. It made the 2025 National Top 10 Biodiversity Best Practices list. This year’s Summertime Scents series feature more household events and will have more people engaged - a way to get the pulse of nature, one season at a time.