Washington Free Beacon: Chinese Climate Group Led by CCP Insiders Gave More Than $1M to Harvard and University of California in 2024, Tax Filings Show
A group led by former Chinese government officials increased its financial support for green energy initiatives at American universities in 2024, according to newly released tax filings obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
Energy Foundation China (EFC)—whose CEO was a senior Chinese government climate negotiator and whose board chairman served as a director for China’s national legislature—sent $1.2 million to Harvard University, four schools within the University of California system, and Villanova University. That is almost double what the group directed to universities the year prior.
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“Americans need to know that the Energy Foundation China is nothing more than an influence operation of the CCP,” Caitlin Sutherland, the executive director of ethics watchdog Americans for Public Trust, told the Free Beacon. “Lawmakers should be on heightened alert and investigate this organization for the adversarial enterprise that it is.”
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And the group’s top international cooperation officer, Yunfei Xing, managed energy development projects in developing countries for China Machinery Engineering Corporation. That company is a subsidiary of the state-run conglomerate China National Machinery Industry Corporation, which seeks to spread Chinese influence across the world by developing infrastructure projects in poor regions.
“The Energy Foundation is an independent, nonpartisan, charitable organization headquartered in San Francisco,” the EFC spokeswoman said. “We do not accept funding from any government or political party. No government or party directs or controls us or our grantmaking decisions. We do not fund or engage in activism, litigation, lobbying, or electoral activities in any country, and are fully committed to complying with all applicable laws and regulations.”
The universities didn’t return requests for comment.
