The Economic Times

In 1999, an American teacher gave $5,000 to a Chinese woman fighting a desert. 27 years later, they reunited in tears after her trees grew into a 50,000-tree forest

In 1999, American teacher Ronald Sakolsky gave $5,000 to Chinese environmentalist Yin Yuzhen after seeing her fight against desertification in Inner Mongolia. Sakolsky eventually travelled to Inner Mongolia and met Yin in person in 2000. Decades later, their reunion ended in tears as the trees she planted grew into a forest of more than 50,000 trees.