Past Event

ADB Southeast Asia Development Symposium 2023: Imagining a
Net Zero ASEAN

This annual flagship event from the Asian Development Bank will examine how countries in the region can harness new green, innovative, and cost-effective approaches to support decarbonization in a wide range of sectors while revitalizing economies.

SEADS 2023 event banner.

 ADB Southeast Asia Development Symposium 2023: Imagining a
Net Zero ASEAN

SEADS 2023: Featured Speakers 

Climate change represents a massive opportunity for Southeast Asia to pursue low-carbon economic growth. Hear from leaders and policymakers who are pushing to build greener pathways for the region amid worsening climate risks.

SEADS 2023 keynte speakers.

 
 ADB Southeast Asia Development Symposium 2023: Imagining a
Net Zero ASEAN

Plenary Panel: Financing Net Zero

With $210 billion per year needed for climate adaptation and mitigation investments in Southeast Asia, the region needs innovative schemes to finance net zero initiatives. This plenary panel will examine the challenges the region is facing to finance its net zero goals and propose ways to bridge the gap.

SEADS 2023 plenary speakers.

 ADB Southeast Asia Development Symposium 2023: Imagining a
Net Zero ASEAN

Media Moderators

SEADS 2023 will feature some of the brightest minds in media, who will engage and challenge experts into re-examining whether enough is being done to resolve the climate crisis and promote solutions and innovations that will help Southeast Asia achieve net zero by 2050.

SEADS 2023 moderators.

Solar and wind farms are seen by the beach in Thailand.
Toward a Net Zero ASEAN

Countries in Southeast Asia are committed to a net zero future, with 9 out of 10 ASEAN member states at the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow committing to net zero targets by 2050. 

The Asian Development Bank's Southeast Asia Development Symposium (SEADS) 2023, "Imagining a Net Zero ASEAN," will bring together thought leaders, decision makers, and climate action advocates from government, industry, academia, and the development sector to discuss innovative solutions that can help countries focus on becoming net zero economies and rebound from the COVID-19 crisis. 

SEADS 2023 will examine how the region can harness new green, innovative, and cost-effective approaches; adopt new technological solutions; accelerate the availability of finance; and deploy other effective measures to support decarbonization in a wide range of sectors while revitalizing economies.

Explore our net zero coverage.

What to Expect

SEADS 2023 will be held in Bali, Indonesia, the first time the symposium will be open to in-person attendees since the event was launched in 2020. As in the previous three symposia, SEADS 2023 will be open to virtual attendees. A total of 500 in-person and more than 5,000 virtual attendees are expected. 

SEADS 2023 will explore the following: financing a net zero ASEAN; deploying technology in climate mitigation and adaptation; ensuring cities are climate-resilient; greening and reshaping of global value chains; shifting to clean energy; ensuring the poor and vulnerable benefit from a net zero future; minimizing climate effects on health; net zero and the blue economy; and climate-friendly travel.

Attendees will have the opportunity to hear from thought leaders from government, industry, academe, and civil society. Develop your network and deepen connections and relationships with people not just from your field but with potential partners and clients.

View Highlights

Watch Recordings

Agenda

People riding an electric scooter in Singapore.

About SEADS

 

SEADS is ADB's annual flagship event focused on helping spur growth in the region. SEADS provides a forum for leaders from governments, the private sector, academia, and development organizations to discuss innovative solutions and strategies to address development challenges facing the region.  

SEADS 2023 is co-hosted with the ASEAN Catalytic Green Finance Facility (ACGF), a green finance initiative under the ASEAN Infrastructure Fund co-owned by the ASEAN member countries and ADB. The ACGF works with ASEAN governments and development partners to support infrastructure projects that promote environmental sustainability and combat climate change.
 
Featured Speakers
Masatsugu Asakawa
Masatsugu Asakawa
President~ Asian Development Bank

Masatsugu Asakawa is the President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Chairperson of ADB’s Board of Directors. He was elected President by ADB’s Board of Governors and assumed office on 17 January 2020. In August 2021, he was reelected for a 5-year term starting on 24 November 2021.

Under Mr. Asakawa’s leadership, ADB made significant contributions to the region’s COVID-19 pandemic response and recovery planning with a $20 billion comprehensive response package and $9 billion Asia Pacific Vaccine Access Facility. He also played a key role in rolling out a series of new and innovative financing initiatives—including an Energy Transition Mechanism—to spur the region’s low-carbon development and elevated ADB’s 2030 cumulative climate financing ambition to $100 billion as ADB continues to focus on the battle against climate change.

Prior to joining ADB, he served as Special Advisor to Japan’s Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, and has a close-to-four decades’ career at the Ministry of Finance with diverse professional experience that cuts across both domestic and international fronts.

