The founder of the Institute for National Policy Research, Evergreen Group Chairman Chang Yung-fa, was born in Taiwan in 1927. In 1968 he single-handedly created the Evergreen Shipping Company. With his continual insistence on moral principles and entrepreneurial spirit, coupled with hard work and team spirit, the company went from strength to strength: by 1985 Evergreen Shipping had become the world's largest container shipping company. Chairman Chang did not rest there; he steadily expanded the Group's activities, creating an overland shipping network, EVA Airlines, and other related subsidiaries, giving the Group a global presence in all areas of sea, air, and land transport. Through his tireless efforts and his forward-looking spirit, Chairman Chang has become a model for all Taiwanese entrepreneurs and, indeed, an embodiment of the successes of the whole nation.

     During the late 1980s, Taiwanese politics experienced a rapid transformation. The swelling tide of democracy created an urgent need for new social ethics and new thinking in policy. In order to forge a consensus on reform, the participation of a pluralistic civil society was critical. Therefore, Chairman Chang, from both a businessman's natural concern for public affairs and his generous desire to "give back" to society, decided in 1989 to make a donation to found the National Policy Resource Center; in 1991, this Center became the Institute for National Policy Research, under the Chang Yung-fa Foundation. The INPR thus became the first private think tank in Taiwan.

   From its inception, the INPR has assembled many talented researchers, from all political perspectives. Guided by a professional and objective academic spirit, they have analyzed, with steadily increasing success, the whole range of important policy topics facing Taiwan during the transitional period. In addition, each year the Institute has held major international conferences, bringing together the most influential academics and policy-makers, both domestic and foreign. These ever-deeper inquiries, and the resultant suggestions for progressive reform, have not only benefited the government and decision-makers from all parties, but have also contributed to the process of opening up Taiwan's relations with the rest of the world and to the raising of Taiwan's international status. All of these accomplishments have hinged upon Chairman Chang's persistent, selfless support; under his patronage, the ideal of a private think tank that can use knowledge to better the world has become a reality.

    In 1998, based on the principle of ever-widening public participation, the INPR was further reorganized as an independent foundation. At the same time, all of us, not forgetting that the source of our endeavor lies in the great contributions, moral integrity, and pioneering spirit of Chairman Chang, take this opportunity to express our deepest gratitude to our founder.