IN BRIEF (Page 8)

Help for heart surgery

ConocoPhillips China Inc, a subsidiary of international, integrated energy company ConocoPhillips Inc, recently donated 500,000 yuan to Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area (TEDA) International Cardiovascular Hospital's Love & Hope Project, which allows free surgery for 50 disadvantaged children suffering from congenital heart disease.

The Love & Hope Project was initiated by the China Association of Social Workers and TEDA International Cardiovascular Hospital to fund heart surgery for 2-14 year old children with heart disease. All the children selected to benefit from this program are either orphans or poverty-stricken families. Each child's surgery will cost 10, 000 yuan.

Microwave sales for charity

Chinese electronics manufacturer Galanz has joined with the Chinese Red Cross Foundation (CRCF) for a charity initiative called China Red Action.

Galanz will donate 1 yuan to the China Red Action program for every China Red series multi-functional light wave and microwave oven sold in the Chinese market. The company estimates that no less than 1 million of the products will be sold in China this year.

The funds donated by Galanz will be used to support CRCF's Red Cross Angel Program and Bo'ai Study-aid Program which aim to offer care to poverty-stricken farmers and children by giving them medical and education assistance.

Hong Kong aid in Chengdu

Hong Kong's Economic and Trade Office in Chengdu says they will cooperate with the Hong Kong charity organization Sowers Action to promote a study-aid program in Chengdu.

Under this program, each employee of the Hong Kong organizations and companies in Chengdu are encouraged to donate 15 yuan a month to help students from poor families in the Chinese mainland to complete their education.

The first donations are expected to be ready this month for more than 200 middle school students so that they can go to college.

Credit card for milk donation

Inner Mongolia Mengniu Dairy Group (Mengniu) and Bank of China (BOC) recently launched a public-welfare-themed credit card to help donate milk to children in China's poverty-stricken areas.

On behalf of the card holder, BOC would donate 1 yuan at each card application, and also 0.01 yuan at each of their consumption deal, all of which will go to help students from the primary schools included in the list of China Milk Donation program.

Mengniu together with dairy-related institutions launched the program in June 2006, which aims to donate a pack of milk to the students from China's 1,000 poverty-stricken schools every day.

(China Daily 05/12/2008 page8)