Committee of 100 Newsletter

Making Moves: C-100 Members in Transition - John Chen, Senior Adviser, Silver Lake Private Equity Firm

Former Committee of 100 Chairman John S. Chen has been appointed Senior Adviser to Silver Lake Partners, a global technology private equity firm. Silver Lake Managing Director Charles Giancarlo said of Chen: “His deep roots in the technology sector, with more than three decades of operational experience, as well as expertise on a range of political and economic policy issues, especially in Asia, will be extremely valuable.” Chen was formerly Chairman and CEO of Sybase, an enterprise mobility and database firm that he led on an upward trajectory for the past 15 years.

Members in Print: New Publications by and about C-100 Members - George Koo

Dori Jones Yang features an oral history told to her by George Koo in her book, Voices of the Second Wave: Chinese Americans in Seattle (2011). In “George Koo: Americanized Boy, Business Diplomat to China,” Yang highlights Koo’s involvement in Asian American civil rights activities, including the Wen Ho Lee case, and Koo’s conviction that Chinese Americans must stand up for their rights. He proudly describes his membership in the Committee of 100 and its mission to ensure that “the Chinese Americans in this country participate fully in all aspects of life in America.”

Newsmakers: Links to Members in the News: C-100 Members Comment on the 2012 Asian American Vote

Committee of 100 members express their views on Asian Americans and the 2012 election:

China Business News (CBN) broadcast a feature about U.S.-China relations and the role of Chinese Americans in the 2012 election on October 31 with comments from C-100 Chairman Dominic Ng (left), Kaye Scholer partner Alice Young, and Executive Director Angie Tang. Ng urged political candidates to refrain from China-bashing in the presidential election campaigns. He also emphasized the Committee of 100’s dual role of increasing Chinese American influence in American society and fostering collaboration between the U.S. and China.

Members of Note: Tan Dun

Tan Dun’s updated version of the classical Suzhou-style kunqu opera, The Peony Pavilion, was performed from November 30 to December 2 at the Astor Court Chinese garden in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The five performances (sold out) and the November 30 live-streamed program were sponsored by the Met and the US-China Cultural Institute.

Members of Note: Michelle Kwan, Senior Advisor and Public Diplomacy Envoy, U.S. Department of State

Michelle Kwan recently was appointed Senior Advisor and Public Diplomacy Envoy at the Department of State. Kwan’s diplomatic career began in 2006 when Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice made her the Department’s first public diplomacy envoy. In 2010, President Obama appointed Kwan to the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition. Her current appointment represents a milestone in Kwan’s successful career transition from champion figure skater to sports ambassador to public diplomat traveling the world on behalf of the United States.

Newsmakers: Links to Members in the News - Jerry Yang

Out of Character: Decoding Chinese Calligraphy features 40 works of classical calligraphy collected by Jerry Yang on view at the San Francisco Asian Art Museum until January 13. Yang told San Francisco Weekly : “The goal of these 40 works is to provide audiences a sample and taste of major calligraphers from the Yuan to the Qing dynasties, but also vary them in style, script, and focus on the personalities of the artists.” Although Yang has less than fond memories of studying calligraphy as a child in Taiwan, the Los Angeles Times reports that “Yang willingly sits down and practices calligraphy at home, and he enjoys trying to copy the masters. ‘I certainly feel there is a sense of calm and almost a meditation that's involved,’ he says. ‘And if you understand the language, there's a sense of ingraining the words in your head.’ He feels so strongly about the benefits of calligraphy that, he admits, ‘Now I'm trying to force my kids to do it.’”

Members of Note: Pauline Yu, “The Humanities, Without Apologies”

Pauline Yu, President of the American Council of Learned Societies, has eloquently defended the relevance of the humanities in today’s society in “The Humanities, Without Apologies,” a talk given at the University of California Davis Chancellor’s Colloquium Series on October 3 and at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County on September 19. Yu argues that the humanities are “an essential element of our intellectual and cultural infrastructure, just as utilities, transportation, companies, and banks are essential elements of our economic infrastructure.”

Newsmakers - Links to Members in the News: Cheng Li

As one of the nation’s top analysts of China’s core leadership, Brookings Institution Research Director Cheng Li has been frequently quoted in the American press commenting on the major changes announced at the 18^th Party Congress. Below are three links featuring Li’s in-depth analysis to guide Americans watching the Chinese leadership transition.  

Members of Note: Janet Yang

This October and November, Shanghai Calling, the latest film from Hollywood producer Janet Yang, entertained festival audiences around the U.S., including Washington, D.C., Hawaii, Boston, San Diego, and Denver.  A romantic comedy about a Chinese American lawyer in Shanghai, Shanghai Calling has already enjoyed a successful commercial run in China.  On September 28, Yang shared lessons from decades bridging the Chinese and American film worlds on an entertainment panel at  “China 2.0: Fostering Innovation Beyond Boundaries,” Stanford University Graduate School of Business.

Honorable Mentions: Recent Awards to C-100 Members - Wei Sun Christianson and Cher Wang, Fortune’s 50 Most Powerful Women in Business (International)

Pictured left to right, Wei Sun Christianson & Cher Wang

Two Committee members were once again among Fortune Magazine’s “50 Most Powerful Women in Business (International)” in 2012:  Wei Sun Christianson, Managing Director and CEO, Morgan Stanley China, and Cher Wang, Co-founder and Chairwoman, HTC, Taiwan.  This Fortune list weighs the size and potential of the woman’s business in the global economy with “the arc of the woman’s career (resume and runway ahead) and societal and cultural influence.”