Shanghai presented its annual Magnolia Silver Award to 50 outstanding expats from 18 countries on Nov 23, recognizing their significant contributions to the city's development and international exchanges.

The ceremony took place at the Grand Halls on the northern end of the Bund, with Kong Fu'an, director-general of the Foreign Affairs Office of Shanghai Municipal People's Government, conferring the medals and certificates to the recipients.

In his address, Kong emphasized Shanghai's status as an international, innovative, and inclusive city that has taken the lead in achieving Chinese-style modernization. He highlighted the vital roles that expats, foreign-invested enterprises, and foreign institutions play in the city, noting that they have been "not only witnesses, but also active participants and contributors."

This year's award recipients come from diverse fields such as trade, finance, technology, shipping, healthcare, education, culture, sports, and agriculture. Among those honored was Pietro Brambilla from Italy, North Asia chief financial officer at L'Oreal China. Brambilla has spearheaded L'Oreal's investment and development in Shanghai, helping the Chinese market become the company's largest globally. He has also contributed to creating a market-oriented, law-based, and international business environment in the city.

Kong also recognized Dmitri Mokhov from Canada, an airframe model development expert at COMAC Shanghai Aircraft Customer Service. Mokhov has led his team in overcoming numerous technical challenges and filling various gaps, significantly contributing to the "Shanghai Manufacturing" brand.

Hong Shen from the United States, senior vice-president and head of Roche Innovation Center of China at Roche R&D Center (China) Ltd, was praised for his efforts in establishing Roche China's accelerator and upgrading its innovation center. The center's inventions have resulted in over 300 patents, contributing significantly to the high-quality development of Shanghai's biopharmaceutical industry.

Francis Gurry from Australia, former director general of the World Intellectual Property Organization, was commended for his support in developing intellectual property in Shanghai and promoting multifaceted cooperation between WIPO and the city. His efforts have helped Shanghai in its quest to become an international intellectual property hub.

Franka Gulin from Croatia, director and chief representative of the Croatian National Tourist Board Shanghai Representative Office, was also among the recipients. Kong noted that Gulin has "worked tirelessly to share China's stories with the world, promote Shanghai's wonders, and introduce the city's unique culture."

"We sincerely hope that the award recipients will continue to be ambassadors of Sino-foreign friendship, storytellers of Shanghai, and representatives of Shanghai's image," Kong said.

Professor Marc Delpech from France, a representative of the awardees, shared his experiences contributing to Sino-French medical cooperation over three decades. As the coordinator of the French-language training program for medical students at Shanghai Jiao Tong University and currently vice-dean of the Sino-French School of Medicine at the university, Delpech emphasized the enduring and expanding friendship between China and France. He noted that his predecessor, Professor Guy Vincendon, received the Shanghai Magnolia Silver Award in 2003, highlighting the continuity and strength of their bilateral medical and educational relationship.

Another awardee, Carlo D'Andrea, chief representative of Studio Legale DAndrea, has helped many foreign companies settle in China, particularly in Shanghai. The Italian lawyer praised Shanghai as "the best location to do business in China", especially in the fields of new technology and high tech. He highlighted Shanghai's commitment to deepening reform and opening-up, which gives the city "a lot of potentials to be unleashed".

D'Andrea valued the direct access to the city's leadership, noting that each year, the Shanghai mayor meets with international business leaders to seek advice, feedback, and ideas for better development of the city. "I had the opportunity to meet many times with the mayor and the vice-mayor to discuss how we can attract more European investment into Shanghai," he said. "I like this kind of opportunities where you have direct access to the leadership, because the exchange of ideas and exchange of opinion is the best way in order to have a better future together."

Shanghai began awarding the Magnolia Silver Award to expats in 1989, later introducing the Magnolia Gold Award and Honorary Citizenship in 1992 and 1997, respectively. Over the past 35 years, 1,877 expats have received these honors, underscoring the city's appreciation for their contributions.

 

Here is the list of the award winners.

1. Mr Francois Maurice Amman, France

Co-Founder & Co-President,

Aden Group

 

2. Mr Binyi Bai, the United States

Executive Vice President of Business Group Electronics China at FORVIA HELLA

Member of the Executive Board Electronics of HELLA GmbH & Co. KGaA

 

3. Dr Patrick Berbon, France

Co-Founder & Managing Partner,

CM Venture Capital LLC.

 

4. Prof Tobias Biancone, Switzerland

Director-General,

International Theatre Institute ITI

 

5. Dr Maruthi Prasanna Boddupalli, India

Director of Global Maize Program,

International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center

 

6. Mr Atakan Bozkurt, Turkiye

Chief Executive Officer,

Burger King (China) Holding Co Ltd

 

7. Mr Pietro Brambilla, Italy

North Asia Chief Financial Officer,

L’ORÉAL (China) Co Ltd

 

8. Prof Adam Brandenburger, the United States

Director for the Program on Creativity and Innovation, Area Head of Economics, Global Network Professor, NYU Shanghai

J.P. Valles Professor of Business Economics and Strategy, Leonard N.Stern School of Business, NYU

Distinguished Professor, Tandon, NYU

 

9. Mr Weiming Cao, Canada

President,

Hermès Greater China

 

10. Mr Chae Young Chang, the Republic of Korea

China CEO,

F&F CHINA Co Ltd

 

11. Ms. June Chang, the United States

President,

Boston Scientific Greater China

 

