Diversity
WOMEN CHANGING CHINA: The Kang Tongbi Symposium
Friday, March 20 05:00 AM BST to 05:00 AM BST
Panel Discussion3:00pm - 4:30pmPark Hyatt Beijing2 Jianguomenwai Street, Chaoyang District
Reception to follow at the Beijing office of Paul_Hastings_19/F, Yintai Center Office Tower2 Jianguomenwai AvenueChaoyang District
This symposium, hosted by Barnard College, honors the legacy of Kang Tongbi, one of Chinas early reformers and the first Chinese woman to attend Barnard. To celebrate the history of women leading change, the Kang Tongbi Symposium will bring together a group of the most prominent women in China today, women who play leadership roles in government, commerce, academia, and the arts and whose commitment to advancing women and China echoes that of Kang. Debora Spar, President of Barnard and Professor at Columbia Business School, will moderate the discussion.
PanelistsWu Qing: A retired professor of English literature, Wu Qing has served since 1984 as a People's Deputy in the Beijing People's Congress, focusing on the rule of law and transparency in government. She is a well-known advocate for women's rights in China and the 2001 recipient of the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Public Service, also known as "Asia's Nobel Prize." She was also nominated by the Schwab Foundation Network as one of the Worlds Outstanding Social Entrepreneurs of 2003.
Yan Geling: Yan Geling is one of the most acclaimed contemporary novelists and screenwriters writing in the Chinese language today and a well-established writer in English with novels The Banquet Bug and The Lost Daughter of Happiness. She has published more than twenty short story collections, novellas, and screen plays and is the recipient of Taiwans Golden Horse Award and Sina.coms Best Writer of 2008, among others. A former professional dancer, Yans works have been translated into Dutch, English, French, German, Japanese, Portuguese, and Thai.
Yang Lan: Chinese television host and media guru Lan Yang has often been compared to Oprah Winfrey for her pioneering work in creating some of China's most popular news and entertainment programs. She currently hosts three shows -- C'est La Vie, Just for Women, and Yang Lan One on One and serves as co-founder and chairperson of Sun Television Cybernetworks, a multiplatform media empire. In 2000, Forbes magazine named Yang one of Chinas 50 most successful entrepreneurs.
Ruby Yang: Ruby Yang is an Academy Award-winning Chinese American filmmaker, known worldwide for her bold and controversial work, including The Blood of Yungzhou District and Tongzhi in Love. She is based in Beijing, where she directs public service announcements and documentary work as part of the Chang Ai Media Project (formerly the China AIDS Media Project), an HIV/AIDS prevention campaign that has reached hundreds of millions of Chinese viewers.
Debora L. Spar: Debora Spar is the seventh president of Barnard College. A political scientist by training, her research focuses on issues of international political economy, examining how rules are established in new or emerging markets and how firms and governments together shape the evolving global economy. Spar is the author of numerous articles and books, including most recently Ruling the Waves: Cycles of Invention, Chaos, and Wealth from the Compass to the Internet and The Baby Business: How Money, Science, and Politics Drive the Commerce of Conception. Prior to coming to Barnard, Spar was the Spangler Family Professor at Harvard Business School and Senior Associate Dean, Director of Research.