Community volunteers in Gaolan County's Chengbei Community are pioneering a distinctive approach to mediation, strengthening the foundation of local peace and security.
This initiative is part of a broader effort to build a multi-faceted, collaborative governance framework.
"Auntie, I'm here to check on your natural gas pipeline installation. Is everything all set?" "It's all good, thanks to the community. Our old residential compound wouldn't have such convenient gas access otherwise." This exchange took place between Wang Jiaojiao, a community grid worker, and a resident. Just a month prior, over a hundred households in the area were struggling with the complexities of getting natural gas installed.
Chengbei Community is a classic example of an older urban neighborhood. Its jurisdiction includes several aging residential compounds with a complex mix of residents and a high proportion of elderly individuals. Conflicts among neighbors are frequent, stemming from issues like clutter accumulation, noise disturbances, disputes involving children, and damage to shared property facilities. Wei Qin, the community's Party Committee Secretary, acknowledged the challenges: "Traditional mediation methods often suffer from inconsistent venues, non-standardized procedures, and fragmented efforts. Some conflicts escalate due to untimely intervention, which not only affects community harmony and stability but also increases grassroots governance costs."
This year, the community has delved into the cultural essence of the local Lanzhou dialect term "Fangha," which embodies tolerance and humility. They have established a 66-member "Fangha" Conflict Mediation Volunteer Service Team. Complemented by innovative working methods, these volunteers act as a bridge, integrating the strengths of the grid system, police, party members, and residents. This paves a path for grassroots governance that is culturally sensitive, legally supported, and driven by public participation.
Establishing a Welcoming Mediation Space
"We chose the name 'Fangha' to encourage people to let go of minor grievances and show mutual understanding," explained Wei Qin. To create an environment where residents in conflict are willing to sit down and communicate calmly, the community has set up a dedicated "Fangha" Mediation Room within the Party-Mass Service Center. The space is equipped with fresh green plants, warm-toned furniture, drinking water, and cooling facilities. It also features legal books, mediation templates, and a corner for emotional support, transforming it into a warm space for neighborly negotiation.
In May, over a hundred households in the local Supply and Marketing Cooperative residential compound were looking forward to a natural gas pipeline installation project. However, the required pipeline had to pass underground through the adjacent Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Bureau compound, which immediately drew strong opposition from those residents. "Our compound doesn't have a property management company. In the past, all road repairs were funded by residents themselves. The pipeline construction would damage the road surface, and the responsibility for subsequent repairs is unclear," said Zhao Huaimin, a resident, voicing the collective concern.
The community promptly coordinated with the County Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau and the natural gas company for an on-site survey. After confirming there were no alternative pipeline routes, they invited representatives from both sides and relevant authorities to the site. The "Fangha" mediation volunteer team led multiple rounds of negotiations. Volunteers worked to ease residents' resistance while inviting natural gas engineers to explain the planning rationale for the pipeline on-site. They meticulously clarified responsibilities for construction maintenance, road surface restoration, and long-term pipeline management. Through repeated communication, both parties reached a consensus by "letting go" of their differences. The Supply and Marketing Cooperative compound residents successfully gained access to natural gas, resolving an inter-compound conflict.
Building on the fixed venue of the mediation room, Chengbei Community has also established a dynamic conflict registry. They categorize various disputes, such as those between neighbors, property-related issues, and rental conflicts, implementing a method of "quick resolution for minor issues, meticulous mediation for major ones." This truly makes the "Fangha" culture a buffer zone for resolving opposition and easing tensions.
Strengthening a Diverse Volunteer Team
"Unlike us grid workers, the volunteers live right in the compounds, among the residents. They can detect and report any situation immediately. They are a powerful supplementary force for community work," said Gong Meiling, Deputy Secretary of the Community Party Committee. The "Fangha" Mediation Volunteer Service Team in Chengbei Community is composed mainly of party members, retired officials, key members of homeowners' committees, and engaged residents. They are deployed into building units based on 7 basic grids and 1 dedicated grid, acting as building mediators and forming a coordinated team with grid workers and community police officers.
