Themed "Partnerships for Action", this year’s Philanthropy Asia Summit (PAS) by the Philanthropy Asia Alliance (PAA) took place from 15-18 April and brought together over 400 participants from the global philanthropic, private, and public sectors.
Co-located with Temasek’s Ecosperity Week for the first time, PAS featured plenary sessions with action and thought leaders, a series of partner events anchored by PAA’s partners, and experiential Impact Journeys led by PAA members. It spotlighted the possibilities of collective action in driving real impact, with eminent action and thought leaders offering robust and holistic insights on catalysing positive impact across the capital spectrum, with a focus on systems thinking.
The Summit’s main plenary sessions on Day 1 focused on the urgent need for robust public-private-philanthropic partnerships and the importance of positive action in climate, education, and health in Asia. On Days 2 and 3, partner events showcased solutions and systems thinking in philanthropy, in the interconnected areas of climate, education, and health.
The Impact Journeys on Day 4 offered immersive, impact-in-action site visits to Sembcorp Tengeh Floating Solar Farm and the OceanXplorer research vessel operated by OceanX.
Although Asia has made significant strides towards a net-zero future, more unified efforts and partnerships are needed to secure a chance to transition to a sustainable future for all, "where no one is left behind", noted Mr. Desmond Kuek, CEO, Temasek Trust, in his delivery of the Summit’s opening remarks on behalf of Mr. Lim Boon Heng, Chairman, PAA, and Chairman, Temasek.
“Solving for the global climate crisis must involve solving for Asia. While challenges persist, progress has been promising, and we must build on this positive momentum,” he highlighted.
The opening remarks also stressed the importance of systems-level thinking and a holistic approach, powered by multi-sector partnerships.
Read on for more highlights from the Summit:
PAA introduces the Communities initiative
The new Communities initiative is a collaboration model inspired by and co-developed with PAA members, to scale impact more effectively and quickly across geographies. These Communities aim to foster collaboration and expertise- and resource-sharing among members and project partners with shared interests.
Three Communities were launched at PAS 2024, helmed by PAA and the Community Pioneers:
- The Blue Oceans Community with Dalio Philanthropies and TPC (Tsao Pao Chee)
- The Sustainable Land Use Community with Golden Philanthropies (Sinar Mas) and Jollibee Group Foundation
- The Holistic & Inclusive Education Community with Tanoto Foundation
PAA and the Community Pioneers of these three Communities have committed S$40 million for a start, with more expected. PAA is also actively working with its members to introduce more Communities.
The initiative is testament to PAA members’ bias for action and commitment to breaking down silos, so they can collaborate better with like-minded parties, said Ms. Lim Seok Hui, CEO, PAA.
Ms. Lim Seok Hui, CEO, PAA, announces the Communities initiative in her welcome remarks at the Summit.
Temasek Trust will support each Community in developing a systems-thinking approach and a Collective Impact Statement, to lay the foundation for successful philanthropic-public-private partnerships in the longer term.
Learn more about the Communities initiative here.
Launch of Co-Axis featuring 70+ solutions to speed up and scale impact
The first phase of Co-Axis, a digital catalytic capital marketplace, went live, featuring over 70 curated high-impact opportunities from more than 40 countries.
The platform — www.coaxis.network — connects funders such as family offices, corporate entities, philanthropists, high net worth individuals, and private foundations with early-stage businesses, charitable organisations, and blended finance projects with strong impact potential.
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Ms. Dawn Chan, Managing Director of Investments at Temasek Trust Capital, announcing the first phase of Co-Axis at PAS.
Co-Axis was initiated by Temasek Trust, with strategic partners DBS Foundation and UBS Optimus Foundation, and further collaboration from 13 leading industry partners.
It aims to unlock risk capital and harness the power of community to scale and speed up impact innovations tackling the world’s greatest sustainability challenges. The opportunities on the platform focus on advancing the impact categories of climate, health, employment, education, and others.
Whether you are a founder or funder, inventor or investor, community-builder or knowledge expert, we invite you to join us to scale impact on Co-Axis. Learn more here. Follow Co-Axis on LinkedIn for the latest updates.
Unveiling the Amplifier's first cohort of impact innovators
With a focus on climate and nature, five impact-driven startups from diverse geographies and business models make up the inaugural cohort of mentees for the Amplifier mentorship programme — Circ, GRST, MAYANI, MYCL, and Sampangan.
This was announced by Temasek Trust ecosystem entities — the Centre for Impact Investing and Practices (CIIP) and PAA — at the Summit. The year-long Amplifier aims to nurture impact startups to become commercially viable and scale positive impact in Asia.
Representatives from Circ, GRST, MAYANI, MYCL, and Sampangan. The five startups were selected from ~140 submissions from 35 countries.
Taking a 'whole-of-ecosystem' approach, the capacity-building programme brings together experts, mentors, catalytic funding, and other resources from over 30 partners across sectors, to collectively bolster impact ventures in scaling their business.
The Amplifier’s 2024 programme is focused on scaling innovative, Asia-centric solutions around sustainable agriculture, circular business models, waste management, sustainable materials, and emissions reduction.
Watch our video: Unveiling the Amplifier's first cohort of impact innovators
Follow this link to read about the mentees' induction week in Singapore. Learn more about the Amplifier here.
Asia Centre for Changemakers announces signature certification programme
The Asia Centre for Changemakers (ACC), hosted by the Wealth Management Institute (WMI), introduced its Certified Impact Philanthropy Professional Programme to build capabilities among professionals and advisors in the philanthropic space.
As Asia’s foremost learning lab for philanthropy and impact capital, the ACC is committed to guiding family principals, professionals, advisors and social entrepreneurs in moving up the learning curve.
Mr. Brian San, Executive Director, Programmes and Strategic Development, WMI, and Co-Head of ACC, shares more on the newly minted ACC at the Impact Philanthropy Partnership Forum 2024 during PAS.
The ACC, supported by Temasek Trust and PAA, aims to build capacity and nurture a strong pipeline of active and informed changemakers with a focus on Asia.
The Certified Impact Philanthropy Professional Programme is the ACC's signature programme. Participants will graduate with the ability to confidently strategise, advise, and implement philanthropic plans for families and clients to drive transformational change. For more details, follow this link.
Partnerships make the impossible possible
Now, more than ever, we need to forge robust philanthropic-public-private partnerships to scale collaborative philanthropy and elevate the impact ecosystem at large.
We are grateful to our valued partners, members, and delegates for a fruitful PAS 2024 and the continued strong support and collaboration.
Click here to watch the Summit's event highlights on YouTube.
For the latest updates, follow PAA on LinkedIn and check out its website.
For highlights of The Liveability Challenge (TLC) 2024, presented by Temasek Foundation, click here. Vietnam-based edible insect startup CricketOne and Dutch clean aviation fuels venture GAFT were named the top winners at TLC, each receiving S$1 million in catalytic funding, as they address key challenges in food and nutrition and climate change.
Meanwhile, the Impact Investing Roundtable, organised by Temasek and the Centre for Impact Investing and Practices (CIIP), enabled conversations around impact measurement and management, business models that benefit both people and the planet, and galvanising collaborative action for impact. Read more about the Roundtable.
Temasek Foundation and CIIP are part of the Temasek Trust ecosystem. Follow Temasek Trust on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