In the immediate aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis, Mr. Asakawa, in his capacity as Executive Assistant to Prime Minister Taro Aso, took part in the first G20 Leaders’ Summit Meeting in November 2008. He was instrumental in orchestrating a globally coordinated financial package to abate the financial crisis, including a $100 billion loan from Japan to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Then in 2016, in his capacity as Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs, he took on a leading role for the G7 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors’ meeting in Sendai under the Japanese presidency, where a sustainable and inclusive development agenda was extensively discussed.

Most recently, he served as Finance Deputy for the G20 meetings under the Japanese presidency, playing a pivotal role for the success of the G20 Osaka Summit as well as the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors’ meeting in Fukuoka. Some of his outstanding achievements in Osaka include the endorsement by the G20 Leaders of the “G20 Principles for Quality Infrastructure Investment” and the “G20 Shared Understanding on the Importance of UHC Financing in Developing Countries”. Before these, he had occupied various prominent positions within the Finance Ministry, including director positions in charge of development policy issues, foreign exchange markets, and international tax policy.

Mr. Asakawa’s professional experience extends beyond the realms of the Japanese government. Most notably, he served as Chief Advisor to ADB President Kimimasa Tarumizu between 1989 and 1992, during which time he spearheaded the creation of a new office focused on strategic planning. Also, he had frequent engagement with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in such positions as Chair for Committee on Fiscal Affairs (2011–2016). Furthermore, he was a senior staff at the Fiscal Affairs Department of the IMF (1996–2000). In the meantime, he gave lectures as Visiting Professor at the Graduate School of Economic Science, Saitama University (2006–2009), and at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, University of Tokyo (2012–2015).

Mr. Asakawa obtained his BA from University of Tokyo (Economics Faculty) in 1981, and MPA from Princeton University, USA, in 1985.


Sri Mulyani Indrawati headshot
Sri Mulyani Indrawati
Minister of Finance~ Indonesia

Sri Mulyani Indrawati is the Minister of Finance of Indonesia, currently on her second term—having first been appointed in 2016 and then re-appointed in 2019—under the administration of Indonesian President Joko Widodo. She also served as Indonesia’s coordinating minister of economic affairs in 2008, continuing her role as finance minister since 2005, under the administration of former Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

As finance minister, Ms. Indrawati has achieved macroeconomic stability, maintained prudent fiscal policies, lowered borrowing costs, and managed debt. She was also instrumental in implementing fundamental reforms in Indonesia’s Ministry of Finance, and has been responsible for sustaining investor confidence in the country.

Ms. Indrawati also serves as co-chair of the World Economic Forum on ASEAN, co-chair of the Pathways for Prosperity Commission on Technology and Inclusive Development with Melinda Gates, and board member of UNICEF's Generation Unlimited Initiative. She was also appointed chair of the Indonesian Association of Islamic Economists (2019–2023).

Before rejoining the Indonesian government under the current administration, Ms. Indrawati was managing director and chief operating officer of the World Bank (2010-2016). Previously, she was executive director of the International Monetary Fund (2002-2004), representing 12 countries in Southeast Asia.

Her first government post was serving as Indonesia’s minister of state for national development planning and head of Indonesia’s National Development Planning Agency in 2004.

Ms. Indrawati was born in Tanjung Karang, Lampung, Indonesia on 26 August 1962. She has a bachelor’s degree in economics (1986) from the University of Indonesia. She also has a master’s degree in policy economics (1990) and a doctor of philosophy degree in economics (1992), both from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

Amina J. Mohammed
Amina J. Mohammed
Deputy Secretary-General~ United Nations

Before becoming the United Nations (UN) deputy secretary-general in early 2017, Amina J. Mohammed was the minister of environment of Nigeria. Prior to this, she supported the UN Secretary-General as special adviser on post-2015 development planning, where she was instrumental in bringing about the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Mohammed has held several high-level responsibilities, including working with three successive Presidents in Nigeria as senior special assistant on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), coordinating poverty reduction interventions with debt relief gains of $1 billion per annum.

Some awards include: the distinguished Order of the Federal Republic; 2017 Diplomat of the Year by Foreign Policy magazine; Apolitical 2019’s 100 Most Influential People on Gender Policy; and The Africa Report’s 2019 100 Most Influential Africans. She was also profiled by Vogue as one of the 13 female climate warriors on the frontline. Fortune named her among the world’s greatest female leaders. She is also listed in the Nigerian Women’s Hall of Fame.

Felipe Medalla
Felipe Medalla
Governor ~ Philippine Central Bank

Felipe Medalla, a noted economist and educator whose career spans more than 4 decades and four administrations, is the current Governor of the Philippine Central Bank (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas).

Medalla has been a member of the policymaking Monetary Board since July 2011, having been appointed by former President Benigno Aquino III and President Rodrigo Duterte in July 2017.

Before joining the Monetary Board, he was a prominent figure in the academe, having taught at the University of the Philippines School of Economics (UPSE) from 1991 to 2011. He also served as UP vice-president of planning and finance from 1988 to 1991 before being named dean of UPSE from 1994 to 1998.

