A.W. Lee is Director of Inclusive International Trade at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. In his role, he promotes diversity in international trade – diversifying both Canada’s global markets as well as the profile of its exporters. A.W. Lee joined the Foundation in 2017 as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Global Social Policy at the University of Toronto, where he focused on studying export needs in Ontario and trade opportunities in Asia.
Before joining the Foundation, A.W. Lee lectured on gender, race, and economic inclusion in the Women's Studies and Sociology departments at the University of Toronto and Queen's University. He holds a PhD in Cultural Studies and an MSc in Anatomy and Cell Biology from Queen's University.
A.W. Lee has also been actively involved in advocating for migrant women's rights and worker safety in the Chinese Canadian community. He has served as the Chairperson for the Chinese Canadian National Council (CCNCTO) and currently serves as a Board Director for the National Coalition of Canadians Against Anti-Asian Racism (NCCAAR), where he contributes to addressing anti-Asian violence and discrimination through fundraising and educational initiatives.
Dr. Kati Suominen is Founder and CEO of Nextrade Group and ideates and leads Nextrade Group engagements with the company's more than 50 clients. She has ideated and built dozens of data and analytical products, pilot initiatives, and eight global initiatives and public-private-partnerships to support Nextrade's clients in enabling world trade through technology.
Kati is the author and editor of over 120 papers and 10 peer-reviewed books on trade, globalization and technology and has spoken and keynoted numerous times at such venues as Davos, World Trade Organization, World Trade Symposium, Global Trade Review, ICC Banking Commission, Institute of International Finance, IMF, and World Bank, APEC Senior Officials' Meeting, and commented in such media as Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Time, Politico, BBC, CSPAN, USA Today, and Los Angeles Times.
Dr. Vlado Vivoda is a scholar and geopolitical analyst specializing in critical minerals, energy security, and geoeconomic strategy. He is an Honorary Fellow at the Sustainable Minerals Institute, The University of Queensland, and Editor-in-Chief of Resources Policy.
His work focuses on critical mineral supply chains, industrial policy, and economic security across the Indo-Pacific.
Research Areas: Natural resource policy, foreign direct investment, free trade.
Rachael Gurney is a Senior Project Specialist, International Trade and Investment, at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. She has a M.A. in Political Science and Contemporary East Asian and Southeast Asian studies from the University of Toronto and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of British Columbia. Her master’s research focused on resource nationalism in Indonesia’s critical mineral mining policies. Her research interests concern natural resource policy, foreign direct investment, and free trade.
Justin Wong is the APEC Networks Officer at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. He was previously a Research Scholar with APF Canada's International Trade & Investment team.
Before joining the Foundation, Justin worked in the Asia-Pacific Branch at Global Affairs Canada and with INTERPOL's Special Representative Office to the United Nations in New York. He holds a Master of Management from the University of British Columbia's Sauder School of Business and a dual Bachelor of Arts from the University of British Columbia and Sciences Po Paris.
His work focuses on artificial intelligence policy, cross-border investment, and Canada-Asia business engagement.
Barrett Bingley is Asia Regional Director for the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, based in Singapore. His research interests include international trade, geoeconomics, and strategic studies. He was previously Senior Policy Advisor to Canada's Foreign and Trade Ministers and Head of Growth Partnerships for the Asia-Pacific at The Economist.
Dan Ciuriak is Director and Principal, Ciuriak Consulting Inc. (Ottawa), which provides analytical and policy analysis services related to international trade, finance, industrial policy, and economic development. He also holds fellowships with the Centre for International Governance Innovation (Waterloo), where his research interests are focussed on the nexus between innovation and trade, and quantifying the economic impact of the digital transformation, and with the C.D. Howe Institute (Toronto), where he focuses on Canadian trade policy issues.
An APF Canada Distinguished Fellow, he has published widely as author and editor, including numerous studies on Canada’s trade relations in the Asia Pacific, and comments frequently in the media.
Dr. Sun Ryung Park is a Senior Research Specialist, Northeast Asia, at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. She is interested in green transition, energy security, and digital transformation in the Asia Pacific region.
