Ambassador to Beijing Olympics to Speak at Yale

The Chinese environmental ambassador to the 2008 Beijing Olympic Committee will discuss “China and the Environment: The Impact of NGOs, Culture and Growth” on November 6 at 4 p.m. in Bowers Auditorium at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies.

Xiaoyi (Sheri) Liao is one of China’s best-known environmental activists and journalists and is president of the Global Village of Bejing, a nonprofit and nongovernmental organization dedicated to environmental education and community service. For her efforts, she received the 2001 International Banksia Award from the Banksia Environmental Foundation in Australia. The award acknowledges individuals and organizations that have made significant contributions to improving the global environment.

Liao founded the Global Village of Beijing in 1996 with her personal savings, and focused her efforts on raising environmental awareness and building support for sustainable development in China. Her organization produces a weekly television series, “Time for Environment,” which is broadcast nationwide in China; conducts training and networking for journalists; and organizes annual Earth Day events.

In 2000, she received the Sophie Prize, an international environment and development prize established in 1997 by Norwegian author Jostein Gaarder. Other recipients of the prize include Nobel Peace Prize-winner Wangari Maathai.

Liao holds a master’s degree in philosophy from Zhongshan University, and is a former researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.