Beijing Women's Federation

On June 11, the First Session of the 4th Member Congress of the Beijing Qiaoniang Handicraft Promotion Association (hereinafter referred to as the “Promotion Association”) was held at Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology. Lei Xiaoning, a member of the Party Group and Vice-Chairperson of the Beijing Women’s Federation, and Wang Zheng, a member of the Standing Committee of the Party Committee and Vice-President of Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology, attended the meeting and delivered speeches. More than 120 association members from all walks of life in the city participated in the meeting.

The work report of the 3rd Council, the financial report, the work report of the Supervisory Committee, the draft articles of association, and the general election procedures were reviewed and approved at the meeting. Also, the past work achievements of the Association were summarized and the future development direction was clarified. Forty-six members of the new Council and three members of the Supervisory Committee were elected. Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology was elected as the chairman entity. Peng Lu, the dean of the School of Fashion of Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology, was elected as the president of the Council of the Promotion Association. Meanwhile, one chairperson of the Supervisory Committee, nine vice-presidents, one secretary-general, and two deputy secretaries-general were elected. The meeting successfully concluded all items on the agenda for the general election, laying a solid organizational foundation for the continuous development of the Association.

Lei Xiaoning fully recognized the positive contributions made by the Promotion Association over the years in the fields of traditional culture dissemination, handicraft industry development, and craftswomen’s empowerment. She set forth five requirements for the Promotion Association: First, unite all practitioners. It shall rally and guide craftswomen to follow the Party’s call and uphold the Party’s leadership, and grow into a dynamic women’s contingent that carries forward Beijing’s distinctive culture and tells Chinese stories effectively. Second, inherit traditional crafts. It shall preserve the roots of endangered craftsmanship and drive handicrafts to be everyday-oriented, fashion-forward and brand-building. Third, stimulate consumption. It shall integrate into Beijing’s fashion and cultural and creative industrial chains, and develop multi-channel platforms to expand market access. Fourth, boost people’s incomes. It shall lend impetus to rural revitalization and advance common prosperity. Fifth, refine institutional systems. It shall advance standardized management and expand service reach, so as to forge a development pattern featuring government guidance, association operation, public engagement and tangible benefits for craftswomen.

Wang Zheng spoke highly of the performance of the 3rd Council of the Promotion Association and fully recognized its contributions to the capital’s cultural development and people’s livelihood improvement in aspects such as the activation and inheritance of traditional handicrafts and the construction of employment and entrepreneurship platforms. As the chairman entity, he said that the Institute will continue to deepen all-round and in-depth cooperation, give full play to the advantages in subject specialty, teaching staff, design and R&D, brand planning, exhibition and communication, and international exchange, and provide solid support for the skill upgrading, product innovation, brand promotion, talent cultivation, and achievement transformation of the Promotion Association.

Peng Lu said that under the support of the Beijing Women’s Federation and Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology, the new Council will adhere to its original mission, unite and lead all members to work hard. It will continue to make efforts in fields such as cultural inheritance and innovation, social responsibility fulfillment, and foreign exchange and cooperation, build the Promotion Association into a “Women’s Home” with warmth and influence, pool the craftsmanship and ingenuity of Qiaoniang members, assist the innovation and upgrading of the Beijing handicraft industry, and contribute to the economic and cultural development of the capital.

Since its establishment in 2009 under the guidance of the Beijing Women’s Federation, the Promotion Association has always taken serving craftswomen as its core purpose and promoted the high-quality development of the capital’s handicraft industry. After more than a decade of development, the Promotion Association has achieved full coverage of branch associations in all districts of Beijing, established more than 300 craftswomen’s studios, and been rated as a 5A-level social organization. Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology has had long-term cooperation with the Promotion Association. They once jointly hosted the Beijing Women’s Handicraft Innovation and Creativity Competition, promoting the in-depth integration of traditional handicrafts with modern design and technology and stimulating the innovation vitality of craftswomen. The election of Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology as the chairman entity demonstrated the craftswomen members’ full recognition of the Institute’s achievements in intangible cultural heritage preservation, handicraft innovation and women’s development. It also signals that the cooperation between the Institute and the Association has entered a new phase of in-depth integration and joint capacity building. In the future, Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology will continue to give full play to its advantages in subject specialty, design innovation, and the integration of industry, academia, and research. It will focus on the cultivation of craftswomen, the activation and transformation of intangible cultural heritage, and the upgrading of the handicraft industry, provide targeted intellectual and innovative design resources, advance the creative transformation and innovative development of traditional handicrafts, support more craftswomen in pursuing entrepreneurship, innovation and income growth, and contribute wisdom and strength to the promotion of excellent traditional Chinese culture and the high-quality development of the capital.