Mr Desmond Lee was elected a Member of Parliament (MP) for the West Coast Group Representation Constituency (GRC) in July 2020. Prior to that he served as an MP for Jurong GRC. During his time as a back-bencher, he also served as a member of the Government Parliamentary Committees for Culture, Community and Youth, Home Affairs and Law and Social and Family Development.

Mr Lee is currently the Minister for National Development, and the Minister-in-Charge of Social Services Integration. He co-chairs the Singapore Together Movement, the Emerging Stronger Taskforce and the Future Economy Council Sub-Committee for the Built Environment. He also co-chairs the Singapore-Tianjin Economic and Trade Council, as well as the Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-city Joint Working Committee.

Mr Lee was first appointed as Minister of State for National Development in September 2013. After his re-election as MP for Jurong GRC in September 2015, Mr Lee was appointed as Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs and National Development. In 2017, he was appointed Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and Second Minister for Home Affairs and National Development. Later in the same year, Mr Lee was appointed the Minister for Social and Family Development and Second Minister in the Ministry of National Development.

Mr Lee began his career in the civil service as a Justices’ Law Clerk of the Supreme Court, providing legal research support. He then served as a Deputy Public Prosecutor and State Counsel in the Criminal Justice Division of the Attorney General’s Chambers. In 2005, Mr Lee was posted to the Ministry of Health to head its legal department.

Before entering politics, Mr Lee also spent two years at the Legal Policy Division of the Ministry of Law. Subsequently, he joined Temasek as in-house counsel until his appointment to office at the Ministry of National Development (MND).

Mr Lee graduated in 2001 from the National University of Singapore with first class honours in law. He also holds a Masters degree in law from the University of Oxford.

Mr Lee is married with three children.

Ms Grace Fu graduated with a Bachelor of Accountancy (Honours), and subsequently obtained a Masters of Business Administration from the National University of Singapore. She began her career in 1985 with the Overseas Union Bank, and later with the Haw Par Group, in the areas of corporate planning, financial controls and business development. Ms Fu joined the PSA Corporation in 1995, and took on different responsibilities in finance and marketing. She held the position of Chief Executive Officer, PSA South East Asia and Japan, where she was responsible for the business performance of PSA’s flagship terminals in Singapore, Thailand, Brunei and Japan. Ms Fu was elected as a Member of Parliament in June 2006 for the Group Representation Constituency of Jurong, Yuhua Division. She contested and won her seat in the Yuhua SingleMember Constituency in the 2011, 2015 and 2020 General Elections. In 2006, Ms Fu was appointed to the Ministry of National Development as Minister of State. Two years later, she was promoted to Senior Minister of State, and given a concurrent appointment in the Ministry of Education. In 2011, she was appointed as Senior Minister of State in the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts, and the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources. In August 2012, she was appointed as Minister, Prime Minister's Office, Second Minister for Foreign Affairs, and Second Minister for Environment and Water Resources. In 2014, she was put in charge of the Municipal Services Office. In 2015, Ms Fu was appointed Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, and Leader of the House. She also chaired the National Integration Council, National Youth Council, and sat on the board of the People’s Association. She was also involved in a number of committees, including as co-chair of the Singapore-Zhejiang Economic and Trade Council, the SinoSingapore Tianjin Eco-city Joint Steering Council, the Ministerial Committee on Ageing and the Economic Strategies Committee. In July 2020, Ms Fu was appointed Minister for Sustainability and the Environment. Ms Fu is a member of the Central Executive Committee of the People’s Action Party and holds the appointment of Organising Secretary. Ms Fu enjoys an active lifestyle, which includes running, yoga and hiking. She is married with three sons.

Sven is the Managing Director at Accenture Strategy, based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and leading the Supply Chain & Operation practice in South East Asia.

In this role, he is currently focusing on the impact of Digital on Supply Chain and Procurement, in terms of how Digital opens up new opportunities for value & innovation as well as what impact Digital has on the workforce.

Since 2000, he has driven projects to realise substantial cost reductions for clients in the area of Sourcing & Procurement through Strategic Planning, Strategic Sourcing and Procurement Pre-Merger Integration. Additionally, he has led multiple engagements developing fit-for-purpose operating models to drive efficiency and enable growth across Procurement and a variety of Supply Chain & Operations functions.

He has deep experience in the Oil & Gas, Chemicals and FMCG industry. He has worked extensively across ASEAN and China. Before moving to Kuala Lumpur in 2009, he was based in Belgium and worked extensively in The Netherlands and US.

Bey Soo Khiang was appointed Vice Chairman of the RGE Group of companies in March 2011.

A former aviation executive and distinguished defence leader, Mr Bey oversees critical matters on business sustainability across the four key business groups within RGE Group. He is also Chairman of APRIL Group and actively guides APRIL Group’s operations in Indonesia on matters relating to fibre plantations.

Mr Bey previously spent 11 years in Singapore Airlines (SIA), holding various senior positions including Chairman of SIA Cargo Pte Ltd, Chairman of Silkair Pte Ltd, Chairman of Singapore Flying College, as well as at Virgin Atlantic Limited. A former Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) overseas scholar, Mr Bey was Singapore’s Chief of Defence Force from 1995-2000.

Mr Bey holds a Masters in Arts (Engineering) from University of Cambridge and a Masters in Public Administration from Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. He has also attended the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.

Mr. Pascal De Petrini has been Senior Vice President Chairman Asia at Danone since October 2017.

He has been working in senior management positions in the food and beverage industry for more than 35 years.

Pascal joined Danone in 1984 and worked in France until 1998 when he became the General Manager of Danone’s Biscuits division in China. From 2002 until 2011, he had general management responsibilities at country level and regional level in Waters and Early Life Nutrition categories. After a period as Chief Executive Officer of Food & Beverage at Fraser and Neave Ltd, he joined Fonterra Co-Operative Group Ltd as Managing Director Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa in October 2013. In 2015, Pascal returned to Danone as Executive Vice President of Strategic Resource Cycles until moving to his current role.

He has a wealth of experience in Boards of listed (Asia Pacific Brewery, Vinamilk, Yakult Honsha, Mengniu Dairy..) and non-listed companies in Asia. From 2015 until 2017 he was Chairman of Danone Ecosystem Fund and on the Board of Livelihood Fund for Family Farming, two important social innovation funds created by Danone.

He graduated from École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Nancy in France with a1 Master of Science in Engineering degree in 1981 and obtained a Master of Science in Management degree from ESSEC Business School in France in 1983.

Mabel leads ELEVATE’s Sustainability Consulting practice in the Asia Pacific region. She is also responsible for the ELEVATE Strategic Partner Program, a global membership network for sustainability professionals. Mabel's sustainability experience in the last decade includes advisory on supply chain consulting, sustainability strategy and reporting, materiality assessment, stakeholder engagement, and impact measurement. She delivers training on community investment strategy and impact measurement. Mabel has also presented at a number of regional sustainability events, including convening Asia’s flagship sustainability conference, CSR Asia Summit.

Mabel joined ELEVATE from CSR Asia. Prior to that, Mabel has extensive experience in the development sector. In her last role, Mabel was in an Asia-Pacific regional role liaising with senior government representatives, NGOs, corporates and UN bodies, providing technical assistance to countries starting up national child protection helplines.

Her languages include English (native) and Mandarin (spoken). She holds a BA (Political Science and Psychology) and a Master’s degree in Public Administration (Policy, Public and Non-Profit Program) at New York University (NYU).

Ariel leads the development of Forum’s growth and impact in the Asia region including both the Mumbai and Singapore offices, as well as New Zealand. She’s been designing and delivering sustainability change initiatives for over 15 years across a broad range of sectors, including agriculture, electronics, shipping, aviation, apparel manufacturing and fast moving consumer goods.

Prior to joining Forum she worked for the Helsinki Group, a collaborative strategy and design firm to design internal innovation programs for partnering organizations, such as the Secretary General’s Office of the United Nations and the Stupski Foundation, which aimed to catalyse systemic change in the American public education system.

Prior to that, Ariel worked at Saatchi and Saatchi S where she designed and delivered sustainability programs for Fortune 100 companies such as Wal-Mart, NBC Universal, Duke Energy and P&G. When living in New York, Ariel was Adjunct Faculty at Parson’s New School where she taught a course which integrated urban policy, systems thinking, environmental science and design thinking. She received her MBA in Sustainable Business from Bainbridge at Presidio.

