68-year-old Cao Lian’an Wears “Bird Suit” to Promote Environmental Protection
Yesterday at Haikou Mingzhu Square, Cao Lian’an, a 68-year-old retired resident of Nanjing, wore a “bird suit” to promote environmental protection, attracting the attention of many passersby. “Isn’t that Bird Uncle?” Onlookers stopped to take photos with him. “All you need to do is post a Weibo message calling for green travel and reduced carbon dioxide emissions,” said Cao with a smile. He explained that he and two other retirees had set off from Nanjing at their own expense, traveling through Anhui, Jiangxi, Hubei, Hunan, Guizhou, Chongqing, Sichuan, Yunnan, Guangxi, and Guangdong before arriving in Hainan to promote environmental awareness.
Three “Bird Suits” Took Four Months to Sew
“Environmental pollution is getting worse. In many places, there’s dust everywhere, extreme weather like smog is becoming more frequent, and PM2.5 readings are off the charts. We just couldn’t sit back,” said Cao. He works at an electronic tube factory in Qixia District, Nanjing, and after retiring, often participated in group cycling activities organized by his former colleagues. Always concerned about air and environmental issues, he called on over 100 members of the “Cycling Brigade” to form a team of retired seniors to cycle across the country for public education, covering all expenses themselves and avoiding tourist spots along the way. Many volunteered, but due to the long journey and family opposition, only three ended up going: 63-year-old Cao Yongxin, 77-year-old Zhu Jinhua, and Cao himself. Before departure, to enhance the visual impact, Cao—whose hobby since childhood was arts and crafts and who was skilled at oil painting—designed a “bird suit” for each member. “The bird suit is meant to symbolize birds singing among flowers.” For a man in his sixties with no sewing experience, making three full-body bird suits with heads, wings, feathers, and tails was no easy feat. Initially, Cao tried using silk for the feathers, but found it too light to support the wings, so he switched to velvet. To ensure the bird tail would extend backward while cycling, he even installed a special tail-fixing device on the belt. After four months of effort—and despite not having great eyesight—Cao finally completed all three “bird suits.”
Two Turn Back Halfway, Leaving Only One to Continue
The trio set off from Nanjing, and the hardship of cycling was something Cao had mentally prepared for, but many challenges still exceeded his expectations. To save time, they often set out at 5 a.m., and if the next town was far away, they’d stay where they were by evening. Getting caught in the rain was common. “The most memorable moment was in Chuguang, Yunnan, where the road wound between two mountains and was covered in ice—you could easily fall off a cliff. At the border of Guizhou and Chongqing, there was a steep mountain path where we had to push our bikes for over six hours,” Cao recalled. To save money, they ate only dry rations for lunch and chose budget hotels costing around 40 yuan per night. Every time they reached a provincial capital, they would spend one or two days doing environmental awareness campaigns in crowded public areas.
Cao’s biggest regret was that two teammates quit midway. Zhu Jinhua, 77, had to return home due to diarrhea when they reached Qianshan, Anhui. Cao Yongxin, who had cycled with them most of the way, came down with altitude sickness and pneumonia upon reaching Kunming. After caring for him for half a month, Cao helped arrange a flight back home.
Kind Strangers Touched the Elderly Rider
Cao said he hoped his tough cycling journey would inspire people along the way to embrace environmental ideals. But many strangers also deeply moved him. On January 15, when Cao arrived in Qinzhou, Guangzhou, he met two employees at a local disease control clinic, Yuan Caihong and Zhai Gaoke. After hearing his story, they warmly invited him to dinner and even arranged for him to stay overnight at the clinic. “That night, they let me sleep alone there. Their trust in a stranger really touched me,” Cao said. To make his environmental campaign more effective, Yuan also helped contact local newspapers and TV stations and sent him messages reminding him to stay safe throughout the trip.
After spending Spring Festival in Hainan, Cao plans to continue cycling through Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macau, Fujian, Zhejiang, and Shanghai before returning to Nanjing. After taking a short break, he will head north again to promote environmental awareness.