In 1998, Medalla was appointed Secretary of Socio-Economic Planning and Director-General of the National Economic and Development Authority by then-President Joseph Estrada.

He earned his doctor in philosophy degree in economics from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois and his master’s degree in economics from the University of the Philippines. A certified public accountant, he graduated cum laude from De La Salle University with an economics–accounting degree.

Bambang Susantono
Bambang Susantono
Chairman~ Nusantara National Capital Authority~ Indonesia

Bambang Susantono is the Chairman of the Nusantara National Capital Authority of the Republic of Indonesia since March 2022. The agency, a ministerial-level body directly under the President, is in charge of planning and constructing Indonesia’s new capital, as well as overseeing the government’s transition to the new city and eventually becoming its administrator.

Among other activities in international organizations, he currently serves as a member in the United Nations’ High-Level Experts and Leaders Panel on Water and Disasters, Islamic Development Bank Institute’s board of trustees, Bloomberg New Economy council for cities, and Tech for Good Institute’s advisory board.

He holds a doctor of philosophy degree in infrastructure planning and master’s degrees in transportation engineering and city and regional planning from the University of California, Berkeley. He holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the Bandung Institute of Technology.

Amitabh Kant headshot.
Amitabh Kant
G20 Sherpa~ India

Amitabh Kant is India’s G20 Sherpa. The G20 or the Group of 20 is a forum where policymakers of industrialized and developing economies meet to discuss key issues in the global economy.

Kant is a governance reformer and a public policy change agent for India, having driven key reforms and initiatives during his tenure as the chief executive officer of the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI Aayog) from 2016 to 2022 and the secretary of India’s Department for Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) from 2014 to 2016. He has been a key driver of flagship national initiatives such as Startup India, Make in India, Incredible India, Kerala: God’s Own Country; and the Aspirational Districts Program. These initiatives have repositioned India and Kerala and have widely been recognized as transformational.

NITI Aayog is India’s apex policy-making institution, with the Prime Minister as its chairman. As CEO of NITI Aayog, Kant has driven a vast range of national-level developmental and policy initiatives which catalyzed India’s social and economic development and have brought about a paradigm shift in policy-making.

As DIPP secretary, Kant has driven the Start-up India movement which has led to India emerging as the third-best ecosystem for startups globally, with over 70,000 startups and over 100 unicorns. His focus has been to facilitate the ease of doing business through predictability, consistency of policies, and elimination of rules, regulations, and procedures. This led to India jumping 79 positions in the "Ease of Doing Business Index." He also initiated competition and ranking among Indian states based on the World Bank-produced indicator. The competition and ranking has led to a transformational impact on India’s states.

Kant has also driven the Aspirational Districts Program, the largest outcome-based governance project in the world which improved the socio-economic indicators of the 112 most backward districts of India. Today, as per a number of independent assessments, including those by by the United Nations Development Programme and the Institute of Competitiveness, several districts in India have emerged among the best performing in their respective states.

A strong proponent of positioning India as a global hub for manufacturing and exports, Kant has been the key driver of Make in India and the Production Linked Incentive schemes which have given an impetus to manufacturing, innovation, and exports.

At NITI Aayog, he established India’s National Mission on Transformative Mobility and Battery Storage, which is responsible for driving the uptake of clean mobility in the country. The mission evolved policies and interventions which supported millions of citizens and hundreds of government agencies across the country to make the switch to electric mobility. Under his leadership, the mission supported the 26 states of India in evolving their electric vehicle policies and also successfully facilitated the launch of a tender for the procurement and operation of 5,500 e-buses, one of the largest tenders in the world.

Under his leadership, NITI also undertook extensive work on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) across the country. He supervised the development of the country’s first regional district SDG monitoring system in the form of the “North Eastern Region District SDG Index and Dashboard” which covers all North Eastern States and their 120 districts. He took the SDG localization model further to the level of urban areas and led to the development of the SDG Urban Index & Dashboard in November 2022.

He has been the driver of the world’s first government-led subnational SDG index, the SDG India Index, which was launched in 2018. Since its inception, and now on its 4th year, it has become the country’s principal tool for monitoring progress on the SDGs for states and union territories. During his tenure, India’s first-ever National Multidimensional Poverty Index was launched which provides poverty estimates for states and districts across the country.

Kant set up the Behavioral Insights Unit of India and was instrumental in the launch of the Lifestyle For Environment movement, conceptualized by the Prime Minister, which places individual behavior at the heart of climate action.

He is passionate about the sunrise sectors of growth, particularly mobile manufacturing, green hydrogen, advanced chemistry cell batteries, electric mobility and battery swapping, and has steered several initiatives in these sectors for the purposes of climate adaptation and mitigation.

