Our Mission

We hope this finds you and your loved ones well and thriving in the post pandemic era, and that reading these words feels as we are together in person!

On behalf of The Mothers’ Bridge of Love (MBL), I would like to invite you to celebrate our 20th anniversary.  We have come a long way in this time but never forgotten about those who have travelled with us on our journey, and there is no better occasion than an anniversary to thank our selfless volunteers and supporters.

When MBL was established on 18 August 2004, we were clear in what we wanted to achieve:

•    Provide better access to education for left-behind children in China.

•    Help children around the world understand China’s vibrant traditional culture.

•    Support Chinese children adopted into Western families understand their cultural heritage.

But we knew it would be hard. As a small cultural charity organisation working on a global scale, how long would we last?

Today, MBL is as a vibrant as ever, thanks in large part to our ever-expanding team of volunteers. Over the past 20 years, we’ve had the great fortune to work with over 1,000 volunteers from 27 different countries, across three

Central teams:

•    MBL London International Cultural Events Team

•    MBL China Volunteer Centre

•    MBL Website and Multimedia Team

Almost 20 years on, and we still uphold our beliefs, continue to offer assistance, and move forward, like a small stream merging into the sea of love.

20 years on and our conviction and passion for what we do is unwavering. Like the small stream that traverses many mountains to reach the boundless sea, we continue to make our mark.

Here is a summary of some of the key projects MBL has undertaken over the past 20 years:

•    Hundreds of cultural exchange programmes with adoptive families from 27 countries their adopted Chinese children.

•    The Books for Kids (B4K) project, which has helped establish 28 school libraries in rural China. 

•    Annual volunteer training and workshops in both China and the UK. 

•    Supported countless Chinese New Year and other festival celebrations in Western schools and organisations, including the Young V&A (formerly the V&A Museum of Childhood) and China Exchange in London. 

•    We have updated the MBL website four times during this period and recently launched an exciting new logo design. We also have a brilliant volunteer team who manage our social media.

•    During the COVID-19 pandemic, MBL organised and delivered 14 hugely successful online forums, featuring prominent figured from the arts, literature, business and politics. At the same time, we

developed collaborations with organisations in Europe, China, and the United States.

•    Throughout this period – and especially during the pandemic – we provided much-needed assistance and advice to many Chinese students studying abroad.

•    2022-2023 MBL, with Fusion Education (FES) and KYX International (KYX), organised the 1st and 2nd UK English Chinese Bilingual Recitation Competition, for students from across the UK, aged six to eighteen, competing in five different age groups. The events were supported by over 40 MBL

volunteers.

•    2024 MBL joined a UK education project by British Council and the Consulate of Chongqing in

China, and set up an online quarterly event Dialogue about Adoption, helping Chinese adoptees to communicate between birth and adoptive culture.

Also:

•    MBL’s media team supported the delivery of the acclaimed exhibition, ‘China’s Hidden Century’, at the British Museum in 2023.

•    MBL supported the appearance of renowned Chinese author Xue Mo at the London Book Fair and The

Frankfurt Book Fair 2023. At the same event, we hosted cultural events bringing Chinese authors together with Western translators, scholars, and social activists. We would also like to take the opportunity to thank Xue Mo and his team for their generous support for the Books For Kids project!

•    MBL continues to support the Global SinoPhoto Awards, portraying the lives and cultural heritage of

Chinese communities worldwide through captivating photography, and promoting international

cooperation among photographers. Continuously support the "ACA Sinoist Books " of Chinese translated literature and contemporary novels.

•    MBL is celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2024!

We are immensely proud of these achievements and everything we have accomplished in the past 20 years. We truly value and appreciate every volunteer, every adoptive family, every supporter and every partner who have supported us along the way. Without you, we wouldn't be where we are today!

Dear friends, the world is always changing in all sorts of ways, many of them alarming, and the future can

sometimes feel overwhelming and uncertain. What we can be certain about, however, is that MBL’s mission remains the same. We will continue to work hard to build bridges, between birth culture and adoptive culture, between the rich and poor, and between the West and China.

It is our firm belief that education and communication are the cornerstones of world peace. As such, we are devoted to providing children with a better education. With our talented and dedicated MBL volunteer team, we hope to contribute to a more hopeful future, both domestically and internationally.

So once again, heartfelt thanks for everything you've done for us. We cherish your friendship, and sincerely appreciate your ongoing support.