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Celebrations for road safety scheme [China Daily: Hong Kong Edition](China Daily: Hong Kong Edition Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) "We made a right decision 10 years ago when we kicked off BMW Children's Traffic Safety Education early in 2005," said Olaf Kastner, president and CEO of BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd. "Looking at the traffic conditions now, it is necessary to start safety education as early as possible for children, so that they can learn how to be safe from a very young age," he said. The German vehicle producer started a new chapter in what is one of China's longest corporate social responsibility projects by celebrating the education scheme's 10th anniversary in Beijing on May 30. The 2014 program, called Safeguarding Children for 10 Years, focuses on social issues and aims to provide an instructive and enjoyable learning experience. The program features a new children's safety education game app, a new version of the safety textbook, more than five safety education classrooms and a knowledge theme park, which was the centerpiece of the program's launch on Children's Day. "Children require and rely on guidance and support in road traffic situations. We want to share our know-how. As the core project of BMW's corporate citizenship strategy, BMW Children's Traffic Safety Education adheres to the philosophy of interactive teaching in order to promote safety-related knowledge," said Kastner. "Seeing the smiles on these lovely children's faces has been the best reward in our strive to contribute to the well-being of young children in the past decade, which also fully embodies the brand philosophy of BMW JOY," he said. To mark the 10th anniversary, BMW Children's Traffic Safety Education will strengthen its cooperation with the Ministry of Education in a bid to benefit more people. This year the theme park will continue its partnership with the BMW Warm Heart Fund to deepen its reach into another BMW CSR project called BMW JOY Home. The partnership hopes to make safety education an important part of the fund's classroom work and help left-behind and migrant children from the BMW JOY Home raise their safety awareness. Peter van Binsbergen, senior vice-president of sales and marketing for BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd, donated traffic safety teaching tools to a fund volunteer during the celebration. Actress Tao Hong, who champions children's safety, also made use of the opportunity to urge parents to use child safety seats in vehicles. The 2014 BMW Children's Traffic Safety Education program will also upgrade its education model and expand content and communication channels. In addition to learning sites such as AnAn Traffic School, AnAn Junior Camps, AnAn Joy Land, and AnAn First Aid Center, the new traffic safety theme park has also expanded the AnAn Quality Education Factory. This aims to give children a chance to see the automobile manufacturing process and commitment to quality through a quality safety course evaluated by the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine. BMW has also developed a children's education app, which should give more children access to traffic safety advice via a virtual classroom. The BMW Traffic Safety Textbook has also been upgraded. The new version shifts its focus from voluntary reading by children to an interactive model that encourages parents and their children to study and grow together. BMW sent out 260,000 textbooks during the past four years, according to Kastner. "We will accelerate the handover with 100,000 books delivering to children this year," he said. After the first leg in Beijing the free theme park will continue its tour to Hangzhou, Shenzhen, Xi'an and Shenyang. Decade of commitment BMW Children's Traffic Safety Education program has adhered to the philosophy of teaching through interactive activities since it started in 2005. During the past decade the program has continuously reached deeper into the education sector through a series of initiatives, such as the theme park experience, the TV series cartoon AnAn's Story and the child safety education app. The program has popularized safety education among Chinese children through innovative education modes and various communication channels. By shifting the attitude of learning knowledge to transforming habits it sought to subtly change families' travel habits. The education campaign has focused on social issues, starting with traffic safety and later introducing environmental concepts, safety seat promotion, and the BMW Joy Home Fun Classroom, which focuses on vulnerable children. BMW Children's Traffic Safety Education program has covered 63 cities and benefited 360,000 Chinese children. The long-term public welfare project embodies BMW's corporate social responsibility as a leading auto enterprise, as well as its dedication and sincerity towards Chinese society. "For the next decade, BMW will further continue our CSR efforts, including the children's traffic safety education, to benefit as many people here in China as possible," said Kastner. [email protected] Children, teachers, BMW senior executives and VIPs at the theme park to launch the 2014 BMW Children's Traffic Safety Education program. Photos provided to China Daily A volunteer teacher at the AnAn Quality Education Factory, part of the 2014 BMW Children's Traffic Safety Education program, tutors a child who is one of the little quality inspectors. (China Daily 06/04/2014 page15) (c) 2014 China Daily Information Company. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info). |