Roger is a world renowned futurist, New York Times bestselling author and social entrepreneur who mentors entrepreneurs to grow their social enterprises and make an impact.

Roger is the founder of Genius Group, a $300 million group of companies leading the entrepreneur movement. Genius Group is World's largest Entrepreneur Education Group with over 2,000,000 entrepreneurs in over 200 cities. The Group includes his tech company, GeniusU, which connects entrepreneurs to the smartest knowledge, purpose, connections and opportunities, with circles for each of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. This enables entrepreneurs to connect with other enterprises and non-profits linked to their cause.

Roger is the creator of the Purpose Test, allowing adults and students to discover which of the 17 United Nations Global Goals aligns most with their purpose. All of Roger’s companies empower the Entrepreneur Movement - collectively growing our ability to create and contribute wealth.

Mr Ho is the Chief Executive Officer of SBF. The SBF is the Apex Business Chamber of Singapore with membership from more than 27,200 top companies.

SBF serves as the voice of the Singapore business community both locally and internationally. It runs many programmes to connect its member companies to overseas business opportunities. Mr Ho represents Singapore as a member of APEC Business Advisory Council. He is also a member of the World Council of the World Chambers Federation of the International Chamber of Commerce based in Paris. Mr Ho is the Vice-President of Global Compact Network Singapore (GCNS), the local chapter of the United Nations Global Compact which provides an ecosystem for companies to align strategies and operations to achieving the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Prior to joining SBF in 2011, Mr Ho held a variety of senior policy and executive positions in Singapore Government including four years as Principal Private Secretary to then Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew; as Deputy Secretary in the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was also Chief Executive of the Singapore Broadcasting Authority, Land Transport Authority and Managing Director of the Economic Development Board.

Mr Ho currently serves on the Board of Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority, SBF Foundation, Governing Board Member of East Asian Institute and several public sector advisory bodies. Mr Ho is also a Fellow of the Singapore Institute of Directors.

Ms. Shahamin S. Zaman is an economist and has over 20 years of development sector experience with international organizations including Harvard Institute for International Development ( HIID ), Ashoka Foundation, Canadian International Development Agency, Actionaid International, UNDP, DFID and others across a wide range of sectors including private sector development, agriculture, gender, health & population and education. She has also led teams on fundraising, partnership development, international communications, resource mobilization, child sponsorship and research monitoring and evaluation. She is an expert on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and private sector engagement, multi-stakeholder dialogues and policy advocacy. Her experience ranges in facilitating dialogues with donors, NGOs, INGOs. CSOs and private sector as well as Government.

She is an advocate for CSR at the national, regional and international levels in order to promote responsible business practices for a sustainable future. She has initiated multi-stakeholder discussions on the UNGC Principles including the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, Food and Agriculture Business Principles, Women Empowerment Principles (WEPs ),etc. She has been engaged at policy level for developing the National CSR Policy for Children in Bangladesh based on the CRBP and initiator of the National CSR Guideline for Bangladesh Government. As CEO, CSR Centre in Bangladesh she has been successfully advocating for companies to engage and implement the business and human rights framework and SDGs.

She has been on the board of the UN Working Committee for Labour & Human Rights; a member of the World Humanitarian Summit (WHS) Regional Steering Committee for South & Central Asia led by UN Secretary General, a Board Member at Solidaridad International, Chair of Solidaridad Asia, Chair of Global Compact Local Networks Regional Council – Asia & Oceania Region, Member of UNGC Global Network Council, Multistakeholder Advisory Board member of GRI South & SE Asia, member of amfori Stakeholder Advisory Board, member of SAI Advisory Board and member of the Board of Governors of UCEP a national NGO working on education for underprivileged children and youth.

Raymond is currently the Vice President for Customs and Regulatory Affairs for DHL Express covering Asia Pacific excluding China. His role includes working with governments, particularly Customs and Trade agencies on various reform and modernization programs and enhancing partnerships between DHL Express and Customs administrations from across the region.

He has over 25 years experience dealing with Customs and Trade issues covering both public and private sectors dealing with all aspects of this area. His first role involved setting up the ASEAN Free Trade Area in the ASEAN Secretariat in 1994 as well as managing customs cooperation and trade facilitation issues in ASEAN as the Secretariat’s Assistant Director for Trade Facilitation. He subsequently worked as a customs and trade consultant in various consulting companies including PricewaterhouseCoopers and Ernst & Young.

Prior to joining DHL, he headed indirect tax issues for Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa for an international tobacco company. He is the current Chair of the EU-ASEAN Business Council Working Group on Trade Facilitation. His areas of expertise include: trade facilitation and policy making, trade negotiations, customs simplification, customs valuation, tax and logistics supply chain efficiency, free trade areas and their rules and requirements, WTO and WCO issues.

Raymond graduated with a Bachelors in Economics from Cambridge University and a Masters in Economic Development (specializing in ASEAN Trade) from Oxford University.

Pascal took on the role of Group Country Head, Singapore and Head of South East Asia and India, when he moved to Singapore in September 2012.

Prior to that, he was the Regional Chief Operating Officer for Societe Generale Corporate & Investment Banking in the Asia Pacific, where he led the Global Business Services Group since January 2010. He joined Societe Generale Corporate & Investment Banking in Hong Kong in June 2009 as Chief Operating Officer for Global Markets, Asia Pacific.

Prior to joining Societe Generale, Pascal spent most of his career at Bear Stearns as a Senior Managing Director and in various international assignments in Hong Kong, Dublin and London. Pascal also spent a short period at JP Morgan Hong Kong. He started his career at Banque Indosuez, in Djibouti, Mumbai and Tokyo.

Pascal is a graduate of Ecole Superieure des Sciences Economiques et Commerciales (ESSEC) with a specialisation in Finance. Pascal, representing Societe Generale, has been elected as President of the French Chamber of Commerce in Singapore on 25 August 2017. He also serves as a Director of Passerelles numériques South East Asia and Conseillers du Commerce Extérieur Section de Singapour.

As Ben & Jerry’s point person in Asia Pacific, Kalli’s responsible for crafting brand strategy and communication plans for the region, as well as coordinating new market expansion around the world. But it doesn’t stop there. Like all Ben & Jerry’s employees, Kalli stands up when there’s a cause worth fighting for. That passion has put her centre-stage in a number of change-making campaigns, taking on issues of climate and social justice from Australia to Singapore.

Most recently, she was instrumental in Ben & Jerry’s ‘Unfudge our Future’ campaign, calling on Australia’s leaders to make fossil fuels history and build a clean, resilient and fair future for Australia.

Erin Meezan is Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer at Interface, Inc. She gives voice to the company’s conscience, ensuring that its strategy and goals are in sync with its aggressive sustainability vision established more than 20 years ago. Today, Interface has evolved its thinking to go beyond doing less harm to creating positive impacts, not just for Interface and the flooring industry, but for the world at large.

Erin led the company to unveil a new mission in 2016 – Climate Take Back, tackling the single biggest threat facing humanity: global warming. This mission is focused on creating a path for Interface and others to reverse global warming, not just reduce carbon emissions.

As CSO, Erin leads a global team that provides technical assistance and support to this audacious goal and the company’s global business, addressing sustainability at all levels – from operations and management, to employees and customers, and in policy forums. Erin and her team also develop industry-leading approaches to measurement, driving transparency and innovation in the field of sustainability.

Erin is a frequent lecturer on sustainable business to senior management teams, universities and the growing green consumer sector. She has keynoted at a variety of conferences and forums including Bioneers, GreenBiz, VERGE, Greenbuild, Sustainable Brands, SXSW, SXSW Eco, Conscious Capitalism and others, and to business audiences around the world in Singapore, China, Hong Kong, the United States and Europe.

In addition, she serves as a guest faculty member at Harvard University for the Executive Education for Sustainability Leadership program. She also serves on the Sustainable Entrepreneurship MBA (SEMBA) program advisory board for the Vermont Grossman School of Business.

Erin is a magna cum laude graduate of the Vermont Law School, where she earned her Master’s Degree in Studies in Environmental Law and her Juris Doctor degree.

Veera has founded several social enterprises, which operate in Singapore, India and Indonesia. He has a keen interest in addressing sustainability challenges through foresight methods, community development and technology.

