Book Talk with Yue-Sai Kan

Join China Institute for an inspiring evening with Emmy Award-winning television host, entrepreneur, philanthropist, and bestselling author Yue-Sai Kan (靳羽西) as she discusses her memoir, The Most Famous Woman in China and How She Did It. In conversation with Susan Yuqing Feng, Director of Programs at China Institute, Yue-Sai will reflect on her extraordinary career bridging the United States and China through media, business, and cultural exchange, sharing the experiences and lessons behind a life of innovation, leadership, and cross-cultural impact.

The conversation will be followed by an audience Q&A and book signing.

Schedule
5:30–6:00 PM | Check-in
6:00–6:45 PM | Conversation with Yue-Sai Kan, moderated by Susan Yuqing Feng
6:45–7:00 PM | Audience Q&A
7:00–7:30 PM | Book Signing

Speaker and Moderator:

Yue-Sai Kan
Emmy-Winning TV Host, Entrepreneur, Fashion Icon, Bestselling Author, and Nobel Peace Prize Nominee

Yue-Sai Kan is a journalist, television host, author, and entrepreneur widely regarded as one of the most influential cultural figures in modern China, the woman TIME magazine called “the Queen of the Middle Kingdom.” She has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by six distinguished leaders in academia and foreign policy in recognition of her lifetime of building understanding between China and the West.

On October 1, 1984, she hosted the first live U.S. television broadcast from Beijing, seen by millions on PBS. Her weekly CCTV program One World reached more than 400 million viewers, making her the first non-citizen to host on Chinese national television and introducing a generation to the wider world. In 1992, she founded Yue-Sai Cosmetics, China’s first beauty brand created for Chinese women. The company grew into one of China’s leading cosmetics brands before being acquired by L’Oréal, becoming one of the country’s most successful entrepreneurial success stories. Her Emmy Award-winning documentaries and eleven best-selling books on modern life and etiquette shaped how a rising China saw itself and the world. In a rare national honor, she became the first and only living American to appear on Chinese government-issued postage stamps, commemorated with two separate stamp issues in 2002 and 2005.

As UNICEF’s first Global “Say Yes” Ambassador and Founder of the Yue-Sai Kan One World Foundation, she has built rural health stations, trained health workers, and supported education across China. She serves on five charity boards, including as Co-Chair of the China Institute, which has promoted Chinese culture in America for over a century. Today, through the One World Foundation, she continues her mission of building global understanding through international digital media. The Foundation’s “One World with Yue-Sai” series has filmed across the United States, China, Egypt, Thailand, and South Korea, reaching more than 1.4 million YouTube subscribers and over 58 million views worldwide while showcasing stories that inspire cross-cultural dialogue and understanding.

Her memoir, The Most Famous Woman in China, tells that story.

Susan Yuqing Feng
Moderator
Director of Programs, China Institute of America

Susan Yuqing Feng joined China Institute as Director of Programs in October of 2023. Before joining CI, Susan was the Editor in Chief of Bitpush News, a leading block chain media based in New York and a columnist for the Financial Times Chinese Edition.

Throughout her journalism career, Susan conducted interviews with a multitude of world economic and political leaders, including Warren Buffet, Bill Gates, Alan Greenspan, Paul Volker, President Clinton, Zbigniew Brzeziński, Michael Bloomberg, Thomas Friedman, and many more. Susan has also directed the documentary series “World Movers” which was released in March 2018. It illustrated the emerging new world order 70 years after WWII, shedding light on what has changed the U.S. and the world and the forces affecting everyone. It focused on the relationships between technology and globalization, the impact on immigration, and the future of U.S.-China relations.

Susan graduated from Columbia University and got her MA in International Affairs.