The 2026 Nanhai Kunpeng Talent Festival, innovatively integrated with the centuries-old Guanyao Lettuce Feast, concluded successfully in Shishan's Guanyao area. Under the theme "Centennial Lettuce Feast, Millions of Talents Gather," this event marked the province's first initiative to host a talent festival within an intangible cultural heritage celebration. The fusion created a vibrant platform where traditional culture met modern talent values, transforming the traditional symbolism of "gaining wealth" (生财) into a contemporary focus on "nurturing talent" (生才), effectively establishing the Guanyao Lettuce Feast as Nanhai's premier "talent gathering" event.
The main venue was located at Guanyao Cultural Square, with auxiliary events held at multiple locations including Fengshan Ancient Temple, Caonuan Park, and Yiyuan East Road (Wuli). Over three days, the festival featured more than ten distinctive activities such as an International Art Season, sci-tech innovation exhibitions, talent recruitment fairs, cultural parades, a ten-thousand-person lettuce banquet, and flower cannon scrambling competitions. These events revitalized the historic "Ten-Mile Guanyao" area, using centuries-old folk traditions to cultivate a thriving talent ecosystem and transforming ancient post roads into new pathways for talent aggregation. This initiative supports Foshan's broader development goals, including Shishan's role as a strategic emerging industrial hub and urban center in northern Foshan, by attracting talent resources.
Gathering Talents: Ancient Routes Host Modern Platforms On the morning of March 14, a key ceremony marked the unveiling of the Nanhai Talent Post and the Nanhai Doctoral Association at the Wuli Nancaihui Block. District and town leaders, alongside talent representatives, toured the exhibition halls to gain insights into talent station development and the transformation of scientific innovation achievements, laying groundwork for future talent services. The Nanhai Talent Post integrates the historical significance of ancient routes—commercial prosperity, talent convergence, and cultural heritage—with modern talent service functions. It will serve as a regular venue for sci-tech talent salons, technical exchange meetings, and supply-demand matching sessions. During the festival, multiple themed exchanges and对接 meetings were held here, facilitating industrial information sharing and innovation achievement dissemination, thereby turning millennia-old post roads into modern talent hubs and innovation incubators.
The Nanhai Doctoral Association, building upon the foundation of the Nanhai High-Level Talent Association, was established with five core principles: organization, themes, venues, mechanisms, and branding. It aims to systematically gather, effectively utilize, and fully activate doctoral talents from various fields such as scientific research, industry, and the arts. The association strives to become a growth home for doctoral talents in Nanhai, a new think tank for government decision-making, and an efficient platform for transforming scientific and technological achievements. As a new home for "value co-creation, growth promotion, and ecosystem building," it will enhance its role as a "hall for gathering talents," a "transformation converter," and a "habitat," building bridges for high-level talent exchange and cooperation, and integrating individual talent strengths into teams and Nanhai's high-quality development landscape, creating a strong magnetic field for talent attraction.
Talent recruitment was a highlight of the event's "talent nurturing" objective. The "Centennial Lettuce Feast, Millions of Talents Gather" – Nanhai Kunpeng Talent Recruitment Fair ran for three days along Yiyuan East Road and Yanjiang Road, attracting over 300 enterprises offering thousands of high-quality positions across traditional manufacturing, services, high-tech industries, logistics, live streaming, and other emerging sectors. Innovatively, the fair featured live-streamed job introductions, AI-assisted job matching, and online求职 platforms, ensuring comprehensive online and offline coverage. Attendees also received complimentary lettuce wrap tasting vouchers and discounts on local Shishan products, reflecting Nanhai's sincere commitment to attracting and retaining talent.
From March 12 to 14, the "Sci-Tech Innovation, Talent Builds the Future" – Nancaihui Themed Joint Exhibition was showcased along Wuli Block on Yiyuan East Road. It displayed the achievements of the Nanhai Talent Post, the high-quality development of Nanhai University Town, and projects like the Yingtu UAV Training Base and Rongda Pottery Studio. The exhibition included zones for载体展示 and investment promotion, releasing Shishan Town's public property investment map and distributing the "South Guangdong Ancient Route, Ten-Mile Guanyao" investment manual, achieving dual empowerment through "talent attraction" and "investment attraction." The period also saw themed salons on financial support for sci-tech innovation and achievement transformation, alongside organized visits for enterprise representatives, university staff, students, and job seekers to venues like the Shishan City Aerial Exhibition Hall and Reptrano Energy Company, fostering dialogue between industrial upgrade needs and talent development.
Artistic Elegance: Craftsmanship Inherits Culture, Art Enriches Urban and Rural Areas The millennium-old heritage of Guanyao pottery has deeply embedded art into this land's fabric. The 2026 Guanyao Lettuce Feast International Art Season, held from February 22 to March 22, set the stage for the festival, deeply integrating international artistic perspectives with local culture to interpret the concept of "art in life, life as art." Drawing inspiration from local life in Guanyao, artists used international language to reinterpret contemporary Guanyao, incorporating ancient route history, pottery craftsmanship, and folk customs into their works, thereby promoting local culture on a global stage. During the art season, six artist-themed open days recruited "Art Life Experience Officers" to participate in art talks, painting, and pottery experiences led by international ceramic artist Li Jianshen, allowing them to feel the intersection of art and daily life.
