PROJECT PASCAL FORUM
Technology Innovation in Southeast Asia: Strategies and Insights
Professor Wong Poh Kam
Moderator: Mr. Pow Chang
Host: Kang Taeyoung
Date : 1st Sep. 2023, 2pm(GMT+8)
Organized by Project Pascal
Greetings, Project Pascal Forum members,
In the ever-shifting tapestry of our global landscape, where innovation is the heartbeat of transformation, we stand on the brink of a revelation—a journey into the vanguard of innovation, poised to redefine the contours of our technological future. Welcome to the PASCAL FORUM 2023.
Nestled within Southeast Asia, one of the world’s most dynamic regions, we embark on an exploration of innovation, development, and transformation collectively. In this vibrant tapestry of nations, we aim to unearth the seeds of creativity, cultivate resilience, and tap into boundless potential. Our shared mission is to forge a sustainable and better tomorrow in the face of myriad trials and challenges that Southeast Asia confronts.
Unveiling Profound Insights
Our esteemed keynote speaker, Professor Wong Poh Kam, a visionary with an illustrious career intertwined with the realms of technology and innovation, will be our guiding luminary. His profound insights, intricately threaded with the contexts of Southeast Asia and the broader Global South, promise a tapestry of enlightenment.
Exploring Unique Challenges and Solutions
This forum shall be an intellectual odyssey, shedding light on the unique challenges faced by Southeast Asia – from its vast rural populations with modest incomes to its sprawling megacities grappling with urban infrastructure enigmas. We shall delve into innovative solutions that bridge these disparities and elevate the quality of life for all. Through this forum, we explore how innovation can transcend boundaries, how technology can serve the masses, and how the world’s sprawling urban centers can be reimagined for a sustainable future.
Empowering the Next Generation
Education forms the cornerstone of progress. Discover how nurturing the minds of our youth, instilling a deep understanding of local issues, and fostering entrepreneurial spirit can be a catalyst for change. Explore the mechanisms through which they can support and nurture student-led projects, providing mentorship, and resources to turn visionary ideas into impactful realities.
As we embark on this journey together, we look forward to sharing insights, exchanging ideas, and collaborating towards a shared future that benefits not only our regions but the world at large. The flames of progress, when ignited collectively, have the power to illuminate the path forward.
Let us indeed shape the future together, leveraging our collective knowledge, creativity, and determination. The future is a canvas waiting for us to paint it with our ideas, innovations, and aspirations harmoniously.
Welcome to Pascal forum, and let the discussions commence!
Keynote Speaker :
Professor Wong Poh Kam
Emeritus Professor at NUS Business School, LEE KUAN YEW School of Public Policy
Wong Poh Kam is Emeritus Professor at NUS Business School and LEE KUAN YEW School of Public Policy. He obtained two BSc.’s, an MSc. and a Ph.D. from MIT. He has published extensively in leading international refereed journals on entrepreneurship and innovation, and was ranked among the top 2% most highly cited scholars in the world by AD Scientific Index in 2020-22. He has also consulted widely on innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem development policies for various international agencies including the World Bank, OECD, Asian Development Bank and WIPO, various government agencies in Singapore including MTI, EDB, ASTAR, Min. of Law, MPA and IPOS, and many private corporations in Asia. He was a Fulbright Visiting Scholar at U.C. Berkeley, a visiting scholar at Stanford University, Oxford University, Korea University and GRIPS in Japan, and a Pacific Leadership Fellow at UC San Diego.
Besides his academic position, he was concurrently the Director of NUS Entrepreneurship Centre from August 2001 until July 2019, where he created or provided academic leadership for several high-impact experiential entrepreneurship education programs, including the NUS Overseas Colleges (NOC) program, the Technopreneurship Minor program for undergraduates in NUS, the NRF-funded National Lean Launchpad (LLP) Program on technology commercialization for professors and graduate students in the four leading universities in Singapore (2017-22), and the annual NUS Enterprise Summer Program on Entrepreneurship. He also advised the NUS Enterprise CEO on the strategic development of NUS Enterprise Incubator (NEI) program, including Block71 in Singapore, Indonesia, Suzhou and San Francisco. He has served on the investment committee of NUS Enterprise since its founding, and was a mentor to many tech start-ups incubated by NUS Enterprise. He initiated StartUp@Singapore, the largest annual business plan competition in Singapore (1999-2012), and the DBS-NUS Social Venture Challenge Asia, the largest annual social entrepreneurship competition in Asia (2013-18). He also initiated and co-chaired the Modern Aging Accelerator, a joint program of NUS Enterprise and Access Health (2017-18), and the Port Innovation Ecosystem Re-imagined (PIER71), a joint program of NUS Enterprise and the Maritime Port Authority (MPA) of Singapore (2018-19). He is currently a Distinguished Visiting Professor at the Asian School of Business (ASB) in Malaysia, an advisor to Nanyang Technological University (NTU) Entrepreneurship Academy on entrepreneurship education, and an advisor to Hong Kong S&T Park (HKSTP) on the Lean Launcher Program.
An entrepreneur prior to joining academia, he has been an active angel investor in tech startups in Singapore, Silicon Valley and China. He was the founding chairman of Business Angel Network (Southeast Asia), and is an advisor to iGlobe Partners, a global VC fund based in Singapore. He received the Public Administration Medal (Silver) Award from the Singapore Government in 2013 for his contribution to entrepreneurship education in Singapore, and the “Entrepreneur for the World” Award (Educator Category) from the World Entrepreneurship Forum in 2015. He was a board member of the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) 2016-22, and is currently a board member of B-Lab Singapore, a non-profit organization that provides certification services for Singaporebased companies that seek to become B Corps (companies for doing good).