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Coke with a twist of Chinese cultureBy Lei Lei (China Daily)Updated: 2007-01-19 15:46 In the 1970s, when his father was an American diplomat, the young Brooks got the chance to attend a Chinese middle school in 1976. His deep interest in Chinese culture brought him back after finishing university in the US. "I had the good fortune and good luck to come to China as a young boy and attended one of the Chinese middle schools," said Brooks, recalling his early days in China. "Beijing has become my home in China. Beijing is very Chinese. It has a very rich cultural life," Brooks said. "At the same time, I really enjoy traveling to places like Xinjiang, Ninxia, Qinghai and Yunnan. China has very beautiful scenic areas." Beijing's successful bid to host the Games gave Brooks a good opportunity to keep working in the country - and his whole family has moved to Beijing. "We enjoy living in Beijing. We go out to local restaurants all the time and we like to walk in parks," Brooks said. "We really enjoy Beijing life. It's very easygoing, very convenient. You can get great food. You can get all kinds of things very easily." Working for Coca Cola, which has extended its sponsorship contract with the International Olympic Committee to 2020 - becoming the longest partner of the Games - Brooks regards it his duty to not only work for an Olympic partner, but also be a responsible citizen of the city. For the goal of a "Green Olympics" in Beijing, Brooks is spearheading his company's efforts in environmental protection. Coca Cola has organized green Olympics activities in the past two years, which involved more than 300,000 students from primary and middle schools. "The Olympic Games has several key elements. It is traditionally about the sport and cultural events, but it is also increasingly an environmental event to raise the consciousness of people in the host city about environmental issues," he said. "We are working very hard to develop some very unique green Olympic programs to bring the 'Green Olympics' to a wider community." With his special bond to China, Brooks is looking forward to his fourth Olympic Games. "I look forward for a once-in-a-lifetime magical experience," he said. "Even without 80 years' partnership with the Games, we see Beijing Games as a very special opportunity, because of the great passion of the Chinese people for their own first Olympics. We all feel privileged to be part of such an exciting and important event for China and also for our company."
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