He is a pioneer of the maker movement in Singapore, was awarded the National University of Singapore Outstanding Young Alumni Award in 2019, the Joseph Jaworski Next Generation Foresight Asia Special Award in 2018 and represented Singapore at its UN SDG Voluntary National Review in the same year. He sits on the Lotus-NUS Fund panel which awards seed funding to social enterprises in Singapore.

He is currently working on ensuring AI fluency across the general population, getting companies to innovate around the UN Sustainable Development Goals and tackling the challenges of aging societies.

Ho Kwon Ping is the Founder and Executive Chairman of Banyan Tree Holdings and Laguna Resorts and Hotels, and Executive Chairman of Thai Wah Public Company.

He is also the founding and current Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Singapore Management University and Chairman of The Singapore Summit.

Among various awards, Mr Ho has received the London Business School Entrepreneurship Award; CEO of the Year at the Singapore Corporate Awards; CNBC Travel Business Leader Award ; Distinguished Alumnus Award from the National University of Singapore; and Lifetime Achievement Awards from the American Creativity Association, China Hotel Investment Summit, Australia Hotel Investment Summit. Honoured for his contributions and accomplishments in the hotel industry in the Asia Pacific region and globally, Mr Ho is the only two-time recipient of Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific - HICAP’s Innovation Award (2003) and Lifetime Achievement Award (2019) in its 30-year establishment.

For his services to the country he has been decorated with the Meritorious Service Medal and the Distinguished Service Order by the Singapore Government. Mr Ho has also been conferred honorary doctorates by Johnson & Wales University and from Hong Kong Poly University.

Deborah is regional head of the South East Asian business for BlackRock and country head of BlackRock Singapore. BlackRock is one of the world’s leading providers of investment, advisory and risk management solutions. As of end-Q4 2019, BlackRock’s assets under management total US$7.43 trillion across fixed income, cash management, alternative investment, real estate and advisory strategies. Singapore is one of the major hubs for Aladdin, which is BlackRock’s operating system for investment professionals that enables every aspect of the investment process.

Deborah is a member of the Asia Pacific Steering committee which is the senior most leadership body for BlackRock in APAC, a member of the Asia Pacific Exco which is a general management group for the region. Globally, Deborah represents BlackRock APAC on the human capital committee, which is the most senior leadership group ensuring the implementation of leadership and culture priorities of the firm. Deborah is a recognised champion for gender and cultural diversity both within the firm and in the finance industry. She is a global executive committee member of BlackRock’s global women’s initiative group.

Deborah is passionate about developing leaders in the financial services sector in Asia. She is active in contributing to the development of the financial industry in Singapore. She represents BlackRock on FCAP, MAS’ financial centre advisory panel which consists of the most senior representatives of the top financial institutions in Singapore. She is most recently focused on the development of ESG investing at BlackRock and is a steering committee member of the ESG working group at FCAP. She is regularly invited to speak on gender diversity and the championing of sustainability.

An active advocate for green building and sustainability for over two decades, Esther has been instrumental in establishing CDL’s leadership in sustainability. It is ranked top real estate company on the 2020 Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World and is also the only CDP A-List company for climate strategy and water security in SE Asia.

Key ESG initiatives she has spearheaded include publishing the first sustainability report using GRI standards in Singapore in 2008; issuing the first green bond by a Singaporean company in 2017 and pioneering an SDG Innovation Loan in Singapore in 2019.

A forerunner in embracing the UN SDGs, Esther was conferred 2018 SDG Pioneer for Green Infrastructure and A Low Carbon Economy by the UN Global Compact. She was also recently appointed Chairperson of Asia Pacific Real Estate Association’s Sustainability and ESG Committee and Co-Chair of Urban Land Institute Singapore’s Sustainability Product Council.

Ms Goh joined Shell in 2003 and retired as Chairman of Shell Companies in Singapore in January 2019. She was previously with Procter & Gamble and IBM. A global leader, she has lived and worked in Singapore, Malaysia, Netherlands, Australia, USA, Japan and China. Ms Goh has a diverse professional background, having led significant businesses in Oil & Gas, Consumer Goods and IT sectors.

Ms Goh is on the Boards of CapitaLand and Singapore Airlines. She chairs the Institute of HR Professionals and Global Compact Network Singapore. She also sits on public service boards including Legal Service Commission and National Arts Council.

Ms Goh had previously chaired/sat in the Boards of Shell Joint Ventures in China, Korea and Saudi Arabia.

Ms Goh graduated with B.Sc. - Victoria University and MBA - Chicago Booth, University of Chicago. She was named Distinguished Alumni, Chicago Booth, in 2018. She is married with three children.

Melissa Kwee is the third Chief Executive Officer of the National Volunteer & Philanthropy Centre (NVPC).

Her career has involved her bridging the public, private and community sectors as anthropologist, researcher, programme designer, social innovator and as a catalyst in the private sector. She has founded, run and served on the boards of several nonprofit organisations and ground-up initiatives relating to youth, women, the arts, the prisons, community development, healthcare and education. She is also Chairman of MHPL, a Pontiac Land company.

She received the Singapore Youth Award in 2007 and Asean Youth Award 2008 for her leadership and service and was appointed as a Justice of the Peace in 2018.

Melissa was educated at Harvard College and graduated magna cum laude in Social Anthropology. She also received a Fulbright Scholarship to study ethnic-based community leadership in Nepal.

She believes that genuine friendships are the purpose of life and is passionate about building a culture of giving and other-centeredness where people give their best for others. She enjoys family time, learning from children, peers, elders and strangers, and discovering new stories in the #cityofgood.

Michael is the head of Listing Policy & Product Admission at Singapore Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo), a subsidiary of Singapore Exchange (SGX) that undertakes frontline regulatory functions. He oversees listing policy and rules development and has oversight of the listing admission of securities products, including debt securities, structured products and exchange-traded funds.

Michael graduated from the National University of Singapore (NUS) with a Bachelor of Laws degree and is admitted to the Singapore bar. He is a member of the Advisory Board of the NUS Business School’s Centre for Governance, Institutions and Organisations (CGIO). Michael leads SGX’s efforts to promote sustainability across stakeholder groups.

Prof George is the Dean of the Lee Kong Chian School of Business at Singapore Management University (SMU) and a committee member of Global Compact Network Singapore’s Management Committee.

Prof George was also a member of the Corporate Governance Council of the Monetary Authority of Singapore tasked to redraft the Corporate Governance Code of Singapore in 2017.

An award-winning researcher and teacher, he has published over 100 articles in leading journals. His areas of interest are in innovation, entrepreneurship, sustainability and tackling grand challenges in society. He was awarded a prestigious Professorial Fellowship from the UK's Economic and Social Research Council to work on socially-inclusive innovation in areas such as natural resources, healthcare, and energy.

For his contribution to further education and research, Prof. George was awarded Fellowship of the City & Guilds of London Institute. He is also Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.

Shantanu is Lee Kong Chian Professor of Operations Management at SMU and Deputy Dean of programmes. Previously, he was Associate Professor of Operations Management at INSEAD. He holds a PhD in Operations Management from the University of Texas at Austin.

His teaching and research interests are in the areas of supply chain management, innovation and new product development, project management, services management, and change management. He has consulted for several firms and consortia, and has served on the advisory board and taught executive development programmes for a number of firms in various sectors.

He has been recognized for his excellence in teaching at Singapore Management University and at INSEAD with various award and award nominations. His research has been published in top business journals in different disciplines.

Frederick Teo is Director in the Sustainability and Stewardship Group with responsibilities for capability programmes in sustainability-related areas. This includes exploring innovative commercial capabilities and solutions for issues such as energy and food security. He oversees Temasek’s annual Ecosperity conference and thought leadership activities around the Ecosperity platform.

Prior to joining Sustainability Team, he served as Director, Portfolio Management. This include studying the performance of some of Temasek’s larger portfolio companies, such as Singtel and ST Engineering.

Fred holds a MSc in International Relations from London School of Economics (1999-2000) and BA, MA (Philosophy, Politics and Economics) Lincoln College, Oxford University (1996-1999).

Dilhan Pillay joined Temasek in September 2010 and has been CEO of Temasek International since April 2019.

Since joining Temasek, Dilhan has held various leadership roles, including at various times, Head of the Investment, the Portfolio Management and the Enterprise Development Groups. He has also led various Temasek market teams including Singapore, the U.S. and the Americas.

