What does it take to empower aspiring women leaders to pursue global education opportunities? The Ching Tien Foundation for Women is dedicated to this very mission, providing scholarships and support to help women access education and become leaders and changemakers. In this Opportunity Spotlight episode, host Christoph Clodius sits down with Ching Tien, the foundation’s founder, and Ashleigh Au, the current part-time Executive Director, to discuss their vision and mission, their most impactful programs (including their global scholarship program and leadership development initiatives), and their exciting search for a full-time Executive Director to lead them into the future. Discover how the Ching Tien Foundation for Women is transforming lives and building a legacy of global impact by investing in women’s education and fostering the next generation of female leaders.
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Ching Tien Foundation For Women With Ching Tien, Founder & President
Introducing The Ching Tien Foundation For Women
Everyone, and welcome to another episode of the show. I’m Christoph Clodius, Vice President here at the Discovery Group, and I’m delighted to be speaking about the Ching Tien Foundation for Women. I have two exemplary guests to talk about it including the founder, Ching Tien, and the current part-time Executive Director, Ashleigh Au. Welcome, Ching and Ashleigh.
Thank you.
Thank you, Christoph.
Delighted to have you both. I’m really excited about our conversation for everyone to learn more about the foundation, the fantastic work you’re doing, the history, and what’s on the horizon here for the future. Let’s start with a bit of background. For people who may not be familiar with the Ching Tien Foundation, tell me a little bit about it. Ching, as the founder, maybe you can get us started with the conversation.
The Chin Tien Foundation for Women is a Canadian charity based in Vancouver. It’s built on eighteen years of success in educating girls in rural China. The Ching Tien Foundation’s mission is to continue the mission of EGRC and it’s going to empower young women from Asia by providing global study opportunities for them to become leaders and change-makers for the future.
That’s fantastic. Educating Girls of Rural China was also a Canadian charity founded by our founder, Ching Tien, back in 2005. Over eighteen years of operations, we sponsored over 2,000 young women from rural Northwest China to receive high school and university education with the central idea that educated women have educated children and that educating women is a fundamental way to alleviate poverty and transform society for good.
Educating women is a fundamental way to alleviate poverty and transform society for good. Click To TweetChing’s leadership and work in this space has been such an incredible example of women’s empowerment through education in Asia and also in Canada because EGRC, although its work was taking place on the ground in China was founded by a Chinese-Canadian social impact entrepreneur who is Ching Tien. She’s really garnered so much support and recognition for people in the women’s empowerment space around the world. When EGRC ended its work in China in 2023, Ching made the decision to transform our charity into the Ching Tien Foundation for Women.
When she says that we carry on the legacy, we continue to empower women through education. However, our work now is not just about access to education. Instead, it is about empowering aspiring women leaders through access to global education opportunities. What we do, we have two main programs that are available to aspiring women leaders from Asia that are offered at the undergraduate and master’s level. At the undergraduate level, we bring aspiring women leaders from Asia to a partner university in Canada, where they undertake a leadership program and get a certificate from a great Canadian university.
They also undergo an almost year-long online leadership program with the mentorship of the foundation. At the master’s level, we support women aspiring leaders from Asia to undertake a master’s degree at an international university outside of Asia in the field that they choose. Through education and robust mentorship and providing them with a lot of support, we also empower them to become leaders and changemakers.
Why Ching Tien Does This Work
There’s so much to unpack there, Ashleigh. That’s such a great summary of the foundation. It’s really incredible work. I love how you’re articulating what it is that the foundation does, how education, leadership skills, training, and empowerment are really tools for such a long-lasting legacy and individual lives that in turn get multiplied and grow exponentially. It’s really incredible. Ching, what got you started in this work fundamentally? Why is it that you do the work you do? You’re the founder, you’ve invested your life’s work in this really. I know it’s a full-time passion. It’s a labor of love in some ways for you. Why is why is that?