Kant earned his bachelor's degree in economics at St. Stephens, Delhi University and his master’s from Jawaharlal Nehru University. He is a Chevening scholar and has undertaken a mid-term course with the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University and the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

Dechen Tsering
Dechen Tsering
Regional Director and Representative~ Asia and the Pacific Office~ United Nations Environment Programme

Dechen Tsering was appointed as the regional director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in the Asia and the Pacific in March 2017. As the regional arm of UNEP, headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, the Asia-Pacific office works with governments, local authorities, and the private sector to develop and put into place cleaner and safer policies and strategies that encourage the efficient use of natural resources and reduce risks for humans and the environment.

She has held management and leadership positions with the United Nations and has more than 30 years of experience in national government and intergovernmental organizations. She has been actively involved in intergovernmental negotiations as a key negotiator for least-developed countries and contributed to the establishment of the Least Developed Countries Fund and the Least Developed Countries Expert Group.

She also has experience in the management of complex development projects. She comes to UNEP from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) secretariat, where she served as director of the finance, technology, and capacity-building program. In that position, she supported international cooperation on mobilization of finance, technology development and transfer, and capacity building to enable countries to take enhanced action on climate change. Prior to that position, she was the deputy regional director of UNEP in Asia and the Pacific.

She holds a doctor of philosophy degree in forest economics and policy from the Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich. She also has a master’s degree from Georgetown University and undergraduate degrees from the University of California, Berkeley.

David Turk
David Turk
Deputy Secretary~ Department of Energy~ United States

Prior to his nomination as deputy secretary, David Turk was the  deputy executive director of the International Energy Agency, where he focused on helping countries around the world tackle their clean energy transitions. He also directed reports on the digitalization of energy systems, the future of clean hydrogen, and a project tracking progress on a wide range of clean energy technologies.

During the Obama-Biden administration, Turk coordinated international technology and clean energy efforts at the US Department of Energy. During this time, he helped spearhead the launch of Mission Innovation—a global effort to enhance clean energy innovation.

Turk also served as special assistant to the US President, and senior director at the US National Security Council, where he coordinated interagency legislative affairs efforts by the full range of national security agencies and provided legislative advice to council decision-making. He also previously worked at the US Department of State, including as deputy special envoy for climate change, and helped to coordinate New START Treaty ratification efforts in the US Senate.   

Earlier in his career, he worked in both the US Senate, primarily on national security issues, and as the staff director of the national security subcommittee of the US House oversight committee. 

Turk was born in Quito, Ecuador and raised in Rock Falls, Illinois. He is a graduate of both the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the University of Virginia Law School. He and his wife,  Emily Turk, have three children. 

Amalia Adininggar Widyasanti
Amalia Adininggar Widyasanti
Deputy Minister for Economic Affairs ~Ministry of National Development Planning (BAPPENAS) ~Indonesia

Amalia Adininggar Widyasanti is deputy minister for economic affairs at the Ministry of National Development Planning (BAPPENAS) of Indonesia. She obtained her doctor of philosophy degree in economics from the University of Melbourne, Australia in 2005 with her thesis, “Inflation Targeting Framework in Emerging Economies.”

Lenny Nurharyanti Rosalin
Lenny Rosalin
Deputy Minister for Gender Equality~ Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection~ Indonesia

Lenny Rosalin has been serving as deputy minister for gender equality at Indonesia’s Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection since 2021.

She served at the Ministry of National Development Planning from  1988 to 2007. She was also chair of the ASEAN Committee on Women Empowerment from October 2021 to September 2022.

Rosalin has been instrumental in driving the gender equality agenda forward in her country and internationally. In 2022, during Indonesia’s G20 presidency, she urged G20 countries to prioritize international cooperation to address gender gaps in digital transformation, entrepreneurship, and labor markets, as well as to focus on the gender equality dimensions of climate change action and energy transitions. She has also been a key contributor to the development of toolkits to advance gender budgeting in Indonesia.

Rosalin holds a master’s degree in monetary economy and financial investment from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She has taught at Universitas Indonesia and Atma Jaya University of Indonesia.

Ramesh Subramaniam
Ramesh Subramaniam
Director General~ Southeast Asia Department~ Asian Development Bank

Ramesh Subramaniam has been with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for over 25 years, since March 1997. He has worked in different functions and areas in over 25 countries across the various sub-regions of Asia and the Pacific. In his current capacity as Director General of the Southeast Asia Department (SERD) from July 2017, he is in charge of ADB’s relationship with the 10 countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Timor-Leste, as well as all of its sovereign engagement. He has been a member of various Global Agenda/Future Councils of the World Economic Forum (WEF) since 2012, and currently serves as the co-chair of the ASEAN Hub of WEF’s Sustainable Development Investment Partnership.

With a talent pool of over 430 globally and locally recruited staff, SERD has over $25 billion in projects under implementation. SERD also has several ongoing policy and structural reform programs with over $12 billion in funds disbursed and under monitoring. ADB’s new sovereign commitments in Southeast Asia stand at around $7 billion per year in transport, energy, urban, agriculture and natural resources, human development, finance, and public management sectors, besides regional cooperation and integration.

