Ms.
Yao Chen, UNHCR National Goodwill Ambassador
For
a micro-blogger, Yao Chen has macro reach and impact. Through social media, the
award-winning Chinese actress has raised public awareness and mobilized support
for refugees among millions of people. In June 2013 she was named a UNHCR
Goodwill Ambassador - the first in China.
Yao
Chen has worked with UNHCR since 2010, meeting refugees from Myanmar, Somalia
and Sudan, among others. Humbled by their suffering and strength, she has
shared these experiences through the media and Weibo, the Chinese equivalent of
Twitter. With a following of more than 78 million, the "Queen of
Weibo" has brought a new understanding of refugee issues to the
Chinese-speaking world.
Yao Chen Biography
One
of China's most popular actresses and one of the world's top
micro-bloggers.
Yao
Chen is one of China's most popular actresses and one of the world's top
micro-bloggers. With more than 78 million followers on Weibo, the Chinese
equivalent of Twitter, she has been called "the Queen of Weibo" in
recognition of her wide reach and powerful influence through social
media.
Yao
Chen was born in Fujian province in south-eastern China. She studied folk dance
at the Beijing Dance Academy and acting at the Beijing Film
Academy.
In
2002 she made her acting debut in the TV drama, "City Man and Woman"
and became a household name with 2006's "My Own Swordsman." In 2008,
she played an iconic guerilla leader in the popular series,
"Undercover." Her stage debut came the following year, when she
played a white-collar heroine in "A Story of Lala's
Promotion."
In
2009, Yao Chen starred in the movie "Sophie's Revenge" alongside
fellow Chinese actresses Zhang Ziyi and Fan Bingbing. Since then, she has
averaged three movies a year and worked with internationally-acclaimed
directors such as Chen Kaige and Feng Xiaogang. Her hit movies include
"Colour Me Love," "If You Are the One 2," "Caught in
the Web" and "Firestorm."
She
has received acting accolades from China's Golden Eagles Awards, Golden Phoenix
Awards, Chinese Film Media Awards and Hua Ding Awards, among
others.
Since starting her work with UNHCR in 2010, Yao Chen has met with
refugees in Hong Kong, the Philippines, Thailand and Ethiopia. Using her social
media platform, she has helped to dramatically increase public awareness of
refugee issues in the Chinese-speaking world. In June 2013 she was named
UNHCR's Goodwill Ambassador in China.
Within China, the actress has been actively involved in many
humanitarian activities to help the disadvantaged. She has advocated for the
rights of migrant children, for animal rights and environmental issues. She has
held charity auctions and Weibo fund-raising campaigns for beneficiaries such
as the poor, disadvantaged children, rural villagers with eye diseases, and
people affected by drought. For her humanitarian work, she has received awards
from leading local magazines. In 2013, she was among four prominent
personalities from China to be nominated to Time magazine's list of "100
Most Influential People in the World."
Yao
Chen is married and has a son.
Yao Chen and
UNHCR
Award-winning actress Yao Chen has shared refugee stories with
millions of netizens in the Chinese-speaking world, raising public awareness and
support for victims of forced displacement. She was named UNHCR's Goodwill
Ambassador in China in June 2013.
Yao
Chen started working as UNHCR's Honorary Patron in China in June 2010, when she
visited urban refugees in and around the Philippines capital, Manila. She was
deeply affected by the experiences of the Somali, Sudanese and Palestinian
refugees she met - ordinary people forced to flee their homes by extraordinary
circumstances.
In
April 2011, the actress travelled to Mae La camp in western Thailand, her first
visit to a refugee camp. She met refugees from Myanmar, including recent
arrivals who spoke about the atrocities they faced back home. Touched by their
dignity and hospitality, Yao Chen promised to dedicate more time to refugees.
Her
concern for people affected by drought and famine in the Horn of Africa
prompted Yao Chen to donate to UNHCR's relief efforts and visit Ethiopia the
following year. In April 2012, she traveled to Buramino, Aw Barre and Sheder
camps where she spoke to Somali refugees about their struggle to survive
through multiple displacements, and their belief in education as the key to
their future. In May 2014, she visited Syrian Refugees in Lebanon which is her first visit since becoming a mother.
Throughout her field trips with UNHCR, Yao Chen has actively used
social media to share her experiences, observations and feelings. Known in
China as the Queen of Weibo - the Chinese equivalent of Twitter - she reaches
an audience of over 78 million followers with messages about refugees and
UNHCR, and generates countless retweets and feedback.
