The John Tung Foundation (JTF)

Founded on May 19, 1984 by Mr. John Tung with the support of Dr. David Yen, the John Tung Foundation's guiding philosophy is to promote the "Respect for Life", and its main objective is the promotion of "Health for All" for the people of Taiwan. Over two decades, under the leadership of past President David Yen, the successor leaders, and the efforts of all colleagues at the foundation, the John Tung Foundation has become one of the most important organizations dedicated to public welfare in Taiwan. It is highly respected by both its people and its government.

David Yen originally oriented the foundation to work in three main fields: tobacco control, mental health and nutrition, and the foundation has had three permanent teams elaborating this work over the years. The foundation has also been very active in promoting protection of the environment, and has tackled many other public health issues.

Beyond the JTF, late-President David Yen's initiatives and coordination, the Asia Pacific Association for the Control of Tobacco (APACT) was found in Taipei on June 12, 1989. It's main objective was to unite Asian anti-tobacco strengths to fight together the international tobacco's invasion of Asia. During its 20 years of anti-tobacco campaigns, the foundation has become the first and main non-profit organization for tobacco control in Taiwan

Besides tobacco, a major issue leading to serious health problems like improper foods intake and obesity was the lack of a proper food hygiene and balanced nutrition education in Taiwan. Hence, starting also in 1985, the John Tung Foundation began a program called "Nutrition Classroom" to provide public education about nutritional balance and food hygiene to the common people. It developed weight control contests as an education tool, and promoted the establishment of a system of food classification for the entire school system so as to prevent the onslaught of junk food into campuses and school buildings.

In the field of mental health, John Tung started in 1985 to promote youth leadership education, "public welfare young warriors" training, overseas exchanges for the youth, "happy growth" camps, etc.. to enable future generations to start from childhood to cultivate a sound personality and develop better skills in human relations, interpersonal communication, social rituals and human cooperation. During these years, the stress of modern society has also taken its toll on the Taiwanese, leading to a serious increase in suicide rates. For this reason, the foundation has for long been sponsoring series of activities dealing with stress management and depression in its efforts to contribute to better mental health.

Following its belief in the concept of "Health for All", despite very limited resources in both personnel and monies, the John Tung Foundation has in the past 20 years built an impressive record of contributions to public health in Taiwan and in the region. With both the public's expectations and support, the John Tung Foundation will continue to contribute more in actively safeguarding public welfare, expanding ever more love and effort into the future.