From February 2020, Subramaniam has been steering ADB’s work in the sub-region to help countries in their COVID-19 response. ADB mobilized close to $6 billion in exceptional financing for economic and health sector measures in Southeast Asia.

The principal focus of the Southeast Asia Department from 2021 onwards is on post-pandemic recovery and helping the region deal effectively with the impact of climate change. The department has adopted the “3M Approach": mainstreaming climate change in all of ADB’s work; mobilizing resources to support climate adaptation and mitigation; and messaging on the need for just and affordable climate transition.

Subramaniam has also served as the director general of ADB's Procurement, Portfolio and Financial Management Department (2015–2017); deputy director general of SERD (2013–2015); senior director in the Office of Regional Economic Integration (2011–2013); director of public management and financial sector (2007–2010) as well as director of urban infrastructure (2010–2011) in Central and West Asia; and principal economist and deputy country director in Indonesia (2003–2007).

With a strong focus on policy and institutional reforms across the region, Subramaniam seeks to help the region’s developing member countries reduce poverty, achieve equitable growth, and attract greater private sector investments. He has led several important initiatives such as the establishment of the ASEAN Infrastructure Fund, various critical post-crisis counter-cyclical reform and restructuring programs in many countries, as well as post-disaster reconstruction projects across the Asia and the Pacific. The ASEAN Policy Network and the ASEAN Innovation Hub were established under his leadership in 2017. He also oversaw the establishment of the ASEAN Catalytic Green Finance Facility.

Among other aspects of his work, Subramaniam is most humbled by his role in formulating ADB’s support to developing member countries after several devastating disasters, including the December 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami; the 2006 Yogyakarta earthquake; the 2006 Pakistan earthquake; the 2009 Pakistan floods; the 2013 Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines; the 2018 Palu earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia; and most recently the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.

In parallel, Subramaniam has maintained strong interest in education as an instrument for change. Improving social service delivery has been a key part of his support for public sector reforms in many countries. Outside of ADB, he is involved in a range of service activities in livelihood, healthcare, and education, with the aim of promoting basic yet fundamental human values of love, truth, peace, right conduct, and non-violence in society overall.

Subramaniam has an MA in economics from the University of Madras, India (1988) and a PhD in economics from McMaster University, Canada, where he was also a lecturer (1990–1993). He has been a research fellow on industry at the University of St. Andrews in the United Kingdom from December 1993 to January 1994, and a Rockefeller fellow at Yale University Economic Growth Center from February 1994 to March 1997.

Sean Kidney
Sean Kidney
Chief Executive Officer~ Climate Bonds Initiative

Sean  Kidney is the chief executive officer of the Climate Bonds Initiative, an international NGO working to mobilize global capital for climate action. Projects include a green bond definitions and certification scheme with $34 trillion of assets represented on its board and some 200 organizations involved in its development and governance; working with the central bank of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) on how to grow green bonds; and supporting market development programs in Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Nigeria, and East Africa.

He is a member of the European Commission's Platform on Sustainable Finance, and was a member of its predecessors, the 2017 EU High Level Expert Group on Sustainable Finance and the EU Technical Expert Group on Sustainable Finance. He is also a member of green finance advisory groups in the PRC, India, Kazakhstan, and Mexico, and an advisory board member of the International Sustainable Financial Centre in Prague.

He has previously been a consultant on green bonds to the United Nations  Secretary General, a member of the People’s Bank of China Green Finance Task Force, and a member of the Commonwealth Secretariat’s Expert Committee on Climate Finance.

Kidney is also a professor in practice at SOAS University of London.

For the past 3 years, he has been voted GlobalCapital magazine’s “Most Influential Champion” of the sustainable finance market.

Yuki Yasui
Yuki Yasui
Managing Director ~ Asia–Pacific Network ~ Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ)

Yuki Yasui is the director overseeing the Asia–Pacific (APAC) Network for the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) which was launched in June 2022. She is focused on bringing together the financial sector across developed and emerging APAC to accelerate an inclusive and just transition to a net-zero economy.

Prior to joining GFANZ, she was at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Finance Initiative (FI) for 20 years and leading its activities in Asia-Pacific for the last 4 years. She has represented UNEP FI at all three major sustainability reporting initiatives, Global Reporting Initiative, International Integrated Reporting Council, and the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board, at various points in time. Other projects include developing and running the UNEP FI online course on climate change for the finance sector and representation at Rio+20.

She is a qualified chartered accountant in the UK and trained and worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers. She is currently based in Singapore and has worked in Bangkok, Geneva, and London.

Herry Cho
Herry Cho
Managing Director, Head of Sustainability and Sustainable Finance~ SGX Group

Herry Cho joined the Singapore Exchange (SGX Group) in February 2021 and drives its sustainability and sustainable finance strategic direction and implementation.