It’s a good question. First of all, is very much related to my personal experience. I grew up in China during the political chaotic cultural revolution. I didn’t have the opportunity to finish my own education. Instead, I was sent to the poorest region in Western China to work in a factory for eight years. During that time, I certainly witnessed not only the poverty, I witnessed how women and girls were being treated, and how this gender inequality was deeply rooted in this rural culture. After I came to Canada and established my life here, I also witnessed my own children grow up with all the opportunities I couldn’t even dream of.
It makes me think life is about opportunity. On one occasion, and I was attending a concert to support UNICEF’s program called Go Girls. This really further inspired me about girls’ education providing opportunities to women and girls, the influence is not just for themselves. It’s for generations. That’s why when I established EGRC, my motto was, “Educated women have educated children.” After that, I established EGRC in 2005. I went back to the region where I lived when I was a youth to help girls’ education. That’s the story. That’s the personal reason. It’s been about twenty years.
Thank you for sharing. That’s such an experience. I love how you’ve used that inspiration to really support others and seeing firsthand with your own children, your own family, the opportunities that others have, and how great it is you’re able to inspire and motivate and mentor and support others. What are you most proud of so far? You’ve achieved so much. You heard Ashleigh talk about over 2,000 students so far. There’s one thing about numbers, but there’s another about impact. What do you think you’re most proud of having achieved with your work with the foundation so far?
I am most proud is the girls. Over the years, I have built personal relationships with lots of them. I really not just give them money to finish school. I think from an early stage of my life, I felt they need emotional support and they need their own society after they left home and their own community. I spent actually lots of time and energy to get to know them and personally to see them. I really witnessed the changes in them, not just received the education. Eventually, there’s an alumni association was established in 2013 and EGRC girls, we call them EGRC girls alumni, they started giving back.
They organized an annual fundraising campaign. They spoke at our events and that they volunteer to help a younger generation of girls in our programs. This is really this whole circle of giving back that made me very proud and also transformed them. They also know the importance of helping others. I think this is, I’m most proud of course, actually, what they said, over eighteen years, we sponsored 2000 girls education with their high school and university educations and they achieved over 99% of graduation rate. I think that is really incredible.
Foundation For Women: Over the years, the foundation has sponsored more than 2000 girls with their high school and university education, achieving over 99% graduation rate.
That is and it’s a testament to the hard work, the attention, the personal impact that you have and the relationships you have with the girls and women that are part of the part of the program. I’m not at all surprised that they would give back because giving back is an integral part of the program and how you work with them for that matter. Not at all surprised and kudos to you and the foundation for your great work.
Looking Ahead To The Future
Now we’ve talked about the foundation, the history of success, let’s look ahead to the future because what we’re ostensibly here to talk about is really the establishment or rather the expansion, the refinement if you will of the executive director role. You heard me talk about Ashleigh being the part-time executive director, but now you really want to build on this foundation and really solidify that foundation and build for the future. Tell me a bit about the executive director role as you envision it. Going ahead, why this role, why now? Ching, do you want to start? Maybe, Ashleigh, you can jump in as well.
Yes, I think that I’m really excited. I think this is a very crucial and important step we’re taking on and to have a full-time executive director as a leader role for the foundation. I think we really need for the further development, we really need this important step. The new ED, I think most important is to build an efficient fundraising program and manage donor relationships. That’s very crucial. The important thing is also to learn about the program and get to know the young women in our program to help new ED do a better job to do public communications and fundraising. In the near future, I would like to see this new ED grow into this role and eventually become my successor.
You heard it here first people, that’s excellent. Ashleigh, anything to add about the situation, the context for the ED, and what’s on the future here?
I think the ED role is a really exciting role here at the Ching Tien Foundation for Women. When our audience has heard a little bit about our history, as our predecessor charity Educating Girls of Rural China, we had a very different scope of impact. The women that we were helping and how we were helping them is quite distinct from what we’re doing now. What we’re doing now, empowering aspiring women leaders from Asia with global education opportunities is international and visionary in scope. The impact that these women will go on to make in the world is really infinite.
