Jing Li, Chief Financial Officer and co-founder of World Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection and Development Foundation, Inc. (WICH), is a multinational business professional with a knack for bringing ideas to fruition, whether for a fledgling start-up or a large international corporation. She is an ace at implementations, setting financial strategy, and process creation and execution. Her diverse background across Asia, Europe, and North America and fluency in Mandarin, Cantonese, and English makes her especially suited to addressing complex business and technical situations in diverse situations.
Jing Li was born and grew up in one of the seven ancient Chinese capitals, Hangzhou. Hangzhou became the fifth City of Craft and Folk Arts in the UNESCO Creative Cities Network in 2012. Jing Li was deeply influenced by the richness of the art and crafts surrounding her in the city and within her own family. She was awarded 1st place in the Citywide Painting Competition for high school students. However, Jing Li chose to take her path from fine arts to the technical challenges of architecture and urban design. She departed China for London, England where she received her Master of Arts in Urban Design from the University of Westminster, London, U.K. It was at university that Jing Li initially put forth the idea of creating sustainable urban centers for a healthy lifestyle.
After completing her studies, Jing Li’s work experience brought “multi-tasking” and “diversity” to a new level. She worked in diverse industries including, design and construction, education, and cultural exchange in Europe, Asia, and the United States of America. She founded her own design and construction company in China and set up an additional company while in the US. She worked with start-ups and large-scale international corporations. Using London as a base, she traveled to more than 10 European countries to pursue her business interests. While working in the United Kingdom, she made her first major bridging east to west. Jing Li handled the organizational, financial, and managerial processes for a training operation that exposed high-level Chinese government officials to the tools and techniques of western business and governmental structures. One of the start-up opportunities in 2015, where her roles included office manager and project manager, saw her rise to Vice President and a company valued today in millions of dollars.
In 2018, Jing Li discovered Taiyi. Taiyi’s holistic approach to health and emphasis on treating the whole person spoke to Jing Li’s roots in Hangzhou. Hangzhou is not just a city of fine arts and crafts but is rich in the art of Chinese Medicine. In fact, The Museum of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Hangzhou is the only state-level professional Chinese medicine museum in China. Jing Li’s ongoing passion for holistic practices can be traced to the richness of her heritage in China. While her travels through Europe and North America revealed how these practices can be applied to vastly different communities.
“I grew up in a very rich cultural background. That’s why I have this big passion for life and the oneness of all.”Jing Li co-founded WICH in 2018. Her passion and goal is to see the holistic approaches of WICH spread worldwide enriching the lives of millions and drawing us together as a global community.