Opening Keynotes
Kate Rebholz, Charge d’Affairs at the U.S. Mission to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
Prior to arriving in Jakarta, Ms. Rebholz was the Economic Counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. Ms. Rebholz has served in a combination of State Department domestic and overseas assignments. In Washington, she worked in the Office of Korean Affairs on North Korea policy, as the economic unit chief in the Office of India Affairs, as a special assistant to the Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment, and as a foreign policy fellow in the Office of Senator Edward J. Markey. Her full bio is available here.
Bilahari Kausikan, retired Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Singapore
Bilahari Kausikan is currently Chairman of the Middle East Institute, an autonomous institute of the National University of Singapore. He has spent his entire career in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. During his 37 years in the Ministry, he served in a variety of appointments at home and abroad, including as Ambassador to the Russian Federation, Permanent Representative to the UN in New York, and as the Permanent Secretary to the Ministry. Raffles Institution, the University of Singapore and Columbia University in New York all attempted to educate him.
Brian Finlay is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Stimson Center.
Under his tenure since 2016, Stimson has transformed its business model, launched pioneering new engagements across Asia, and industry-defining programming on environmental security, renewable energy, and technology. Brian previously served as Vice President, Managing Director, and Senior Fellow at Stimson. His full bio is available here.
Panelists
Romyen Kosaikanont, Mae Fah Luang University
Dr. Romyen Kosaikanont is a lecturer in Economics and International Development at Mae Fah Luang University and is currently serving a secondment as a Centre Director at the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Regional Centre of Higher Education Development (SEAMEO RIHED). She is also an incoming Fulbright ASEAN Scholar attached with Stimson Center. As a scholar, her research has focused in two areas: international political economy of the multilateral cooperation framework in the Mekong region, and gender, social exclusion, and development. As an administrator, she has been actively promoting the harmonization of higher education and research.
Tinh Dinh Le, Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam
Dr. Tinh Dinh Le is currently Director General for the Institute for Foreign Policy and Strategic Studies and a Board Member at the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam. Prior to this he served as a Counselor at the Embassy of Vietnam in Washington DC and Deputy Director General at the Bien Dong Institute for Maritime Studies. Earlier in his career he served in various positions with the Vietnam Ministry of Foreign Affairs at the Ministry Cabinet. He obtained his PhD from the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam and has previously attained an MPA from the University of Hawaii, while serving as a degree fellow at the East West Center. Learn more here.
Satu Limaye, East –West Center in Washington
Dr. Satu P. Limaye is Vice President of the East-West Center and the Director of the East-West Center in Washington where he created and now directs the Asia Matters for America initiative and is the founding editor of the Asia Pacific Bulletin. He is also a Senior Advisor at CNA Corp (Center for Naval Analyses). He is a graduate of Georgetown University and received his doctorate from Oxford University (Magdalen College) where he was a George C. Marshall Scholar. His full bio is available here.
Sera Koulabdara, Legacies of War
Sera Koulabdara serves as Executive Director of Legacies of War, the only international U.S.-based advocacy and educational organization working to address the impacts of the American Secret War in Laos and conflict in its neighboring countries of Cambodia and Vietnam during the Vietnam War-era, including the removal of unexploded ordnance (UXO) and victims/survivor assistance. Prior to this role, Sera was a longtime volunteer and served on Legacies’ board for over 5 years in multiple leadership positions including Vice Chair. Her full bio is available here.
Moderated by
Brian Eyler, Southeast Asia Program Director, Stimson Center
Brian Eyler directs the Southeast Asia Program and the Energy, Water, and Sustainability Program. He is an expert on transboundary issues in the Mekong region and specializes in China’s economic cooperation with Southeast Asia. He spent more than 15 years living and working in China and over the last two decades has conducted extensive research with stakeholders in the Mekong region. His full bio is available here.