When given opportunities to learn, the impact women can make in the world is infinite. Click To TweetWe’re early days now, but we’re already seeing how wonderfully transformed our students are when they access opportunities provided by the Ching Tien Foundation for Women. Ching talked about giving back. Each of our students undertakes a capstone giving back project, by which they start to take their first steps as being a leader and change-makers in the world. I wanted to add that giving back is very empowering. It is part of empowering a woman by showing her that even with the most limited resources right after obtaining your degree before you may have achieved too many professional accolades.
Looking For A Full-Time Executive Director
In fact, we’re all capable of doing so many things. I think we’re looking for someone who’s very excited about this ability and who wants to fundraise for this exact mission. The fundraising is also global in scope. It takes someone who has a global mindset that is imaginative. I think it’s a really exciting opportunity to carry on a very inspiring idea and bring it to the next level. Maybe just to talk about why I am the part-time executive director and why we need a full-time executive director for people who might be wondering. I joined into this really inspiring work with Ching Tien under educating girls in rural China.
At that time we had different team members, both in China and Canada, who were mostly helping on a part-time basis in Canada and on a full-time basis, some of them in China. As we’ve transitioned and we have this new mission and we have these new KPIs and things that we want to achieve, we truly do need someone who’s ready to roll up their sleeves and be full-time into lifting this foundation off the ground. Someone who also brings the expertise and professional experience in the fundraising, development, and maybe nonprofit world to help energize our foundation to launch off from where we are now and take it to new heights. We’re actively looking for the person to fill this role and we’re so excited to meet candidates.
Excellent. That’s a great summary as well. I’m glad you mentioned that we’ve talked a lot about rolling up your sleeves, getting in, and doing the work fundamentally. This person’s going to work very closely with you and Ching and the other board members. This isn’t a high-level strategic role necessarily. It is, has elements of that as executive director, as functionally the lead of the foundation but this is really an opportunity to take this great work that’s happened so far, leverage these successes, and really expand the community of support writ large for the foundation in turn the impact of the work.
That’s really exciting. Ching, you’re managing the programs. You’re working very closely with the students, and the leadership mentors, but collaborating with the host universities in some cases as well. You manage the program. How do you envision yourself working with the new executive director? What do you see that partnership looking like?
I would like to see possibly to work with. I’m very excited about this happening. I really would love to know this person a little bit on a personal level, and have the time to work with her or him in person. More importantly, I want to build a trust relationship and lasting relationship with her or him. In the meantime, give this person the freedom, independence, and power to develop the foundation. First of all, mostly on the fundraising side, also this new ED is important for the new ED to really understand the program, and get to know the scholars. It’s a small organization. My expectation is everybody, people doing everything and not only just very limited to whatever the job description, whatever comes up needs to be done, we have to get it done.
At least in the current, before we really build up the team. I think this new person needs to understand this. Also, the program, I want to say a little bit about the program. I think for all charities in my thought the program is the soul of the organization. I think it’s very important for every charity and for me, always my priority to create a concrete and measurable impact. That’s also an important way to show potential donors and supporters what we do, how we do it, and what we have achieved.
Foundation For Women: It is important for charities create a concrete and measurable impact to show donors and supporters what they do and what they have achieved.
That’s so important, isn’t it? Absolutely, donors want to see impact. Program participants themselves, they get excited by those stories, hearing from that alumni group that you mentioned as well, seeing what I can become, seeing what the future may hold for that matter. Ashleigh, anything else you want to add in regards to the ED founder board relationship for that matter in your experience?
I just wanted to say that since we have transitioned to becoming the Ching Tien Foundation for Women, our founder Ching has taken on a phenomenal amount of work in terms of workload. She mentioned the program development. I mean, we started essentially new programs, new systems. New ways of measuring their impact. New ways of interacting with our students. As anyone who’s worked in the social impact space would know, in the early days there’s a lot of tweaking and adjusting, and it’s very much like a startup or an entrepreneurial venture.
Ching has been involved in everything from donor relations to board relations to program design and development to mentoring our students on a one-on-one basis. Let’s just say it’s not a sustainable workload, even with me as a part-time ED staff. We do see the need for as much as we need someone who will be a Jack or Jill of all trades to come in and do everything. We do need someone who’s strategic-minded and can, I think, sit down with the founder Gleam.
