Friends of Nature (China)

Friends of Nature (FON, Chinese: 自然之友; pinyin: zìrán zhī yǒu) is the People's Republic of China's oldest environmental non-government organization. On March 31, 1994, the organization was officially registered under the name Green Culture Institute of the International Academy of Chinese Culture under the Ministry of Civil Affairs. The focus of the group is to raise awareness about environmental protection ( such as saving endangered species, recycling, energy conservation etc.) through workshops, field trips and the training of teachers. Furthermore, FON has been instrumental in the development of other environmental NGOs and student groups across China because NGOs in China are technically forbidden from establishing branch offices.[1] FON was China's first legal NGO.[2]

  1. ^ Elizabeth C. Economy. 2004. The River Runs Black: The Environmental Challenge to China's Future, Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press, ISBN 0-8014-8978-4
  2. ^ "Liang Congjie". The Economist. 18 November 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2012.