Walter Wang

Walter Wang is a Taiwanese philanthropist, businessperson, and CEO. He is the co-founder of The Walter and Shirley Wang Foundation, and JMM Foundation, a philanthropic organization. He is also the CEO of JM Eagle, a global manufacturer of plastic pipe. Wang's father was Wang Yung-ching, founder of the plastics and petrochemicals conglomerate Formosa Plastics Group and one of the wealthiest individuals in Taiwan before his death in 2008. His sister is Cher Wang, co-founder and chairperson (since 2007) of HTC Corporation and integrated chipset maker VIA Technologies.

In 2013, Wang served as a representative of the China Overseas Exchange Association (COEA) in Beijing. The same year, Wang met with former Chinese premier Li Keqiang while traveling to Beijing as part of a Committee of 100 delegation. In 2017, Wang was named as an executive director of the Fifth Council of COEA. In March 2018, Wang attended the first session of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in Beijing. In 2019, Wang was listed as a standing director of China Overseas Friendship Association (COFA).

Early life and education

Wang's father was Taiwanese billionaire, Wang Yung-ching, who is known informally as Y.C. Wang. Wang is the youngest of Y.C. Wang's five children by Wang Yang Chiao. When Wang was nine years old, Wang Yang Chiao left Taiwan against Y.C. Wang's wishes. They moved to Berkeley, California to be closer to one of Yang Chiao's older children, Cher Wang. Wang attended University of California - Berkeley before moving back to Taiwan to work for his father's corporation, Formosa Plastics Group, in 1988.

Career

In 2005, Wang purchased JM Manufacturing through syndicated loans from his father. In 2007, Wang bought PW Eagle, another large PVC pipe producer, to form JM Eagle. JM Eagle continues to exceed $1 billion in sales. JM Eagle relocated its headquarters to Los Angeles, California in 2008.

Wang is a board member of the publicly listed Formosa Petrochemical and Formosa Chemical and Fiber Corporations in Taiwan. He is also a member of the Young Presidents Organization Los Angeles and Intercontinental chapters. He belongs to the World Economic Forum and the Committee of 100. Wang sits on the board of directors for the Danny Thompson Memorial Leukemia Foundation, the Los Angeles Police Foundation, the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center, the DEA Educational Foundation, the Chinese Overseas Exchange Association (COEA), and the Boao Forum in China. Along with his wife, Wang is a trustee of the U.S. Olympic Committee, and both serve on the board of the Los Angeles Olympic Committee 2028.

Philanthropy

Wang is a benefactor to causes in the United States and internationally, ranging from education to healthcare, social and immigration issues, anti-drug campaigns, and efforts to raise cultural awareness. He is co-founder of the Walter and Shirley Wang Foundation and the JMM Foundation, along with his wife. Together, the Wangs established an endowed chair at the Cedar Sinai Medical Center for Pediatric Surgery, both to fund novel research in pediatric surgery and to assist underprivileged children in need of surgery. The Walter and Shirley Wang Foundation helped establish the DEA Museum in Los Angeles, California, with the goal of educating the public on illegal drugs and trafficking. They also support Doctors Without Borders.

Walter and Shirley Wang established an endowment at University of California - Los Angeles (UCLA), Shirley Wang's alma mater, to support students from middle-income families and have given scholarships in chemistry and biochemistry to students, graduate students, middle-income students, fellowships, and study abroad programs. The Wangs have also endowed a chair for Asian American Studies and a chair for Medicinal Discovery at UCLA. The couple also funded Wang Hall at Harvard Westlake School in Los Angeles, California, and provided the lead donation for the renovation of the Harvard Westlake Humanities and Art Building. At UCLA, they endowed the first academic chair on U.S.-China relations and Chinese American studies in the United States.

The Wangs are the most prominent sponsors of the Emmy-nominated PBS documentary ''Becoming American: The Chinese Experience'' by ill Moyers

In the wake of the COVID-19 global pandemic, JM Eagle and Plastpro, Inc. also donated surgical masks to Ohio facilities local to the Plastpro, Inc. factory. Walter and Shirley Wang donated $1 million to the Mayor's Fund of Los Angeles, in addition to supplies for face shields intended for use at Cedars Sinai Medical Center and the Innovation Lab at UCLA.

Recognition

Wang received the Model Overseas Chinese Young Entrepreneur Award, presented by the president of Taiwan, in 1998, the Best Manufacturer Award from the Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce in 2005, and was the recipient of the Committee of 100 Philanthropy Award in 2007.

The Wangs have been supporters of projects to address social and healthcare problems in China, including seed-stage and ongoing support for the China AIDS Initiative, an awareness and prevention program. Through this organization, they have funded public service announcements that have reached 500 million people to help stop the spread of AIDS and discourage cigarette smoking in China. Wang and his wife have been recognized by the China AIDS Initiative in 2006, the Museum of Chinese in America in New York in 2007, and the Los Angeles Chinatown Public Safety Association in 2008, as well as honored by Asian Americans Advancing Justice with its 2010 Public Service Award.

The Wangs received both the China Institute's Blue Cloud Award and the Philanthropy Award from the Asia Society in 2016. The couple were honored by the Anti-Defamation League with their Humanitarian Award in 2018.

Personal life

Ten days after purchasing JM Eagle in 2005, Wang was diagnosed with stage-four nasal cancer. He was issued a clean bill of health in mid-2006.

References

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Wang, Walter
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
American chief executives
American philanthropists
American people of Chinese descent