She is in the steering group of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero, is a member of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures, and is on the management advisory board of the National University of Singapore’s Sustainable and Green Finance Institute.

She pioneered in the development of Asia and the Pacific’s sustainable finance markets, in her former role as regional head of sustainable finance at a multinational bank. There she led the origination and execution of sustainable finance transactions—including green, social, and sustainability bonds and loans—and delivered sustainability advisory.

She also served on the executive committee of the International Capital Market Association’s (ICMA) Green Bond Principles and Social Bond Principles, and was the sustainability lead on ICMA’s Asia-Pacific regional committee and on the Loan Market Association’s Green Finance Committee.

She leverages on a broad financial background, having previously worked in mergers and acquisitions advisory, capital structuring and advisory, and equity and debt capital markets.

Based in Singapore, she has also previously worked in Hong Kong, China; London; and Amsterdam.

She holds a combined bachelor’s and master’s degree in molecular and cellular biochemistry from the University of Oxford.

Douglas Sabo
Douglas Sabo
Chief Sustainability Officer ~ Visa

Douglas Sabo is chief sustainability officer at Visa Inc. In this role, Sabo leads development and oversight of Visa’s global environmental, social and governance (ESG) efforts, including Visa’s ESG strategy, framework, reporting and stakeholder engagement. Sabo also leads Visa’s initiatives in environmental sustainability, human rights, and other areas of responsible business.

In sustainability, Sabo’s work includes building Visa’s initiatives in the company’s operations as well as in empowering sustainable living and commerce. Sabo currently serves as a member of the Sustainable Brands Advisory Board, New York Stock Exchange Sustainability Advisory Council, Centre for Sport and Human Rights Advisory Council, and the Sustainable Finance Working Group of the Institute of International Finance. He is also a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Sustainable Tourism and helps represent Visa in the Travalyst sustainable travel initiative.

Sabo is a frequent speaker on a variety of ESG, corporate responsibility, and sustainability topics on behalf of the company. He was included in the Top 100 Leaders in Sustainability list in 2022. He is also a regular voice on social media (@GreenLivingDoug on various platforms) and curator of the #SustainableLife blog at www.greenlivingdoug.com.

Michaela Browning
Michaela Browning
Vice-President~ Government Affairs and Public Policy for Asia-Pacific~ Google

Michaela Browning joined Google in November 2021 as vice-president for government affairs and public policy for Asia and the Pacific. Prior to joining Google, she held a range of senior positions in the Australian government as a career diplomat, with over 27 years of experience focusing on the Asia-Pacific, international trade and investment, security, and economic development.

She was most recently the inaugural CEO of the National Foundation for Australia–China Relations. She has served on diplomatic postings in Singapore, Thailand and, most recently, as Australia’s consul general to Hong Kong, China and Macau, China from 2017 to 2020. She has been senior international adviser to the Australian defense and foreign ministers.

Browning has also held senior trade and investment policy and operational roles, including at the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade), where she led global investment promotion activities for Australia, and led trade and investment for established markets (including Japan, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, North America, and Europe). She previously managed Australian Aid’s development program for Afghanistan and Pakistan. She has also represented Australia as an agriculture negotiator for the World Trade Organization’s Doha round. She negotiated competition, telecommunications, and other chapters of Australia's free trade agreements with the United States and Singapore.

She is one of Australia’s members of the APEC Business Advisory Council and on the board of the Australia Japan Business Co-operation Committee and of the Asia Society (Australia Chapter). She is an advisory board member for the Asian Development Bank. She is also an ambassador for the Australian Indigenous Education Foundation. She has previously served on boards for professional services, education, veterans volunteer, and disaster response organizations.

Browning is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. She holds a master’s degree in foreign affairs and trade and a bachelor’s degree in economics, with honors, both from Monash University.

She is passionate about Asia and now lives in Singapore.

Winfried F. Wicklein
Winfried Wicklein
Deputy Director General~ Southeast Asia Department~ Asian Development Bank

As deputy director general of Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Southeast Asia Department, Winfried Wicklein supports the planning and delivery of ADB’s goals, strategies, and work plan in Southeast Asia. This involves ADB’s relationships and public sector work in ASEAN countries, as well as support for sub-regional cooperation initiatives in the region. The Southeast Asia Department has over 400 staff, a total portfolio of $25 billion, and annual commitments of $7 billion.

With ADB for over 20 years, he has wide-ranging experience in the areas of infrastructure finance, private sector development, and country strategy and program coordination across Asia and the Pacific. Prior assignments include country director to Indonesia and Myanmar, as well as country postings in Australia, the Philippines, and Thailand.

Prior to joining ADB, he worked in corporate finance advisory (PricewaterhouseCoopers) and prior to that, for the United Nations Industrial Development Organization.

A national of Austria, he holds a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Münster, Germany.

