Mercedes-Benz Star Fund forges CSR partnership with Palace Museum

Meeting amidst a charming winter scene at the Palace Museum, Mercedes-Benz Star Fund and the Palace Museum formally achieved a partnership to collaborate on a range of projects from conservation and education to international exchange of the renowned World Heritage Site, also known as the Forbidden City by visitors and locals.

The partnership is being actualized through the joint hands of Mercedes-Benz's long-term CSR platform in China, the Mercedes-Benz Star Fund and the Forbidden City Cultural Heritage Conservation Foundation.

Nicholas Speeks, president and CEO of Beijing Mercedes-Benz Sales Service Co Ltd, and Shan Jixiang, the director of the Palace Museum, represented both parties at the signing ceremony.

"Heritage is something we value tremendously at Mercedes-Benz," Speeks said at the ceremony.

"It is the mission of our generation to nurture our cultural heritage and to carry it to the next generation. We always take it as part of our responsibilities to contribute to social development.

"Through the CSR strategic partnership with the Palace Museum, we wish to support this great nation to tell its fascinating stories on the international stage."

In 2017, Mercedes-Benz in China became the first market in its worldwide history to break the 600-thousand-unit record. Repeated by Speeks that China has become the second home to Mercedes-Benz brand.

With such recognition of the significance of the market, and commitment to the Chinese society, the brand consciously convey its value in a way that resonates in a Chinese cultural context.

The partnership with the Palace Museum reflects and amplifies that principle, and opens a new platform to further engage the public and wide audience.

Traditional culture promotion

Established in 1925 on the site of the imperial palace of the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911), the Palace Museum is one of the world's largest and most recognizable classical palaces.

While the Palace Museum is definitely regarded as one of the symbols of Chinese traditional culture, the past decade has seen it revolutionize the way it showcases collections and exhibits to visitors.

By integrating Internet Plus into various aspects of the museum experience, by cooperating with various enterprises and organizations, and by stepping into the e-commerce area, the palace is becoming more involved with people's daily lives.

The CSR strategic partnership between Mercedes-Benz Star Fund and the Palace Museum further reinforces the museum's embrace of this new era.

The first phase of this CSR strategic partnership commences from the January 2018 with a three-year commitment, mainly dedicated in the areas of relic repair and preservation, cultural education and cultural exchange.

First and foremost, the continued restoration of ancient relics and antiquities located within the Palace Museum will be prioritized.

By incorporating modern technologies, the partnership will endeavor to solve the urgent restorative obstacles pointed out by the museum, such as additional studies of its brick and stonework.

An additional aim of the initiative is to raise public awareness of China's traditional culture, ensuring that its history and culture can be passed down through the generations.

Targeting students in primary and secondary schools, creative curriculum on traditional culture and arts will be introduced to children of school age and especially, the Hope Schools supported by the Star Fund.

The rich history of the Forbidden City will also accelerate the spread of Chinese heritage across the world, facilitating the achievement of the Chinese dream.

Social commitment

Mercedes-Benz has long been dedicated to fulfilling its social responsibilities, and was one of the first automotive manufacturers to launch CSR programs in China.

The auto manufacturer firmly believes that the success of its business operations and the strength of its corporate social responsibility program are inextricably linked.

As the most significant CSR platform of Mercedes-Benz, the Star Fund has played a significant role throughout the years.

Since 2010, the Star Fund has received over 100 million yuan ($15.8 million) in donations from Mercedes-Benz. Under the slogan "Nurturing the Best of All Our Tomorrows", the Mercedes-Benz Star Fund has been striving to promote environmental protection, spread the culture of driving, assist education support, facilitate the development of arts and sports, and also to provide social care services.

Mercedes-Benz is also making sure it moves with the times.

In 2017, the Mercedes-Benz Star Fund launched the Star Scholarship program to support under privileged students.

It also introduced the World Heritage Sites Sustainable Livelihood program to create better livelihoods for residents while protecting the environment, with an eventual goal of harmonious development between humans and nature.

The principles of the Mercedes-Benz Star Fund CSR platform proactively echoed the national strategies of strengthening modern education and taking targeted measures in poverty alleviation, highlighted at the 19th National Congress of the CPC.

Now in 2018, Mercedes-Benz CSR starts its second decade with this CSR strategic partnership with the Palace Museum, marking an expansion into other fields of humanity. Mercedes-Benz CSR is committed to traditional culture inheritance and re-innovation, and further contributing to the sustainable development of Chinese society.

This view was shared by Li Hongpeng, chairman of the Mercedes-Benz Star Fund Management Committee and senior executive vice-president of Beijing Mercedes-Benz Services Co Ltd.

He said: "CSR has become an important part of Mercedes-Benz's corporate culture. By joining hands with our employees, dealers, customers and many CSR partners, we can help to create a strong basis for a great and sustainable future.

"Entering our second decade, our CSR program will continue to advance with the times, undertaking new responsibilities, exploring new areas and opening up new patterns. The partnership with the Palace Museum marks a significant step for Mercedes-Benz in upgrading its CSR strategy in China," Li said.

Future outlook

The dawn of the 21st century was marked by the start of an ambitious ancient architecture restoration project at the Palace Museum. Approved by the State Council and the largest such program of its kind in China, the Palace Museum Restoration Project is scheduled to be completed by 2020, coinciding with the 600th Anniversary of the Forbidden City.

According to Shan, the Palace Museum is dedicated to preserving the Forbidden City to "ensure its magnificence for the next 600 years", just as it has held the citizens of Beijing in awe for the previous six centuries. "Mercedes-Benz honors the efforts and shares these values, as we always have taken it as our responsibility to contribute to traditional cultural heritage, even if we play just a small part," Speeks added.

(China Daily 01/30/2018 page13)