ChineseToday | Paired assistance breathes new life into ancient Tibetan weaving craft -Xinhua

Gesang Dolma demonstrates the pulu weaving technique at the 48th WorldSkills Competition in Shanghai, east China, Sept. 26, 2026. (Xinhua/Chen Haoming)

SHANGHAI, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Pulu, a genre of traditional Tibetan woolen fabric, has been in production for more than twenty centuries. One generation after another, people use it as the major material for making traditional Tibetan robes and hats.

This photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows pulu products at a workshop in Gyangze County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Chen Haoming)

In 2022, an aid group from Shanghai launched a collaborative program to help bolster the pulu weaving industry in Gyangze County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region. Later on, Gesang Dolma and 13 other pulu artisans traveled to Shanghai for training and then put what they had learned into practice in their hometown.

Owing to the paired assistance initiative, a pulu workshop was also established in the county to help transform this traditional craft from small household businesses into a larger-scale and more organized operation.

Gesang Dolma (R) instructs a local on pulu weaving at a workshop in Gyangze County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026. (Xinhua/Chen Haoming)

Gesang Dolma poses for a photo at a pulu workshop in Gyangze County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026. (Xinhua/Chen Haoming)

Gesang was invited to demonstrate the pulu weaving technique at the 48th WorldSkills Competition held from Sept. 22 to 27 in Shanghai, attracting hundreds of spectators from China and abroad. "I hope to pass on this Tibetan craft and give it new vitality," she said.