SPEAKERS' PROFILE

ARIEF RAMAYANDI
Senior Research Fellow, Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI)

Prior to joining ADBI appointment, Arief was a Principal Economist in the Economic Research and Development Impact Department of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). He was mostly responsible for providing inputs for the macroeconomic surveillance and analysis of the Asian Development Outlook (the ADB's main flagship publication) and macroeconomic modeling activities within the bank. Before joining ADB, Arief was the director of the Center of Economics and Development Studies at Padjadjaran University in Indonesia. He holds a PhD in economics from the Australian National University and has published in the field of macroeconomics and development. His field of interest includes macroeconomics and monetary economics, economic modeling, policy economics, development economics, public policy and governance, and economic integration and policy coordination. His recent works include the macroeconomic impact of COVID-19 and issues related to business cycle and exchange rate fluctuations and debt build-ups.

BAMBANG BRODJONEGORO
Dean and CEO, ADBI

Bambang Brodjonegoro, an Indonesian national, is the Dean and CEO of the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI). Before joining ADBI in April 2025 he was Special Advisor to the President of the Republic of Indonesia for Economic Affairs and National Development. He served the Government of Indonesia in several senior leadership roles from 2011. He was Indonesia’s Minister of Finance (2014–2016), Minister of National Development Planning (2016–2019), and Minister of Research and Technology (2019-2021). Besides government and academic, he also served as Director General of Islamic Research and Training Institute (IRTI), Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) (2009-2010).Dean Brodjonegoro holds a doctorate and master's degree in urban and regional planning from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a bachelor's degree in economics from the Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Indonesia, where he was full Professor and serving as Dean during 2005-2009. 

SHAMSHAD AKHTAR
Chairperson, Board of Directors, Pakistan Stock Exchange

Dr. Akhtar holds a PhD in Development Economics and is a postdoctoral fellow from Harvard. She has served as Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan, Finance Minister, UN Under Secretary, and Executive Secretary of ESCAP. She was also the UN SG’s G20 Sherpa and Senior Economic Advisor, Vice President of the World Bank, and Director General at the Asian Development Bank. Currently, she chairs the Pakistan Stock Exchange and serves on global advisory boards, including the Boao Forum and SOAS. Dr. Akhtar received the Nishan-e-Imtiaz and was named Asia’s Best Central Banker for her outstanding contributions.

AGNES SURRY
Deputy Head of Capacity Building and Training and Senior Economist, ADBI

Her areas of interest include development and public finance, aid effectiveness, climate change adaptation, gender equality, social policies, fiscal policies, public debt sustainability, resource mobilization, and country risk analysis. She is seconded from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), where she worked in the Strategy, Policy, and Partnerships Department for more than 6 years. As senior planning and policy specialist, she supported policy work including country classification processes to determine access to concessional finance and reforms to provide better solutions to ADB developing member countries. She led the replenishment of the Asian Development Fund 13 in 2020, which is the main ADB grant facility.

Prior to joining ADB, she worked at the African Development Bank as a resource mobilization expert and at the Treasury of France as a social economist and policy analyst. She has a master’s degree in international economics (development) and bachelor’s degrees in econometrics and social sciences from Sciences Po Paris and École Normale Supérieure de Lyon, France. 

KAZI ARIF UZ ZAMAN
Paper: Climate Vulnerability and Fiscal Sustainability: Assessing the Revenue and Expenditure Trade-offs in Asia (2001-2021)

Dr. Kazi Arif Uz Zaman is an applied economist with nearly two decades of experience at Bangladesh Bank, specializing in macroeconomic policy, financial stability, and empirical development research. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the Australian National University, where his research focused on regional cooperation and sustainable growth. Dr. Zaman has published widely on trade, fiscal policy, green development, and demographic transition, contributing to high-impact projects supported by ADBI, ERIA, and ASEAN. His expertise lies in integrating advanced econometric techniques with practical policy formulation, providing evidence-based insights that inform both national reforms and regional dialogue. At Bangladesh Bank, he has played a central role in developing macroprudential tools, drafting Financial Stability Reports, and overseeing systemic risk assessments. He has also led collaborative, cross-country studies on financial resilience and inclusive growth. Dr. Zaman’s work is closely aligned with ADB/ADBI’s strategic priorities, combining academic rigor with a strong commitment to sustainable economic policymaking.

