Wednesday, February 22, 2017

Promoting Understanding

Silicon Valley Tech V.P. Dr. Tong Liu was born in 1961 in the countryside near Yangzhou, the southern part of China. (See post one.) He never expected to go to university--not because he didn't want to or because he wasn't intelligent enough--but, the politics of the country made it seem impossible. (See post two.) Liu graduated from Nanjing University, and then--thanks to Professor T. D. Lee of Columbia University--he was given chance to take a physics exam allowing him further study at the University of Virginia in the U.S. (See post three.) Liu was excited to explore the U.S., despite the sometimes hilarious hiccups he had with communication. (See post four.) Upon graduation, Liu took a four-month posting in Holland. (See post five.) Liu returned the U.S. planning only to stay for a few short years before returning to China. The Tiananmen massacre changed that. (post six.) In 1998, however, Dr. Liu and his wife took their children to Hong Kong for two years to show them the culture. (post seven.) They returned to Silicon Valley in 2000, and Liu became heavily involved in his son's favorite past-time: soccer.  Indeed, Liu was moved by the passion he saw from so many volunteering parents.( post eight.) Dr. Liu's familiarity with both cultures--and his ability to negotiate--were assets needed when his company's factory in Shenzhen held a major strike in 2012. (post nine and ten.)
“As leaders we need to think we have much more in common to win together. It would harm both sides if we could not treat the rivalry correctly. How can we create a win-win situation?
“I would think it would help if more people studied in China. China needs to open up to the world and make the system more easy (to navigate)—train systems, bus systems all (need to) have bilingual signs. The reason people can go to Japan and India is because of the English.”
Liu mentioned that the Hedge Fund Blackstone donated a couple billion dollars to send a thousand Americans to China to study.  
“To me that’s the most important way to promote understanding of one another.”

(This Concludes this Interview.  Next: Fortunate Sons)

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