12. Mr Himanshu Chaturvedi, India

CEO of Olam Agri - China

Regional Head of Olam Agri - China & ASEAN

 

13. Ms. Viola Chen, Singapore

Senior Vice President,

Shanghai Kehua Bio-Engineering Co Ltd

 

14. Dr Philippe Cinquini, France

Professor of School of French and Francophone Studies,

Shanghai International Studies University

 

15. Mr Maxime Renaud Degaldi, France

Country Director of Airswift Group - Greater China

CEO of Swift Technical Engineering Consultancy (Shanghai) Co Ltd

 

16. Mr Carlo D’Andrea, Italy

Managing Partner and Shanghai Representative Office Chief Representative of Studio Legale D’Andrea

National Vice president European Chamber and Chairman of Shanghai Chapter

 

17. Prof Marc Delpech, France

National Coordinator of the French-speaking section and Vice-Dean of Sino-French Joint Medical College of Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine

Professor Emeritus of Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Member of the National Academy of Medicine of France

 

18. Mr Oscar Dos Santos Emboaba Junior, Brazil

Football Player,

Shanghai Port Football Club Co Ltd

 

19. Dr Marcus Ewig, Germany

CEO of Rhenus Automotive SE

Chairman of Rhenus Automotive (Shanghai) Holding Co Ltd

 

20. Mr Daniel Falush, UK

Principle Investigator,

Shanghai Institute of Immunity and Infection, Chinese Academy of Sciences

 

21. Mr Juergen Fleischer, Germany

Advisory Professor of School of Mechanical Engineering of Tongji University

German Director of Sino-German Joint Research Center (Tongji University)

Professor and Head of Institute of Production Science, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)

 

22. Dr Sthe United States n Galbraith, UK

Executive Vice-President, Oncology R&D,

AstraZeneca

 

23. Ms. Franka Gulin, Croatia

Director & Chief Representative,

Croatian National Tourist Board Shanghai Representative Office

 

24. Prof Francis Gurry, Australia

Former Director General of World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

Honorary Professor and Board Member of Tongji University

Honorary Dean of Shanghai International College of Intellectual Property

 

25. Mr Manfred Hafner, Germany

General Manager,

Atlas Copco Industrial Technique (Shanghai) Co Ltd

 

26. Mr Yu Huang, Italy

General Manager,

Intesa Sanpaolo Shanghai Branch

 

27. Mr Cameron Michael Hume, Australia

Global Wholesale Director,

Travelex International Limited

 

28. Ph.D. Ken Kaku, Japan

President of Pigeon Manufacturing Shanghai Co Ltd

Pigeon China Vice President

 

29. Mr Shinichiro Kanno, Japan

Mizuho Bank, Ltd

 

30. Academician Efim Khazanov, Russia

Visiting Professor of Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Chief Scientist of Institute of Applied Physics of Russian Academy of Sciences

 

31. Prof Mikhail Korobkov, Russia

Professor of School of Mathematical Sciences,

Fudan University

 

32. Mr Nathaniel Madarang, Philippines

President,

Goodyear Asia Pacific

 

33. Mr Sumitoshi Matsuo, Japan

Executive Officer,

Regional General Manager of East Asia Region,

Nippon Express Holdings, Inc.

 

34. Mr Dmitri Mokhov, Canada

Airframe Model Development Expert,

COMAC Shanghai Aircraft Customer Service Co Ltd

 

35. Mr Matthias Mross, Germany

Deputy General Manager & CFO of KOSTAL Asia

KOSTAL (Shanghai) Management Co Ltd

 

36. Mr Kosei Nakamura, Japan

Chairman of the board,

Mitsui Chemicals Functional Composites (Shanghai) Co Ltd

 

37. Mr Qing Pan, Germany

Member of Board of Management JLR

President and CEO of JLR in China

 

38. Mr Jason Peng, Singapore

Global Vice President, China Group President,

Danaher Corporation

 

39. Mr David Norman Prince, UK

Board Director,

The Adecco Group

 

40. Academician Julius Rebek, the United States

Strategic Scientist, Professor,

Director of Center for Supramolecular Chemistry & Catalysis,

Shanghai University

 

41. Mr Christopher Rogerson, UK

Head of IB Language Acquisition,

Shanghai Jincai High School

 

42. Prof Karl Barry Sharpless, the United States

W.M. Keck Professor of Chemistry of Scripps Research

Visiting Chair Professor of Shanghai Jiao Tong University

 

43. Dr Hong Shen, the United States

Senior Vice President, Head of Roche Innovation Center of China,

Roche R&D Center (China) Ltd.

 

44. Mr Ian Shih, the United States

President,

Rockwell Automation (China) Ltd.

 

45. Mr Brendan Michael Tansey, Australia

Managing Director,

Viking Cruises China

 

46. Mr Simone Trazzi, Italy

Chief Operating Officer and Executive Director, Asia Pacific

Region, UFI Group

Board Director, UFI Group

 

47. Mr Hirokazu Tsuboshima, Japan

Director & President & China Business Leader of Shanghai YKK Zipper CO., Ltd

Vice President of YKK CORPORATION, Japan

 

48. Ms. Michal Tzhori, Israel

Foreign Mediator,

Shanghai Commercial Mediation Center

 

49. Mr Takeshi Yoshida, Japan

President of Sony (China) LTD.

China Deputy Representative of Sony Group

 

50. Dr Justin Zackey, the United States

Executive Director of UCLA Global Classroom,

DDHS Shanghai Soong Ching Ling School