Top 10 News Stories of 2018, According to the Southern California Chinese Community

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On December 26, the American-Chinese non-governmental organization (NGO) Research Institute, North American Chinese Bew Media Polling Center, American Chinese Young Journalists Association, Los Angeles Post, and other organizations announced the “Top 10 News Stories of 2018 Among the Chinese Community in Southern California”.

The results were based on professional polls, news impact, social influence, search engine rankings, social media traffic, and other comprehensive statistical methods. This is the 10th year in a row that the Chinese community in Southern California has published its top 10 news rankings in both English and Chinese.

According to the results, international students and young leaders across Southern California greatly contributed to the social welfare in the area. The activities enhanced the atmosphere of innovation, entrepreneurship, resulting in a great communication platform that promotes the Chinese language and culture.

The top ten news are as follows:

  1. The USA Wenzhou General Chamber of Commerce hosted the Chinese Chamber of Commerce Cooperation Forum on January 27. Twenty-eight local members of the Chinese Chambers of Commerce discussed the organization’s past, present, and future expectations. Both parties signed a strategic cooperation agreement in hopes to create synergy with Chinese businesses around the world. This is the organization’s first time holding such an event.
  2. Chinese students and scholars from several local Southern California universities teamed up to host the first campus gala at the Globe Theater in Hollywood on February 11. From creative design to program arrangement, almost all the preparation was completed by local Chinese students, aiming to promote the emerging Chinese culture and showcase the life of young international students.
  3.  On April 11, 2018, Pepperdine CSSA and PPD CSA, two major Chinese student organizations at Pepperdine University, officially integrated into one. Insiders say, “The merging of the two Chinese student organizations of Pepperdine University not only demonstrates the trend and vision of students but also sets a good example for the integration and standardization of Chinese student organizations in major universities across the United States.” The student organization later set up an Alumni Association in Shanghai in August, which was endorsed by the University.
  4. The AACYF announced the list of “Top 10 Chinese Outstanding Youth in America of 2018” in Los Angeles on May 4. It was the first nationwide Chinese Outstanding Youth Award. Since the Federation’s establishment 11 years ago, this award has become the most representative and influential of its kind in American mainstream society.  This year’s first place winner, Yuan Cao, later appeared as #1 on the list of the “World’s Top Ten Influential Scientific Figures to Watch For” list in the “Nature” journal.
  5. On May 12, 2018,  SWCSSA  held an annual meeting in Ontario, a city east of Los Angeles. Their 15th year anniversary celebrates their great accomplishments in mentoring and inspiring so many international students to become talented young leaders.
  6.  The Berkeley Chinese Alumni Association (BCAIA) and AACY  hosted the “2018 Chinese Youth Leadership Summit” at Los Angeles on June 2. Students groups from the influential youth organizations across the country, the Alumni Association, the head of the student union came together to discuss cross-regional partnerships and opportunities among Chinese Youth Organizations and other non-profit organizations in the country, and launch special projects, such as the establishment of the National Chinese Youth Innovation and Entrepreneurship Alliance and the National Chinese Youth Affairs Committee.
  7. In August and December of 2018, the local LA Chinese community participated in the “International Symposium on Garden Culture in Los Angeles and Beijing” jointly held by Chinese and American experts, scholars, and the Los Angeles County Art Museum. It has received praises from the media as one of the best achievements of the year in cultural exchanges between the US and China.
  8. On September 2018, the Muses Institute, Chinese American Association, and other organizations held a seminar on how to effectively carry out US-China cultural exchanges at the University of Southern California. The seminar had an in-depth discussion of the methods, communication channels, and audiences of professional exchanges in culture and art. It is proposed that only in-depth and effective people-to-people exchanges can enhance the interaction between the US and China.
  9. The education organization, “North International Education Group (BIEG)”, which consists of 18 private universities in China, announced the establishment of the American Alumni Association of North International Education Group in LA on September 23, becoming the first Chinese intercollegiate association in the United States to serve international students studying in the United States.
  10. The Chinese community and the international student body hosted a seminar on “The Study on 40 Years of Chinese Liberation and Studying Abroad to the United States ” in LA on December 22nd. The seminar included a panel discussion about the history of Chinese students studying in the US, its development,  and present-day situation. The optimism of Chinese prospective students studying since 40 years of reform and opening-up policy is important in the US-China relationship development. This is the first seminar in the Chinese community that focuses on the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and opening-up. (AACYF Los Angeles)