Vision | 15 Years of Happy Love: ISPO’s 15th Anniversary Figure: Zi Di Yi Yang

I believe passion is like love,

it requires you to give yourself completely,

very purely, and it truly makes you happy,

and you really enjoy the process.

 ―― Deng Lin, Head of Shushan Expeditions

(Zi Di Yi Yang)

During the interview, “happiness” was the word Zi Di mentioned most. “More often than not, I ask myself, will this make me happy? If it does, then I’ll do it. That’s enough.” As someone who grew up alongside China’s outdoor scene in both time and spirit, this post-80s girl also carries the generational label of pursuing happiness.

But during the interview, Zi Di told the cameraman, “I think exploration is about being responsible to yourself—you need to have a plan.” As the head of Shushan Expeditions, every time she leads a mountaineering trip, Zi Di likes to be the last one to descend. It’s both to enjoy the quiet happiness of being alone at the summit and to fulfill the responsibilities she bears for the team. All journeys begin so that we may return home better.

Image source: Xingzhuang

Over the past 15 years, from a teenage girl to someone now in their thirties, happiness and responsibility have led this graceful girl to give up a top-tier job, become a ice climbing coach, and even fund the rebuilding of Shushan Outdoor herself. Zi Di has turned her hobby into her work and lived her most beautiful life. To salute passion, to pursue it wholeheartedly—this is Zi Di’s goal, an ordinary yet extraordinary Chinese outdoor woman, and it is also what ISPO has upheld over the past 15 years.