Dilhan serves on the boards of the National Research Foundation in Singapore and Enterprise Singapore. He is also a member of the Future Economy Council, the Financial Centre Advisory Panel of the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the National Jobs Council.

He graduated from the National University of Singapore with a Bachelor of Laws and obtained a Master of Law from the University of Cambridge.

Sanda Ojiambo is the Executive Director of the United Nations Global Compact. Launched in July 2000, the United Nations Global Compact is the Secretary‑General’s strategic policy and advocacy initiative calling for the alignment of business operations and strategies with 10 universal principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption. It also motivates companies to integrate the SDGs into their core business strategies and operations.

With more than 10,000 corporate participants and other stakeholders from over 160 countries engaged through 68 country networks, the Compact is the largest voluntary corporate sustainability initiative in the world. Endorsed by chief executive officers, it is a practical framework for the development, implementation and disclosure of sustainability policies and practices, committing businesses to sustainability and shared responsibility for achieving a better world.

Ms. Ojiambo brings 20 years of experience to lead the UN Global Compact. She has served as Head of Sustainable Business and Social Impact, Safaricom Plc, Kenya since 2010. Ms. Ojiambo was also the Senior Manager of Safaricom and MPESA Foundations, Kenya from 2008 to 2010, during which she led the implementation of several public-private partnership initiatives between Safaricom and UN organizations.

Throughout her career, she has cultivated and managed relationships with key business entities and civil society organizations, including her capacity development work in Somalia with UNDP and CARE International.

Ms. Ojiambo holds a Master of Arts in Public Policy from the University of Minnesota, USA, and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and International Development from McGill University, Canada.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres appointed Mr. Elliott Harris of Trinidad and Tobago as Assistant Secretary-General for Economic Development and Chief Economist effective 2 April 2018. Mr. Harris brings over 25 years of international experience in the fields of international economics and development policy analysis, coupled with knowledge of the United Nations system, multilateral and inter–agency coordination processes.

Prior to his appointment, Mr. Harris served as Assistant Secretary-General and Head of the New York Office of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) from 2015. Prior to joining UNEP, Mr. Harris began his career in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 1988. He was appointed in 2008 as Special Representative to the United Nations in 2008.

Mr. Harris holds a Bachelor of Science degree in German and political science and an advanced degree in economics. He was awarded an Advanced Studies Certificate in international economics and policy research from the Institute of World Economics in Kiel, Germany.

Tan Chong Meng is the Group Chief Executive Officer of PSA International (PSA).

He joined PSA on 1 October 2011, bringing with him a wealth of experience in managing the complexity, diversity and breadth of a global business. PSA is a leading global port group and trusted partner to cargo stakeholders around the world. With flagship operations in Singapore and Antwerp, the Group’s portfolio comprises a network of over 50 coastal, rail and inland terminals in 19 countries. PSA is headquartered in Singapore and owned by Temasek Holdings. Together with his management team, Chong Meng is responsible for the overall performance of the PSA Group and provides strategic direction on growing the company’s value through maximising assets, developing PSA port positions and engaging global business partnerships.

Outside the PSA Group, Chong Meng serves as the Chairman of JTC and is a non-Executive Director on the board of the National University Health System (NUHS). He was previously a Board Member of IE Singapore. In April 2020, he was appointed Co-Chair of the Emerging Stronger Task Force, a committee set up by the Singapore government to guide the nation’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Before joining PSA, Chong Meng was the Executive Vice President, Global Commercial, Shell Downstream, of the Royal Dutch Shell Group. He led six global businesses – many of which are world leaders engaged in the marketing and sale of fuels, lubricants and specialty products to commercial customers vis-à-vis Aviation, Marine, Industrial, Land Transport, Construction and Liquefied Petroleum Gas. A global leader with more than 20 years of experience in Shell, Chong Meng worked in USA, Europe, China and Singapore, holding various senior leadership positions that spanned management, sales, marketing, trading, refinery operations, customer service and merger & acquisitions.

Prior to Shell, Chong Meng had also worked in various positions with Singapore’s Ministry of National Development for five years.

A nutritionist by training, Charlotte Mei is a media personality, a self-taught cook, and an all-round advocate of sustainable living.

Her mission is simple: to get more people into the kitchen and get them interested in what they eat! Her content channel TheCharlotteMei shares fuss-free recipes, city food tours, and nuggets of tips for living and eating more mindfully.

From the reduction of use of single-use products to advocating for diets with a reduced carbon footprint, Charlotte is a believer in education and empowerment as a means to a more conscious co-existence.

I think as a generation that was brought up being constantly exposed to environmental issues has a lot to do with the fact that sustainability informs our decision making process. Also, being old enough to process the most visible aspects of climate change right about the time when they started gaining media attention and becoming more severe make us hyper aware of our actions on the climate.

In my professional life, the most visible way we practise sustainability is through the addition of leftover bread in the brewing process of one of our beers. I’ll be the first to say that the quantity of bread we use does not significantly contribute to the reduction of food waste, but for me, the more important aspect of this is getting people used to the idea that this can be done, and starting a conversation that will hopefully inspire further change that is much larger than us. A lesser known thing we do is that we use an electric car sharing scheme (blueSG) for all our deliveries and the bulk of transport within the company, even if this means having to walk a bit from the car return points.

In my personal life, I make small changes to my lifestyle which I hope, cumulatively, lead to a larger impact. Things like always having a plastic bag in my backpack so that I don’t have to use a fresh one, carrying a water bottle with me so I don’t buy drinks just to throw away the packaging after consuming it, and always trying my best to eat food at the place I buy it so I don’t use packaging for that.

Professor Paul Teng is Managing Director, NIE International Pte. Ltd., and Adjunct Senior Fellow, Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, RSIS, both of Nanyang Technological University Singapore. He is also concurrently Chair, International Service for the Acquisition of Agribiotech Applications (ISAAA), Adjunct Professor, Murdoch University, Australia, and Senior Fellow, Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture, Philippines. His expertise is in food security, agri- & bio- technology innovations and entrepreneurship, and sustainable development. He has over thirty years of experience from positions in international organizations (the International Rice Research Institute, and the Worldfish Centre), U.S. universities (University of Minnesota, University of Hawaii) and the private sector. Prof. Teng has won numerous awards for his work: the Eriksson Prize in Plant Pathology (Royal Swedish Academy of Science), an Honorary Doctor of Science (from Murdoch University, Australia) and is a Fellow of the American Phytopathological Society, The International Society of Plant Pathology, and The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS). He has published/ co-published 12 books and over 300 technical papers. His book on BioScience Entrepreneurship in Asia (2008) is used in several universities and his latest book is “Food Matters – Food Security and the Future of Food” (2018). Professor Teng has made visits to over 40 countries in support of development projects through consultancies with the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the German Corporation for International Cooperation (GiZ), the Asian Productivity Organization, and the Food & Agriculture Organization, U.N.

David Christian is founder and CEO of Evo & Co, that have 3 different brands under it: Evoware, Evoworld and Rethink Campaign. Evo & Co vision is to create a world without plastic pollution by providing one stop solution for single used plastic alternatives. Back to Indonesia after his study in Canada, he was surprised with how bad environmental condition in Jakarta was and moved to create something to address this issue. Now with Evo & Co, he aspires to give positive impact, not only for the environment but also the society. Outside of Evo & Co, he is the head of Natural Resource, Energy, Mineral & Environment in Indonesian Young Entrepreneur Association (HIPMI) chapter West Jakarta. He is also a co-founder and chairman of Terra BePro, a social enterprise that focused on an environmental management system. In 2020, David listed as Forbes 30 under 30 Indonesia and Asia. With this positions he hopes to inspire and engage other people to be more sustainable.

Edwin leads Food Industry Asia’s (FIA) Sustainability strategy and efforts to support FIA’s mission as the voice of the food industry in Asia. His career includes roles with industry, government and the non-profit sector, covering policy development, corporate communications, public affairs and sustainability. Before joining FIA, he was Executive Director of the Singapore Environment Council, where he promoted eco-labelling, recycling and consumer awareness on environmental issues. He was the first Southeast Asian elected to the Board of the Global Eco-labelling Network, an international network of national eco-labelling organisations, and was nominated by the media for the inaugural Singaporean of the Year in 2016 for his role in leading the fight against the haze that engulfed Singapore and several Southeast Asian countries in 2015.

