Dissemination and Influence of Textual Works Recording Environmental Changes in China Written by Westerners in Modern Times

Centered on the textual works of environmental changes in China written by the westerns who came to China in modern times, this paper chooses some typical cases and explores their mode, route, audiences of dissemination and impact on China and foreign countries. Translation was the main method for dissemination. As to the medium, besides the printed material, the importance of photographs and pictures cannot be undervalued. The foresters and agronomists studying abroad were not only the main audients, but also the important disseminators, due to their advantage in foreign language. This paper holds that such recordings and descriptions were not only the route for the westerners to learn about the environment of China, but also an important source of information for Chinese scholars to gain knowledge about the environment at home. Most importantly, this was the special route of dissemination of modern natural science in China.