Li Bingbing, who was born in a small town in Northeast China's Heilongjiang province, has helped launch several campaigns with the UN and by herself in China. Hu Haidan / China Daily

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Li Bingbing is one of the most popular superstars in China, but the actress in the latest Transformers film likes to speak humbly of her roots - which, she says, have given her a strong awareness about nature and the environment.

"I was born in a small town in Heilongjiang, where my life then was very simple and everyone around me was very thrifty," Li says.

Wuchang, Li's hometown, is in a county in Harbin of Northeast China.

Much media focus has been on how this small-town girl rose to become one of China's best-known stars, who recently made her name in Hollywood by playing alongside Mark Wahlberg in Transformers: Age of Extinction.

Li appreciates her small town, not so much in contrast with where she is today but because of the influence of the place and its people. It's a love of nature and the environment, she says.

"I would feel guilty to waste anything; it's just a habit which has helped form my awareness of environmental protection," says Li. "That awareness has been in my DNA since I was young."