Wen Bo, coordinator of Global Greengrants Fund’s China Advisory Board, recently was featured on the front page of the Wall Street Journal Asia edition and the international page of the U.S. edition. His work in pioneering student environmental networks has had a tremendous impact nationwide. The article cites Wen Bo’s position at “the forefront of a new generation attempting to clean up China” and notes the timeliness of this trend as China accelerates its development.
Through his non-confrontational approach, Wen Bo has helped this new generation navigate the often perilous waters of citizen advocacy in China. Now, as these young people make their voices heard in more sophisticated ways and begin to move into jobs in government and business, China is experiencing a dramatic rise in environmental awareness. Recent progress has included the central government’s suspension of plans to dam the Nu River and a growing general commitment to openness.
As coordinator of our China Advisory Board, Wen Bo helps us identify promising groups that can make use of a small grant. Thanks to his tireless efforts, we have made more than 150 grants in China to grassroots groups over the past five years. With Wen Bo’s guidance we have supported a remarkable range of groups. These have included student groups making ambitious use of China’s growing Internet connectivity to forge citizen networks, indigenous groups working to protect local ecosystems, and groups working on endangered species, forest protection, dams, recycling, sustainable agriculture and many other issues.