Nov 6, 2007 - The China Foundation Annual Meeting in 2007 was held in Washington DC. Dr. Bing Yao, Vice President for Education made an impressive presentation of the Education Program of the China Foundation with photographs and statistics showing that we have already built 17 schools serving more than 3000 disadvantaged children in China including minority children, AIDS orphans and children with HIV/AIDS. Dr. and Mrs Yao contributed 12 schools themselves and supervised the building process of the schools including selecting sites and designs. Mr. Shi Xiaolin, China Foundation Representative for Education, worked hard and effciently to negotiate with local governments for matching funds and select school sites and designs with Dr. Yao (Please see the Education Program Page for a summary of the results). Mr. Shi's efforts are greatly appreciated by all Board members, Foundation officers, and the Chinese Government.

Regarding the Health Program, our Partner, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) and the China Foundation are submitting a grant application to the Global Fund to establish two AIDS clinics for HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and training with China CDC. Dr. Yang Xinyu, a highly intelligent and capable Chinese physician is working with China CDC as AHF Representative in China. Dr. Yang and Mr. Shi will work together on this project.

Our fund raising efforts have been on going. Our fund raising Officers have been working on possible funding sources to support our programs and projects. There are many interests expressed, we hope their promise will be fulfilled in time.

We are grateful to have outstanding Officers, Senior Advisors, Partners and friends; the best Universities in China and the US are willing to collaborate with us for our projects. The China Foundation is in a unique position to assist China and Chinese people as our mission.

Sept, 2007 - China Foundation's Chairman and CEO Dr. Jane Hu stayed in Beijing for two months as a Senior Visiting Scholar at the Guanghua School of Management of Peking University. She attended various activities as a China's National Board Member for HIV/AIDS Control. The activities included seminars, forums, meetings, and other events related to China's healthcare reform, education and HIV/AIDS control.

Living in Beijing gave Dr. Hu a chance to observe the daily life in China. She observed that the most urgent and serious problem of Chinese people is inadequate medical care of high quality and affordable health services. It is getting more and more expensive to see a doctor, to have a necessary surgery that saves lives may wipe out the savings of an average family. Most Chinese people in the rural areas, urban poor or migrant populations do not have adequate health insurance. This is a common complaint in China. The second problem is inadequate educational opportunities to children in poor rural, urban areas and migrant populations. China spends more educational funds for higher education and advanced studies and less on primary education or public preschool education at the present time.

Based on the research data and recommendations of domestic and international experts, the Chinese Government has announced that the national insurance program is tested in major testing cities and to be expanded to all cities by 2010. The result of this program has to be observed to see whether it will work. The Chinese Government's Think Tank Professors told Dr. Hu that the Chinese Government plans to build primary schools to meet the needs of their compulsory education (elementary school and junior high school education) for every child in China. The realization of this plan has to be seen in the future.

The China Foundation is currently working with the AIDS Healthcare Foundation to write a proposal to establish two AIDS Clinics for AIDS patients and children and to build schools for children infected or affected by HIV/AIDS in Guangxi Province.

June 1, 2007 - The first school for children with HIV/AIDS in China helds its Opening Ceremony and fund raising event on the International Children's Day. More than 500 people including the local and central government officials, artists, movie stars, reporters, TV stations and interested domestic and international representatives participated in this significant event. The new school's building was contributed by the China Foundation. China Foundation's Mrs. Lien Yao and her family members contributed construction money for this school, which is named after Mrs. Yao's Father. Responded to the China Foundation's request, the Alumni Association of Taipei First Girls' School, Class '58, contributed money to add the construction of a Library and a Music and Arts Activity Room. Dr. Guo Xiaoping, Director of the Infectious Disease Hospital of LinFen County, Shanxi Province, started this school as a classroom for HIV/AIDS children. With the support from the China Foundation and other organizations, the initial classroom has been turned into this boarding school for children with HIV/AIDS.

School at Linfen County, Shanxi Province, Classroom.
(Photographs)

December 3, 2006 - China Foundation's Annual Board Meeting was held in Maryland, USA. Dr. Jane Hu and Dr. Bing Yao reported on the Foundation's annual activities and the progress on the Education Program. A fund raising committee was formed to expand the Foundation's fund raising effort. (Report: The China Foundation 2006 Annual Report.)

September 14, 2006 - Forum on HIV/AIDS Treatment and Prevention in Beijing. The Beijing Forum on HIV/AIDS Treatment and Prevention was a very successful Policy Forum. It was probably the first International Forum organized by domestic NGOs and the China Foundation and supported by the Chinese Government, the leaders of all Governmental Agencies related to HIV/AIDS control participated in this Forum with UN groups, US agencies, domestic and international NGOs and Foundations, AIDS experts to discuss the emerging problems in AIDS treatment, drugs and prevention to find solutions and improvements. Dr. Shao Yiming of China CDC wrote that the Beijing Forum in 2006 will accelerate the Anitviral Treatment in China.