CHRISTINE RICHMOND
Discussant

Christine Richmond is an accomplished economist with extensive experience in both academic and financial sectors. At the International Monetary Fund since August 2010, Christine has held roles as Deputy Division Chief, Senior Economist, and Economist, contributing to global economic policy. Prior to this, Christine worked as an Assistant Professor in Agriculture and Consumer Economics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign for a brief period in 2014. Christine's earlier experience includes serving as an Economist for the Latin America Research Group at Deutsche Bank Securities from 2001 to 2005. Educational credentials include a PhD in Management with a focus on Global Economics and Management from UCLA Anderson School of Management, along with an MA in Economics from UCLA, and a BA in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania.

AVIK GHOSH
Paper: Linking Fiscal Strength to Climate Action: Evidence from Environmental Fiscal Instruments and Threshold Effects in Asia-Pacific

Avik Ghosh is a Central Banker and currently serves as Assistant General Manager at the Reserve Bank of India, Kanpur, India. He brings over 15 years of industry experience across corporate finance, financial inclusion, currency management, HR, auditing, and budgeting. An Electrical Engineering graduate and Cost and Management Accountant, Mr. Ghosh holds global certifications including FRM (GARP, USA), FMVA and CBCA (CFI). He is a Certified Associate of the Indian Institute of Bankers. He has completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Machine Learning and Deep Learning and is presently pursuing doctoral research at the Indian Institute of Technology.

His academic interests include development economics, financial econometrics, public finance, and policy analysis. Mr. Ghosh’s research has been published in leading journals and presented at prestigious international conferences. He strives to bridge empirical research and practical policy design to support inclusive and sustainable economic outcomes in emerging economies.

ANDREW COLEMAN
Discussant

Andrew Coleman is a visiting Professor of Practice at the Asian School of Business, Kuala Lumpur, and a senior researcher at the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, Wellington. His research interests are related to commodity market logistics and futures markets, with a focus on spatial arbitrage in 19th century commodity markets; tax, retirement income, and capital accumulation; household preferences over economic outcomes; and housing market dynamics. He previously taught at the University of Michigan and the University of Otago, and worked at the New Zealand Treasury. Coleman has a Ph.D. in Economics from Princeton University.

DONGHYUN PARK
Paper: Climate Awareness and Digitalization: A Cross-Country Panel Analysis and Fiscal Policy Implications

Dr. Donghyun Park is currently Economic Advisor (Strategic Knowledge Initiatives) at the Economics Research and Development Department (ERDI) of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), which he joined in April 2007. Prior to joining ADB, he was a tenured Associate Professor of Economics at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. Dr. Park has a Ph.D. in economics from UCLA, and his main research fields are international finance, international trade, and development economics. His research, which has been published extensively in journals and books, revolves around policy-oriented topics relevant for Asia’s long-term development, including innovation, entrepreneurship, and green finance. Dr. Park plays a leading role in the production of Asian Development Outlook, ADB’s biannual flagship publication on macroeconomic issues, and leads the team that produces Asia Bond Monitor, ADB’s quarterly flagship report on emerging Asian bond markets.

RANJEETA MISHRA
Discussant

Ranjeeta is an economist in the Department of Economic and Policy Research at the Reserve Bank of India. Her research interests include international trade and finance, renewable energy investment, climate finance, and development economics, with a focus on poverty, urban economics, and inequality. She has previously held research positions at the Asian Development Bank Institute, the United Nations University, and the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research.

