“Comparison of Chinese and Western Education and China-US Business Trends”

“Comparison of Chinese and Western

Education and China-US Business Trends”

NYYEC and ILF New York Chapter Annual Conference

Two non-profit organizations, the New York Young Entrepreneurs Roundtable and the International Leadership Foundation New York Chapter successfully held their annual conference in Yale Club of New York City on Saturday, March 17, 2018. The conference featured keynote speeches by Mr. Max Baucus, former Ambassador of the United States of America to China, former Chairman of Senate Finance Committee, and Senator from Montana from 1978 to 2013, and by Mr. Joel Szabat, Deputy Assistant Secretary at the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). Wenyang Yang, the Chief of the Social Perspective on Development Branch at the United Nations, also gave a special speech during dinner.

New York Young Entrepreneurs Roundtable (NYYER), founded in New York in 2015, is focused on educating and cultivating youth entrepreneurship with key values in exploration, innovation, mentorship and cooperation. Their members include highly ambitious and socially responsible leaders from various business enterprises and community organizations.

The International Leadership Foundation (ILF) is a non-profit organization that promotes the civic awareness, public service, and economic effectiveness of the Asian Pacific American (APA) community. Their mission is to develop young leaders in the United States, Asia, and Pacific Rim countries in the fields of public service, entrepreneurship, and international business and politics through a network of business and community leaders. ILF has a network of national advisory boards and global advisory councils in 15 cities, comprised of professional, civic, business, and community leaders. They help prepare the young generation to become leaders in the public, business, academic, community, and professional fields. Since our founding in 2000, ILF has provided scholarships and leadership training for over a thousand select APA college students nationwide.

（Conference speakers and some participants）

（Conference speakers and ILF New York Chapter advisor group）

More than 150 guests attended the annual conference, including outstanding Chinese and American entrepreneurs, industry leaders and community leaders. The event began with welcome and opening remarks by Ms. Yacun Huang, Chairman of the NYYER and Chairman of ILF New York Chapter, and Ms. Chiling Tong, founder of ILF and President of Asian Pacific Islanders American Chamber of Commerce (National ACE).

The themes of the annual conference are "Comparison of Chinese and Western Education" and "Sino-US Business Trends." The keynote speaker, Mr. Max Baucus, expressed his life-long passion for public service. He also thanked NYYER and ILF for their outstanding contribution to the public service. During his term as US ambassador to China, Mr. Baucus particularly admired two aspects of Chinese culture: energetic and positive Chinese people and China’s unique leadership. There are many differences between the leadership styles of the United States and China. China’s leadership style is more strategic, patient, and long-term. The common challenge faced by China and the United States today is: how to achieve win-win situation? Mr. Baucus believes that the United States must recognize and respect the differences between China and the United States and treat the differences in a constructive and cooperative way.

（Mr. Max Baucus is giving keynote speech）

In addition to the keynote speeches, the annual conference also set up two panel discussions with the themes of "education" and "business" respectively. The guests of the Education Panel are Professor Yasheng Huang (American professor in international management at the MIT Sloan School of Management) and Dr. Hong Zhaohui (Chief Research Officer and Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs in Fordham University). The guests of the Business Panel are Mr. Rick Wade (Vice President of Strategic Alliances and Outreach at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce), Mr. David Drake (Founder and Chairman of LDJ Capital), and Dr. Eugene Youyu Xu (Co-Founder, Founding Partner, and Head of Investing Technology at LibreMax Capital, LLC). The moderators of the two panels are Mr. Kaiyuan Wang from Harvard University Research Fellow of the Institute of State Governance Studies and Mr. Yong Ma, Executive Vice President at Bank of China New York.

In the Education Forum, Professor Hong analyzed the similarities and differences between Chinese and Western education from the historical point of view and his own education experiences. Professor Huang explained the two types of modern universities: teaching universities (based on teaching existing knowledge to students) and research universities (emphasizing knowledge innovation with less government restrictions and high professor freedom). University education plays an important role in national economy. Chinese universities should transfer from the first type to the second type in the future. In the business forum, Mr. Wade, Mr. Drake and Dr. Xu discussed and debated many interesting topics, such as Sino-US business relations and trends, the importance of financial technology, and the applications of block chain technology, and future trends New York real estate market.

After the panel discussions, the Asian American Chamber of Commerce signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the NYYER. The signing ceremony was followed by a photo session and a light cocktail reception.

At the dinner, ILF New York Chapter held a grand inauguration ceremony and awards ceremony for the advisors. Mr. Max Baucus was awarded the Outstanding Leader Award, and then the President’s Volunteer Service Award and Youth Leadership Outstanding Award were presented. The winners of the President’s Volunteer Service Award are: Mr. Jianyuan Yang, Ms. Wenyun He, Dr. Shanjie Li, and Mr. Rubin Song. The winners of the Youth Leadership Outstanding Award are: Mr. Wenhai Wang, Mr. Zhe Zhang, Mr. Si Yang, and Mr. Meiliang Wu. In the end, Conference Chair Mr. Yong Ma delivered the closing remarks and drew the conclusion of the event.

（Mr. Max Baucus was awarded the Outstanding Leader Award）

（Winners of the President’s Volunteer Service Award）

（Winners of the Youth Leadership Outstanding Award）

NYYER and ILF New York Chapter are especially grateful to the America Datang Group, Romanti, and other sponsors for their strong support for the event. Thanks to their help, the event can be a huge success.

Prior to the 2018 annual conference, NYYER and ILF New York Chapter have successfully held a 2016 annual conference on the theme of "Education and Leadership" at the Harvard Club of New York City on December 10, 2016. At the conference, the “Light of Chinese Americans”, 24th U.S. Secretary of Labor and designee of U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ms. Elaine L. Chao, and her father, Dr. James S.C. Chao, the founder and chairman of Foremost Group. Dr. Chao introduced his newly published biography Fearless against the Wind to the audience and shared his legendary life stories. The panel speakers were film producer Mr. Cary Woods, partner of Engel & McCarney Thomas Engel, and CEO and founder of Aston • Pearl Ms. Natasha Pearl.

（Ms. Elaine L. Chao, and her father, Dr. James S.C. Chao at 2016 annual conference）

NYYER and ILF New York Chapter have also held a series of events such as the Financial Salon, Entrepreneur Investment Salon and Art Salon throughout 2017 and have brought great opportunities for Chinese and American talents.