Han Xuemei, the 56-year-old head of the homeowners' committee in the Railway Compound, is a highly credible core volunteer in the service team. Her compound lacks dedicated property management, leaving daily琐事unaddressed. Seeing the busy grid workers, Han Xuemei, after retiring, proactively joined the mediation team. As a long-time resident familiar with every household, her mediation work, backed by years of neighborly rapport, has earned high recognition from both the community and residents.
Wang Jiaojiao, a full-time grid worker, has keenly felt the governance changes brought by the service team: "With these enthusiastic volunteers, communication between us and the residents has become much smoother, and collecting public sentiment is more efficient." The volunteer service team implements a routine grid inspection mechanism. Volunteers gather public诉求during daily visits, proactively identifying potential conflict risks, shifting the approach from "reactive handling" to "proactive prevention."
The community concurrently promotes a "Kindness Points" incentive system. Volunteers earn points for participating in mediation, and residents can accumulate points for showing courtesy, which can be exchanged for daily necessities. A "moral red and black list" has also been established to encourage public participation in co-governance. Currently, among the 66 volunteers, 32 are non-office-holding party members or retired officials, with team activity consistently above 95%.
The community further leverages a grid-based grassroots governance system, deepening the integration of "grid + police grid." Grid workers, volunteers, and community police officers jointly conduct household visits, collaborative mediation, and legal education campaigns. They utilize the public security "One Standard, Three Realities" platform to improve resident profiles, achieving a household visitation rate of 93%. Over the past two years, all conflicts identified and mediated through this multi-party联动have been resolved, with a 100% resolution rate.
Innovating the "365 Mediation Work Method"
Wei Qin acknowledged that relying solely on interpersonal persuasion is insufficient to prevent recurring conflicts. This year, Chengbei Community has used the "Fangha" volunteer team as a vehicle to innovate and launch the "365 Work Method." This integrates cultural influence, standardized procedures, and long-term mechanisms, promoting the fusion of self-governance, rule of law, and moral governance to solidify the long-term foundation for a peaceful community.
The "365 Work Method" can be broken down as follows: It strengthens the "Three Foundations" to solidify the mediation base. This involves solidifying the physical foundation by effectively using the "Fangha Mediation Room" for legal education and疏导; rooting efforts in the grid grassroots by having volunteers下沉into buildings for real-time risk排查; and focusing on fundamental livelihood issues, targeting micro-disputes around residents to ensure mediation work has a venue, reach, and warmth.
It standardizes the "Six-Step" mediation process. Volunteers strictly follow the standardized steps of "Observing, Listening, Inquiring, Diagnosing, Harmonizing, and Guiding." They first observe and疏导the emotions of involved parties, patiently listen to完整的诉求, conduct on-site visits to verify facts, accurately identify the crux of the conflict, guide both sides toward reconciliation based on the "Fangha" concept, and, if mediation fails, legally guide them toward arbitration or litigation channels. This ensures a balance of情理and adherence to the law.
It deepens the "Five Aspects" of construction to consolidate long-term effectiveness. This includes常态化promoting the inclusive "Fangha" concept alongside the Civil Code and the People's Mediation Law through WeChat groups, discussion meetings, and case-based legal explanations to普及法治理念. It improves systems like volunteer rotation, conflict follow-up, and tiered handling to achieve institutional规范化. The points incentive drives broad public participation, achieving全民化involvement. It builds a distinctive "Fangha Mediation" brand, creating legal culture corners to highlight brand特色. It links Party building, property management, and police work to build an integrated governance闭环.
A systematic work method, a down-to-earth volunteer team, and a welcoming mediation space have led to sustained improvements in Chengbei Community's governance. Wei Qin stated that the community will continue to expand the "Fangha" Mediation Volunteer Service Team, regularly provide legal and professional training for mediators, broaden mediation services to areas like family and consumer disputes, deepen the三方联动between grids, police grids, and volunteers, and continue to polish the "Fangha Mediation" grassroots governance brand. The aim is to nurture public sentiment through culture, safeguard peace through the rule of law, and continuously write a new chapter of共建共治共享in grassroots governance.