Co-presented by USF Center for the Pacific Rim For over 3000 years, traditional Chinese medicine has brought health and healing to millions of people throughout Asia. Today, TCM is enjoying a surge of popularity in the US also as people seek answers to health questions that elude western practitioners. While the increasing worldwide respect for and use of TCM is laudable, there is also a tragic consequence: the decimation of a wide ranging and growing number of animal species whose parts are used in traditional medicine. In fact, seven of the world's eight species of bear have seen their numbers reduced as a result of the demand for their body parts. Yet for the highly endangered Asiatic Black Bear, whose story is perhaps the most tragic, there is a ray of hope in the form of a unique partnership between the Chinese Government and Animals Asia Foundation, a Hong Kong based charity. Join Jill Robinson and Lixin Huang, President of the American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, for a fascinating look at the use of endangered species products in traditional medicine. Robinson and Huang have formed a unique partnership aimed at providing TCM practitioners and users world-wide with information regarding alternatives to endangered species ingredients in traditional medicine. Speakers: Jill Robinson, founder of the Animals Asia Foundation, was awarded the MBE (Order of the British Empire Award) by the Queen of England for her work on behalf of animals throughout Asia. She has been profiled by CNN, National Geographic, Animal Planet and the BBC for her ground-breaking programs in conservation and animal welfare. Lixin Huang, President of American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine (ACTCM) and President of Council of Colleges of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (CCAOM) in US, is active at the national and international level to promote healthy people and a healthy planet by protecting endangered species. Her work is highly respected and recognized by the Chinese community, TCM education and professional community and by the conservation community in both US and China.