An immigrant from mainland China, Jin De Ou served as director of Taiwan's National Expressway Engineering Bureau from 1990 to 1995, and then as the chairman of the Public Construction Commission from 1996 to 1998.

As deputy mayor of Taipei City, Ou was critically involved in two major disasters within four years—the Jiji Earthquake of 1999 and the SARS outbreak of 2003. Ou led rescue teams for the earthquake victims and headed the emergency response task force at the Peace Hospital, and has since been considered the foremost crisis management expert in Taiwan.

During his time at the National Expressway Engineering Bureau, Ou met a civil engineer who happened to be a photographer. Upon Ou’s blessing, the engineer quit his job and became the award-winning aerial photographer known as Zeppelin. After Zeppelin died in a helicopter crash in 2017, Ou founded the Zeppelin Foundation so that his photography will continue to raise awareness on environmental issues. Ou also chairs Good Shepherd, a Catholic foundation providing services for women and children in crisis.