Co-hosted by Yale Club of Beijing, Yale International Alliance (YIA), and Yale Center Beijing 

Event Time

Friday, December 5, 2025 
Registration
6:30 pm-7:00 pm
Talk and Q&A
7:00 pm-8:30 pm

Location

Yale Center Beijing 
36th Floor Tower B of IFC Building 8 Jianguomenwai Avenue Chaoyang District, Beijing (Yong'anli Subway Station, Exit C) 

Registration and Fees

Registration
Please click “HERE” to register. Please send an email to yalecenterbeijing@yale.edu if there are any problems. If you encounter any payment issues, please attach a screenshot that identifies the issue. 

Ticket: RMB 30

**The registration fee for the event is non-refundable. Unless due to a force majeure reason, Yale Center Beijing will not refund any part of the registration fee if a participant fails to attend the event.

Walk-ins will not be accepted.

The language of the event will be English.

Note: Seats are available on a first-come-first-served basis.

The Event

As global urbanization accelerates, the rural crises of dying rural villages present serious challenges to sustainable development. Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) serves as both a bridge between knowledge and action and a cornerstone of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, helping individuals and communities build resilience, buffer crises, and support recovery and transformation. 

On December 5, Gordon Geballe PhD ’81, former Associate Dean for International Engagement at the Yale School of the Environment; Pat Kwei-Ping Yang, Co-Founder of Zigen Fund; and Emanuel Pastreich ’87, President of The Asia Institute, will explore practical ESD models through case studies and insights from China, Haiti, and Japan. The event will be hosted by April Hu ’84, Chair of the Yale International Alliance.

Speakers 

Gordon Geballe PhD ’81 (Online)
Emeritus Lecturer in Urban Ecology, Yale University
Former Associate Dean for International Engagement, Yale School of the Environment

Gordon Geballe is interested in the environmental issues facing individuals and society. He previously taught Haiti: Sustainable Development in a Post-Disaster Context through the Yale Schools of Public Health and Forestry & Environmental Studies. He is the former President of the Board of Connecticut Fund for the Environment and the former President of the Board of Dwight Hall at Yale. He earned his bachelor's degree from the University of California, Berkeley in 1969 and his PhD in Biology from Yale University in 1981.

Pat Kwei-Ping Yang
President & Co-Founder, Zigen Fund 
Founder & Chief Expert, China Zigen Rural Education and Development Association

Pat Kwei-Ping Yang, President and Co-Founder of Zigen Fund, has led efforts to advance ESD in rural China since 1988, benefiting over 200 schools, 5,000 teachers, and 100 villages through integrated models that combine education, health, and sustainability. She was honored by China Newsweek as an "Influencing China Person of the Year" for her contributions to public-interest advocacy, and was recognized as one of the "Asian Philanthropy Figures" by the Asia Philanthropy Forum in 2024.

Emanuel Pastreich ’87 (Online)
President, The Asia Institute

Emanuel Pastreich founded The Asia Institute in 2007 and has served as its President since then. He writes extensively on culture, technology, the environment, and international relations with a focus on Northeast Asia, and has published two books in Chinese, including Searching for the Truth on Both Sides of the Ocean. He received his bachelor's degree in Chinese Literature from Yale University in 1987, a master's degree in Comparative Culture from the University of Tokyo in 1991, and a PhD in East Asian Studies from Harvard University in 1998.

The Moderator 

April Hu ’84
Chair, Yale International Alliance

April Hu is a social enterprise entrepreneur with 30 years of experience in Asia. Drawing on her family’s legacy of school building, as well as her background in science and business, she is committed to democratizing access to education and stewarding planetary health. She holds a BSc in Electrical Engineering from Yale University and an MBA from Stanford University.