If Carol Chyau has her way, 2009 will mark the first Year of the Yak in the Chinese zodiac. Carol is CEO of Shokay, which produces home furnishings, children’s clothes, accessories and yarn from yak fiber.

Looking to create sustainable economic development to remote areas of Western China, Carol and Shokay President Marie So purchase their yak fiber directly from the region’s herders and work with female knitters from rural communities.

Until now, yak down has been overshadowed by cashmere, alpaca and other premium fibers. Carol and Marie are seeking to change this. “Most people don’t realize how soft and warm yak down is,” explains Carol. By rebranding the Year of the Ox as the Year of the Yak, they hope to raise awareness of yak as a luxury fiber in the international fashion world.

Carol and Marie co-founded Shokay in 2006. Over 100 stores worldwide—from China to the US, France and Japan—now stock their products. Building on the successful 2008 opening of Shokay’s flagship store in Shanghai, Carol and Marie have established a partnership with Esquel, the world’s largest cotton spinner. Together, they are developing yak/cotton blend yarn to sell to major fashion labels.

“Shokay is style with a touch of humanity,“ says Carol. “We want to open people’s eyes to this exotic, socially responsible luxury.”





China may be the world’s largest honey producer, but pure honey is expensive and scarce. Alia Malik, Managing Director of Shangrila Farms, is helping meet this need and bringing sustainable income to local communities. Shangrila Farms cultivates affordable, pure honey in the pristine mountains of Yunnan Province. This beautiful area, noted for its abundant local wildflowers, is perfect for producing high-quality honey.

In 2008, Alia worked on a trial project, setting up 20 beehives in a local village. “It was very rewarding to see farmers, who had never raised bees before, using our materials to produce honey,” Alia says. Over the next two years, she plans to expand honey production to other villages and set up a plant for quality control and bottling.

Although it is rich in biodiversity, Yunnan Province is China’s secondpoorest region. Local subsistence farmers need extra income to pay for basics such as school supplies for their children. Shangrila Farms positively impacts these farmers’ daily lives by helping them set up hives and packaging, marketing and reselling the honey they produce.

Creating a business that gives back to the community was a natural step for Alia, a development economist. “Working on development projects in Africa and Asia helped me understand what a powerful tool business can be for addressing poverty,” Alia explains. “I wanted to help people by creating sustainable income sources.”





Growing up around Smokey Mountain, Manila’s poorest neighborhood, Kimberley Ong witnessed the devastating cycle of poverty, malnutrition and death that affects many Filipino communities today.

Over 4 million children, 3 million adolescents and 5 million adults in the Philippines suffer from Protein-Energy Malnutrition (PEM). If untreated, PEM increases the chance of developing diabetes, coelic disease and other potentially life-threatening conditions.

“PEM is a serious issue in the Philippines right now,” Kimberley says. “I wanted to do something to help solve the problem, so I set up AlgaVentures.”

Created in 2008, AlgaVentures offers food supplements made from spirulina, a vitamin-packed alga with three times as much protein as soy.

To fight against PEM, the company has developed low-cost spirulina candies called Spirals. AlgaVentures is partnering with TrigoWold, a local food manufacturer, to start production. The company is also negotiating a deal with Pathways to Higher Education to distribute Spirals to public schools.

In addition to Spirals, the company offers alPRO, a powdered spirulina that can be added to any kind of food or drink.

For Kimberley, the next step is heading out to the schools. “In the coming months, we’ll be going to public schools and giving the children Spirals to see how they like them, and also increase public awareness about PEM.”