Amirul is a graduate of the Bachelor of Environmental Studies, specialising in Environmental Geography, from the National University of Singapore. As a Project Manager in GA Circular, he has conducted material flow and economic analyses on plastic and food waste recycling across Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand

Calvin Chan a student from DISTED and also a Xaverian. He found his calling at the age of 20 ever since he won the Penang Green Idol 2016. His passion for environmentalism has lead him to set up his own Green Business that made him spoke in Tedx twice.

He spoke for the first time in TEDXUniversity of Nottingham , Kuala Lumpur in 2018 and Tedx Bayan Lepas 2019, Penang. He has also won the Malaysia Student Entrepreneur award by Entrepreneur Organization that lead him to represent Malaysia both in Macau and Singapore.

Furthermore, his initiative has been featured in many media such as NST, The Edge, The Sun, China Press , Penang Institute, etc and many more. Not to forget the strong support from Hong Leong Bank Jumpstart.

Today, Green Hero is available in two states: Penang and KL.

He is expanding to Melaka and Johor. He started this as a student back in DISTED college only to rescue 51 meals in 2018 but in 2019 alone, Green Hero was able to rescue close to 6000 meals from going to the landfills.

Moreover, this is a business where Green Hero helped F&B biz go Happy Hour online has helped many of them to cut down on wastage and also channel edible surplus food to NGOs.

His vision is to create a Green Hub for Malaysia for ASEAN starting with Food Waste which is the number one waste in the world!

His favorite quote, " I have said I don't want to protect the environment! What I want is that I want to create an environment where it does not protection at all."

I know too much about the climate crisis to ignore the facts so I use my knowledge and my privilege to make sustainable choices in life. I apply my creativity to causes that are in line with my beliefs. Having undertaken a masters in Food Design in Brussels, Belgium, I now work as a designer, alongside scientists, in an organisation that communicates food science to the general public, with a focus on sustainability.

It is an unfortunate fact that my country, Indonesia is the second largest producer of plastic waste after China. The world community has raised concern to Indonesia after studies confirmed the serious health and environmental threats from unmanaged plastic waste, half of which are contributed from textile industry.

I grew up in Bandung (a town in West Java) where we have Citarum River, which has now become of the most polluted river in the world. Over 2,000 industrial facilities operate along the river’s basin, of which 25% are from the garment and textile industry. The textile industries (most of them exports) account for US $20 billion in Indonesia’s economy. The elderlies recounted how the river used to be healthy and full of aquatic life before the textile and other manufacturing companies boom in Indonesia in the late 1970 and started dumping untreated wastewater effluent into the river. Numerous studies have revealed the negative impact of pollution in water and soil affecting land productivity and food security.

As young generation, I want to do something to resolve this issue. I know the problem is highly complex. I tried to reduce single-use plastic in daily usage, but it is only the tip of the iceberg of the problem. I believe that sustainable and responsible consumption is key to solving this issue. There is no technology or economic barrier; rather, it is a lack of willpower and leadership support to move farther and faster. I do believe that what we do in Mycotech is the right step forward. We are combining cutting-edge technology, social impact and sustainable business model to bring about the much needed change for the environment.

Paul oversees Rice Sustainability and Research for Olam International Ltd and acts as the Vice Chair of the Sustainable Rice Platform. Prior to Olam, Paul began his career at the International Monetary Fund as a Senior Commodities analyst where he was published regularly in the World Economic Outlook. After the IMF, Paul was the Executive Director and General Counsel of the Texas State Pension Review Board, an agency with fiduciary oversight of 400+ Pensions worth over US$200 Bn, and then the Global Head of Commodity Research at Kraft Foods where his team supported the hedging, accounting, and contracting of US$13Bn of global commodity exposures. With Olam, Paul has established Sustainability projects in India, Thailand, and Vietnam with more than 15,000 farmers in the network receiving training and support. He has a wife and two children.

As our CEO, Fengru leads the overall TurtleTree Labs team. What started as a passion to make cheese turned into a hunt for good quality milk in Asia. When her sourcing attempts failed, Fengru was prompted to dive into the idea of creating milk herself. With this, Fengru boldly founded TurtleTree Labs to create milk through cell-based methods. Fengru has 8 years of corporate sales experience working with global conglomerates such as Google and Salesforce. Her deep knowledge of the Asian market had led her to drive a USD$13M business in Google.

Pei Shan is one of the co-founder of UglyFood. Deeply concerned about the type of diet most have and the alarming amount of food waste present, Pei Shan decided to work on UglyFood as a student project which has evolved into a startup. She oversees the operations and the education outreach of UglyFood.

Armen is a Senior Advisor at the UNDP Global Centre for Technology, Innovation and Sustainable Development. Prior to joining UNDP team in Singapore, Armen acted as a head of office/partnerships and development finance officer at the UN Resident Coordinator office in Armenia.

From 2013 to 2018 he served as the Deputy Minister of Agriculture of Armenia and curated international trade, cooperation with partner countries and investments. He was a member of the negotiating team over the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement with EU and later on integration of Armenia into Eurasian Economic Union. Beforehand, he was working as an economist for USDA funded projects in Armenia and Georgia.

Armen is a president of the governing board of the National Agrarian University of Armenia, and he has been lecturing Food Economics at the American University of Armenia, as well as Behavioural Economics at the executive MBA programme at the Yerevan State Medical University.

He received medals from the Eurasian Economic Union, Food and Agricultural Organization and government of Armenia. Armen won the best defence player of the Prime Minister’s Soccer Championship and received certificate of appreciation for excellent military service in tank forces.

Melody Tay is a multi-faceted artist, writer and environmentalist. She believes culture change is what’s needed to address climate change.

Ms Ho Ching joined Temasek as a Director in January 2002 and became its Executive Director in May 2002. She was appointed Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer in January 2004. Her current focus is on the sustainability and stewardship roles of Temasek.

She started her career in 1976 with the Defence Engineering Service at the Singapore Ministry of Defence. She subsequently joined the Singapore Technologies group as its Director of Engineering in 1988, and was its President and CEO from 1997 to 2001. She was the founding Chairman of Singapore Technologies Engineering from 1997 till 2002.

Ms Ho graduated from the University of Singapore with a BSc Engg (1st class Hons, 1976). She took a Masters in Electrical Engineering at Stanford University in the United States in 1982.

She is a Distinguished Engineering Alumnus of the National University of Singapore, and an Honorary Fellow of the Institution of Engineers, Singapore. She has served on various public service boards over the years, such as the Singapore Institute of Standards and Industrial Research, and the Productivity and Standards Board (forerunners of present day Enterprise Singapore), and the Singapore Economic Development Board.

Ms Ho is Patron of the Assisi Hospice and Advisor of the Autism Resource Centre. She is a strong supporter of special needs education and other community causes.

Apala Mukherjee is the Director of Sustainability of Value Chains for BASF Corporation, located in Florham Park, New Jersey, USA.

With over 20 years of working experience in four continents, Apala started her career in Research and Development and subsequently held several global commercial leadership roles of increasing responsibility, of which the last four years was in Singapore.

Driven by her purpose of making sustainable solutions successful, Apala has a proven track record of driving business growth by integrating science and creativity as she worked across various industries ranging from nutrition, healthcare and medical devices to plastics and paints She was instrumental in driving recycling of waste streams into alternate raw materials and has represented BASF at various industry forums.

Apala has a BS degree in Biology and MS degree in Polymer Science both from Carnegie Mellon University, and an MBA from University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business She is married and is a proud dual career mother.

Joris Dierckx is the Head for Southeast Asia and CEO of Singapore at BNP Paribas. Joris started his career in 1995 as Graduate Trainee at Generale Bank in Belgium. In 1997 he was appointed as Trade Finance Manager in Mumbai, India. He moved to Ireland to work as Vice President EMEA in Project Finance in 1999.

In 2001, Joris was appointed as Vice President for Export & Project Finance Asia at Fortis, which was later merged into the BNP Paribas Group and became BNP Paribas Fortis. In 2004 he was made Head of Export & Project Finance Asia and served until 2010 in Singapore and Tokyo. From 2008 until 2010, Joris was country head for Japan at Fortis while also serving as interim Head of Merchant Banking Asia during the integration process with BNP Paribas.

