DANIEL LANGER

Chief Executive Officer, Équité

Daniel Langer is CEO of the global luxury, lifestyle and consumer brand strategy firm Équité and head of luxury at IMS Hong Kong, Asia’s leading digital transformation company. As an expert on brand building in a digitally disrupted world, he consults some of the world renowned leading luxury brands. Daniel is also the author of several luxury management books and is frequently featured in Forbes, Economist, Skift, Robb Report and Jing Daily. He is a regular keynote speaker and holds management seminars in Europe, the USA, and Asia as well as being a professor for luxury strategy and extreme value creation at Pepperdine University in Malibu (MBA module starts as of January 2020).

ELORA HARDY

Founder and Creative Director, IBUKU

Elora is the Founder and Creative Director of IBUKU. Born and raised in Bali, Elora then spent 14 years in the United States, where she designed prints for Donna Karan that walked the world’s runways. In 2010, Elora left her successful fashion career to carry on the incredible work of the design-build team that created the world-renowned Green School in Bali, founded by her father John Hardy. She reconnected with the culture and landscape that she loves – and today continues to work with Balinese artisans alongside innovative designers and architects, with the goal of making Bali a global centre for sustainable design.

ANCHALIKA KIJKANAKORN

Managing Director & Founder, AKARYN Hotel Group

As the Managing Director and Founder of Thailand’s award-winning AKARYN Hotel Group (AHG), Anchalika Kijkanakorn has proven herself time and again to be an industry trailblazer and innovator. After serving as the first female chairperson of Small Luxury Hotels of the World (SLH) – a company she continues to serve on the Board of Directors to this day – Anchalika spent 10 years with GE Capital and held executive roles in the financial sector in Europe, US and Asia before returning home to Thailand to create the AKARYN Hotel Group. Pioneering barefoot luxury in the region with her exclusive and chic beachfront resorts, Aleenta Hua Hin - Pranburi and Aleenta Phuket - Phang Nga, Anchalika also launched the trendy akyra brand, including with the art-inspired akyraManor Chiang Mai; the stylish akyraBeach Club Phuket; and urban boutique akyraThonglor Bangkok. Most recently, akyra TAS Sukhumvit Bangkok became the first hotel in Asia to launch without any single-use plastics.

Sustainability is one of Anchalika’s chief passions and in 2006, she launched the Pure Blue Foundation, which focuses on protecting and preserving the marine environment as well as the local communities where AHG operates. She has two young sons and is based in Bangkok.

LEON GUAN

Director, China, The Mango Agency

With more than 15 years of experience working across China’s premium lifestyle sector, Leon’s experience spans fashion; tourism; consumer brand communications; government relations and digital marketing, giving him a unique perspective on China’s constantly changing consumer landscape. This broad-spectrum knowledge enables him to deliver highly successful marketing and branding strategies for clients, utilising strategic partnerships, and securing multinational corporate endorsements.

DORIS GOH

Head of Brands & Marketing, Alila ASPAC at Hyatt Hotels Corporation

Previously the CMO at Two Roads Hospitality, Doris has had an illustrious career spanning more than 25 years in the luxury hospitality industry. As Alila Singapore’s corporate HQ’s first hire 16 years ago, Doris has successfully driven Alila to become one of the world’s top 4 luxury brands. She has been instrumental in driving the global marketing strategies and building stronger brand culture in the group’s expansion globally. Aligning perfectly with her passion for travel, Doris’ career has taken her all over the world.

As the first Asian woman to serve as education chairperson at the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) for Asia, Doris has since been lauded for her contributions and recognised as one of the most influential people in the industry. She was included in Hotelier India’s Power 100 List and CMO Asia’s Leadership Excellence Award as one of the continent’s 50 Women Leaders in Marketing, which acknowledges individuals who have done extraordinary work in the field, including the ability to foster and drive sustainability in business.

TONY FADELL

iPod inventor, iPhone co-inventor, Nest founder, and Future Shape principal

Tony Fadell is a master of innovation. As Principal at Future Shape, he invests in and coaches 200+ startups innovating game-changing technologies. With further accolades including Founder and former CEO of Nest, the company that pioneered the “Internet of Things." Tony is the inventor of the iPod and co-inventor of the iPhone. Tony led the team that created the first 18 generations of the iPod and the first three generations of the iPhone. In May 2016, TIME named the Nest Learning Thermostat, the iPod and the iPhone as three of the “50 Most Influential Gadgets of All Time".

SIMON PESTRIDGE

CMO, Potato Head

Former Global VP of Marketing for Nike, Simon Pestridge is the marketing genius pushing Potato Head to even greater heights.