ARIEF RAMAYANDI
Senior Research Fellow, Economist, ADBI

CARSTEN HANSEN 
Paper: Advancing Sustainable Public Procurement in Asia and the Pacific

Dr. Carsten Hansen is Executive Director of SourcingHaus Research & Consulting Group, where he leads high-level advisory work on sustainable procurement and supply chain decarbonization for governments, multilateral institutions, UN organizations, and private sector companies. He also serves as Director of the Sustainable Public Procurement Accelerator Lab (SPP Lab) at the Schulich School of Business, advancing SDG 12.7 through applied research, policy development, and technical assistance. Previously, Carsten was Chief of Global Procurement Services at UNDP and chaired the UN Inter-Agency Working Group on Sustainable Procurement under the UN’s High-Level Committee on Management. He is also a Visiting Research Fellow at Cranfield University’s Centre for Strategic Procurement and Supply Management, where his academic work and publications focuses on sustainable sourcing, procurement innovation, and supply chain risk.  

SURANJALI TANDON
Discussant

Suranjali Tandon is Assistant Professor at the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP), India, where she leads the work on direct taxation and sustainable finance.  She is visiting senior fellow at Grantham Research Institute of Climate Change and Environment at the London School of Economics. She is currently a member of the inter-ministerial working group of the NITI Aayog on Climate Finance. She has worked in the past on many projects with the Department of Revenue and Department of Economic Affairs on key policy issues.

IVAN HARRIS TANYAG
Paper: Do Climate Budget Reforms Move the Needle? Panel and Synthetic Evidence from Asia and the Pacific

Mr. Ivan Harris Tanyag is a Technical Specialist at the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), where he conducts research and provides technical advice under the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II). He also serves as Policy Consultant for the SPARK Project, implemented by the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC). Previously, he worked with institutions such as the Ateneo School of Government and the U.P. Center for Integrative and Development Studies. He has contributed to several publications, including the Socioeconomic Impacts of High-Speed Rail Systems (Springer Nature, 2025) and The Routledge Handbook of Anti-Corruption Research and Practice (Routledge, 2025). His expertise spans urban and regional planning, public policy, and development studies, with research interests in transportation economics, spatial analysis, and remote sensing. Mr. Tanyag earned his undergraduate degree in Political Science at the University of the Philippines Diliman, where he is also completing his master’s degree in urban and regional planning.

NGAWANG DENDUP
Discussant

Ngawang Dendup study energy and environment in developing economies. His recent research integrates applied microeconometrics and model-based approaches. His expertise lies in applied econometrics and his publications have appeared in leading economic journals such as the Journal of Environmental Economics and Management. Prior to joining the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) in May 2024, Ngawang worked as Assistant Professor at Faculty of Political Science and Economics, Waseda University, for over five years. In addition to his role at ADBI, he is a visiting researcher at the Research Institute for Management and Environmental Economics (RIEEM).

YEOW HWEE CHUA
Paper: The Fiscal Impact of China’s ETS Pilot Programs

Yeow Hwee Chua is an Assistant Professor in Economics at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU). He is also the Deputy Director of the Economic Growth Centre at NTU and the Honorary Secretary of the Economics Society of Singapore. His research interests lie in the intersection of behavioral macroeconomics, household finance and sustainable finance. Prior to his current appointment, he was a visiting Postdoctoral scholar at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. He obtained his PhD in Economics from the National University of Singapore and Masters in Economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science. He is also a fellow of the Association Chartered Certified Accountant (ACCA), and a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charter holder.

ALEXANDER RAABE
Discussant

Alexander Raabe is an Economist at the Economic Research and Development Impact Department of the Asian Development Bank. He leads research at the nexus of international and sustainable finance, and macroeconomics. Recent work centers on mobilizing private sector funding for climate and biodiversity action, resilience to geopolitical risks, and on disaster finance, and has been published in leading journals. Alexander advises on regional financial integration and spearheads the development of machine-learning approaches to forecasting financial crises. Prior to ADB, Alexander worked at the European Stability Mechanism, International Monetary Fund, Bank of England, United Nations and University of Zurich. He holds a PhD in International Economics from the Graduate Institute Geneva, Switzerland.

