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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

AirAsia Foundation marks ASEAN Economic Community and Malaysia’s

Chairmanship of ASEAN with inaugural Social Enterprise Event

KUALA LUMPUR, 8 Sep 2015 – AirAsia Foundation today announced the commencement of ticket sales for its first public event titled ‘Destination: GOOD – ASEAN Social Enterprise in Kuala Lumpur’. Taking place on Nov 7, 2015, the event will be a full day affair comprising a Conference and Marketplace to feature top entrepreneurs and some of the most innovative social enterprises in the region. Tickets for the event are available from airasiaredtix.com at three price-tiers of RM80 (Conference & Marketplace), RM50 (Student) and RM10 (Marketplace Only).

Organised in partnership with ThinkCity and MaGIC Social Entrepreneurship, Destination: GOOD joins a calendar of events to mark the coming into force of the ASEAN Economic Community and Malaysia’s Chairmanship of ASEAN. The event aims to discuss the future of entrepreneurship in ASEAN and how big businesses and social enterprises play complementary roles in making economic systems more equitable, sustainable and inclusive. In organising this event, AirAsia Foundation is also proud to announce that the foundation is the first corporate entity to be accredited as an ASEAN Civil Society Organisation by the regional association in May 2015.

“AirAsia has always been about greater ASEAN integration. This time, we are bringing people together to talk about entrepreneurship and how it can be applied to address social challenges in our region. We will share how we are applying inclusive values into our business and extending our networks to support social entrepreneurship growth,” said AirAsia Group CEO Tony Fernandes, who is also a Trustee of the Foundation.

Kicking-off the morning is a panel discussion on inclusive business which will see the AirAsia chief joined by four prominent ASEAN business leaders including Richard Eu, Group CEO of Eu Yan Sang International Ltd of Singapore; Shinta Kamdani, CEO of Sintesa Group of Indonesia and Vichien Phongsathorn, Group CEO of Premier Group of Thailand. This will be followed by a second panel of social enterprise movers and shakers to discuss ASEAN’s social enterprise ecosystem.

For the second half of the day, AirAsia Foundation will be presenting 30 innovative ASEAN social enterprises in a Marketplace hall where each organisation will showcase their businesses that address a range of goals from heritage conservation to wildlife welfare. Attendees will be able to interact with the social entrepreneurs and purchase ethical products and services in support of their causes.

Among the highlights at the Marketplace are AirAsia Foundation grantees including award-winning Rags2Riches, Inc. from the Philippines; Jogjakarta traditional silversmiths label group, Selaka Kotagede; and Khmer traditional arts organisation, Cambodian Living Arts. The Marketplace will also see exciting environmental and wildlife conservation initiatives from Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.

“Our intention in bringing together all these social enterprises is to raise awareness to the diversity of the sector. We hope that aspiring social entrepreneurs will be inspired by them. We also look forward to the social entrepreneurs forming their own networks and starting collaborations with one another,” said AirAsia Foundation Executive Director Yap Mun Ching. 

Capping the experience of the ASEAN social entrepreneurs while in Kuala Lumpur is a unique opportunity to attend a closed-door workshop from Nov 8-9, 2015, that is specially designed by AirAsia Foundation to provide them with tools and ideas to grow their businesses. Content for the workshop are provided by subject matter experts and the AirAsia Group’s business partners including Badan Warisan Malaysia, the British Council, Creative Move (Thailand), Liter of Light, Mae Fah Luang Foundation under Royal Patronage, Google, PricewaterhouseCoopers, StartSomeGood.com, National University of Singapore’s Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, Opendream (Thailand) and Zalora.