Objective/Significance The aim is to, based on the cultural ecology perspective, explore the internal mechanism of the inheritance of minority cultures and the coordinated development of the economy, and to solve the practical problems of “loss of identity” and “separation from the region” of ethnic cultures in the process of modernization.

Method/Process Taking the She ethnic settlements in Ningde, Fujian Province as a typical case study, this research adopts the analytical framework of cultural ecology and is guided by General Secretary Xi Jinping’s thought on the “creative transformation and innovative development” of ethnic cultures. Focusing on the practices of She cultural inheritance and economic development, this paper dialectically analyzes the effectiveness and tensions within the bidirectional mutual construction of culture and economy.

Results/Conclusions The research indicates that although the “Ningde Model” has laid a solid economic foundation for cultural inheritance through industrial empowerment, it still faces deep-seated challenges such as the fading of cultural subjectivity and the imbalance of ecological niches. The conclusion suggests that achieving the sustainable development of She culture cannot rely solely on external economic “blood transfusion.” Instead, it is essential to reconstruct a complete ecosystem consisting of “material space, institutional norms, and living subjects.” The core lies in awakening national self-esteem and confidence, and strengthening the subject consciousness of inheritance among the She people, thereby accomplishing a fundamental transformation from “passive protection” to “endogenous development.”