ULRICH VOLZ
Professor of Economics, SOAS University of London and Director, SOAS Centre for Sustainable Finance

Ulrich Volz is Professor of Economics and Director of the Centre for Sustainable Finance at SOAS, University of London. He is also a Senior Research Fellow at the German Institute of Development and Sustainability, Visiting Professor at the London School of Economics and Political Science, Research Fellow at the Centre for Economic Policy Research, and Fellow at DIW Berlin. He has acted as an advisor to numerous governments, central banks, international organisations and development agencies on matters of macroeconomic policy, climate risk and sustainable finance, and financial sector development.

BOBY WAHYU HERNAWAN
Director, Multilateral Cooperation and Sustainable Finance, Ministry of Finance, Indonesia

Boby Wahyu Hernawan is the Director of Multilateral Cooperation and Sustainable Finance at the Directorate General of Financial Sector Stability and Development, Ministry of Finance, Indonesia. He holds a Doctor of Business Administration from Victoria University, a Master of Commerce in Applied Finance from the University of Queensland, and degrees in accounting from Satya Negara Indonesia University and STAN. His career spans various strategic roles, including Director at the Center of Climate Change and Multilateral Policy, Finance Attaché in Abu Dhabi, and Deputy Director of Financial Sector Policy Development. He has also served in key positions within Indonesia’s financial supervision bodies. Boby has participated in numerous international and domestic training programs, focusing on financial regulation, forensic accounting, and public policy, reflecting his deep expertise in financial sector governance and sustainable finance. 

HAMZA ALI MALIK
Director, Macroeconomic Policy and Financing for Development Division UNESCAP

Hamza Malik leads ESCAP’s research that analyzes economic conditions and emerging development challenges in Asia-Pacific countries and evaluates policy options and financing strategies that can support them in their pursuit of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. He is a member of ESCAP’s editorial board and supervises the publication of its annual flagship report – the Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific. He is a member of several UN task teams that support its global work and is also a member of the Independent High-Level Expert Group on Climate Finance, which supports COP deliberations.

Before joining ESCAP in 2014, Hamza Malik worked as the Director of Monetary Policy Department at the central bank of Pakistan. He was a member of the Bank’s internal Monetary Policy Committee and the Government of Pakistan teams that participated in negotiations with the International Monetary Fund.

Hamza Malik holds a PhD in economics from McMaster University Canada and did post-doctoral research on the political economy of monetary institutions at the Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford.  

SAYURI SHIRAI
Professor of Economics, Keio University, Japan  

JOHN BEIRNE
Principal Economist, ADB

John Beirne is currently Principal Economist at the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in the Philippines. Previously, he was Vice-Chair of Research and a Senior Fellow at the ADB Institute in Japan, and before that he was a Senior Economist at the European Central Bank in Germany. John’s research and policy work focuses on exchange rates, commodities, financial crisis and contagion, capital flow management, and monetary policy transmission. He has published widely in journals and holds a PhD in Economics from Brunel University London.

ABDUL ABIAD
Deputy Chief Economist, ADB

Abdul Abiad is Deputy Chief Economist at the Asian Development Bank in Manila. He oversees the ADB’s flagship publication, the Asian Development Outlook. He also oversaw the production of ADB’s inaugural Asia-Pacific Climate Report in 2024. From 2000 to 2015, he was with the International Monetary Fund in Washington DC, where he worked on the World Economic Outlook. His research has focused on financial sector development and international financial integration, fiscal policy, monetary policy, exchange rates and trade, economic resilience, and infrastructure. A Philippine national, he has a BS in Mathematics from the University of the Philippines and a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania. 

