As the founding deputy director, Dr. Daisy Yiyou Wang leads the Hong Kong Palace Museum (HKPM)’s award-winning programmes in curation and research, exhibition management, collection, conservation, publication, exhibition design, multimedia, and learning. Prior to her tenure at the HKPM, Dr. Wang has served as Chinese Art Specialist at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art, Curator of Chinese and East Asian Art at the Peabody Essex Museum in Boston, and Getty Museum Leadership Fellow at the Asia Society Museum in New York. A specialist of the history of art collecting, Ming lacquer, and Qing court portraiture and textile, Dr. Wang has published in China and internationally and received a number of awards, including a National Endowment for the Humanities grant, a Smithsonian Postdoctoral Fellowship, and a Smithsonian Scholarly Studies Award. Dr. Wang co-curated the ground-breaking exhibition Empresses of China’s Forbidden City, which was named the “Most Influential International Exhibition from Chinese Museums” in 2019 and the “Best Thematic/Historical Show” in 2018 by the Boston Globe. She co-edited this exhibition’s catalogue, which received the Smithsonian Secretary’s Research Prize. A leader in international museum professional exchange, she has served as the founding Chair of the American Alliance of Museum’s China Program.

Currently serving as an Assistant Professor at the City University of Hong Kong, Esterina is also the Associate Director of the Institute of Global Governance and Innovation for a Shared Future, Co-director of the New Frontiers in Professional Communication Lab (NFPC), and the Associate Director of the Sales and Marketing Consulting Unit (SMCU).

Esterina is a Junior Adjunct Professor of Intercultural Communication and Language Variation at the Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia in Italy, an International Research Fellow at SEGi University in Malaysia, and an invited External Member of the Research Centre for Professional Communication in English at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Her PhD in Applied Linguistics from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, which focused on digital transformation in the luxury sector, underscores her expertise in this field.

Her industry experience is equally impressive, having taught media and business communication at the university level and worked for Italian fashion and tourism companies. Currently, she is also involved in contract research and consulting projects which highlight her commitment to advancing the luxury sector’s social responsibility. Esterina is frequently invited to share her expertise on luxury, fashion, sustainability, and discourse studies by institutions across Asia and Europe. Her notable contributions include a Tatler feature as an expert in digital and luxury, a study with KPMG China on luxury consumption, and a feature in KPMG France’s first luxury report.

Since 2014, Esterina has collaborated with the Consulate General of Italy in Hong Kong and the Italian Institute of Culture in Hong Kong, supporting events related to academic research, fashion, sustainability, and culture. Her recent engagements include speaking at the Fashion Summit, hosting fashion and communication series, and presenting at the Fashion Film Festival Milano event in Hong Kong.

A man of passion, Olivier Segura only came across the world of jewelry after a few years devoted to advertising and communication.

On completing his initial training, scientific studies in biology and geology with a diploma in gemology, he moved to Bangkok where he created his gem trading company. Thanks to this, he discovered the fascinating world of jewelry and craftsmanship.

Returning to Paris to take over the management of the LFG (French Gemological Laboratory), a position he held for ten years, he joined L’ÉCOLE, School of Jewelry Arts’ Scientific Council.

In 2018, Olivier Segura took the plunge and joined the institution as Scientific Director. He has been responsible for new courses, such as “Pearl: History, Science and Legends”, exhibitions, such as “Garden of Emeralds” which will be unveiled at the opening of the new Dubai campus, and several books, the latest to date, “Precious Gemstones”, written jointly with François Farges, Professor at the National Museum of Natural History in Paris.

As the Managing Director of L’ÉCOLE Asia Pacific since August 2023, School of Jewelry Arts, Olivier Segura will continue the mission to transmit the jewelry culture to a large, varied audience via the three pillars: Savoir-Faire, the Art History of Jewelry, and the World of Gemstones.

Alexander Li was appointed the Director and Head of Retail, Hong Kong & Macau at Hongkong Land Limited in September 2023. In this role, he is responsible for overseeing the Company’s retail portfolio and operations in Hong Kong and Macau.

Prior to Hongkong Land, Mr Li held several senior roles at Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, most recently serving as Group Strategy Director. Earlier in his career, from 2015 to 2017, he was in senior audit and finance positions within the Jardine Matheson Group.

Mr Li holds a Bachelor of Arts in Law from the University of Cambridge and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the EMBA-Global Asia Program jointly offered by Columbia Business School, London Business School and the University of Hong Kong.

Jennifer Droguett Espinosa is a Colombian and Chilean Sustainable Fashion Designer and Creative Director with a decade of experience in luxury fashion, specialising in sustainable, circular, and regenerative design and culture. She earned a BA in Fashion Design and Technology from AMFI in Amsterdam in 2015 and began her career at the renowned Viktor & Rolf atelier. After relocating to London, she worked for House of Holland and with emerging talents including Richard Malone, Supriya Lele, and Phoebe English. In 2019, she founded her circular label Anciela to pay homage to her cultural heritage. Anciela gets its name from her grandparents, ANgel and GraCIELA.