In 2010, Joris was named country head of Greece for BNP Paribas and in 2012, he was appointed as country head of South Korea. From 2015 until August 2018, Joris served as country head for India and CEO of BNP Paribas S.A, Indian branches.

Joris holds a Post-Graduate diploma in Sustainable Development from the University of London, a Post-Graduate degree in Finance from the University of Leuven, a Master of Laws degree from the University of London and Master’s degree from the University of Antwerp. He is a Belgian national and speaks English, French and Dutch, born in 1969 and married with three children.

Vinod is a resource-efficiency entrepreneur and the principal founder and Chief Executive Officer of Climate Resources Exchange (CRX) and the CRX CarbonBank. A pioneer in the carbon markets since 2003, Vinod continues to design and implement holistic and inclusive carbon pricing roadmaps inter-alia carbon profiling for organizations. Vinod has vast experience and is a practitioner of energy and resource efficiency practices in the field of sustainable development and resilient innovations for mitigating and adapting to catastrophic climate change.

His current focus is on thought leadership for operationalizing Article 6 of the Paris Agreement in linking the international carbon markets for countries to meet their INDCs through collaborative carbon pricing mechanisms.

Mr. Nuboer is currently the President Asia Pacific for DSM Nutritional Products, the world’s leading supplier of vitamins, carotenoids and other fine chemicals to the feed, food, pharmaceutical and personal care industries. The business has a long tradition as a science driven pioneer in the discovery of new nutritional products, formulations, and applications.

Over the span of his career Mr. Nuboer has built a track record of building high performance teams within both corporate and private manufacturing and service organizations in Europe, Asia and Central America.

Having spent the first sixteen years of his career with Quest International as part of the former Unilever Specialty Chemicals Cluster (acquired by ICI in 1997), he was first based in The Netherlands and was subsequently expatriated in various leadership positions to Australia, Singapore, Indonesia and Mexico. Subsequently Mr. Nuboer set up a management buy-in to take over as the C.E.O. of Siam Food Services, a leading provider of cold chain marketing and distribution services in Thailand. He exited the venture after five years following a successful trade sale of the business. Prior to eventually joining DSM in 2009 he also was the Vice President for South and South East Asia for Symrise, a global major in the flavor and fragrance industry.

Leveraging a strong cultural compass and vision, Mr. Nuboer’ s aspiration is to help shape corporate leadership in societal purpose both internally as well as at regional and global leadership platforms, including through advisory board memberships.

Mr. Nuboer earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration in The Netherlands and furthermore completed executive development programs at UCLA, INSEAD, WHARTON, and HCLI.

Jessica is the founder and Managing Editor of Eco-Business; an award-winning journalist, TV presenter, director, producer, and a social entrepreneur. She has more than a decade of experience in media, journalism and sustainable development and is a columnist for national newspapers.

She is on the Board of Directors for Singapore-listed ComfortDelGro, one of the world's largest land transport companies, and is an independent, non-executive director.

She serves as Strategic Advisor to Blue Planet Environmental Solutions, and is founding Director of Embodhi (Singapore), a non-profit for women empowerment in Asia as well as founding Director of EB Impact, a non-profit dedicated to positive sustainable development impact in Asia.

She is also a member of the Singapore Institute of Directors, and currently chairs the Climate Action SG Alliance – an initiative supported by the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources to advocate climate action and raise public awareness on climate issues.

A Singapore Press Holdings scholar, she has won many journalism awards. In March 2018, she was announced the winner of the Women of the Future Southeast Asia Awards for the media and communications category. She was also named as one of LinkedIn's Power Profiles for Singapore for 2018.

Ms Goh joined Shell in 2003 and retired as Chairman of Shell Companies in Singapore in January 2019. She was previously with Procter & Gamble and IBM. A global leader, she has lived and worked in Singapore, Malaysia, Netherlands, Australia, USA, Japan and China. Ms Goh has a diverse professional background, having led significant businesses in Oil & Gas, Consumer Goods and IT sectors.

Ms Goh is on the Boards of CapitaLand and Singapore Airlines. She chairs the Institute of HR Professionals and Global Compact Network Singapore. She also sits on public service boards including Legal Service Commission and National Arts Council.

Ms Goh had previously chaired/sat in the Boards of Shell Joint Ventures in China, Korea and Saudi Arabia.

Ms Goh graduated with B.Sc. - Victoria University and MBA - Chicago Booth, University of Chicago. She was named Distinguished Alumni, Chicago Booth, in 2018. She is married with three children.

Dr Ryal Wun is the Deputy Executive Director and Legal Director of Global Compact Network Singapore (GCNS) where he oversees operations, research and compliance matters. He also leads the Carbon Pricing Leadership Coalition (CPLC) Chapter in Singapore, where he promotes the mitigation of climate change through internal carbon pricing.

Ryal has held a wide range of appointments in the public and private sectors since 1993, serving in operations and administration at national and regional levels. His career includes nearly a decade in public service where he initiated programmes in educational and community development. He was previously Managing Partner at Primus Inter Pares.

Ryal currently serves on the Governing Board of the Singapore Packaging Agreement, and on the Board of Visitors to Children's Homes of the Ministry of Social and Family Development.

A law graduate from the University of London, he holds three Master’s degrees in Business Administration, International Law, and Diplomatic Studies (Distinction) from the University of Oxford, as well as a doctorate in International Law. He is also trained in GHG Protocols and ISO 14064 carbon reporting by the Canadian Standards Association.

Michele Lemmens is a senior business executive passionate about both the need, and the opportunity, for businesses to embrace sustainability in the way they operate and champion change. She has extensive experience in business model transformation often led by strategies involving new market entry, M&A, JVs, start-ups and strategic alliances. This experience along with business development reaches across APAC, Middle East and UK geographies.

She is currently responsible for GRI's ASEAN Regional Hub, which launched in September 2019. Her focus is on working across diverse multi-stakeholder networks advocating change and enabling businesses, governments, regulators, stock exchanges, investors and academia of the ASEAN region to engage in dialogue, embrace innovative sustainability practices and make better decisions based on information that matters.

She also remains the APAC Business Sustainability Head responsible for championing Business Sustainability Initiatives with key TCS APAC stakeholders to result in measurable economic, social, environmental, governance outcomes that have industry relevance.

Pallavi Srivastava is currently the Asia Pacific & China Talent Leader for IBM’s Global Technology Services, and prior to that was the Country HR Director of IBM Singapore. Pallavi has more than 23 years of experience in the field of Human Resources across areas related to HR consulting & Strategy, HR Analytics and all aspects of Talent and Leadership Development. Pallavi has held several portfolios with IBM’s internal HR and HR consulting units and worked in India and US, and now based in Singapore for past 10 years.

A passionate believer in leveraging technology for HR solutions of the future, Pallavi has been closely involved with IBM’s HR transformation journey towards cognitive enabled HR offerings and often represents IBM’s point of view on future of HR at regional and international conferences.

Pallavi holds a B A (Hons) in Economics and an MBA with specialization in Human Resources. Pallavi also received the Business HR professional and Global Compensation & Benefits certifications from Cornell University, USA. She is certified by IBM for Design Thinking, Agile, Disruptive HR, and as a Cognitive HR practitioner. Pallavi was recently featured in the HRD Magazine’s HRD Hot List in 2017 and contributes extensively to regional print media on HR Thought Leadership and insights on Future of Work.

Vivek Pathak was appointed IFC Regional Director for East Asia and the Pacific in October 2014. He has extensive emerging markets experience in principal investments, restructuring and risk management across all industry sectors. Mr. Pathak joined IFC in 1998 and has since covered Asia Pacific, Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia in various leadership capacities. Based in Hong Kong, Mr. Pathak leads IFC’s advisory and investment operations across 18 countries, which in fiscal year 2019 reached US$3.8 billion in long-term investments, including funds mobilized from other investors.

Previously, he served as IFC Director for Investment and Credit Risk based in Washington DC, managing a team of professionals responsible for global coverage of credit risk, investment risk, integrity risk, pricing and credit/equity training. Prior to that, he oversaw IFC’s portfolio in the Middle East and North Africa and led IFC’s business development efforts in frontier markets like Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran.    

Before joining IFC, Mr. Pathak worked with Bank of America and ABN AMRO Bank in new business and risk management. In his capacity as Head of Risk Management at ABN AMRO Bank Thailand, he was responsible for managing a large and diverse portfolio during the Asian Financial Crisis.