FAUZIAH ZEN
Senior Economist, Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia  

Fauziah Zen is an economist and academic with over 17 years of expertise in public finance, regulatory impact assessment, infrastructure development, and climate financing. She is a Senior Economist at the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) and a faculty member at the Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Indonesia. Additionally, she is also Visiting Professor at Hitotsubashi University in Japan

Dr. Zen has held several roles in economic policy and research, including serving as Deputy Head at the Indonesia National Research Council (2012-2014), as advisor to Indonesia’s Finance Minister on Fiscal Decentralization (2009-2014), and as Chief Economist of Nusantara Capital City of Indonesia in 2024.

She holds a Bachelor’s and Master of Engineering from the Institute of Technology Bandung, Indonesia, a Master’s and PhD in Public Finance from Hitotsubashi University, Japan; and a Postgraduate Diploma in Financial Strategy from the University of Oxford, UK. 

SAYURI SHIRAI
Professor of Economics, Keio University, Japan  

NAOKO ISHII
Director, Center for Global Commons / Project Professor, Institute for Future Initiatives, University of Tokyo

Dr. Naoko Ishii is a professor and executive vice president at the University of Tokyo, where she is also an inaugural director for the Center for Global Commons, of which mission is to catalyze systems change so that humans can achieve sustainable development within planetary boundaries. She is of the view that academia can and should play an active role in mobilizing movements with policymakers, business and civil society towards a shared goal of nurturing stewardship of the global commons, stable and resilient planetary earth system. Under her vision, the Center for Global Commons has been collaborating with reputable international research institutions in sustainability and launching projects with Japanese business focusing on energy transition, food system, and circular economy.

Before joining the university in 2020, Dr. Ishii served the Global Environment Facility (GEF) as CEO and chairperson. During her tenure of 2012 to 2020, she formed GEF’s first mid-term strategy, GEF 2020, focusing on the transformation of key economic systems and collaborating with multi-stakeholder coalitions. Dr. Ishii entered Japan’s Ministry of Finance in 1981, working mostly for the international finance and taxation. She also worked for IMF as economist for Kenya, Uganda and Kyrgyz Republic, World Bank as country director Sri Lanka and the Maldives.

She served as Deputy Vice Minister of Finance from 2010-2012.  She holds a B.A. in economics and a Ph.D. in international development, both from the University of Tokyo. She published several books, among which two are awarded academic prizes.

DONGHYUN PARK
Economic Advisor (Strategic Knowledge Initiatives), ADB

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ATHIPHAT MUTHITACHAROEN
Paper: Carbon Taxation and the Geography of Equity: Evidence from Industrial Emissions, Factory Activity, and Income Disparities in Thailand

Athiphat Muthitacharoen is an Associate Professor of Economics at Chulalongkorn University. His research focuses on how fiscal policy can advance sustainable development in developing countries, with emphasis on taxation, fiscal strategy, and digital stimulus. He earned his Ph.D. in Economics from Rice University and previously served as an economist at the U.S. Congressional Budget Office and Siam Commercial Bank. He has consulted for the Asian Development Bank, the World Bank, and the United Nations ESCAP.

His work has been recognized with the Richard Musgrave Prize from the National Tax Association, the ADB-IEA Innovative Policy Research Award, and multiple National Research Awards from Thailand. He currently advises the Thai government on carbon tax design and negative income tax implementation and collaborates with major oil refineries to test whether carbon tax awareness can influence consumer fuel choices through gas station trials and mobile app-based nudges.

DINA AZHGALIYEVA
Discussant

Dina joined EREA in 2024 as Senior Economist (Climate Change). Prior to joining ADB, she was Senior Research Fellow in the Asian Development Bank Institute (Japan).  Previously she worked at the National University of Singapore, University of Reading (United Kingdom) and the Ministry of Finance of Kazakhstan.  She earned her PhD in economics from the University of Essex (United Kingdom). In recent years, much of her research analyzes original firm-level data to understand decisions affecting carbon emissions. Just in the past several years, she has published articles in World Development, Energy Economics, Journal of Risk and Financial Management, Journal of Cleaner Production, and Climate Policy. She served as guest editor of Applied Energy, Energy Economics and Journal of Sustainable Finance & Investment. 