Angela Tanoesoedibjo
Angela Tanoesoedibjo
Vice Minister ~ Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy ~ Indonesia

Angela Tanoesoedibjo started her career in government on 25 October 2019, when she was sworn in as Vice Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy. She became the youngest Vice Minister in the Advanced Indonesia Cabinet, at the age of 32.

Her extensive background in management, media, retail, and finance, has made her a trusted figure for developing the tourism and creative economy industry in Indonesia, especially for the development of 10 new tourism destinations.

Tanoesoedibjo previously worked in media, establishing HighEnd and HighEnd Teen magazines in 2008. That year, she also became a director at PT MNI Entertainment. She joined the MNC Group as a corporate finance and business development associate in 2010. Her career in broadcasting expanded soon after.

In 2013, she was a director of PT Megah Group. In 2014, she became a managing director of Global TV, and brought into the top 5 TV stations in Indonesia. By 2017, she had led the rebranding of Global TV into GTV. A year later, she was named managing director of RCTI (PT Rajawali Citra Television Indonesia).

Born in Canada, on 23 April 1987, Tanoesoedibjo earned her bachelor's degree in communications (media arts and productions) from the University of Technology Sydney in 2008. She achieved her master of commerce—finance degree from the University of New South Wales, the Australian School of Business in 2010.

Ming Tan
Ming Tan
Founding Executive Director~ Tech for Good Institute

Ming Tan is the founding executive director of the Tech for Good Institute. She is concurrently a senior fellow at the Centre for Governance and Sustainability at the National University of Singapore. Her research interests lie at the intersection of technology, business, and society, including sustainability and innovation.

She was previously managing director of IPOS International, part of the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore, which supports Singapore’s future growth as a global innovation hub for intellectual property creation, commercialization, and management.

Prior to joining the public sector, she was head of stewardship of the COMO Group, a Singaporean portfolio of lifestyle companies operating in 14 countries worldwide. Her portfolio covered sustainability, and brand and data privacy. She was concurrently the founding executive director of COMO Foundation, the private philanthropy of the owner of the COMO Group.

As a company director, she lends brand and strategic guidance to several companies within the COMO Group. In the not-for-profit space, she is an advisor to Singapore Totalisator Board and serves on the boards of Esplanade–Theatres on the Bay, Singapore’s national performing arts center, St. Joseph’s Institution International Ltd., and COMO Foundation.

As part of her commitment to holistic education and the arts, she also sits on the advisory panel of the Centre for the Arts of the National University of Singapore.

She was educated in Singapore, the United States, and England. She obtained her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Stanford University and her doctorate from Oxford University.

Lauren Sorkin
Lauren Sorkin
Executive Director~ Resilient Cities Network

As executive director of the Resilient Cities Network, Lauren Sorkin leads global efforts in 100 cities in over 40 countries to deal with complex challenges including climate change, access to equitable opportunities, and promoting a circular economy.

She serves as an advisor and spokesperson on urban resilience, women’s leadership in sustainable finance, climate risk, and urbanization trends. She is on the advisory boards of Food Tank and Natural Capital, and on the editorial advisory board of SmartCitiesWorld.

Previously with the Asian Development Bank (ADB), she led ADB’s first climate change investment plan, before mainstreaming climate risks and opportunities for Viet Nam’s $7-billion portfolio.

Earlier in her career, she delivered clean energy, climate change, and conservation projects in Africa, Asia, and South America.

Media Moderators
David Ingles
David Ingles
TV Anchor and Chief Markets Editor~ Bloomberg TV APAC

David Ingles is an anchor for Bloomberg Television and Bloomberg Radio. He co-anchors “Bloomberg Markets: China Open” weekdays and concurrently also oversees markets and charts content for the Asia and the Pacific.

Based in Hong Kong, China, Ingles provides coverage of the major macroeconomic stories and trends that shape markets and affect businesses in the Asia-Pacific region. He also travels across the region to cover key stories and summits including the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, G20, and World Economic Forum where he has interviewed some of the world’s top CEOs, political and economic leaders, tech entrepreneurs, and investors.

Prior to joining Bloomberg, Ingles was with CCTV News in Shanghai where he covered the Chinese financial markets and the country’s major economic reforms from the start of this decade. Before moving to the media industry, he spent several years in banking and financial services.

Ingles earned his bachelor’s degree in business from the Ateneo de Manila University, and an MBA degree in finance from the China Europe International Business School. He is fluent in English, Tagalog, and Mandarin.

Dina Gurning
Dina Gurning
News Anchor and Journalist ~ CNBC Indonesia

Dina Gurning is a journalist with 7 years of experience covering a diverse range of topics. With a degree in journalism from a top university in Indonesia, Gurning’s passion for storytelling has taken her across places, reporting on everything from politics to entertainment. Now she expands her reporting expertise and delivers the latest economic and business news as a news anchor on CNBC Indonesia.