Joseph Chen, CEO and President of the China Foundation, took the initiative to raise funds and help organize the Beijing Forum in 2006. He Co-Chaired the Beijing Forum on HIV/AIDS. He is also invited to organize the International AIDS onference to be held in Taipei in 2007 and he will also help organize the Beijing Forum in 2007. Vice Minister Wang Longde who is in charge of HIV/AIDS control in China invited Dr. Jane Hu, Chairman of the China Foundation for a lunch after the Forum to chat about AIDS drugs to show his friendship and support.

September 15, 2006 - Peking University Seminar. Dr. Jane Hu was invited to give a Seminar on the Challenges of HIV/AIDS in the 21st Century Healthcare at Peking University. Before the Seminar, Dr. Weiying Zhang, Dean of Guanhua School of Management and Professor Gordon Liu, Chairman, Department of Health Economics and Management hosted a banquet for Dr. Hu and her friends at Peking University. The Seminar was well attended by students, faculty members and corporate leaders. The audience asked interesting questions and these students and corporate managers will be leaders of China in the future.

September 16, 2006 - The Center of Excellence, LinFen County, Shanxi Province. The Officers of the China Foundation and the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, along with Dr. Monica Sweeney, Former Member of US Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS, visited the Center of Excellence in the Infectious Disease Hospital of LinFen County, Shanxi Province. The Center of Excellent is a joint project of the China Foundation and the AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) for AIDS treatment and training. The AIDS Healthcare Foundation is the world's largest AIDS treatment organization. They are treating huge numbers of AIDS patients in the United States, Africa and India. The Center of Excellence in LinFen is our first model AIDS Clinic in China. We plan to establish another Center of Excellence in Guanxi or Yunnan Province in 2007 to treat AIDS patients in these provinces with serious HIV/AIDS epidemic. The rich experiences and expertise of AHF will ensure the success of this joint project in China. The China Foundation works with AHF to establish clinics in China and coordinates with Chinese Government officials at the Ministry of Health and China CDC. The Clinton Foundation has promised to provide AIDS drugs for 100 to 200 children with AIDS to the Center of Excellence. The Center has done marvelous work to control the HIV infections of children and adults in Shanxi Province where past blood-selling of villagers caused severe HIV/AIDS epidemic.

Septembetr 16, 2006 - The Green Harbor - Inpatient Unit of the Center of Excellence. The Inpatient Unit of the Center of Excellence is located at the Green Harbor, a peaceful clinic surrounded by green vegatables, trees and blooming roses planted by the AIDS patients and their families. The HIV-infected children came here dying. But after careful treatment at the Center of Excellence, their HIV infection is well-controlled and those children look healthy and full of life. Dr. Guo Xiaoping, Director of the Infectious Hospital is a kind-hearted doctor concerned about the future of those children, he hired a teacher to start teaching those children in a temporary classroom. The China Foundation has decided to build a Primary School (Elementary School and Junior High School) in LinFen county for those AIDS children. This will be the first formal school for AIDS children in China. The construction of the school will start in February 2007 to be completed in September 2007.

September 17, 2006 - Opening Ceremony of Sun-puo Boarding School in Wenxi County, Shanxi Province The China Foundation Officers and Dr. Monica Sweeney, Former Member of US Presidential Advisor on HIV/AIDS, and her husband, Joseph attended the Opening Ceremony of the Sun-puo Boarding School in Wenxi County, Shanxi Province. The HIV/AIDS epidemic was most severe in Wenxi County where most poor villagers sold blood to improve their living, many AIDS patients already died and left their children behind as AIDS orphans. This Boarding School with Dormitory admits orphans, AIDS orphans and village children. The Shaxi Provincial Government and local Government are responsible for hiring teachers, workers and living expenses of orphans including AIDS orphans. It is an ideal situation that AIDs orphans can go to school with other orphans and village children. The Opening Ceremony was well-prepared and celebrated by the whole county, adults and children were smiling and cheering in the sun. It was indeed wonderful to see all children attending this school without discrimination and stigma attached. There were almost 200 orphans living in the Dormitory as their Home.

In September of 2006, Dr. Hu participated in a historical Roundtable Meeting in Beijing, China. This meeting brought together all majoy players in HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment in China, including the Chinese Government leaders responsible for HIV/AIDS control, the UN organizations (WHO, UNICEF, UNAIDS, etc.), the US agencies (USCDC, NIH, USAID, etc.), the International and Chinese organizations and Foundations. Major Foundations, such as the Ford Foundation and the Clinton Foundation, participated in the meeting. The China Foundation initiated the Roundtable meeting idea and supported most of the expenses to organize this meeting in Beijing. This meeting discussed emerging problems in AIDS treatment and prevention in China and how to solve the problems. It will have a positive impact on the future of China and Chinese people, especially the AIDS patients in China.

