By Ma Miaomiao

W hen the car crash that changed the course of her life happened in April 2011， Yang Shuting was just about to embark on her career as a nurse at a local hospital in Hunan Province. Waking up in a daze， she found herself in intensive care. Not long after， doctors told Yang that the accident had left her with high paraplegia， rendering her unable to move from the chest down.

After a period of just sitting in her wheelchair， wondering what to do with her life， she turned to the online world for inspiration.

“I noticed that both the domestic and international markets for artificial flowers were huge，” Yang said. “And so， in 2014， with a group of physically challenged friends， I set up a handicraft store on Taobao （one of the largest online shopping platforms in China）.”Yang recounted her business experience at an event for people with disabilities to share stories of poverty reduction， hosted by the China Disabled Persons Federation （CDPF） on September 29 in Beijing.

Living up to full potential

Gewu Village of Baimaoping Town， where Yang was born， is located in a remote area of Chengbu Miao Autonomous County in Hunan. Due to the geographical conditions and limited access by road， villagers have no sources of income besides growing and selling grain or leaving to work elsewhere.

After making her first small fortune and paying off her debts， Yang registered a cooperative in May 2015， and signed a cooperation agreement with more than 200 poor families. The cooperative provided semi-finished artificial flowers for the villagers to assemble at home， and then collected and sold the flowers， distributing the proceeds among the families.

After that， Yang established 22 flower assembly agencies and two poverty alleviation workshops， hiring more than 400 employees， each with a monthly income of 2，000 to 4，000 yuan （$310-$620）.

China fully respects the dignity of persons with disabilities， works hard to tap into their potential and empower them， and fully recognizes their important role in leaving poverty behind， Xia Gengsheng， deputy head of the National Administration for Rural Vitalization， said at the event.

“I was supported by the local authorities， who helped me with interestfree loans for my business， invited me to promotional activities such as the China Import and Export Fair， and also provided training for me，” Yang said.