NGUYEN ANH TRU 
Paper: The Relationship between Government Spending, Environmental Protection Tax, and Carbon Dioxide Emissions: The Case of Viet Nam

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Anh Tru received a PhD degree in Management at the University of Newcastle, Australia. He is currently working as the Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Accounting and Business Management, Vietnam National University of Agriculture. He published nearly 50 papers both in domestic and international journals. His research interests focus on Development Economics, Energy Economics, Environmental Economics, Marketing, and Business Management. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tru is also a senior lecturer of courses related to Principle of Marketing, Marketing Management, Agribusiness Management, and Market and Prices. At present, he has presented 18 papers both in domestic and international conferences. He has carried out some research projects in Market Research, Value Chain Analysis, Agricultural Economics, and Development Economics.   

LE NGOC DANG
Discussant

Le Ngoc Dang is an expert in green finance policy, bringing over a decade of experience across the public and private sectors and international think tanks. As an economist at the Academy of Finance, Ministry of Finance, Vietnam, her specialized expertise drives sustainable economic development through green financing. Mrs. Dang holds postgraduate degrees in international finance from Monash University (Australia) and the University of Tokyo (Japan). She also served as a green finance advisor for the USAID Vietnam Low Emission Energy Program, where she assisted the Vietnamese government in reforming policy frameworks, fostering an environment conducive to renewable energy deployment, diminishing reliance on fossil fuels, and bolstering national energy security through innovative financial instruments and mechanisms.

EGA KURNIA YAZID
Paper: Assessing Local Environmental Spending and Air Pollution Reduction in Indonesia: A Satellite Data Approach

Ega Kurnia Yazid is a Data and Economic Modelling Specialist with expertise in energy subsidy reform, spatial analysis, and evidence-based policymaking. He currently serves as a Subsidy Policy Specialist with the Policy Support Team at the Coordinating Ministry for Community Empowerment. Ega has contributed to advancing Indonesia’s energy transition through his work with the Decarbonization (DfD) Lab at CSIS Indonesia. He has also collaborated with leading institutions such as Columbia University, the National Agency for Disaster Management, and the Ministry of National Development Planning. His work spans a range of topics, including energy and environmental policy, poverty reduction, and broader socioeconomic issues. Ega holds a master’s degree in quantitative Methods in Social Sciences from Columbia University and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Universitas Gadjah Mada. His current research interests include green transition labor dynamics, air pollution, and the effectiveness of energy subsidies.

NGAWANG DENDUP 
Discussant

DINA AZHGALIYEVA
Paper: Fossil Fuel Subsidies and GHG Emissions: Firm-level Empirical Evidence from Developing Asia

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SWISA PONGPECH
Discussant

A policymaker and now academic, Swisa has over 23 years’ experience working at the Bank of Thailand in a broad range of functions including the assessment and formulation of policies related to financial landscape development, financial liberization, financial inclusion and financial markets. She also represented the Bank in ASEAN working groups and FTA negotiations.

Prior to pursing her doctoral studies (DPhil in Sustainable Finance) at the University of Oxford, Swisa was Head of the Sustainability Research Group at the Puey Ungphakorn Institute for Economic Research (PIER), Bank of Thailand. She also established and served as the inaugural Deputy Director of the Sustainable Banking Division where she played a key role in laying the foundation and driving the financial sector’s commitment to sustainable finance.

She holds an M.B.A. in Finance and Strategic Management from SASIN Graduate Institute of Business Administration, Chulalongkorn University and a bachelor’s degree in economics and political science from the University of Pennsylvania.