Natalie Wu has joined Hongkong Land Limited since 2020. As the Head of Corporate Social Responsibility, she is responsible for the development and implementation of the Company’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy and policy.

A seasoned CSR practitioner, Ms Wu has more than 25 years’ experience in managing CSR and communications functions at multinational firms in the APAC region. Prior to joining the Company, she was APAC Head of Global Inclusion and Corporate Citizenship at State Street, overseeing grantmaking, volunteering and community sponsorship programmes. Before then, she held senior positions in UBS’s Community Affairs team and at AIA where she managed the company’s corporate communications function and charitable foundation.

Professor (Level 3) at the College of Arts, South China Agricultural University, Master’s Supervisor; Top Ten Fashion Designer in China, Ambassador for the Promotion of Chinese Textile Intangible Cultural Heritage. Member of the Fashion Art Committee of the China Fashion Designers Association, Director of the Asian Fashion Federation in China, Vice President of the Guangdong Province Fashion Designers Association. Director of the Guangdong Provincial Engineering Research Center for Fashion Innovation and Design.

He has led several major projects, including the official uniform design for the 16th Asian Games, research on the development strategy of professional textile and apparel towns in Guangdong Province, the specialized programs in clothing design and engineering at Guangdong higher education institutions, the Guangdong Provincial Fashion Innovation and Design Engineering R&D project, the National Art Fund project “破茧成蝶-非遗香云纱时尚化巡展(Fashioning the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Xiangyun Fabric)” exhibition, the construction project for a national first-class undergraduate animation program, the construction project for a first-class undergraduate clothing and accessories design program in Guangdong Province, and various significant projects related to the Ministry of Education’s industry-academia cooperation and collaborative education.

Natacha Van is a distinguished fashion designer and the founder of her eponymous brand, established in 2015. Born in Hong Kong, and with a multicultural heritage that blends Cambodian, French, and Chinese influences, Natacha’s background has significantly shaped the identity and aesthetic of her designs.

Natacha discovered her creative talents at a young age, exploring various artistic disciplines such as ceramics, oil painting, textiles, and photography during her studies in the UK. She further honed her skills in fashion styling, photography, and fashion design, graduating from the prestigious Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London. Within just two years of launching her brand, she showcased her collections at the major fashion weeks in London, New York, Milan, and Paris.

A recurring theme in Natacha’s work is the concept of fairy tales. Drawing inspiration from diverse myths and stories, she aims to educate and inspire the next generation, encouraging them to engage with contemporary societal issues. Each collection is imbued with a narrative that reflects both Natacha’s personal experiences and her artistic vision.

Currently based in Hong Kong, Natacha continues to embark on an evolving creative journey, both for herself and her brand.

Liwen Liang is a ceramic worker and fashion designer. Liang was born in a small city called Jingdezhen, but it’s the world-famous porcelain capital with a ceramic history of thousands of years. His family and friends are all ceramic workers. Liang’s grandfather was a ceramic kiln worker at the National Porcelain Factory in the 1950s, and his descendants are also engaged in the ceramic business. Liang finished master of womenswear design from the London College of Fashion in 2023. Liang has been thinking about how to express his understanding of the culture of his hometown from an international perspective.

Liang grew up in his family ceramic workshop, and his creative style comes from the environment in which he grew up. The muddy working environment, the smell of the mud, the broken ceramic fragments, and the way the ceramic workers dress are all the sources of his inspiration. Liang realized there is no aesthetic in fashion that presents the ceramic craftsman. He wants to bring the aesthetics of his community into fashion.

Ruwanthi Gajadeera is a Sri Lankan-British designer and material artivist whose work is grounded in sustainability and cultural storytelling. Her academic path weaves together a BA in Fashion & Textiles from Northumbria University, an MSc in Sustainable Management from the University of Bedfordshire, and an MA in Design Innovation from De Montfort University prior to expanding her practice through an MA in Fashion at the Royal College of Art.

Her interdisciplinary project, S.O.S – Save Our Seas , transforms scientific data on ocean degradation into participatory, multi-sensory experiences through sustainable fashion, scent design, and hands-on community workshops. Centering public engagement, she works closely with marine biologists like Dr.Asha De Vos   and environmental institutions to co-create inclusive platforms where people of all backgrounds can creatively engage with ecological challenges. As a material artivist, Ruwanthi uses reclaimed textiles, natural dyes, and heritage crafts to foster dialogue between science, culture, and activism. She has exhibited internationally, including at the UN Ocean Conference in Nice, France ,conducted mass community activism events at the European Parliament and champions fashion as a tool for ecological storytelling and behavioural change.

Vincenzo is a seasoned executive with a strong managerial background and broad cross-sector experience across the Asia-Pacific region. He has held senior leadership roles in several multinational companies and is currently with CANALI, a leading Italian luxury menswear brand. Prior to this, he spent over a decade at Kering, the French luxury group, where he held a variety of strategic and operational roles across the region. His core expertise spans business strategy, brand management, Marketing, consumer behaviour, and brand portfolio development. Vincenzo has a proven track record of driving growth and positioning premium brands in highly competitive markets. He also serves as an Adjunct Professor at the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) business school.