Roots & Shoots: Lei Chen Wong of the Jane Goodall Institute

The name Jane Goodall calls to mind an adventuresome young woman who, starting in 1960, braved the wilds of Tanzania to live with and study Chimpanzees. Through years of intimate interaction with man’s closest relatives, Goodall contributed enormously to our knowledge of Chimpanzees and also to our understanding of our own species. She also helped to galvanize the environmental movement, through her lifelong crusade for wildlife and environmental conservation, a mission that spans and flourishes all over the world. Leading this movement in China is Lei Chen Wong, the Executive Director of the local branch of the Jane Goodall Institute, whose Roots and Shoots program teaches local youth a deep love and respect for nature. Agenda caught up with Lei to find out how she sews the seeds to grow China’s environmental movement from the roots up.

Fashionable Charity: Nathan Zhang of Brandnü

After living in Canada for ten years, Brandnü founder and owner Nathan Zhang returned to China with the hope of working in the charity sector. A chance encounter with Wu Qing, co-founder of the Beijing Cultural Development Center for Rural Women, inspired him to set up shop with the shared belief that women in poverty must be helped. With donated space from Plastered owner Dominic Johnson-Hill and help from various local businesses, Brandnü has grown into a formidable charity shop. Nathan Zhang met with Agenda to tell us all about it in the magazine’s November 18 issue.

Beijing’s Best Blogs

Blogs have come along way in the past few years. What used to be little more than online diaries, photo collections and video links have now become battlefields strewn with information, opinion and passion. Beijing’s blogs are no exception, and while blogs come and go, those that remain provide a wealth of insight on all things China.

Little Trains That Can: Christmas Train Comes to Beijing

Gerry McElligott's christmas train

For the past 25 years, Gerry McElligott has been bringing Christmas joy to children and adults around the world via the Christmas train. Each Christmas train built is unique, and the truly wonderful thing about them is their charitable mission: they bring joy to the hearts of children and much-needed funds to local charities. This year, the Christmas train will be making its first local stop at the Beijing Hilton on December 4, where it will help raise money for local charities through the Beijing Charity Association. Gerry recently sat down with Agenda to explain this year’s event.

Baking Brighter Futures: Cheryl Wyse of Bread Life Bakery

Nine years ago Cheryl Wyse and her husband came on a mission trip to China, and while they were here they realized their calling was to help Chinese orphans. Over the past few years they have provided not only foster care, but education, medical assistance and life training to their “kids.” Agenda met up with Wyse to learn more about her experience in China, and some of the sweet rewards of running the Bread for Life Bakery.

Networking 101: Connecting in the Capital

Beijing is a big city bustling with opportunity and new friends, but finding those that are right for you is truly an art form. Luckily, the capital is also stuffed to the brim with networking groups and sites that can make the task a lot less daunting. So whether you’re looking for people with similar professions and interests, new friends, or more, there is a networking group for you.