RACHITA GULATI
Research Fellow, ADBI

Rachita is also a faculty member at the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, India. Prior to that she held the Subir Chowdhury Visiting Fellowship 2017-2018 from the India Observatory and London School of Economics and Political Sciences (LSE). She also worked at the Indian Institute of Management Kashipur.

Her research work focuses on banking and financial institutions, financial stability, corporate governance, inclusive banking, bank digitalization, applied econometrics, and efficiency and productivity analysis.

HOMER PAGKALINAWAN
Paper: Climate Finance, Renewable Energy, and Fiscal Sustainability in Pacific Island Developing States  

Homer is a Climate Change Officer at the Asian Development Bank, serving as the regional climate focal for the northern Pacific economies. A specialist in geospatial analytics, remote sensing, and climate science, he dabbles with big data of all sorts — from greenhouse gas emissions to satellite imagery resolving complex challenges across climate change, agriculture, transportation, and economics.

He has worked as a technical consultant conducting research on satellite-based assessment of transportation projects, typhoon damage estimation through nowcasting, environmental justice analysis, and various sectoral evaluations. Adept with mapping and visualization platforms, he builds dashboards that transform geospatial datasets into accessible insights for climate action and sustainable development across the Asia-Pacific region.

SABAH ABDULLA
Discussant

Sabah Abdulla is a Senior Economist specializing in Climate Change and Risk Analysis. She has expertise in economic analysis and impact assessment related to sustainable development, climate, energy, water, and environmental issues in developing countries. In her previous role at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the World Bank Group in Washington, D.C., she developed and applied methods to evaluate private sector investments in infrastructure, gender equality, and climate change interventions, with a focus on projects in Africa and Asia. Prior to this, Sabah was an Assistant Professor and UQ Vice Chancellor Fellow at the University of Queensland, Australia. She also held research positions, including a Marie Curie Fellowship at the Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (Italy), as well as post-doctoral fellowships at the University of the Basque Country (Spain) and the University of Bath (UK).

HARALD HEUBAUM
Nature-based carbon finance to the rescue? Tracing the evolution and future of Japan’s Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) 

Dr Harald Heubaum is Chair of the Centre for Energy and Climate Policy and Deputy Director of the Centre for Sustainable Finance, both at SOAS University of London. He is Associate Professor in Global Energy and Climate Policy and currently serves as UKRI Policy Fellow with the UK Government’s Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) where he supports the work of the Adaptation Team, produces governmental guidance on economic options appraisal and evaluation, and assesses the costs and benefits of adaptation interventions across a range of sectors. Dr Heubaum is also Deputy Academic Director of the University Network for Strengthening Macrofinancial Resilience to Climate and Environmental Change, which forms part of the Resilience and Adaptation Mainstreaming Programme (RAMP), an international effort to partner with universities and build capacity in vulnerable country governments across the Global South to manage climate change risks and access adaptation finance.

MAMATA PARHI
Discussant

Dr Mamata Parhi is a Reader (Associate Professor) of Economics and Finance, and Head of Accounting, Finance, Economics and Governance at the Faculty of Business and Law, Roehampton University, London. She obtained her PhD in Economics from MERIT, University of Maastricht (the Netherlands) and an M.Phil degree in Economics from the Delhi School of Economics, Delhi University (India). Mamata is the recipient of multiple research grants and has published over 40 articles in leading economics and finance journals. She has research interests in the areas of technological change and industrial dynamics, digital and sustainable finance, real-estate economics, network theory and applications. She has been a recipient of prestigious national and international grants that include the Netherlands Science Foundation, the European Science Foundation, the Equality and Human Rights Commission, and the Wales Assembly Government, among others. Currently, she serves as an Associate Editor of the International Journal of Finance and Economics.

ULRICH VOLZ
Professor of Economics, SOAS University of London and Director, SOAS Centre for Sustainable Finance 

JOHN BEIRNE
Principal Economist, ADB