In September of 2006, a Boarding School (Elementary School and Junior High School), including classrooms, dormitory, dining hall, kitchen, and other facilities, will open for the school year. This school will accommodate 600 village students, including 125 AIDS orphans from Wenxi County, Shanxi Province. This school was donated by the China Foundation. Dr. Hu was invited with China Foundation's CEO & President to attend the Opening Ceremony on September 17. This new school will bring sunshine and hope to hundreds of children, especially the AIDS orphans for a brighter future.

In the Summer of 2006, hundreds of students and teachers in a deprived region of Qinghai Province will rejoice and celebrate the opening of an elementary school constructed by the China Foundation. As part of the incessant efforts to aid the educational needs in the deprived regions in China, The Foundation will complete construction of this elementary school with a capacity to educate hundreds of students. Foundation Chair Dr. Hu commented that, "The Foundation is appreciative of Foundation Vice President Dr. and Mrs. Yao's charitable gift to make this task a possibility."

On December 1, 2005, World AIDS Day, The White House held a ceremony commemorating this day. Dr. Hu was invited by President George W. Bush to attend the White House ceremony for the World AIDS Day. VIP Attendees included The First lady, Laura Bush, Secretary of the State, Condoleezza Rice, Secretary of Labor, Elaine Chao, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfield and many Senators and Congressmen and foreign dignitaries. In his speech, President Bush talked about measures being taken domestically and globally to fight HIV/AIDS. He expressed his appreciation and determination to stand with the "global partners" in fighting this disease. As a guest of the President, Dr. Hu attended the ceremony. Later Dr. Hu stated that, "The China Foundation definitely is part of the "global partners" in this fight against HIV/AIDS. In this World AIDS Day, we strongly support President Bush's policy to fight HIV/AIDS globally and domestically and we heartedly appreciate his and The First Lady’s compassionate efforts."

"The World AIDS Day is significant because it reminds us this is a war that the world has yet to won," CEO/President of Foundation Joseph Chen said. "America has about Forty Thousand new cases annually. The government provides more than $17 billion annually for the domestic programs. The effectiveness is evident as it has even changes the face of this illness. American HIV/AIDS specialists have increasingly witnessed HIV/AIDS becoming more of a protracted state as the management and control improved." He said.

In the night of December 1, 2005, the White House marked World AIDS Day by dimming the North Portico lights. The White House encouraged States, communities, and the people of the United States to join in commemorating World AIDS Day by dimming their lights or participating in other appropriate activities. The Foundation leaders in California and Texas called upon the people in the community to dim the light in their homes as a symbolic gesture to support the victims living with HIV/AIDS. Many responded.

In the Mid-2005, the Foundation took the policy initiative to exam the issue of Sex Trafficking and HIV/AIDS. The study is headed by CEO/President Chen. After the study was completed, President Chen commented that, "The result of the study underscores the importance to address the issue of Sex Trafficking and HIV/AIDS on the national policy level." On November 14, 2005, based on the China Foundation's study result and the research data from other Presidential Advisory Council Members, the Foundation Chair Dr. Hu officially presented a resolution to the Presidential Advisory Council On HIV/AIDS. The resolution on Sex Trafficking was adopted by the Council and this policy recommendation was sent to the White House, the United States Congress, the Department of the State and the Department of Health and Human Services.

On November 1, 2005, President Bush delivers his speech regarding the National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza Preparedness and Response. He said, "Our strategy is designed to meet three critical goals: First, we must detect outbreaks that occur anywhere in the world; second, we must protect the American people by stockpiling vaccines and antiviral drugs, and improve our ability to rapidly produce new vaccines against a pandemic strain; and, third, we must be ready to respond at the federal, state and local levels in the event that a pandemic reaches our shores," President Bush talked about the distinctiveness of the Avian and Pandemic Influenza threat and the Nation's strategy to spot outbreaks, increase domestic vaccine manufacture capacity, stockpile treatments, and plan to react to a pandemic. China Foundation Chair Dr. Hu expressed her support of President’s policy and commented that “The history should teach all of us a lesson to pay attention to the danger of pandemics. In the 20th century, the world has witnessed influenza pandemics. In 1918 pandemic, about 500,000 Americans and more than 20 million people died of influenza. The 1957 and 1968 pandemics killed more than tens of thousands of Americans and millions worldwide. We all still vividly remember the nightmare of the outbreak of SARS when the world was totally unprepared and that experience should give us enough warning of what might happen if we are again caught prepared.”

