A retired United States educator who channeled charitable funds to a Chinese reforestation project in 1999 toured Luoyang — the city in Henan province where he once taught English — on Friday, urging young people to give back to the planet and vowing to plant trees in the US to spread China's spirit worldwide.

Ronald Sakolsky (L) hugs his former colleague Zhai Guanjun at an airport in Zhengzhou, Central China's Henan province, Aug 27, 2026. (Photo: Xinhua)

Ronald Sakolsky, whose decades-long friendship with desertification pioneer Yin Yuzhen drew widespread attention in China this year, made the remarks during visits to the Longmen Grottoes, a UNESCO World Heritage site in Luoyang, and a local middle school.

"Everything in life follows balance. The earth gives us trees, flowers, vegetables and fruits — that is balance. But if we don't give back to the earth, it will suffer," Sakolsky said.

The visit marked Sakolsky's first trip back to Luoyang since he taught English there in 1999. His Friday itinerary included stops at the ancient grottoes and a local middle school, where he was greeted by dozens of journalists who jostled to interview him.

Sakolsky toured the site alongside Yin and Bai Fan, a former colleague who now heads the Luoyang No 2 Foreign Language School Education Group. The three stacked their hands for photos at the grottoes around 9 am, marking Sakolsky's third visit to the Buddhist cave complex.

As a guide detailed the history of the centuries-old limestone carvings, Sakolsky filmed the sculptures with his phone. "Luoyang is my home," he said. "When I went to Inner Mongolia autonomous region, she (Yin) was the host. Now that she's come to Luoyang, I am the host."

Standing beneath the grotto cliffs, Sakolsky reflected on the city's transformation. "Luoyang today is a city facing the future — that's the biggest change I've seen," he said, gesturing toward the modern skyline.

In the afternoon, he visited Luoyang No 2 Foreign Language School, led by Bai Fan — not the original school where he taught in 1999. Sakolsky planted a tree with Yin and Bai on campus.

"If more people come here and join in, more trees will be planted," he said. "This cycle has to keep going." He added that he would also plant trees back in the US, to carry the spirit of China across the world.

Zhai Guanjun, a 70-year-old retired teacher and former close colleague, praised Sakolsky's humility and quiet philanthropy. "He kept his charitable work very low-key," Zhai said. "I had no idea he fundraised for desert reforestation until he returned from Inner Mongolia. I later learned he applied for charitable funds and traveled specifically to offer his support."

Li Wenwen, 44, a former student, said their reunion this week was their first in more than 20 years. She compiled video clips and letters from former classmates — now spread across Beijing, Tianjin and overseas — to present to her former teacher.

"His greatest influence on us was in our way of thinking," Li said. "The ideas he shared and the borderless, universal love he embodied deeply moved me then, and continue to shape me today."

Sakolsky and Yin's cross-border friendship began in 1999, when Sakolsky was teaching in Henan through a US-China teacher exchange program. After watching a television segment on Yin's efforts to green the barren Maowusu Desert, he raised $5,000 from US charities to support her afforestation work, helping to transform degraded land into a forest of more than 50,000 trees.

Earlier this week, the pair reunited in Ordos, Inner Mongolia, for the first time in 26 years. Their emotional reunion went viral after Yin's public online search for Sakolsky gained widespread traction in May, emerging as a touching example of grassroots Chinese-US friendship.

Sakolsky's Luoyang itinerary continues on Saturday with a visit to his 1999 workplace, Luoyang Foreign Language School, where he will reunite with former teachers and students at both the original campus and the school's new facility. Activities include a cafeteria lunch and an afternoon media session.

Sakolsky arrived in Henan on Thursday afternoon and is scheduled to depart Luoyang on Sunday.