Launch Ceremony of Y.L. Yang Foundation’s 20th Anniversary Activities Successfully Held to Inspire Dreams for Children
On July 29, 2023, the Launch Ceremony of Y.L. Yang Foundation’s 20th Anniversary Event was successfully held at Integral, the Sustainable Development Garden in Guilin, China. Themed "Twenty Fortunate Years", this event reviewed the foundation's stories and development throughout its 20 years of establishment, engaged in thought discussions with various sectors surrounding topics such as innovative learning and sustainable development.
Ms. Teresa Yang, Chairman of Y.L. Yang Foundation, Mr. Edgar Tung, Trustee of Y.L. Yang Foundation, the founders, Mr. Cheung Leong, Chief Strategic Officer of the Exchange Fund at the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, Principal Esther Ho, Chairperson of the Hong Kong Association of Careers Masters and Guidance Masters, Mr. Li Xiangyun, Principal of Zhuhai City Jinwan District No.1 Primary School in Guangdong Province, Ms. Zhang Zhenghua, Director of Joe Tsai Foundation, alongside over 100 foundation's related partners, teachers, students and parent representatives from Beijing, Xinjiang, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Hong Kong, attended the event.
Event Group Photo
The opening ceremony of Y.L. Yang Foundation's 20th Anniversary Event began with an inspiring singing performance by children, expressing their enthusiasm for making the world a better place. During the welcome speech, Ms. Teresa Yang shared the foundation’s achievements in 20 years and expressed her hope that the foundation could serve as a platform for people from all walks of life to gather, an engine for co-creating changes, with a goal to improve children’s lives.
Ms. Teresa Yang, Chairman of Y.L. Yang Foundation
The ceremony also marked the launch of Y.L. Yang Foundation's Museum of "Making a Difference", which will record the foundation's stories across the years, uncovering its history and philosophies to the public.
The ceremony concluded with the launch of a wall of future ideas, featuring 400 children's imaginations, which will later be installed in communities to collect more thoughts from them.
Following the opening ceremony, a forum themed "Engaging Children in Conversations About the Future" was held, centered around the topics of “Education”, “Environment”, and "Exploration". The forum encouraged children to explore different grounds, strive for excellence, innovate, and understand their responsibilities to protect the environment from an early age.
Children from Xinjiang, Guilin, and Hong Kong shared their unforgettable moments with the foundation and envisioned a better future together. A student from Guilin shared, "I felt the passion of college student teachers at the learning camp, and realized how important knowledge is. So, I aspire to become a teacher who enables students to enjoy learning."
The stories shared by the children connect the dots of the foundation’s developmental history. During the forum, Mr. Cheung Leong interacted cordially with students on stage and listened attentively to their speeches. He hoped to provide more quality education for children in remote areas and fulfill their enthusiasm for knowledge. He believed that “through learning and education, children can transform and grow like butterflies, creating unlimited possibilities for the future.”
"Engaging Children in Conversations About the Future" Forum Group Photo
The forum was hosted by Mr. William Chan, Head of Education Foundation and Community of Y.L. Yang Foundation. He highlighted the foundation's belief in "Making a Difference, Empowering a Sustainable Future" despite the face of challenges such as climate change and wealth inequality. For twenty years, the foundation has been providing innovative, sustainable, physical, and mental health education, benefiting over 200,000 children in remote areas with learning opportunities, enlightening their lives, and changing their destinies.
Mr. William Chan, Head of Education Foundation and Community of Y.L. Yang Foundation
"Engaging Children in Conversations About the Future" Forum Group Photo
We believe that children are the hope of the future. Therefore, Y.L. Yang Foundation is committed to educating children about sustainable development, encouraging them to co-create a better tomorrow.
Choosing Integral as our event venue showcases an innovative development model in the textile and apparel industry. Alongside the adoption of energy-efficient and low-carbon facilities, Integral also promotes innovation, quality employment, cultural heritage, and environmental sustainability. This further demonstrates the harmonious coexistence of manufacturing and nature, as well as paves the way towards Smart Manufacturing in China.
On the event day, the guests and children visited Integral and participated in a series of sustainability-related experience workshops. Through creating natural-dye shirts, engaging in music and art therapeutic sessions, experiencing mindfulness photography and life design, the concept of sustainable development is clearly manifested, inspiring children to explore a greener future.
Children at the natural dyeing workshop
The dyestuff used in the natural dyeing workshop, were sourced from plants grown and conserved within Integral, China's first specialized garden for natural dyeing plants and a research center for natural dyeing. The site not only protects biodiversity but also promotes traditional Chinese printing and dyeing techniques. Since 2018, Integral has been collaborating with the Kunming Institute of Botany to research the industrialization of traditional dyeing plants. In the future, Integral will continue to focus on exploring sustainable development, implementing related education courses, and strengthening communications with foundations and educational institutions to instill the concept of sustainable development in future generations.
Bird’s eye view of Integral
Y.L. Yang Foundation was officially established in Hong Kong on March 18, 2003, inheriting the ideals of Mr. Yang Yuan Loong, a renowned patriotic industrialist in Hong Kong who sought to create a better world. The foundation’s mission is to “Enhance and promote sustainability education, while considering the development and advancement of society”, with an emphasis on encouraging the spirit of learning. In 2011, 2014 and 2017, Y.L. Yang Foundation registered 3 non-profit foundations in Xinjiang, Guangxi and Guangdong respectively, aiming to manifest the goal of providing more educational opportunities and room for development.
In the early days of its establishment, the foundation focused mainly on improving education infrastructure and schools in collaboration with local governments. Between 2000 and 2012, the foundation renovated 22 primary schools and donated libraries and books to over 1,000 rural schools in Xinjiang. It also established a scholarship program, supporting more than 2,000 underprivileged primary and secondary school students to continue their education paths.
Biodiversity Exploration Activities
Since its establishment in 2003, Y.L. Yang Foundation has launched various charitable projects in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka, focusing on innovative education, children's health, and sustainable development. The foundation has organized projects including vision screening, teacher exchanges, and summer camps to support children with limited resources, cultivate their spirit of learning and sense of social responsibility.
Overseas and Mainland Teachers to Teachers Training Program
Vision Screening Program
In the future, Y.L. Yang Foundation will continue to develop education, encourage innovative learning, promote social development, and co-create a better future.