The Bard Lifetime Learning Institute is proud to present a panel discussion on the subject of the lives of everyday Chinese people. We hope to highlight aspects of Chinese society not readily visible to those who have not lived or worked in China.

The panel is composed of individuals who have worked in and around China in many fields and specialties. Collectively they have vast knowledge about the actual lives of those who work at factories or farms, schools or stages.  


BIOGRAPHIES

Malia K. DuMont: Vice President for Strategy and Policy at Bard College. A Bard College alum, she was the first person to major in Chinese language at the college, and has worked in China as an English teacher, a TV news editor, and in the American Embassy. Du Mont has served on the China desks at the US Pacific Command in Honolulu and on the Joint Staff in the Pentagon, and also spent several years at a Navy think tank analyzing Chinese military strategy and doctrine. At Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, she managed the school’s China Initiative, including Track II dialogues with Chinese and US officials. 

Joe Meyer:  Lived and worked in Greater China from 1980 to 2013, first with the UNDP and from 1984 partnered with various companies in China manufacturing a wide range of consumer goods for global markets. He holds a BA from George Washington University, an MPA from New York University, and studied Chinese language at George Washington University, Georgetown University, and Columbia University.

Sue Meyer: Born, raised and educated in China, she has a PhD in Chinese language and culture and Eastern/Western Cultural Exchange-communication.   A university teacher for about three decades, she also worked in the legal field in the 1980's translating early Chinese Joint Venture laws and contracts.
 
John B. Weinstein:  Provost and Vice President of Bard Academy and Simon’s Rock at Bard College, he earned an AB in East Asian Studies from Harvard College; an MA in Educational Leadership from Montclair State University; and MA, MPhil, and PhD degrees in East Asian Languages and Cultures from Columbia University. He was the founding faculty member in Chinese and theater at the first Bard High School Early College in New York City and has taught Chinese, Asian studies, and theater. He is the editor of Voices of Taiwanese Women: Three Contemporary Plays.

Dr. Ray Yip:  A physician and epidemiologist who spent most of his career on global health-related issues. Originally from Taiwan, his parents were part of the diaspora from China in 1949. His work experience in China from 1987 to 1998 was as a short-term CDC advisor on chronic disease prevention, capacity building for China CDC, and design of the World Bank Southwest Poverty Alleviation Project. From 1998 to 2000, he worked full-time in China on development of various public health programs and systems through UNICEF, CDC, Gates Foundation, and Gates Ventures.