Ming-Ai's Projects

Ming-Ai (London) Institute is proud to have developed a range of projects across oral history, cooking healthy Chinese food and engaging with the the political system. These projects are run to develop a deeper cross-cultural understanding and bridge the educational gap between the Chinese community and the wider UK population, fostering engagement among communities. By running these projects Ming-Ai has been able to offer work-based learning through various internships and placement schemes.

Like other voluntary organisations, we value the assistance from volunteers so that we can grow and therefore to help develop our projects and to reach out to different communities. Various volunteers are needed for our projects to run such as tutors, translators, office helpers, project volunteers, and graphic designers. Training will be given to volunteers if necessary, if you are interested to join us, or would like to find out more information, please contact us and we will explore possible opportunities together. Volunteer application form can be downloaded here (editable PDF file).

Over the years the institute has run a number of successful projects, these include:

British Chinese Workforce Heritage
A 3-year old history project that covers the history of the British Chinese through interviews and research. This project began in 2012 and will be completed in 2015 following a number of exhibitions in local and national museums.

Healthy Chinese Cuisine Ambassadors
Bringing healthy Chinese cuisine into schools across London this project works with professional chefs to deliver a informative lesson to students where they can learn more about Chinese cuisine.

British Chinese Food Culture
An in-depth exploration of this history of Chinese food in the UK, the history of how the food arrived and the memories and thoughts of those who love to cook and eat Chinese food.

The Evolution and History of British Chinese Workforce 
The Workforce Evolution project uses oral history as a way to explore the history of the Chinese community in the UK. The project went across the UK, from Limehouse to Manchester, Glasgow and Liverpool in an effort to track the various histories of the Chinese community in the UK.

East-West Festive Culture
The first oral history project run by the Institute examined various Chinese festivals, how these traditional Chinese festival differ from their British counterparts and why.

Making Chinese Votes Count
Making Chinese Votes Count led a drive to register and inform the Chinese community about their vote in the 2006 election and beyond.