Yao
Chen has also spoken about refugees at public events such as the 2010 World
Expo in Shanghai, and supported World Refugee Day activities in Hong Kong.
Working closely with the media, she has generated unprecedented coverage of
refugees' humanitarian needs among audiences in mainland China, Hong Kong,
Macao and many other parts of the Chinese-speaking world.
May 2014 : Yao Chen visits Syrian Refugees in Lebanon
Yao Chen, Good Will Ambassador of UNHCR, recently visited Syrian Refugees in Lebanon. She spent time at the UNHCR registration center in Beirut and with a few refugee families in Tyr, south of Lebanon, during her three-day trip. This is Yaochen’s fourth visit since partnering with UNHCR, but the first visit since becoming a mother. She says she felt more understanding of the plight of refugee mothers. "I want to let them know they are not alone, there are people who love them," she said.
A documentary has recorded Yao Chen’s trip and thoughts: click here , and uploaded to her weibo (Social media) in order to raise more awareness to public.
More info on her visit
A documentary has recorded Yao Chen’s trip and thoughts: click here , and uploaded to her weibo (Social media) in order to raise more awareness to public.
More info on her visit
April 2012 :
Field visit to the refugee camp in Ethiopia
Yao Chen will visit Dollo Ado and Jijiga
of Ethiopia with the UNHCR staff in April 2012.
March
2011 : Field visit to the refugee camp in Mae Sot,
Thailand
"I was deeply touched by how the refugees keep their
dignity," said Yao Chen, UNHCR's honorary patron for China, after spending
two days visiting refugees in Mae La camp, home to nearly 29,000 registered
refugees and an estimated 16,000 unregistered refugees, all from Myanmar.
"The refugees are beautiful inside. They have dignity and kindness, and
poverty does not destroy their kindness."
More
about the refugee situation in Thailand
June 2010: Field
visit to urban refugees in the
Philippines
With the help of the UNHCR Manila Office, Yao Chen visited the Philippines and met refugees there on 5-8 June 2010.
She traveled with mainland and Hong Kong reporters to have a close look at refugee situation and what UNHCR was doing.
Yao Chen was impressed by the refugee’ perseverance and determination to fulfill their dreams and pass on their hopes to the next generation. She met a refugee who said that he hoped his son would eventually become a congressman in the Philippines. “The sky is the limit to what can be achieved,” Yao Chen said.
She was fully committed and showed great compassion for refugees. She spoke to refugees with genuine interest and respect.
“To visit and see urban refugees in Manila helped me
understand their problems,” said Yao, “I’d like
to use my prominence as a public figure to raise awareness in China for these
refugees.” Yao updated her twitter several times daily
during the visit. UNHCR and refugees had been repeatedly mentioned on her
twitter feed in the following
months.
June 2010: Speaking for UNHCR
at the Shanghai Expo
On 20 June, World Refugee Day, UNHCR was in spotlight at the Expo. The Refugee Agency invited Yao Chen, Honorary Patron for China, to attend a panel discussion at the UN Pavilion from 1030 to 1130 to discuss her recent mission to the Philippines. The discussion was facilitated by the famous TV Anchor Chen Chen from Dragon TV – the nationwide satellite TV station based in Shanghai.
The panel discussion with Yao Chen on the 20 June was a great success, with enormous media attention and public interest. Yao Chen talked to a live audience about her visit, her findings and feelings. At the end of the discussion, UNHCR organized a ceremony and she was presented with a plaque by the Regional Representative formally recognizing her year-long role.
2010: Media coverage and public awareness building
The media coverage around WRD was remarkable. The first coverage ran on 5 June when Yao Chen embarked on her trip to the Philippines. Throughout her mission she was sharing her thoughts and feelings and uploading photos. There was a lot of media attention – on-line, electronic and printed media. Several media partners went on the mission to the Philippines which helped drive coverage. UNHCR invited sohu.com, a major internet company, to join the field visit. Sohu.com put up a feature photo story on 7 June, triggering great public attention and numerous re-runs of the story on other online sites. UNHCR produced a 7-min video after the Philippines field visit and put it on sina.com and sohu.com. The media attention reached its peak on 20 June, with coverage of UNHCR, Yao Chen, World Refugee Day appearing across all major media channels. Yao Chen’s company also organized coverage in fashion magazines, TV entertainment channels, etc. As a result, public awareness in China about refugees and related issues was greatly raised.
