(WEI YAO)

Ambassador Joseph Verner Reed, Under Secretary General of the UN, won an award for special contribution to Chinese books presented by the General Administration of Press and Publication of China on August 28, in a ceremony tied to the 19th Beijing International Book Fair.

Launched in 2005, the national award is given to foreign writers, translators and publishers with outstanding contribution to the promotion of Chinese culture and publications to the world. So far, a total of 33 people have received the award.

Born in 1937 in the United States, Reed was a graduate of Deerfield Academy and Yale University, Class of 1961. In 1987, he was appointed under secretary general of the UN for Political and General Assembly Affairs. In early 1989, President George H.W. Bush appointed Ambassador Reed chief of protocol of the White House, where he served until late 1991.

Since 1990, Reed has been involved in a publishing project entitled The Culture and Civilization of China, initiated by Yale University Press and the China International Publishing Group. The planned 10-book series ranges from painting, architecture, ancient philosophy, sculpture, calligraphy, ceramics and silks. The project marks the largest cooperative publishing effort between China and the United States, garnering a great deal of attention in international publishing circles.