Dr Alexander William Jackson received his undergraduate (MChem) degree from Newcastle University in July 2008. He then joined the group of David A. Fulton in September 2008 at the same university to commence his postgraduate studies. His PhD research focused on the utilization of dynamic covalent bonds within polymeric nanoparticles.

In September 2012 he moved to Singapore to take up a position as a research scientist at A* Star within the Institute of Chemical and Engineering Sciences (ICES) where he works on the development functional, degradable and biocompatible polymeric materials. He has co-authored 21 publications to date and has worked on several industrial focused projects. His research utilizes recent advancements in reversible-deactivation radical polymerization to develop sophisticated polymeric technologies for encapsulation and controlled release applications.

He is currently involved in a very large multidisciplinary project which aims to introduce main-chain degradability into chain-growth polymers prepared via radical polymerization, in order to increase their recyclability. Conventional vinyl polymers such as poly(styrene) and poly(methyl methacrylate) have been prepared via co-polymerization with cyclic ketene acetal monomers which insert oxygen-carbon bonds into the polymer main-chain, providing a route to quicker degradability and subsequent recycling.

At ICES we strongly believe that no man-made material should be dumped into the natural world. However, we also believe that plastics are an incredibly useful and crucial material that greatly benefit our daily lives. While we should certainly cut out non-essential plastic-based products those that provide significant advantages should be collected after use and recycled. In order to increase their recyclability we have to continue to innovate and develop new polymer-based materials which can easily be broken down and reused.

Christy Davis is Executive Director, Lien Centre for Social Innovation (LCSI) hosted by Singapore Management University. Christy joined LCSI in July 2019, bringing more than 25 years of experience across the private, public and social sectors.

LCSI catalyses innovative responses to social needs through applied research and capacity building in collaboration with the public, private and social sectors. Prior to joining the Lien Centre, Christy founded Asia P3 Hub, a multi-sector partnership incubation hub hosted by World Vision International. Launched in Singapore in 2016, Asia P3 Hub tackles effects of poverty by enabling partnerships to collectively create solutions which multiply resources and benefit families and communities.

Christy made the jump from corporate to humanitarian work with UNDP immediately following the Asian tsunami as a private sector partnership advisor, building on previous regional positions in the public and private sectors. She has come to be an enthusiastic proponent of traditional and unconventional collaborations and “combinatorial innovation” - where each stakeholder brings to the table their unique assets such as technical expertise, industry knowledge, human resources, networks, and financial resources. When combined together in new ways, this co-creation approach can yield innovations to solve existing problems.

She graduated in the first cohort of Singapore Management University’s Masters in Tri-Sector Collaboration in 2015, and also holds an Executive MBA from Sasin Graduate School of Business Administration, Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok.

Originally from the US, she has made her home across four countries in Asia Pacific for 30 years.

Melissa Kwee is the third Chief Executive Officer of the National Volunteer & Philanthropy Centre (NVPC). As the spokesperson for a wide range of causes, she has been involved in mobilising resources and people to aid in community development. She as assumed roles as the Chairman of Halogen Foundation, a youth leadership organisation and President of UN Women Singapore (formerly known as Unifem Singapore), where she tackled trafficking issues and initiated various community campaigns to engage and empower youth as advocates.

She received the Singapore Youth Award in 2007 and Asean Youth Award 2008 for her leadership and service. To help teenage girls on probation reintegrate into society, she founded Beautiful People, a programme of Beyond Social Services, which pairs mentors with teenage girls to offer guidance, life skills, and friendship.

Upon returning to Singapore, she started Project Access — a values-based leadership education initiative to inspire and equip girls and young women to be role models for positive change.

Her career has spanned the public, private and community sectors as anthropologist, researcher, educational programme designer, social innovator and as a catalyst in the private sector. She has served on many public service and community boards to advance the mission of causes she believes in including the National Arts Council, the Singapore Repertory Theatre, the ITE Board of Governors and Prison Fellowship International. She is currently on the boards of Crest Secondary, a specialised school for technical education in Singapore; 70x7, an initiative by the Prison Fellowship Singapore, Pontiac Land Group and Honestbee.

She holds a degree in anthropology from Harvard College and received a Fulbright Scholarship to study ethnic-based community leadership in Nepal.

Jo Tyndall was most recently New Zealand’s Climate Change Ambassador. From 2016 to December 2018, she also co-chaired the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s (UNFCCC) Ad Hoc Working Group on the Paris Agreement (APA). As Climate Change Ambassador, she was head of delegation to the United Nations climate negotiations with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade from July 2010 to March 2016.

From 2014 -2015, she held a Vice President position on the Bureau of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, representing the regional grouping of Western European and Other States.

Prior to her role as Climate Change Ambassador, Ms Tyndall was Director of the Broadcasting Unit in the Ministry for Culture and Heritage. From 1999 to 2006, she was Chief Executive of the broadcasting funding body, NZ On Air. She has also served as Chief Executive of two screen industry organisations - the Screen Production and Development Association (SPADA) and Project Blue Sky (1994 to 1999).

Ms Tyndall began her career as a multilateral trade policy specialist with the Department of Trade and Industry and subsequently the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

G.S. Sareen is the Founder, President and CEO of Omni United, one of the most dynamic companies in the tyre industry. He founded Omni United in 2003, after having identified the market opportunity available to an agile, efficient, customer-service oriented and design-driven global tyre supplier, with state of-the-art logistics and supply chain management. Under his direction, Omni has rapidly grown and evolved in the area of design, manufacturing and distribution of tyres worldwide, offering a complete range of products and service solutions to its customers in over 80 countries.

Mr. Sareen has always believed in Speed, Innovation, Sustainability and Giving back to society as the core of the company’s vision. In 2011 he launched the Mobilising Hope Campaign through which the company supported Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF). In early 2012 he set the strategic goal for Omni United to become the first tyre company in the world to become carbon neutral and this was achieved through the Radar Tyres brand in late 2013. In November 2014 he launched Timberland Tyres through an innovative partnership between Timberland and Omni United that was based on sustainability at its core.

Prior to founding Omni United, Mr. Sareen was an early entrepreneur in the booming online e-commerce industry. He successfully launched, managed and subsequently sold mindtrac.com, one of the first B2B online market exchanges in the tyre industry, backed by JP Morgan.

Mr. Sareen is an alumnus of the Daly School and the Science College in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India, and is a decorated and distinguished member of the Indian Army where he served for close to seven years. He was awarded a gallantry award for action in 1993 by the President of India. He was born in India and has been a resident in Singapore since 1994.

Rachel is the Chief Executive of ROHEI, a consultancy she founded in 2007. ROHEI is a learning and consulting partner serving organizations in 3 domains: building a culture of trust where people and results are honored, developing trusted and relationally competent leaders and navigating the people aspect of change management.

At present, ROHEI Singapore sees to a team of over 50 full-time Consultants, an office in Shanghai as well as ROHEI Foundation based out of Manila.

ROHEI has been recognized by the Great Place to Work Institute the Top 5 Best Workplaces in Asia 2016 & 2018 and Top 5 Best Workplaces in Singapore 2015 & 2017. ROHEI also received the Best Corporate Training Provider Award 2015 & 2017 by HRM Asia, as well as Top Employer Brand 2018 by Influential Brand.

Rachel is the Chairman of Trybe, a youth development entity accorded the Institute of Public Character (IPC) status. She helped start Trybe in 2001. Trybe has since partnered over 150 institutions in Singapore. In 2011, Trybe was appointed by Singapore’s Ministry of Social and Family Development to manage the Singapore Boys’ Hostel, a youth probation institution housing male offenders between the age of 12 to 21. In 2014, Trybe was appointed by Singapore’s Ministry of Home Affairs to manage the Community Rehabilitation Centre, a community based drug rehabilitation centre housing male first-time drug abusers between the age of 16 to 21.

Rachel also serves as the Chairman of the Board of the Every Nation Church. She holds an MBA from INSEAD and Tsinghua University.

Dr Bicky Bhangu is President, South East Asia, Pacific and South Korea at Rolls-Royce where he is responsible for the regional strategy, external relations, and governance of the operational activities across the company’s key business sectors in the region – Civil Aerospace, Defence and Power Systems.