JINOU PARK

Vice President, Asia Pacific, Design Hotels

Jinou brings more than 20 years of experience in leading global brands. Design Hotels™ represents a hand selected collection of more than 300 hotels in over 200 destinations around the globe, with offices in Berlin, Singapore, New York and London. Our mission is creating Original Experiences by curating hotel members that celebrate the great human need to represent life in an original, one-of-a-kind way.

ED NG

Co-Founder & Principal, AB Concept

One of Hong Kong’s foremost creative designers, Ed Ng is one-half of multi-disciplinary luxury design firm AB Concept alongside business partner Terence Ngan. Born and raised with both Asian and Western influences, in Hong Kong, Ed’s childhood experiences have heavily shaped his design principles and aesthetic, enabling him to understand different cultures and fuse them together through design. After co-founding AB Concept in 1999, Ed has spent the last two decades creating innovative spaces for the most prestigious clients in luxury hospitality, wellness and F&B, including the Four Seasons Kuala Lumpur and Rosewood Sanya.

GUY HEYWOOD

COO, Six Senses Hotels, Resorts & Spas

ANDREA SEIFERT

Associate Director, The Mango Agency

Andrea has worked in London, Hong Kong and Singapore for some of the world’s biggest lifestyle brands, boutique publishing houses and communications agencies. Her extensive experience includes in-house roles with The LUXE City Guides; HighEnd Media (Gatehouse Publishing); Aman Resorts and establishing boutique lifestyle hospitality agency Accela PR. Before joining Mango PR, she honed 360-marketing skills at award-winning integrated agency AKA Asia, working on global brands including New World Development (Victoria Dockside & K11 ARTUS), One&Only, Impossible Foods, Sephora, ONYX Hospitality and Bicester Village Shopping Collection.

RUSHI KRISHNA

Potato Head

Rushi Kirshna oversees Potato Head's Sustainism Lab and zero-waste restaurant Ijen

DENIZ TEKEREK

Co-Founder, Portier Technologies

Deniz is a co-founder of Portier Technologies, a smartphone-based guest experience platform that helps hotels better understand guest behaviour for the benefit of optimised operations and increased revenues from hotel outlets. Deniz is a strong believer in behavioural data and the analysis thereof, and continues to push for hoteliers to become more aware of guest needs for the sake of true personalisation.

LUCY JACKSON

Co-founder, Lightfoot Travel

JOHN HAMILTON

Director of Marketing Communications, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, Asia Pacific

John leads the branding for the luxury hospitality company across the region, and oversees key digital developments and promotional activities for 26 properties in Asia Pacific.

JAMES MCBRIDE

Partner & CEO, Nihi Hotels

Recently recognized as “One to Watch” by Bloomberg Businessweek’s Bloomberg 50 and awarded Independent Hotelier of the World by Hotels magazine, James has led some of the world’s finest hotels during his twenty-five year career. Known for his boundless creativity in creating exceptional hotel experiences, James is passionate about paving the way for inventive ideas to thrive. In 2012, he partnered with long-time friend and investor Christopher Burch on the acquisition of Nihiwatu, a small surf destination on the Indonesian island of Sumba recently voted the #1 Hotel in the World by Travel + Leisure magazine. 7 years later, Nihi Sumba Island is now a philanthropic resort dedicated to preserving Sumba’s culture, heritage and traditions, while empowering its villages with the resources to prosper through the Sumba Foundation. The result is a rare and inspirational success story of collaboration between a resort and its local community: today, the resort is the island’s biggest employer.

James started his journey globally at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, where he remained for fourteen years, before running two of the world’s most preeminent properties in quick succession: London's Park Lane and New York’s The Carlyle.
As a global ambassador for the hotel and hospitality industry, James is also a founding partner of Zanadu, a Chinese luxury members-only online travel agency that launched the Global Travel Experience Awards in 2014.

SEDA DOMANIÇ

Editor-in-Chief, Vogue Turkey

Seda Domaniç is the founding Editor-in-Chief of Vogue Turkey, a publication that plays a unique role as a cultural barometer for its global audience. With an M.A. in International Economics from John Hopkins University and a PhD. degree in Political Science from Sabancı University. After working as a journalist and communications consultant for various international organizations, she joined Dogus Group as External Affairs Manager in 2006. Since 2009, she has been at the helm of Vogue brand in Turkey, a position that has led to numerous industry accolades, including being chosen as a 'Woman to Watch' in 2015.

Seda has a wealth of fashion and luxury lifestyle industry knowledge and experience in developing brand strategy in international high-end markets. Passionate about traveling and designing one-off journeys, she is a certified Yoga Instructor and speaks English, Italian and French – and is currently learning Spanish.

