Hiu Ng

Hiu Ng (Chinese: was born in China and lived and studied overseas. She graduated from University College London. She works in the media and telecommunications industry. She is photographed for the Guardian article for The Observer. Ben McMillan, http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2005/sep/18/beijing.china.observerescapesection Metropolis now: Olympic city is fit for the future] , "The Observer", September 18 2005.

She is a co-founder of 51Give and has keen interest in poverty alleviation, social innovation and green economy solutions for China. www.51sim.org www.51give.com She recently offset a major Beijing Olympic cultural week's carbon in Uganda with the Plan Vivo Foundation.

Hiu is now studying a Masters in sustainable development at SOAS and is also the head of the Beijing UCL Alumni Association.

She is a co-founder of www.51give.com and has keen interest in poverty alleviation, social innovation and green economy solutions for China.

Her grandfather is Xi Zhongxun.

http://hk.youtube.com/user/51give http://www.liftconference.com/profile/profile_tags/51Sim.org http://www.anhglobal.org/index.php?option=com_hotproperty&task=view&id=33&Itemid=102 http://dsi.britishcouncil.org.cn/newsletter/200806/ http://dsi.britishcouncil.org.cn/zh/events/20080613/258.jsp http://event.mosh.cn/view/30989 http://www.cityweekend.com.cn/beijing/events/23249/?most_viewed=1 http://mifos.org/community/directory/members/huzhao http://www.kivafriends.org/index.php?action=profile;u=2368 [http://live.greatwalktobeijing.com/index.php?act=walker&wID=7953] http://live.greatwalktobeijing.com/index.php?act=walker&wID=7953 She recently joined Olivia Newton John's Great Walk to Beijing in Shanxi and supported with charitable donations from the Shanxi people as well as organised the TV Charity Gala Show. Permalink: http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/beijingolympics/archive/2008/08/08/opening-show-honors-the-past-fails-to-summon-the-future.aspx TrackBack URL: http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/beijingolympics/trackback.aspx?PostID=556938

Notes

Notes

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She recently joined Olivia Newton John's Great Walk to Beijing in Shanxi and supported with charitable donations from the Shanxi people as well as organised the TV Charity Gala Show.

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-- Full PostPosted Friday, August 08, 2008 8:49 AMOpening Show Honors the Past, Fails to Summon the FutureMary Hennock

The Chinese people have waited years for the Olympics. So did the lavish Beijing 2008 Opening Ceremony deliver? Five cultural commentators gave me their views: most gave a thumbs up to director Zhang Yimou's portrayal of China's ancient culture. However, they were less keen on the scenes of China's modernized present and promising future which they found tacky or sentimental.

Basically, the opening ceremony was in three parts: a gorgeous series of tableaux covering China's history and culture; an endless parade of athletes; and the stodgy ceremonials surrounding the Olympic flag and flame.

Part One was a magnificent light show that used hundreds of twirling dancers, switching from red and gold scenes to quieter blue and white ones, from wild drumming to delicate taichi. It acted as condensed guide to China's history, Confucian culture and famous inventions – paper, printing, fireworks, and the first compasses for navigation. Luckily, I got walked through all of this by an expert, Prof Chen Xia from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

"It's very beautiful, oh yes, very beautiful," she murmured. Early scenes showed performers painting on paper by twisting their bodies like dancers. A scroll of lights unrolled itself across in the middle of the stadium, scripting the story like an old Chinese book as the picture on it changed from desert Silk Road to maritime exploits exporting tea and porcelain.

This bit was easy enough for a foreigner to grasp, but the invention of wood block printing, coupled with readings from the philosopher Confucius were tougher going. Prof Chen was so inspired, particularly by the fireworks, that at one point she set out from her home towards the Bird's Nest for a closer view. Disappointment followed, as the taxi driver told her the roads were blocked off.

I was grateful though that she explained some of the more opaque sequences, such as the link between the scenes of musicians and Confucian beliefs that joyful self-restraint is internalized by playing music. Perfect for encouraging the harmonious society China's leaders want to see.

Prof Chen's verdict was mixed though. The history was beautifully done she thought, but "a little hard for foreigners to understand, and even some Beijing people". More modern-day sequences showing the Bird's Nest, trains, tower blocks and school kids were cloying, with "too many things from the children", she said.