Desi Anwar
Desi Anwar
Director and Senior Anchor~ CNN Indonesia

Desi Anwar is a director, senior anchor, and journalist at CNN Indonesia based in Jakarta, Indonesia. She hosts the talk show "Insight with Desi Anwar," featuring in-depth interviews with prominent figures, policymakers, experts, celebrities, and leaders.

Prior to joining CNN Indonesia in 2015, she was a senior anchor/journalist at Metro TV (2000–2015), Indonesia’s first 24-hour news channel. Among other programs, she hosted "Face 2 Face with Desi Anwar," where she interviewed heads of state and globally renowned personalities; and "Tea Time with Desi Anwar," which featured leaders and inspiring figures from Indonesia. Her career with Metro TV spanned 15 years.

Prior to that, she was co-founder of the online portal Astaga.com, and a columnist and editorial member of Indonesia’s English language daily The Indonesian Observer.

Anwar was also a regular columnist for the news magazine Tempo and the English dailies The Jakarta Globe and The Jakarta Post.

A prolific writer, she has published several books on photography and travel, and compilations of her articles and essays.

She began her career as anchor/reporter with RCTI, Indonesia’s first commercial television station, in 1990. She hosted daily news bulletins and served as executive producer and anchor of RCTI’s daily English-language news program “Indonesia Today,” and the weekly current affairs documentary “Liputan Khusus.” She was also a member of the presidential press corps and traveled extensively on foreign state visits and international summits during her years in RCTI.

Anwar was the recipient of Number One Press Holder from the Indonesian Journalists Association (2010) and awarded Senior Journalist (Wartawan Utama) status from the Indonesian Press Council (2011).

She is a fellow of the MIT leadership program in collaboration with UIDEAS, based in Boston, Massachusetts, and Indonesia. She was also named honorary fellow of the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) of the University of London (2014) for her contribution to the growth of the media in Southeast Asia.

Anwar holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Sussex, England, and a master’s degree from SOAS, University of London. She speaks Bahasa Indonesia, English, and French.

Ping Manongdo
Ping Manongdo
Country Director ~ Philippines ~ Eco-Business

Ping Manongdo is the Philippines country director at Eco-Business. She leads partnerships and manages the end-to-end delivery of partner projects including editorial content, events, and research and consulting. Currently based in the Philippines, Manongdo is a sought-after speaker and moderator, training facilitator, and convenor of relevant conversations. She is currently completing the GRI 2021 Revised Universal Standards course. She holds a UK CPD certificate on climate bonds, and a course completion certificate on climate change science, communication, and action issued by Cornell University. She was a United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Fellow and a Thomson Reuters—Global Reporting Initiative Fellow on reporting on corporate impact. Manongdo is a seasoned client manager with over 15 years of experience working with hundreds of partners in the Asia–Pacific, the UK and Europe, and the Philippines across the energy, finance, agricultural, and consumer goods sectors. Previously, she was a broadcast journalist with GMA-7, one of the Philippines’ largest media companies.

Adisti Sukma Sawitri
Adisti Sukma Sawitri
Managing Editor ~ The Jakarta Post

Adisti Sukma Sawitri is the managing editor at The Jakarta Post, the largest English language news publisher in Indonesia. As an editor and journalist with over 15 years of experience in media and news publishing, she has specialized in reporting on the environment, energy, and national politics. Since 2018, she has been involved in digital transformation initiatives at the Post. She is currently overseeing business news and newsroom development projects.

Akito Tan headshot.
Akito Tanaka
Senior Staff Writer and Chief Business News Correspondent~ Nikkei Asia

Akito Tanaka is Nikkei Asia's senior staff writer and chief business news correspondent, covering the technology sector from Singapore. He has over 20 years of reporting experience, and has been covering global companies in both Japan and the United States.

He is the recipient of the top prize for breaking news at the Asian Media Awards from the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers for "After Ghosn—Nissan and Renault wrestle for control of their shared auto empire."

He graduated from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, with a bachelor’s degree in political science. He spent his childhood years in Lisbon, Portugal, attending the American International School.

Rebecca Tan
Rebecca Tan
Bureau Chief~ Southeast Asia~ Washington Post

Rebecca Tan is the Southeast Asia bureau chief for the Washington Post, responsible for covering a rapidly changing swath of the world that stretches from the Philippines to Bangladesh.

She is a Singapore native and has written about the energy transition, the Rohingya refugee crisis, Indonesia’s stadium stampede, and other major news topics since returning to the region in 2022.

She was previously a reporter on the local desk of the Post, where she was part of the team that won the 2022 Pulitzer Prize in public service for coverage of the 6 January 2021 attack on the US Capitol.

"SEADS has always managed to attract prominent speakers from Asia."

 

"Amazing job. All the topics and speakers were great. They have shared information that can bring change even in South Asia. Southeast Asia's great effort in sustainability is recommendable. I would love to attend more sessions." 
 
"The symposium ran perfectly and was beneficial to us in the academe. Looking forward for more engagements in the future."



"This is definitely one web conference worth emulating in terms of organization."