JESSE DESJARDINS

Consultant and Former Head of Global Social & Content, Tourism Australia

Canada-born and Bangkok based, Jesse is a globally renowned advisor on innovation to the travel industry and the head of fwNATION, a consultancy that designs, tests and implements dynamic strategies for Asia’s leading travel brands.
During his seven-year tenure as the Global Manager of Social & Content at Tourism Australia, Jesse was responsible for creating the legendary @Australia Instagram account, which quickly became one of the channel’s most popular profiles and made Australia the leading destination on social media.

JENNIFER DEMBITZ

Director, Asia, The Mango Agency

US-born and Asia-based, Jennifer currently leads Mango PR’s Asia offices and has significant international experience across iconic luxury and consumer brands in both Asia and the Americas, including Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts and the Guggenheim Museum. Her expertise spans food and drink; travel; art and design; luxury products; restaurants and events. By nature a proactive problem-solver, Jennifer regularly mentors in-house PR teams and new ventures. Her varied and rare skill-set includes strategic brand development and team leadership.

SEAN NINO

Co-Founder, Mantra

Born and raised in Seminyak, Bali is in Sean Nino’s blood. Growing up in the 1980s and 90s, Sean was able to experience life on the island before mass tourism hit – and so has seen first hand its impact, both positive and negative, on its natural beauty, resources and environment. After meeting business partner (and fellow Bali native) Maitri Fisher while studying in Europe, they founded Mantra: an environmental consultancy with a team of designers, engineers and building specialists who focus on regenerative design that goes beyond conventional sustainability principles.

Having proved that going green can provide a return on investment in under 2 years, Mantra’s mission is to ‘design for the environment’ – and they have now retrofitted more than 25 luxury properties in Bali, with a glittering client list that includes the Bali Turtle Island and Potato Head Family’s portfolio. Each project is a powerful showcase of locally sourced solutions, and, over five years, they have helped clients save millions of resources and up to 50 per cent on water and energy costs.

ANITA KAPOOR

TV Presenter, Writer and MC - AWAKEN 2019

After bringing her unique energy and spirit to the first edition of AWAKEN last year, we are delighted to welcome back Anita Kapoor as 2019’s official MC. Television host, speaker, writer, advocate and ever-curious learner, Anita travels the world for her work; is forever fascinated by personal stories; and counts her greatest achievement as being able to “get real” with herself over (and over) again, as a tool to continued success.

SARA-JANE SKINNER

Head of Partnerships, Blue Marine Foundation

Award-winning and highly impactful in the NGO space, the Blue Marine Foundation works to solve the ever-growing ocean crisis by providing creative solutions to overfishing and enabling the formation of new marine reserves. Filling a niche in the NGO world, partnerships with other businesses – specifically tourism operators – is a critical part of their strategy. As the Head of Partnerships, Sara-Jane works with other stakeholders to challenge the status quo, bring about change and achieve Blue Marine’s ultimate mission: to combat the destruction of biodiversity on the world’s oceans. Blue Marine Foundation launched a successful partnership with Six Senses in the Maldives – a fascinating case study in how resorts can safeguard precious resources and their new Asia hub will be launching in 2020.

RORY MOORE

Project Manager, Blue Marine Foundation

Award-winning and highly impactful in the conservation NGO space, the Blue Marine Foundation works to solve the ever-growing ocean crisis by providing creative solutions to overfishing and enabling the formation of new marine reserves. Following ten years in the field Rory is now Blue Marine Foundation’s project manager. Rory’s expertise is varied and includes Marine Protected Area planning; species conservation; marine pollution (including the oil/gas industry); fisheries management; and aquaculture. He is also a prolific photographer whose underwater work has been published across the globe. Blue Marine Foundation's Asia hub will be launching in 2020.

INGE DE LATHAUWER

Founder & Chairwoman, Sumba Hospitality Foundation

With the philosophy that “the possibility of having a dream come true makes life interesting,” Inge De Lathauwer has dedicated her life to doing the same for others – especially those from underprivileged backgrounds. After visiting the Indonesian island of Sumba in 2013, she was overwhelmed by its beauty: but equally saddened by the poverty she witnessed in local communities. As a strong believer in the power of education and responsible tourism, Inge decided to combine these twin passions into a new project – the Sumba Hospitality Foundation – which includes a full-board hospitality and permaculture school and luxury eco-resort, Maringi. Each year, they train 60 local Sumbanese students to become luxury hospitality professionals for international brands such as Belmond, Alila and Six Senses, with all profits from the Maringi resort going directly back into the school.