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Metro Vancouver’s Chinese community — specifically, newer immigrants mostly from China — has in recent years stepped up charity work with a number of Canadian causes, often led by business and community groups.

Within the last two weeks, two major fundraisers (the corporate-led CAChinese Night on July 30, and a ceremony by the Canadian Alliance of Chinese Associations on Aug. 3) brought together several hundred people to raise $160,000 for the Canadian Cancer Society, and to support Fort McMurray wildfire victims through the Canadian Red Cross.

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The following are five things to note from this recent phenomenon of growing charity work within the Chinese community.

1) The activities are similar to those by earlier Chinese-immigrant groups (such as those from Hong Kong in the 1990s).

Previous waves of Chinese immigration, such as from Hong Kong and Taiwan more than two decades ago, also did significant fundraising work after members of those communities adapted to the B.C. social landscape, according to UBC history professor Henry Yu.