To promote the living transmission of traditional village culture and bolster rural cultural revitalization, from July 7 to 9, the "Digital Revitalization of Ancestral Halls in Northern Fujian" practice team, composed of trainees from the 17th session of the "Qingma Project" (Young Marxist Training Program) at Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, embarked on a summer "Three Visits to the Countryside" social practice in Zhenqian Town, Yangyuan Township, and Dongping Town of Zhenghe County, Nanping City. Leveraging multidisciplinary expertise in landscape architecture, urban-rural planning, and computer science, the team employed digital technologies such as 3D scanning, Building Information Modeling (BIM), and micro-renewal design to establish a digital preservation system for ancient ancestral halls in northern Fujian, exploring a low-cost, replicable pathway for transmitting local cultural heritage.　　　

The rural ancestral halls in Zhenghe bear the legacies of clan traditions, Zhu Xi's Neo-Confucianism, and revolutionary memories, yet they commonly face preservation challenges including functional obsolescence, structural weathering, insufficient maintenance funding, and limited community engagement. Upon arrival, the team visited three representative ancestral halls—the Ye, Ma, and Zhang clan temples—conducting comprehensive on-site surveys and documentation. At the Ye Clan Ancestral Hall in Jitou Village, Zhenqian Town, team members wielded 3D laser scanning equipment to capture millimeter-precision data of swallowtail ridges, carved wooden lattice windows, and stone-carved components, while simultaneously documenting deterioration such as wall weathering and insect damage to wooden structures. This enabled the creation of complete digital architectural archives and precise damage inventories, providing data support for minimally invasive, "least-intervention" restoration.

[Image: Team members documenting details of ancient architectural components at the Ye Clan Ancestral Hall. Photo courtesy of Cai Jing]　　　

Tailoring solutions to each hall's unique resources, the team devised differentiated revitalization strategies. The Ma Clan Ancestral Hall has long hosted the "Fufeng Student Aid" public welfare initiative, yet its idle side chambers remained underutilized. The team proposed a lightweight renovation approach—preserving the core sacrificial space in the main hall while repurposing underused areas into a family heritage exhibition zone and a village deliberation hall. They also recommended establishing a co-management council comprising clan elders, local artisans, village cadres, and village representatives to open channels for public participation in heritage conservation. At the Zhang Clan Ancestral Hall in Yangyuan Township, adjacent to the Carp Creek folk culture resources, the team recorded oral histories from elderly clan members and planned to convert idle auxiliary rooms into a folk studies exhibition hall. Revenue from study tours and cultural products would be reinvested into routine maintenance, addressing the funding shortfall in rural heritage preservation.

[Image: The team viewing an exhibition on the virtuous deeds of Ma Clan ancestors at the ancestral hall. Photo courtesy of Cai Jing]　　　

Beyond the ancestral hall cluster, the team visited the Donggao Academy and the Exhibition Hall of the Central Soviet Area's Political History in Zhenghe, delving into the legacy of Zhu Xi's agrarian-Confucian scholarship and the spirit of the Red Soviet region. By innovatively integrating revolutionary, Neo-Confucian, and clan cultural elements, they designed distinctive rural study tour routes and proposed adding Red Heritage family display sections in each ancestral hall, transforming these ancient spaces into grassroots cultural propaganda fronts. To establish a sustainable, self-sustaining operational model, the team toured the China Bamboo Craft Technology City to explore local bamboo artistry. They extracted ancestral hall motifs and family heritage elements to design affordable cultural products—such as "Minnan Ancestral Revival" bamboo bookmarks and heritage-themed ornaments—and constructed a diversified funding mechanism combining "clan self-financing, cultural product revenue, and grassroots support."

[Image: Team members researching bamboo cultural product materials at the China Bamboo Craft Technology City. Photo courtesy of Cai Jing]　　　

Throughout the practice, the team employed digital twin and GIS modeling technologies to complete digital archiving for the three ancestral halls, identified five common pain points in rural ancestral hall preservation, and developed standardized solutions. They compiled the "Rural Ancestral Hall Preservation Handbook" for community outreach and simultaneously published research photo essays and short videos on new media platforms, amassing over 40,000 views and broadening the dissemination channels for northern Fujian's local culture. The practice strictly adhered to four core principles: no large-scale demolition or reconstruction, rejection of excessive commercialization, prioritization of local craftsmen and materials, and low-cost implementation. Distinct renewal plans were devised for in-use versus vacant ancestral halls, balancing the preservation of original ancient architecture with rural public service needs. Post-practice, the team will consolidate complete survey drawings, 3D digital models, and renovation plans, integrating Carp Creek folk customs, student aid programs, Red culture, and Neo-Confucian heritage to create a model for ancestral hall revitalization in Zhenghe. This integrated approach—combining digital archiving, micro-renewal, and community co-management—holds replicable value for the entire province.

[Image: Group photo of the entire practice team in front of the Zhoucuo building. Photo courtesy of Cai Jing]　　　

This social practice carries profound significance. By grounding their professional knowledge in grassroots realities and deeply integrating digital technology with ancient building conservation, the young scholars applied innovative thinking to address real-world challenges in transmitting rural cultural heritage. This practice served not only as a growth classroom for Qingma trainees to unite knowledge with action, but also delivered actionable youth-generated solutions for the living preservation of traditional villages and ancient ancestral halls across Fujian. Through their digital youth power, they safeguard the millennium-old cultural veins of the region, continuously injecting fresh momentum into rural cultural revitalization.　(Reporters: Lian Yule, Chen Jiemin, Yao Jiayi, Lin Kerong, Zhang Ling, Chen Yizhen)