Those insights and visions from her, but help to put those new systems in place and be a visionary that way. It will be very strategic in that sense. With regard to the board, we’ve had consistency with our board over the last few years and had wonderful support from them. I do think there’s a very strong emphasis on working closely with our founder to lift this off the ground. We do have some great supporters that I think will be there through our board and other supporters who really want to see this program grow and succeed.
Joining The Foundation
Just Ashleigh, in closing, maybe I’ll ask you to carry on just as we approach the end of our time here. Why would someone want to leave their role potentially and come join you at the foundation? What’s compelling and exciting? I mean, we’ve touched on so many key things here. What’s the high-level message that you want to share with potential candidates if they’re thinking about this opportunity?
I think there are a couple of things. I think number one is if our mission to empower women leaders makes your heart beat a little bit faster and gets you excited about the impact you can help make in the world, then that is a really clear sign of the right type of person. We’re a very mission-driven organization. Something that I admire about our founder, Ching Tien has kept me involved in the work of the foundation through EGRC to now is that she’s truly a leader who thinks about the takeaway and the impact on the women that we work with.
Women leaders make your heart beat a little faster. They get you excited about the impact you can make in the world. Click To TweetShe thinks about their dignity. She thinks about their feelings. She thinks about how beneficial truly at the emotional level, at professional level, at their long-term development level, and how beneficial and impactful will our programming be on each woman we support. To the extent that she thinks about their individual cases and wants to tailor what we offer to them so that each person whose life we touch walks away with a positive benefit. I think if there is someone out there that gets excited about that and wanting to achieve that type of impact. That’s the type of opportunity we have here. That’s the type of legacy that we’re trying to carry out.
Secondly, we’re at our nascent stage with this new foundation. We do have over eighteen years of experience in women’s empowerment and social impact as an organization but we have a new mission. There is an opportunity to be a part of tailoring that, architecting that, and how we will carry out that mission in the years to come. I do think that that really is exciting and inspiring. For the right person, I think those two things, if our mission resonates with you and if the opportunity to be a part of something new, a start-up foundation, would you say? I would say, then that really is what the opportunity is in my eyes.
It’s a startup of a kind and it’s a rejuvenation and another balances a lot of different areas, doesn’t it? That’s really exciting.
Sorry, Christoph, maybe one more thing I would say. We’re living in a time that is increasingly globalized, but also at the same time increasingly segregated in a lot of ways. If we look at the post-COVID world, a lot of us have turned into our own geographic boundaries. I think that this is an idea of keeping that global vision alive. For people who are still excited about making a global impact, our foundation truly aspires to do that and to help other people without the idea of geographic boundaries keeping us apart. In this conversation, Ching talked about the importance of opportunity and I think the willingness to give and share opportunity for our foundation knows no boundaries. That’s something very special about the work that we do.
That’s amazing. That’s so nicely put. It should be said as well. We have talked mostly about China, but I know you’re expanding your programs and looking at expanding programs across other Asian nations as well. Not necessarily limiting yourself by any means, that global scope, but keeping it very tactical and doable for that matter at the same time. Ching, I think the last word is yours. Why would someone want to come join you at the foundation?
Actually, I think it’s very important. People choose a charity to give, choose a charity to work for. It has to be a cause close to one’s heart. At the passion, I think that is the most important, of course, the ability to lead to fundraise. I think these create a concrete impact eventually.
Foundation For Women: When choosing a charity to work for, the cause must be close to your heart.
Why would say eventually? Let’s say creating compact concrete impact right now for that matter.
Exactly right now.
I really appreciate your time. I think this has been really compelling and educational and really moving and motivating for that matter as well. Really excited about introducing candidates to both of you as they do their due diligence and we do ours at the same time. If anyone is interested in learning more about the foundation, you’ve got a great website, ChingTienFoundation.com. Anybody that’s interested can reach out directly to me as well at [email protected] and looking forward to speaking with you both again soon and introducing some candidates and seeing a successful search through. Thank you again, both of you for your time.
Thank you.
Thanks.