Victor Yuan, founder of opinion polling company Horizon gave the show 65%, praised the fireworks and loved the writhing dancers who painted with their feet. Overall, though he was "really disappointed" that the show's magic was limited to the past with "not so much imagination about the future" and critical of Zhang for failing to consult more radical artists. Journalist Yu Ping, who writes about culture and fashion, also dismissed tableaux of modern China showing children and space ships as "too simple".

So far, three of my commentators had approved the show's portrayal of China's ancient culture, but I expected TV anchor Rui Chenggang to be a hard guy to please. He shot to fame after objecting to the presence of Starbucks in the Forbidden City as trampling on Chinese tradition. Did Zhang Yimou's popularization win his approval? Overall, yes. "It's appropriate, it's imaginative", he said.

While my commentators were mostly watching on TV, philanthropist Hiu Ng was in the Bird's Nest, and bombarding me with excited text messages. "The atmosphere is unbelievably vibrant", she yelled when I called her. Ng, co-founder of civic action groups 51SIM.org and 51give, saw the lavish portrayal of the past as packaging a message about the present. China "went through a phase when we were unhappy with our culture" and is now "at peace" with history. As a result, it's poised to promote its traditional approach of harmony to the wider world, she says. As for the performance, "this is a show that everyone from all over the world can love".

Ping was waiting to see the Chinese team stride out to test that theory. Chinese Netizens had failed to love their team's yellow and red outfits, savaging them as a "tomato [and] scrambled egg" look. She'd interviewed the design company Hengyuan Xiang who'd protested that the clothes' vivid colors were meant to enhance the group in a big arena not flatter individuals. To her relief, she found that "if they are walking together they look very wonderful". Here at least, harmony ruled. But based on my unscientific straw poll few Chinese will have found an enduring image of the future in tonight's events.Media and Message, People's Games

Hiu NgCo-Founder of www.51give.com and www.51sim.org

Hiu Ng is co-founder of a micro-financing website 51give.com which provides loans to impoverished people in order to create carbon friendly sustainable economic development in China. She is also the Vice President of Content for Postcom – 3rd largest telecommunications company in China, supplier to Olympics 2008 and the largest provider of TD- SCDMA cell phones. Recently she has also been appointed as the Goodwill Ambassador of China Breast Cancer Research Foundation and China Social Benefit and Education Charity.

Hiu has gathered extensive experience working for a variety of high profile Media groups in private and state-owned sector. Her main area of responsibility at Postcom over the last three years is assisting the development of 3G online and mobile content strategies. Prior to her work at Postcom she consulted Sino-Media International, a subsidiary company under China Audio and Video Association and NingBo Netcom, where she organized a team of experts to arrange and supervise the running of content management platforms worldwide. Before that consultancy role, Hiu worked in UITV the interactive TV Company as Content Director, a subsidiary between iCCTV and AsiaInfo.

Prior to SMI and UITV, Hiu was the English language Transcriber for ‘Women of the Revolution', major Chinese documentary on unpublished historical accounts of China. Hiu’s first role in China was to establish the ‘New Media Department’ for China Interactive Media Group as their new Interactive Director and managed the interactive content generation of two of CIMG’s magazines; ‘Seventeen’ and ‘TimeOut Beijing’. For ‘Seventeen’ she created a radio show and was a radio host, designed a magazine website, launched the Front Cover talent campaign placing extraordinary students as front page beauties, had TV appearances and also wrote a column on modern day etiquette.

Hiu is a highly active supporter and developer of interactive social ventures targeting sustainable poverty alleviation through e-learning, e-careers, multimedia services and micro-loans. Her 51sim.org organization promotes rebuilding structurally safer schools that offer teacher incentives such as yearly best teacher’s awards and online/offline education materials supporting critical thinking, sustainable development and social innovation.

Hiu graduated from University College London in 2001 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Management. She speaks English, German Mandarin, Cantonese and Shanghai dialect. She is currently studying a Science Masters Degree at School of African and Oriental Studies in Sustainable Development and is the President of Beijing UCL Alumni Group.

Hiu has interest in traveling, holistic living, cooking, laughter, writing, speaking and photography. She is passionate about the promotion of harmony, tolerance, non-violent communication, educational reform, sustainable development and the abolishment of worldwide child abuse.

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