What do four rivers, forty models, and $400,000 have in common? Well they're all linked to the 2010 World Super Model Contest, held recently in the Chinese city of Chengdu. BON's Fergus Thompson traveled to the southern province of Sichuan to find out more.

Now earlier this month we reported here on BON News on the increasing number of US graduates and other young foreigners coming to China to work. And as the economy continues to grow - and appears to have avoided any serious fallout from the global financial crisis – it's clear that China has, for many, become a land of opportunity. But what's not always so clear is where exactly these foreign workers fit into some of the country's regulatory policies and institutions.

The titles of "national model worker" and "national model collective" may have a quaint pre-cold war communist ring to them – but recently they caused some controversy when the government released its Draft Regulations on Commendations and Awards. This is the first time that clear nationwide rules on such honors have been drawn up.

And one provision has caused particularly heated debate: this is that foreigners working in China should also be entitled to such awards if they fulfill the criteria. So CCTV.COM carried out a poll which asked respondents: "Do you think foreigners should be eligible for "national model worker" titles?" 

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Not too long ago prancing down the catwalk in skimpy outfits would have been frowned upon here in China.
Now modeling is a multi-million dollar industry.

And as Tom Mackenzie reports, the people behind that success are determined to put China’s modeling industry firmly on the global map.