First Ever Women of Influence Entrepreneur of the Year Award Recipient

Professor Christine Loh is Chief Development Strategist, Institute for the Environment at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and Asia Society Hong Kong’s Scholar in Residence (2023-24). She is a lawyer by training and a commodities trader by profession. In the 1990s, she became a prominent legislator, before establishing a non-profit policy think tank to help find policy solutions. She is a former Undersecretary for the Environment in the HKSAR Government (2012-17) and special consultant to the Chief Executive on mainland environmental policies (2019-20). Professor Loh has a long history in driving discussions not only on environmental sustainability but also on equal opportunities, as she successfully championed several historic legislative initiatives in the 1990s-2000. A major area of her focus today is the rise of a multipolar world and the role of Asia.
Loh is currently on the boards of CDP Worldwide, Global Maritime Forum, New Forests Pty Limited, and Towngas Smart Energy Company Limited. She has received many awards and has authored academic and popular works – her latest book published in 2023 is on Covid-19.

Pre-event Speaker
February 19th
"Fireside Chat with Mrs Betty Fung, CEO of the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority"

Mrs Betty Fung was appointed by the Board as Chief Executive Officer of WKCDA with effect from 15 October 2021.

Mrs Fung joined the Administrative Service of the Hong Kong Government in 1986. Since then, she had served in various bureaux and departments, including as Press Secretary to Chief Secretary and Financial Secretary, Assistant Director of Trade, Deputy Government Chief Information Officer and Deputy Secretary for Education and Manpower.

In 2007, Mrs Fung was appointed Director of Information Services who was the Government’s chief advisor on public relations and publicity matters. She was appointed Director of Leisure and Cultural Services from 2009 to 2014 to oversee the development and management of cultural, sports and recreation facilities in Hong Kong including museums, public libraries and performing arts venues. As Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs from July 2014 to April 2018, she oversaw the formulation of culture, sports and district administration policies and was actively involved in the implementation of the WKCD project including the Hong Kong Palace Museum project.

Mrs Fung was Head, Policy Innovation and Co-ordination Office from April 2018 to November 2020 prior to her secondment to WKCDA as Acting CEO between December 2020 and June 2021.

Mrs Fung has been awarded the Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Mérite for her contributions towards fostering cultural cooperation and exchange between France and Hong Kong. She has been elected Executive Committee member of the Association of Asia Pacific Performing Arts Centres (2023 to 2025).

The 16th Women of Influence Professional of the Year Award Recipient

Puja Kapai is a multi-award-winning researcher, academic and community justice advocate. She is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Law and Convenor of the Women’s Studies Research Centre at the University of Hong Kong (HKU). Her expertise lies in international human rights law, minority rights, and intersectional legal studies, focusing on the rights of marginalised communities. Puja has presented her work before the Legislative Council, Poverty Commission and the United Nations, which has led to significant policy reforms. Her contributions and impact on advancing pluralism, inclusion and equality have been widely recognized. She received the International Women of Courage Award 2015, HKU Faculty of Law’s Outstanding Teaching Award 2016, HKU’s Knowledge Exchange Award 2017, the American Chamber of Commerce’s Professional Woman of the Year Award 2019 and the 2021 Global Pluralism Award from the Centre for Global Pluralism in Canada.

Prior to joining academia, Puja was a practising barrister of the High Court of Hong Kong. She obtained her Master of Laws at Harvard Law School and her Postgraduate Certificate in Laws as well as her Bachelor of Laws (Hons.) degrees from the University of Hong Kong. She was also the recipient of the prestigious Bar Scholarship.

Kirti is Founder and Executive Director of Meraki Executive Search & Consulting Limited.
Meraki has a very clear strategy and purpose, to increase and improve female participation in the workforce at the most senior levels.

Kirti’s expertise is in leadership hiring and development of both Non-Executives and Executives across the Asia Pacific region. Kirti is a Physics & Chemistry graduate from University College London and has worked in Executive Search and Leadership Consulting for over 20 years.
Kirti is the pioneer behind the Women's Directorship Programme, a joint-venture with The University of Hong Kong Business School. Kirti also leads the Meraki Network, an Executive Women's network in the region, is a regular speaker and contributor to conferences and media relating to gender diversity in Asia and is an active member of the Women in Business Committee at the British Chamber in Hong Kong.
Kirti was named as one of the Global Top 50 Diversity Professionals in Industry by the Economist Magazine over multiple years.
Kirti is the mother to two amazing children who have also found their purpose at such a young age by representing HK at the Children’s General Assembly in Billund.

Inkgo Lam Ka Yu is a contemporary artist specializing in the bamboo craftsmanship. Lam is the apprentice of Master Lui Ming and also aspires to create contemporary bamboo artworks of eastern aesthetics through traditional techniques.

In 2020, Lam started learning bamboo steamer making, one of the Intangible Cultural Heritage items of Hong Kong, from Master Lui. In 2021, Inkgo’s first bamboo artworks were exhibited at Art Basel Hong Kong. In her works were featured in Hong Kong, Tokyo, New York and Vancouver which are collected by private collectors. She was also invited as a representative of Hong Kong artisan to attend London Craft Week 2023.

Since childhood, Inkgo has admired the craftsmen's perseverance in traditional craftsmanship and has been fascinated by the attitude of ‘focusing on one thing for a lifetime’. She hopes to pass the intangible cultural heritage on, and at the same time, transform bamboo into the language of art, along with the wish to bring the aesthetics of ancient Chinese art to the contemporary stage.

