CSR art projects promote understanding of autism

Isolation can be debilitating for sociable people but for at least 67 million people who suffer from autism worldwide, that isolation can become a lifelong issue.

Autism is a spectrum of neurodevelopment disorders, ranging from mild through severe, with a key symptom being the inability to interact with other people. Children with more severe autism, despite being as sweet or mischievous as other kids, may rarely speak, smile or even look at their parents, are quicker to lose their tempers or often repeat actions over and over.

One in every 88 children is estimated to suffer from some degree of autism and premium auto brand Infiniti is trying to improve understanding of the disorder among the general public, who often think such children are simply misbehaving.

As part of this initiative, 10 children with autism joined five artists and 40 volunteers on April 1 in Beijing to paint a huge picture on the ground - a colorful car driving a path in a blue universe toward a utopia-like planet where equality, love and tolerance prevail.

"Art is easier to understand than language," said Daniel Kirchert, president of Dongfeng Infiniti, who organized the event. "So we offer them such a chance to express themselves.

"In fact, it will be more difficult for us to understand those who don't paint but that means we should give them more attention to figure out ways to communicate with them."

Infiniti is the only premium auto brand in China that focuses on autism through its corporate social responsibility efforts.

Believing that all people are born different but equal and valuable, Infiniti has called for more patience, understanding and tolerance of children with autism so they can enjoy active, equal and harmonious lives.

'Dare to love'

Infiniti started its Gan Ai Planet program in 2014 together with the One Foundation, whose Ocean Heaven Plan is especially for autistic children. Gan ai means "dare to love" in Chinese.

The auto brand has since invested 6 million yuan ($960,000) in the foundation. "In fact, Infiniti is not only a donor, but is also involved in the whole process of the project from designing through supervising to evaluating," said Li Jin, secretary-general of the One Foundation, China's leading private charity group.

Statistics show that Infiniti has benefited more than 3,000 families that have children with autism and it has conducted more than 130 teacher training programs with the Ocean Heaven Plan.

Cai Chunzhu, the father of a boy with autism, said he is thankful that more people are learning about the disorder.

"When people didn't know about autism, they blamed or even insulted me when my boy did mischievous acts, such as breaking a cup on public occasions.

"But if they know my son is autistic, they are more tolerant. That is why I am grateful to such programs as that by Infiniti that call attention to such kids.

"In years to come, I will be more confident when I take my son out as I know people will be more tolerant."

With parenting skills especially important for those who have children with autism, Infiniti and the One Foundation are building workstations across the country to offer regular training and forum sessions to improve parents' skills and provide them with support networks.

Infiniti said it is also working with the One Foundation to collect suggestions on how to advance government policies for autism groups.

In addition, the automaker has organized 16 events addressing autism that have attracted more than 100,000 participants.

Public involvement

"In fact, what one company can offer is limited. We must call for Infiniti car owners, dealers, business partners and the public to get involved so that we can help the kids," Kirchert said.

Since the program started in 2014, 17 of Infiniti's dealers and hundreds of Infiniti car owners across the country have held events to call positive attention to local children with autism.

On April 2, Infiniti conducted a campaign with the One Foundation to mark the World Autism Day, at which around 160,000 participants donated 730,000 yuan to the foundation.

Chinese actress Zhou Xun said children with autism can do many things and what they need most are opportunities.

"Last year I visited an autistic boy during a trip organized by Infiniti. He was concentrating on threading beads and making beautiful necklaces.

"If necklace-making studios will accept him, he can show what he can do and people will know more about autistic people like him."

In addition to helping children with autism, Infiniti is offering assistance to preschool children in China's poverty-stricken areas.

On March 19, it donated 3 million yuan to establish 200 kindergartens in four counties in western China and will finance other aspects including teacher training.

Statistics from East China Normal University show that due to a lack of preschool education, children in China's less developed regions score about half as well as their urban counterparts in language proficiency and recognition tests.

"Children cannot afford to wait and little can be done to remedy this once they pass the age of 5," said Lu Mai, secretary-general of the China Research Development Foundation, which forms a partnership with Infiniti on the project.

Lu said China is now home to more than 100,000 poor villages and tens of millions of poor preschool children, mostly in western China.

Kirchert emphasized that Infiniti's charity efforts would be "long-term, participatory and effective", adding that the automaker will extensively involve car owners and dealers.

lifusheng@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 04/20/2015 page16)