Bruno Falci is much more than a media correspondent in China. He is also an indefatigable traveler whose life seems tailor-made for connecting different worlds. Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, raised partly in the French capital of Paris and Latin American by conviction, Falci arrived in Beijing just over 10 months ago with a suitcase full of curiosity and a clear mission: to tell China's story from within, free from Western filters and stereotypes.

Roots, ideals and a passion for history 

Falci was only 5 when his parents—professors at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro—moved to Paris to pursue their doctorates. That early experience left an indelible mark on his identity.

"I think my identity is a blend of Rio and Paris. I even speak French with a Portuguese accent and Portuguese with a slight French accent," he said.

That cultural duality awakened in him a deep curiosity about civilizations. By the time he returned to Rio at the age of 10, the desire to travel and see the world from different perspectives had already taken root.

Family trips to Greece and Italy introduced him to some of the great cradles of human civilization. Inspired by those journeys, as well as by his family history, he went on to study history at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.

After graduating from university, he moved to Cuba for what he expected would be just two months of studying Spanish. Instead, he stayed for two years, immersing himself in the history of the Cuban Revolution (1953-59), its culture and its people.

Later, Falci, whose great-grandparents emigrated to Brazil from Italy, lived in Lisbon, Portugal, where he completed his master's degree, and then in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where he pursued a doctorate while working as a journalist. With every destination and every new experience, he advanced, step by step, preparing himself for something greater.

So when teleSUR, a Latin American TV news network based in Caracas, Venezuela, contacted him one day about becoming its correspondent stationed in Beijing, he did not hesitate. "As a lover of history, I immediately said yes. I did not even ask any questions. I simply said yes," he said.

New frontiers 

Before arriving in Beijing, he spent time in Caracas undergoing intensive TV training, learning how to produce, film, edit and broadcast independently. Thanks to that training, he now considers himself an "all-round journalist," capable of working even under extremely difficult conditions.

Before ever setting foot in China, Falci had begun exploring the country through books. Marco Polo's travel accounts had fascinated him as a teenager, and as a historian, he considered China one of humanity's great civilizations—one that emerged along major rivers, much like the ancient civilizations of Egypt and Mesopotamia.

"Coming to China was undoubtedly one of the most important moments of my professional and personal life," he said.

What he found exceeded his expectations.

"Studying a country through books is one thing; living there, walking through its cities, talking with its people and understanding its reality from within is something else entirely," he said.

Over the past 10 months, he has traveled extensively across the country. His journeys have taken him to rural villages in Rongjiang County, Guizhou Province, towns near the border with Viet Nam, faraway Kashgar in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, the classical gardens of Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, and, of course, Beijing and Shanghai, along with many other cities and towns steeped in tradition and culture.

What he values most, by far, is the opportunity to meet ordinary people and see firsthand how, through hard work and perseverance, they have found a path toward modernization.

"From my perspective, rural revitalization and poverty eradication rank among the greatest social achievements in contemporary history. Lifting hundreds of millions of people out of extreme poverty is an extraordinary historic accomplishment," he said.

China's rural revitalization, a strategy introduced in 2017, promotes the economic prosperity and overall development of rural areas. It builds on the success of the nationwide poverty alleviation campaign that eradicated absolute poverty by the end of 2020.

As a Latin American, he sees China as a source of inspiration for addressing structural problems such as poverty and hunger in Latin American countries, which share with China a history marked by foreign aggression and struggles for sovereignty.

His daily work as a correspondent is both demanding and rewarding.

"Being teleSUR's correspondent in China is an experience that combines journalism, research, constant learning and a great deal of responsibility," he said.

He begins each day by reviewing the news and upcoming agendas, but he must also take to the streets and travel to other regions to report on the country firsthand. He handles the entire process himself—from research and filming to editing, production and live broadcasting.

His criteria for selecting stories are clear: He reports on developments that help audiences understand China's realities and resonate with viewers in Latin America, thereby challenging many of the stereotypes that continue to shape perceptions of the country.

"My goal is not to speak for China, but to allow China to speak for itself, to listen to its people, learn their stories, travel through its regions and present its reality through direct experiences," he said.

Bridging China and Latin America 

Living in China has transformed Falci at the most fundamental level. He deeply appreciates the country's long-term vision. "China shows that major historical transformations do not happen overnight. They require planning, organization, perseverance and the collective efforts of several generations," he said.

"If I had to sum up the great lesson I have learned from China during these months in just a few words, I would choose four concepts: resilience, social justice, struggle and pride in one's own history and identity," he said.

At a time when the world is moving increasingly toward multipolarity, his work carries particular significance. In Falci's view, China has established its place on the international stage not through domination, but through a commitment to mutual benefit.

"Being here gives me the opportunity to witness firsthand one of the most important historical processes of our time," he said.

In this context, he also hopes to serve as a bridge fostering greater understanding across the ocean.

"Latin America needs China, and China needs Latin America. We are peoples with rich histories, ancient cultures and an extraordinary wealth of human talent," he said.

For now, Falci has no plans to leave. "After these months of living here, I feel I have only just begun to understand this ancient civilization," he said.

He wants to continue traveling, discovering new stories and bringing them closer to Latin American audiences.

"I go where I am needed, and for now, that place is China," he said with determination, describing a social commitment that goes far beyond a personal project.

As his life story reveals, Falci is a historian who has not remained confined to books. Through journalism, he has immersed himself in different parts of the world in an effort to dismantle prefabricated narratives and promote greater integration across the Global South.

His warm and honest voice invites Latin Americans to discover China not as a distant enigma, but as a fellow traveler on the road toward building a fairer world. BR

Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon 

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