Lamia is the Co-Founder of Vidi Labs and Seekr, which recently have been recognized as Alibaba’s 30, JUMPSTARTER TOP 30 Start-ups. Their innovation Seekr is a wearable gadget designed to assist VIPs (Visually impaired persons) navigate life, through use of AI tech that scans surrounding areas, and provide cues to help them.

Described as “an icon in the industry”, Teresa is one of the most prominent corporate and securities lawyers in Hong Kong.
She is the founding partner of Freshfields’ Asia equity capital markets practice and has helped numerous Chinese state-owned, privately-owned and international companies to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKSE), including advising on eight out of the ten largest IPOs in Hong Kong. She also has an impressive record on public and private M&A transactions and advises on joint ventures and corporate governance matters.
Among her many public service appointments, Teresa currently serves vice-chair of the IFRS Foundation Trustees and as chair of its Due Process Oversight Committee. She was also a member of the Trustee Sustainability Steering Committee which oversaw the establishment of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB).
She was the first female to chair the Hong Kong Stock Exchange’s Listing Committee between 2009 and 2011 and was deputy chair for three years before then. She currently serves as co-chair of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange’s Listing Review Committee and a deputy chair of the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC)’s Takeovers and Mergers Panel.
She also served as a non-executive director of the SFC in 2012 to 2018.
Amongst her many accolades, Teresa was recently recognised as a HERoes Executive Role Model in 2023 for the sixth consecutive year and ranked fifth place in 2023’s list of 100 role models. She was also named in IFLR1000 Women Leaders 2022 - an elite ranking for the most prominent women lawyers globally and in Forbes’ ‘Asia's Power Businesswomen’ list 2021.

Enid Tsui is Arts Editor of the South China Morning Post and oversees the newspaper's visual and performing-arts coverage. Originally a financial journalist, she began her coverage of the art market when she was the Financial Times' Hong Kong correspondent. She has a master's degree in Art History and has published research on the late Thai artist Tang Chang. She is writing a book about Hong Kong's art scene.

Dr. Alison So is an interdisciplinary Gender Studies scholar in the fields of Cultural Studies, History, and Sociology. She holds an MPhil and PhD in Gender Studies (Educational Administration and Policy) from The Chinese University of Hong Kong. She is currently a lecturer for the Hong Kong History MA programme and Common Core at The University of Hong Kong.

"Christina helps bring out the best in people in her work as an ICF-certified coach and educator. She is an activator of meaningful professional and personal development and a catalyst for confidence, empowering people to make decisions and take actionable steps to follow through on their greatest ambitions.

Leveraging her expertise in cross-cultural environments, Christina's passion and ambition for learning and development paved the way for her to establish Next Chapters. This social-purpose business seeks to reduce social inequality through training and coaching. Christina brings to light the value of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging of women, enabling them to activate their capabilities and write the next professional chapter in their lives.

Coming full circle after participating in a Common Purpose programme herself, Christina leads Common Purpose Hong Kong as Partnerships Director. In her role, she brings in her facilitation and coaching backgrounds while exploring opportunities for Common Purpose to continue to impact the empowerment and potential of professionals in Hong Kong and beyond through leadership development initiatives. Her participation in the Common Purpose programme inspired her to rediscover the value of her own story involving professional trauma and loss and share it as a tool for others to draw and learn from, as she has co-authored #MyVoice Vol. 3 Journeys of Self-Discovery and Resilience."

Keren Turner is an innovative problem solver with a strong commitment to supporting women in her community. Keren has worked as a leader in education as a teacher, a principal, and most recently as the manager of the Innovation Center of the Israeli Ministry of Education. She is a certified trainer in Systematic Inventive Thinking (SIT) and has a Bachelor’s degree in Arabic and History of the Middle East, a Master’s in Management, and a postgraduate diploma in Innovation and Design Thinking. Keren is the co-chair of the Jewish Women’s Association of Hong Kong, one of Hong Kong’s oldest women’s organizations, founded in 1947.

The American Chamber of Commerce 19th Annual Women of Influence Award for Champion of Disadvantaged Communities and Minorities

Manisha serves as the Executive Director of HELP For Domestic Workers a Hong Kong based non-profit organization empowering migrant domestic workers to access their rights through education, advice, community and employer engagement. She is a registered Attorney at Law in Sri Lanka and holds a Master of Laws in Human Rights from the University of Hong Kong. Prior to coming to Hong Kong in 2013, Manisha worked for the UNICEF Child Protection & Juvenile Justice Programme and Save the Children Sri Lanka, building systems and processes to support child victims of abuse and juvenile offenders. In Hong Kong, Manisha worked at Christian Action and at Daly & Associates, specialising in the area of migrant worker rights and international labour law.

Outside of her role at HELP, Manisha serves as an Advisor to the Board of MindHK, a non-profit committed to improving awareness and understanding of mental health in Hong Kong and as a Member of the Executive Committee of the Amber Foundation EMpower Programme that provides support and training to Hong Kong ethnic minority women. She also served as a Mentor under the Women’s Foundation Mentoring Programme for Women Leaders. Among other awards Manisha was named a winner of the Tatler Magazine’s 2022 Inaugural Front & Female Award, and an awardee of the 2023 Tatler Gen.T List.