The revival of Guanyao's historic blocks relies on new cultural vitality. On March 14, eight masters of intangible cultural heritage or arts, including internationally renowned ceramic artist Li Jianshen, Guangzhou embroidery representative inheritor Wang Xinyuan, and senior pottery sculpture master Xia Shaoli, established their presence in Guanyao's Wuli area, formally rooting artistic endeavors in the Ten-Mile Guanyao to help the ancient land flourish anew. The "Wuli Art Station," passionately created by Li Jianshen's team, was officially inaugurated, aiding the millennia-old Guanyao in reuniting cultural forces and radiating new splendor. The station features areas for artist residencies and creations, incorporates intangible heritage elements from the lettuce feast, and involves collaborations between artists and local residents. Works like "The Guardian" and "Immediate Talent" showcase diverse artistic creations, representing the rebirth of ancient Guanyao. Building upon the history of the Guanyao post station, it transitions from a resting "post" (驿) to a cultural "art" (艺) station, creating an artistic resting point along the Ten-Mile Guanyao.
During the Nancaihui Joint Exhibition, the Guosai Art Village hosted a salon on "Art Empowering Industry, Traditional Industries Welcome Renewal," bringing together artists, entrepreneurs, and sci-tech talents to explore new paths for industrial design to empower industrial development, injecting inspiration into the transformation and upgrading of Nanhai's traditional industries. The Guanyao Granary Intangible Cultural Heritage Tourism Carnival combined art exhibitions, trendy music, and characteristic markets to create an integrated "performance-exhibition-market" artistic feast. On the Fengshan Ancient Temple stage, performances by music specialists from Guangdong Vocational College of Arts and Foshan University, along with local bands like Da Cha Fan, kept the artistic atmosphere vibrant.
Passing the Torch: Folklore Carries Heritage, Community Warmth Prevails The 400-year-old folk celebration served as a vital vehicle for "gathering and nurturing talent," achieving a "new expression" for an "old tradition." On the morning of March 14, the Guanyao Lettuce Lion Dance Performance commenced at the Fengshan Ancient Temple stage, featuring 19 lion dance teams competing amidst resounding gongs and dynamic dances, heralding the start of the folk festivities. Following the lion dance, the "Path to Talent, Talents from All Directions" intangible heritage parade set off from Yanjiang Road, passed through the Wuli block, and returned to Fengshan Ancient Temple. The 200-strong procession, including lion teams, martial arts formations, and art contingents, became the most vibrant spectacle on Guanyao's streets. After the parade, an apprentice acceptance ceremony for intangible heritage inheritors was held at the temple, ensuring the transmission of skills related to the Lettuce Feast and Guanyao pottery through master-apprentice relationships, making inheritor talents a key part of Guanyao's "talent generation" legacy.
In the afternoon, the Flower Cannon Scrambling Competition at Caonuan Park innovatively invited teams from educational institutions and sci-tech talent groups to participate. Three specially designed cannons named "Kun Cannon," "Peng Cannon," and "Talent Cannon" were created with talent themes, allowing the younger generation and sci-tech professionals to experience traditional customs while deepening their understanding of Guanyao culture. Concurrently, from March 12 to 14, the Guanyao Lettuce Feast • Talent Market operated, deeply integrating talent elements with folk fun through activities like the "Art Talent Gathering" and "Five Paths Talent God" check-in stalls. Stand-up eating and camping scenarios provided comfortable spaces for public leisure and talent interaction. The "Path to Talent, Skillful Hands and Ingenious Mind" cooking competition brought together culinary experts to compete, promoting Cantonese culinary skills through competition-based training. Local delicacies such as Guanyao lettuce wraps, radish cakes, and Zaoyu Coffee were featured, offering an immersive experience in folk food culture.
At noon and evening on the main day, over a thousand tables were set up at Guanyao Cultural Square for the ten-thousand-person lettuce banquet, accompanied by cultural performances, lucky draws, and live auctions. Local residents, talent representatives, and business leaders gathered joyously, sharing hopes for "talent, wealth, and fortune." As night fell, fireworks lit up the sky above Guanyao Cultural Square. In that moment, the warmth of centuries-old folk traditions intertwined with the tide of talent convergence; the auspicious meaning of the lettuce and the contemporary core of talent development merged, creating a remarkable highlight in the 400-year history of this folk celebration.
The shift from "generating wealth" (生财) to "nurturing talent" (生才), though a change of a single character, profoundly reflects the evolution and upgrade of Nanhai's talent development philosophy. Leveraging the strong influence of its centennial folklore, Nanhai uses unique cultural activities as a bond to gather talents from various fields—scientists, entrepreneurs, artists, and more—sending a powerful message that Nanhai is not only fertile ground for investment but also a "peach blossom spring" for talent and scientific innovation. Looking ahead, Nanhai will continue to extend its utmost sincerity, optimal services, and best platforms, sincerely inviting global talents to take root, build dreams, and achieve futures on this promising land, co-writing a splendid chapter of mutual pursuit and achievement.
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