Council Hosts Trans-Pacific Ceremony to Celebrate Chinese New Year
Last night (Feb. 24), the Bay Area Council hosted our annual Chinese New Year Celebration and Global Leadership Award Ceremony, led by CEO Jim Wunderman with virtual participation from California and in-person attendance at our Shanghai office. This year’s Global Leadership Award was given to local celebrity chef, Martin Yan, for his decades of work as an ambassador of both Chinese and American culture. The 12th annual celebration, one of the Council’s most popular events, also served as the grand opening of the new Bay Area Council Yangpu office. California family farm Driscoll’s, one of the nation’s top berry producers, provided special gifts for all in-person attendees in Shanghai, while local Chinese artist Jinbao Zhang unveiled a colorful mural featuring the Golden Gate Bridge and a spray of Chinese flowers that will grace lobby entry of our new office.
Government leaders from both Shanghai and California participated at the event, including state Treasurer Betty Yee, state Treasurer Fiona Ma, Chinese Consular Wu Peimin, Yangpu Mayor Kan Sue, Palo Alto Mayor Pat Burt, and state Assemblymember Phil Ting. The Bay Area Council was instrumental in creating Palo Alto’s sister city relationship with Yangpu. Several officials also joined the event in Shanghai, including Mark Hanzel from the US Consulate in Shanghai.
Remarks focused on the importance of subnational partnerships in helping promote more cooperative relations at the national level. Consular Wu extended his congratulations to the American Olympic team, while Mayor Pat Burt outlined a plan for cooperation through the sister city relationship with Yangpu, Shanghai. The event concluded with honoree Martin Yan reminding us that we have far more in common that we have in conflict and that we can always return to our mutual love of great cuisine to find shared ground.
