What has Jack Ma been up to since his retirement? The answer is: inspecting Ant Forest projects. According to the latest reports, on August 19th, Jack Ma appeared in the Horqin Sandy Land in Kezuozhongqi, Inner Mongolia, visiting Ant Forest Plot 464. While enjoying watermelon, he discussed tree growth conditions with local forest rangers. During his inspection, he particularly emphasized that "water resources are the core challenge for sustainable development."

Indeed, the importance of water resources cannot be overstated. Whether for our daily lives, ecosystem monitoring, or economic development, water is indispensable. The Ant Forest project, through afforestation and other methods, plays a crucial role in water conservation and soil preservation.

Beyond emphasizing sustainable water resource development, an interesting moment occurred when Jack Ma "compared heights" with a sand-fixing shrub tree. Even business leaders need to capture memorable photos during such visits. The tree, grown from energy collected by countless users who wake up early to gather points online, appeared noticeably taller than Ma himself.

Don't underestimate this seemingly modest sand-fixing shrub. Despite its unremarkable appearance, it possesses remarkable capabilities. Its dense root system firmly grips soil and sand particles while effectively slowing surface runoff and reducing soil erosion. Most importantly, it withstands high temperatures, severe cold, sandstorms, and barren conditions – truly a "survival master." This explains why the Ant Forest project favors this species.

Since its launch in 2016, the Ant Forest project has accompanied users for 9 years, becoming the world's largest personal carbon account platform. Users accumulate green energy through low-carbon behaviors such as green transportation, paying utility bills through Alipay, and online ticket purchases. When energy reaches certain levels, users can purchase saplings in the mobile app, nurture virtual trees, and eventually convert them into real trees planted in reality.

Driven by Ant Forest, "mobile tree-planting" has become a new trend. Couples plant trees as symbols of their love, families rename their trees "Loving Family," and college students organize group planting activities. This reminds me of friends who steal my energy every morning and even beat up my virtual chicken. When it comes to charity, everyone wants to contribute.

As Chairman Mao once said: "Many hands make light work." When collective power converges, the accumulated energy is formidable, and data bears witness to this impact.

As of April this year, the Ant Forest project has cumulatively pledged over 4 billion yuan in donations. Through joint implementation by charitable organizations and professional institutions for afforestation, the project has supported desertification control and ecological restoration across 13 provinces and municipalities, planting over 600 million trees. Notably, over 90% of these trees were planted in core areas of the "Three-North" Shelterbelt Program's three landmark campaigns.

Jack Ma's appearance not only affirmed Ant Forest's past achievements but also expressed hope for continued collaborative efforts to effectively improve the ecological environment. Actually, Ma's passion for tree-planting began much earlier. During a tree-planting activity with employees on Arbor Day 2010, he said: "Earth has life, and Earth's forests are like human body hair. Therefore, Alibaba will continue to focus on water and forests throughout its future development." He has fulfilled this promise and continues promoting charitable causes even in retirement.

In 2019, Jack Ma frequently participated in charitable education activities, vigorously promoting educational causes. In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Ma donated 100 million yuan as a vaccine research and development fund, later contributing an additional 6 million yuan for pandemic research. He also donated substantial quantities of masks and protective equipment to other countries.

Many netizens commented: "Turns out the highest form of retirement isn't sunshine and beaches, but having the ability to give back to society. When I have money, I'll do the same."

Successfully combining business promotion with charity demonstrates Jack Ma's strategic brilliance. Speaking of which, have you collected your energy today?