Bicky is the President of the British Chamber of Commerce Singapore. Actively involved in the advancement of Singapore’s aerospace, marine and high value manufacturing industries, Bicky is member of the Future Economy Council (FEC) Manufacturing Sub-committee. Bicky is the Council Member for Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF) and is also the Vice President of Singapore Manufacturing Federation (SMF) connecting and promoting SME business opportunities with the region and beyond. Supporting regional growth, Bicky is a Board member of Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT).

Bicky is an Adjunct Professor at the Nanyang Technological University, He has a BEng in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the University of Nottingham, an MSc in Control Systems, PhD in Advanced Machines and Drives from the University of Sheffield and an MBA in Technology Management. He is a Chartered Engineer and Fellow of the Institution of Engineering Technology (IET) and Fellow of Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS).

Mr Zhaotan Xiao is RWDC's President for Asia Pacific.

Prior to RWDC, Zhaotan spent 14 years in banking as a trader in capital markets. He started his career in London with Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein (DrKW) as a founding trader on DrKW’s highly successful and innovative Hybrids Trading desk. DrKW’s entrepreneurial culture left a deep impression on Zhaotan, giving him unique opportunities to learn and take on broad responsibilities early in his career. He returned to Singapore in 2008 to set up DrKW’s Asia Commodities and Hybrids Trading business.

After the 2008 financial crisis, Zhaotan joined JP Morgan’s Global Commodities and was responsible for options trading in Asia. The structure and culture of JP Morgan left a deep impression, and he learned to do “first-class business in a first-class way”. He eventually took responsibility for JPM’s Structured Physical Commodities business in Asia, before leaving in 2015 to join a group of ex-DrKW bankers at ANZ Bank as the Global Head of Commodities Trading.

Zhaotan started his relationship with RWDC in 2017 as an investor. Struck by the Founders’ characters, the ability of the team to execute, as well as the acute importance of RWDC’s mission, he helped the company raise its first institutional funds in 2018. This finally led to a decision to leave banking to join the company in its mission to replace single-use plastics. In RWDC, he sees a highly viable platform to both do good and do well.

Zhaotan is also a loving husband and father, a Captain in the Armor Division of the Singapore Armed Forces, an angel investor, and a Venture Partner with WI Harper, a pioneering venture capital fund dedicated to investing in the US and Greater China. He holds a BSc in Accounting and Finance from the London School of Economics.

With a background in finance, Tom began organizing beach cleanup events in Singapore as a hobby. This passion project quickly grew and within a few months, the cleanups were pulling in hundreds of volunteers.

Fast forward to today and Seven Clean Seas has developed the worlds first Ocean Plastic Offset model for cooperates to try achieve plastic neutrality by removing plastic from the marine environment, has hosted the likes of Netflix, HP, and Sky Scanner, has expanded into Indonesia, Malaysia, UK & Brazil and removed 50,000kg of plastic from the marine environment.

Prof George is the Dean of the Lee Kong Chian School of Business at Singapore Management University (SMU) and a committee member of Global Compact Network Singapore’s Management Committee.

Prof George was also a member of the Corporate Governance Council of the Monetary Authority of Singapore tasked to redraft the Corporate Governance Code of Singapore in 2017.

An award-winning researcher and teacher, he has published over 100 articles in leading journals. His areas of interest are in innovation, entrepreneurship, sustainability and tackling grand challenges in society. He was awarded a prestigious Professorial Fellowship from the UK's Economic and Social Research Council to work on socially-inclusive innovation in areas such as natural resources, healthcare, and energy.

For his contribution to further education and research, Prof. George was awarded Fellowship of the City & Guilds of London Institute. He is also Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.

Mr Teo Eng Cheong joined Surbana Jurong Group as CEO International on 1 January 2016. He spearheads Surbana Jurong’s efforts to expand its international footprint in Singapore, Southeast Asia and North Asia.

Surbana Jurong is a planning, design and engineering consultancy which provides total solutions for urbanisation, industrialisation and infrastructure development.

Eng Cheong was previously the CEO of International Enterprise Singapore, Competition Commission of Singapore, and Singapore Customs. He also spent many years in Economic Development Board, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, the then Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports, and had a two-year stint overseas working on the China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park project. For his service with the government, he was awarded the Singapore National Day Medal for Public Administration (silver) in 2006.

Eng Cheong currently serves as a Director on the SMEC Holdings Board and a Council member of the Singapore Manufacturing Federation. Previously, he also sat on the boards of International Enterprise Singapore, Singapore Cooperation Enterprise, Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority, Ascendas Funds Management (S) Limited, the ASEAN Infrastructure Fund, Council for Private Education, Health Promotion Board and Singapore Sports Council. He also served on the Advisory Board of Singapore Management University’s Lee Kong Chian School of Business.

Eng Cheong holds a Bachelor of Science (Economics) from National University of Singapore and Masters of Science (Economics) from London School of Economics & Political Science. He is also a Lien Fellow with the Lien Ying Chow Legacy Fellowship.

Girish is responsible for strategy, growth and business operations in Australia, New Zealand, ASEAN, Greater China and Korea. Under his leadership, TCS APAC has consistently contributed to TCS’s industry-leading growth.

In his 24-year career with TCS, Girish has held a wide variety of leadership positions. Under his leadership, TCS Europe achieved record growth in revenues and margins. Subsequently, Girish headed TCS’s Middle East, Africa and Mediterranean region and took up the position of Corporate VP in the CEO’s office where he rolled out several global strategic initiatives setting the tone for TCS’s rapid growth.

A proven leader, Girish serves on the Board of Global Reporting Initiative and International Boards of Nyenrode University, Netherlands. He is a recipient of the Frans Banninck Cocq Medal from the Mayor of Amsterdam in recognition of his meritorious service to the city of Amsterdam. In 2017, the Australian Government appointed Girish as the Business Champion for New Colombo Plan. In 2018, Singapore Human Resource Institute (SHRI), recognized Girish with the “Leading CEO” award amongst a list of top CEOs.

Marika Lindstrom is Vice President of Packaging Procurement globally. Central to the agenda is plastics reduction, better plastics and new business models for more sustainable packaging. Unilever’s Procurement strategy is Procurement with Purpose, focusing on Value, Sustainability and Growth.

Marika’s previous role was Supply Chain for Unilever Philippines. The role included end to end responsibility for all Supply Chain activities in country for the FMCG company and she is also a member of the local business board.

She joined Unilever in October 2009 in Schaffhausen, Switzerland as VP Indirect Procurement, and relocated to Singapore in June 2010 as VP for Packaging Procurement and then completed her tenure in Procurement with Procurement Operations role in January 2014, based in Dubai. All Procurement roles at Unilever have been globally executive roles.

Prior to her career at Unilever, Lindstrom worked at Nokia and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), forming a strong background in telecommunications and consumer electronics. She has held various positions in both direct materials and indirect procurement in Europe and the Americas, as well as Product Marketing while with Nokia. She holds a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Technology in Lappeenranta, Finland and a PhD in Supply Chain Management from the University of Technology in Helsinki, Finland. Lindstrom also completed a Master of Business Administration at the University of Dallas, USA.

Constant Van Aerschot is the Director of the WBCSD Asia Pacific regional office and of its local Chapter BCSD Singapore. He is a civil engineer and all-round sustainability expert with almost 30 years of varied experience in management and leadership roles in both industry and not-for-profit sectors. An insightful, articulate people-person with a collaborative style, he is comfortable interacting with all levels of hierarchy.

In his current role, he contributed to the setup of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, a global coalition of companies that pledged US$1.5bn to end plastic waste entering the environment. He also shares the latest knowhow, tools and methodologies with member companies to become more sustainable and successful. He is a regular speaker at events, advised Governments on Green Building Master plans and regulatory frameworks. He is frequently invited as jury for sustainability awards.

His previous roles include VP Public Affairs & Sustainable Development at Lafarge. There, he led the group’s sustainable construction strategy. He also monitored and helped shape regulations such as the EU building energy code, and green building certification standards. Previously, he held various roles at Alcatel and was a practicing civil engineer. He set up the German operations of ARUP in Germany. He sits on the Board of three Singapore-based non-profit organisations.

He holds a Civil Engineering Master’s degree from ETHZ (Switzerland), an MBA from Cranfield University (UK) and a Director’s Diploma from SMU-SID (Singapore).