The following is an interview, conducted by the T-Fish staff, of the leader of a farmer's rights NGO in China. Learn more about this organization here!
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T-Fish: Hello everyone, this is the Transparent Fish broadcasting office; this is our 11th interview. Transparent Fish is committed to providing free technology, marketing, fundraising, and management consulting services to help NGOs. Today, it is our honor to have Mr. YangYunbiao from NanTangXingNong Coorperation, from FuYang, Anhui Province. First, let’s have Mr. Yang give us a brief self-introduction.

Mr. Yang: I’m from a village in FuYang, Anhui Province. Right now, about over 400 people from 4-5 villages have joined this cooperation.

T-Fish: Why did you establish such a cooperation?

Mr. Yang: It’s very interesting that every group in this society has an organization helping them to protect their rights. For example, whether they are women, workers, or consumers, they all have their own organizations. But when farmers’ rights get transgressed, there’s no one who stands up and says something. It once crossed my mind that I could start an organization to protect the rights of the farmers. With this thought, I gathered some people who shared my views, and we went to the local government to register our organization. I was surprised to find out that there was no law in China to support such kind of initiative. It was not until 2007 that China finally had laws to protect farmer's rights.

The T-Fish team in China periodically interviews NGOs that are doing excellent work on the field. The following is an interview of the Hua Kai Institution, which provides after-school services to children. To watch the original interview, please go here.
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T-Fish: Transparent Fish Fund is committed to free technology, marketing, fundraising, and management consulting services to help NGOs raise funds and support for their projects. It is our honor to have the founder of the Hua Kai Cultural Public Welfare Institution, Mr. Yu Zhong Chun, here with us today. Can you introduce yourself?

Mr. Yu: Hello! I am the founder of the Hua Kai Cultural Public Welfare Institution. Children usually call me brother Yu.

T-Fish: Why did you choose to go into public service?

Mr. Yu: It is said that people who help others also help themselves. Early on I considered going into public service, but it never really happened because there weren’t many public welfare organizations at the time. Later, after being a volunteer at an NGO, I managed to find a way.

T-Fish: What inspired you to create a cultural welfare program?

Mr. Yu: I love reading, so I wanted more children to have the opportunity to read. I realized that many children are laborers; after school, they didn't have good places to go to, so I wanted to somehow help their lives become more interesting and colorful outside of school. After I established the organization, I found out that many children do not really like to read. They enjoy playing more, perhaps due to the fact their parents do not pay much attention to them. Playing is also very important for children because you learn a lot through social interactions with other people.

Continuing with the NGO Spotlight Interview Series, the following is an interview of Miss Jorgenson, a representative from Operation Smile. You can access the original interview here.
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T-Fish: The Transparent Fish is committed to providing free technical, marketing, fundraising, and management consulting services to help NGOs. Today, it’s our honor to have Miss Julia Jorgenson, the program development coordinator from Operation Smile.

Miss Jorgenson: Hi my name is Julia Jorgenson, and I work for Operation Smile here in Beijing. I do development work for China.

T-Fish: What made you go into this work?

Miss Jorgenson: I started when I was young. My mother was very much into volunteering, so I started working with her when I was young. When I was 18, my first year in college, hurricane Katrina hit in New Orleans, and my brother and I both got involved in volunteering work.

T-Fish: So how did you end up in Operation Smile?

Miss Jorgenson: I just moved here to China just to find any sort of job. My brother works for Operation Smile as a program coordinator, so I met him and some other volunteers, and I went with them with their medical missions to India. That was my first experience with them.

The following is an interview of the Mu Lan Community Center, an organization that provides social services to the working class and their children. To view the original interview in Chinese, please go here.
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T-Fish: Transparent Fish is committed to providing free technology, marketing, fundraising, and management consulting services to help NGOs raise funds and support for their projects. It is our honor to have the founder of the Beijing Mu Lan Community Center, Ms. Qi Li Xia, here with us today. Could you introduce yourself, Ms. Qi?

Miss Qi: Hello everyone! It’s a pleasure to be here today. My name is Qi Li Xia, and I am from the Henan province. A few years ago, as a working person, I got a chance to be a volunteer. I really found the work to be meaningful, and since then, I've been taking on public service jobs.

T-Fish: What inspired you to start this activity center?

Miss Qi: While I was working outside of my hometown I met many fellow blue collar workers. I realized that there weren't too many public welfare organizations serving these working sisters. So, I thought of starting an organization myself! The three ladies who established this organization with me came up with the name "Mu Lan", because we thought the name was symbolic of our hopes and expectations. First of all, Mu Lan is a flower that represents womanhood (in China).  Secondly, Mu Lan is a famous legendary figure who possessed many characteristics similar to those of our sisters - for example, working far away from home and making great contributions to her family and society. I hope that we sisters can be as brave and courageous as Mu Lan, challenging old, oppressive traditions and pursuing self-independence. It is our hope that more and more workers and their children can receive our services.

Hemophilia Home of China is a non-profit that is dedicated to serving people with hemophilia, a genetic disorder that causes prolonged and, sometimes, unstoppable bleeding. The organization's main aim is to eliminate financial barriers to early hemophilia treatment through medical assistance programs. Learn more here! The following update highlights the situation of some hemophiliac patients in need and being supported by the organization.
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