Global Get in touch
Common Purpose / 04 April 2024

Non-Profit Leaders from across Australia to Vietnam to participate in 2024 American Express Leadership Academy

76 non-profit leaders will accelerate their development and build new skills to meet the unique challenges that the world is facing today.

Sydney, Australia: Common Purpose, in partnership with American Express, is excited to announce a new group of 76 dynamic, high-potential non-profit leaders from across the Asia-Pacific region who have been selected for the 2024 American Express Leadership Academy. The group includes participants from 12 countries including Australia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, India, and Japan. The Academy is a six-month leadership development program, including a one-week in-person component, offered exclusively to non-profit executive leaders, in Sydney, Australia. The program aims to transform the non-profit sector by enhancing the skills and expertise of seasoned leaders around the world.

"Our world needs resilient changemakers, particularly at a time of complex global economic and political change,” said Adirupa Sengupta, Global Chief Executive, Common Purpose. “It is imperative that our non-profit leaders possess distinctive skills that propel action both within, and beyond their organizations for communities and individuals. The American Express Leadership Academy is invaluable in helping these delegates come together to gain insights from luminaries spanning the social, public, and private sectors, building their personal and professional skills, and ultimately helping them to drive change in the world.

We are proud to be back in the Asia-Pacific region as we kick off our 2024 Leadership Academy,” said Alice Lin Fabiano, VP of Global Philanthropy and Chief Operating Officer, American Express Foundation. This year, we saw a tremendous increase in applications, and the 2024 Leadership Fellows represent one of the most innovative and geographically diverse cohorts, spanning 12 countries from Australia to Vietnam."

The Sydney Academy will take place on May 14 – 17, 2024 at the Pier One Sydney Harbour. It is delivered by Common Purpose in partnership with American Express, with support from global partners, Hilton and Delta Air Lines, and programming support from local non-profit partners. The theme of the program is “Resilient Changemakers” and it is designed to give non-profit leaders from diverse specialities and organizations a unique opportunity to learn from each other’s experiences, address current and future challenges within the sector, and gain insight from leaders across industries.

The cohort of non-profit leaders represents 70 non-profit organizations including Save the Children, World Vision, Zero Waste Malaysia, Enrich Hong Kong, and Great Barrier Relief Foundation. They work in areas including conservation, food security, environmental stewardship, human services, education, and health.

The participants are:

  1. Adrian Murdoch, Minus18 Foundation, Australia.
  2. Agita Pasaribu, Bullyid App - NMA Foundation, Indonesia.
  3. Alyssa Owens, Generation: You Employed, Inc, Australia.
  4. Anders Tan, Inclus, Singapore.
  5. Angela Calver, KiwiHarvest, New Zealand.
  6. Anjana Goswami, Equal Community Foundation, India.
  7. Anna Matthews, Bangarra Dance Theatre, Australia.
  8. Anna Katrina Aspuria, Philippine Disaster Resilience Foundation, Philippines.
  9. Anna Marie de Castro, Enrich HK, Hong Kong.
  10. Ayu Pratiwi, ASEAN Foundation, Indonesia.
  11. Azlinah Arif, Yayasan Mendaki, Singapore.
  12. Beth McCann, Drummond Street Services, Australia
  13. Cameron Brown, Bobby Goldsmith Foundation, Australia.
  14. Camilla Pandolfini, Redfern Legal Centre, Australia.
  15. Caroline Mok, Justice Centre Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
  16. Courtney Saville, The Island Foundation, Singapore.
  17. Craig Locke, LocalKind Northern Beaches, Australia.
  18. Dafna Dar, Two Good Co, Australia.
  19. Debrah Jiang, AVPN, Singapore.
  20. Didicazli Bin Cindy Ismail, Malay Youth Literary Association (4PM), Singapore.
  21. Elise Whitmore, Womens Legal Service Tasmania, Australia.
  22. Eva Luk, Manan Trust, Hong Kong.
  23. Heather Preston, Out For Australia, Australia.
  24. Jack Anderson, Elucidate Education, Australia.
  25. Jaswant Kaur, Protsahan India Foundation, India.
  26. Jean Lau, Asian Charity Services, Hong Kong.
  27. Jerome Yau, Aids Concern, Hong Kong.
  28. Jeyasudan Balasundran, Mereka, Malaysia.
  29. Joanna Lim, Fei Yue Community Services, Singapore.
  30. Johann Bin Johari, Yayasan Mendaki, Singapore.
  31. Jose Mariano Fleras, Rise Against Hunger, Philippines.
  32. Julianne Wilkin, Save the Children Global Ventures, Australia.
  33. Ian Laing, GM Strategic Partnerships, Foodbank Australia.
  34. Kalpesh Sangani, Magic Bus India Foundation, India.
  35. Larry Waller, Youth Opportunities, Australia.
  36. Lea Klein, Make Sense, Singapore.
  37. Long Ting Yim, Senior Citizen Home Safety Association, Hong Kong.
  38. Maco Yoshioka, Single Mothers Sisterhood, Japan.
  39. Maree Drury, ABCN, Australia.
  40. Marita Cranwell, Gawura, Australia.
  41. May Anne Montaño, Ayala Foundation Inc, Philippines.
  42. Melisa Rodgers, Great Barrier Reef Foundation, Australia.
  43. Methawee Thatsanasateankit, Vulcan Coalition, Thailand.
  44. Mika Yakushi, ReBit, Japan.
  45. Mohammed Tarique, Koshish - Field project of Tata Institute of Social Sciences, India.
  46. Nana Yamamoto, NPO WELgee, Japan.
  47. Navneeta Natasha Rynjah, AVPN, Singapore.
  48. Nicole Garofano, Planet Ark Environmental Foundation & UsePlasticBetter, Australia
  49. Phoebe Wallish, Drummond Street Services, Australia.
  50. Pranesh Bellie, Sankara Eye Foundation, India.
  51. Qihao Lean, Participate in Design Ltd, Singapore.
  52. Romen Ningthoujam, Goonj, India.
  53. Ryoichiro Mochizuki, World Vision Japan, Japan.
  54. Sara McDonald, Service Development Manager, Travellers Aid Australia.
  55. Sarah Cragg, The Earthshot Prize, Singapore.
  56. Saravanan Dharmarajan, Sankara Eye Hospital, India.
  57. Scott Sumner, Centre for Inclusive Design, Australia.
  58. Shahna Smith, The Circle First Nations Entrepreneur Hub, Australia.
  59. Shaun Childs, Reconciliation South Australia, Australia.
  60. Shubhra Gupta, Medha Learning Foundation, India.
  61. Sneha Arora, Atma, India.
  62. Steve Brooker, Mission Australia, Australia.
  63. Sue Yee Khor, Zero Waste Malaysia, Malaysia.
  64. Susannah Day, The Torch, Australia.
  65. Tanaporn oi-isaranukul, Scholars of Sustenance Foundation, Thailand.
  66. Thi Ngoc Bich Pham, Slow Food Community, Vietnam.
  67. Thu Thuy Nguyen, Blue Dragon Children's Foundation, Vietnam.
  68. Timothy Low, Halogen Foundation, Singapore.
  69. Tommie Clark, Sydney Story Factory, Australia.
  70. Tony Milne, Carlton Neighbourhood Learning Centre Inc, Australia.
  71. Victoria Bernard, Garden to Table, New Zealand.
  72. Vivek Kumar, Kshamtalaya Foundation, India.
  73. Wasantha PushpaKumara, VOICE Area Federation, Sri Lanka.
  74. Yuk Lam Chan, Happeriod Ltd, Hong Kong.

The Sydney Academy is the first one of 2024, with two more Academies set to take place later in the year.

  • London, England: July 9-12, welcoming non-profit leaders from the UK, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
  • New York City, USA: November 12-14, hosting non-profit leaders from The Americas.

 Learn more about the 2024 Academies and the Asia-Pacific cohort here.

Common Purpose Logo

Common Purpose

Common Purpose is a global non-profit devoted to good leadership. Its mission is to develop people who can cross cultural, social, and institutional boundaries, both at work and in wider society. It does this by delivering compelling, surprising, and powerful leadership programs & workshops. Routed in the real-world. Both in-person and online. Programs where people are having the real, purpose-driven conversations, the types of conversations we need to be having to bring about real change.

Founded in 1989 as a non-profit social enterprise, Common Purpose now runs local programs for leaders in cities across the world and global programmes for leaders from over 100 countries across six continents. Each year, 5,000 leaders become Common Purpose alumni.

Twitter: @CommonPurpose

AmEx Leadership Academy Logo

American Express

American Express is a globally integrated payments company, providing customers with access to products, insights and experiences that enrich lives and build business success. Learn more at americanexpress.com and connect with us on facebook.com/americanexpress, 
instagram.com/americanexpress, 
linkedin.com/company/american-express, twitter.com/americanexpress, and youtube.com/americanexpress.

Key links to products, services and corporate sustainability information: personal cards, business cards and services, travel services, gift cards, prepaid cards, merchant services, Accertify, Kabbage, Resy, corporate card, business travel, diversity and inclusion, corporate sustainability and Environmental, Social, and Governance reports.

About

Who we are. What we stand for.

Who we are
About us
Our purpose

Stay connected with us

Follow us to learn more about who we are and what we do

LinkedIn
Instagram
Facebook