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Social worker honored with Kellogg's award

Chi Hui-jung (紀惠容), chief executive officer of the Garden of Hope Foundation, on Thursday became the first Taiwanese social worker to receive the prestigious Kellogg's Child Development Award.

The Kellog's Child Development Award, presented by the non-profit global organization World of Children, recognizes courageous individuals who have made a significant contribution to children's futures by greatly improving their opportunities to learn and grow.

Chi received the award, along with a cash prize of US$100,000, for the contribution she and the Garden of Hope have made to the campaign against child abuse and child prostitution in Taiwan over the past 15 years.

The award presentation was held at the headquarters of the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), with six other finalists from Malawi, Kenya, Brazil, Nepal and the US as well as World of Children officials taking part.

During the award presentation ceremony, a documentary was shown depicting how the Garden of Hope has grown from a temporary shelter hub for abused or abandoned children into a children's welfare foundation that has helped protect more than 100,000 children and teenagers around Taiwan.

Chi has decided to donate the US$100,000 cash prize to the Garden of Hope to help the foundation to continue to carry out its mission.

The Garden of Hope established an affiliate in New York City last year to provide counseling and assistance to Chinese and Taiwanese women and children seeking help in the US.

Robyn Taylor, an official with the Garden of Hope Office in New York, said that the foundation is planning to sponsor an international symposium in Taipei at the end of the month to discuss the problem of human trafficking, particularly the trafficking of women and teenaged girls from Asian countries to western countries.

Besides officials from several Asian countries, a US State Department adviser is also expected to attend the conference.
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