In the Summer of 2005, hundreds of joyous families in a deprived region of Inner Mongolia attended the opening of an elementary school constructed by the China Foundation. As part of the continuous efforts, The Foundation constructed this elementary school in Inner Mongolia with a capacity to educate hundreds of students. On behalf of the China Foundation, Vice President Dr. Bing Yao and his wife attended the Opening Ceremony of this school in Inner Mongolia that was held in summer of 2005. Foundation Chair Dr. Hu commented that, “The Foundation is appreciative of Dr. and Mrs. Yao's generous contribution of fund, time, and energy to help the educational needs of these disadvantaged children”

June 27, 2005 is the National HIV Testing Day. Secretary of Health and Human Services Mike Leavitt stated that, “Today marks the 11th annual observance of National HIV Testing Day, which reminds all Americans that HIV testing is an important step in the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS. An estimated 40,000 Americans are newly infected with HIV each year.” He said, “New CDC data indicates that in 2003, between 1,039,000 and 1,185,000 people were living with HIV.” Foundation President Joseph Chen commented that, "The China Foundation strongly supports Secretary Leavitt’s policy and will do our best to help raise public awareness of this significant crisis.” He said, “25% of American HIV patients not only are ignorant about their illness but also are actively spreading the disease in a deadly rate simply because they are not aware of they are HIV positive. The danger of spreading of HIV/AIDS in the United States is grave. We need to actively educate and encourage people in high risk to go to have the test done."

In September 2004, Dr. Hu signed an official Memorandum of Cooperation with the Foreign Loan Office of China's Ministry of Health (representing the World Bank and China's Ministry of Health), Shanxi Provincial Health Bureau and Yuncheng City Health Bureau and China's Center for Disease Control (CDC). The Memorandum was to set up the HIV testing, AIDS treatment and training project in Yuncheng City, Shanxi Province where serious HIV/AIDS epidemic was caused by blood selling of poor villagers. The China Foundation will hold a Press Conference at the US Senate on November 30, 2004 to launch the joint HIV/AIDS project. A Press Conference and Opening Ceremony will also be held in Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province simultaneous on December 1 (International AIDS Day), 2004 hosted by Shanxi Provincial Health Bureau.

In 2004, the China Foundation has successfully initiated a plan to establish an International Center for Human Development in Beijing. This Center will be the product of the partnership among the China Foundation, the Ministry of Health of China, the U. S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, UNICEF/China, Tsinghua University, Harvard School of Public Health and other leading Chinese and US institutes and universities. This Center will conduct policy studies, develop trainings, and provide strategic advice to the Chinese government in various areas, especially in health care and education to relieve poverty of remote rural areas and urban migrant populations.

In July, 2003, Dr. Jane Hu of China Foundation was invited by the Society of International Development (SID), an international organization with offices in all major cities in the world, to participate as a panelist for their International Forum on SARS. Dr. Nelle Temple Brown, Washington, DC Representative of WHO and Patricia Moser, Representative of the Asian Development Bank are the other two panelists. Dr. Hu talked about "the Health Care System and Economic Impact of SARS in China", Dr. Brown introduced "the Functions of WHO in the Control of SARS", Patricia Moser presented "the Economic Impact of SARS in Asia". The Panel Discussion afterward was enthusiastic and informative.

In May 2003, in partnership with Asian American Fund, Chinese American Association, and other community organizations in New York, Texas, California, and other states, the Chair Dr. Hu and the Executive Director of the Foundation took an initiative to formulate the "Initiative on Community Care" with a mission to enhance the quality of the community health education and information.

There are nearly 12 million citizens and residents of Asian Pacific America ancestry in the United States. In May, 2003, in partnership with Asian American Christian Alliance, Agape Bone Barrow Foundation and Asian Christian Coalition, and other national and local community organizations, the China Foundation took an initiative to form "National Health Education and Prevention Initiative on HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis B, and Other Diseases", particularly targeted Asian American community in America. Expected to be initiated by the end of the 2003, this is the first such immense undertaking in the history of Asian American community. On the HIV/AIDS prevention, the approach is partially based on a Foundation's study about a story of Uganda who has been implementing an effective strategy of prevention, emphasizing abstinence and marital fidelity, as well as the responsible use of condoms to prevent HIV transmission.

In January, 2003, President George W. Bush officially appointed Dr. Jane Hu, the Foundation Chair, to be Presidential Advisory Council Member on HIV/AIDS. In January, 2003 Dr. Jane Hu in partnership with her colleagues in the Presidential Advisory Council Member on HIV/AIDS, sent a policy recommendation to President George W. Bush regarding providing financial and technical assistance to combat AIDS epidemic in China, as well as other deprived areas such as Africa. In May, 2003, President George W. Bush announced that, due to an enthusiastic response from the Congress, he intend to sign into law to offer the US contribution of 15 billions to combat AIDS worldwide. Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS applauded President Bush and the US Congress for their compassionate efforts. The China Foundation has submitted proposals to various institutions to initiate AIDS prevention and treatment programs in rural China.