- Lim Seok Hui, the chief executive of the Philanthropy Asia Alliance, is standing at the helm of a mission to scale collaborative philanthropy across Asia, and impact the world globally through PAA.
- PAA’s three primary focus areas, which it treats as interrelated and building upon one another, are climate and nature, holistic and inclusive education, and global and public health.
- Lim, whose background and education has helped guide her to the post of CEO at PAA, says she’s grateful for what PAA has achieved together with their members and partners.
- Lim recently talked with Mongabay about her experiences and PAA’s acievements, initiatives, goals, collaborations and challenges with its mission to promote philanthropy in Asia.
Standing at the helm of a mission to scale collaborative philanthropy across Asia, and impact the world globally, is the Philanthropy Asia Alliance. And leading it is Lim Seok Hui, the chief executive of PAA, whom Mongabay interviewed as part of our series on leaders in philanthropy changing the world.
PAA is an initiative of the Temasek Trust, Temasek’s philanthropic arm, which launched it with the intention of fostering a philanthropic environment in Asia that’s collaborative, streamlined and intended to have the greatest impact. For PAA, public-private-philanthropic partnerships are key to spur on new strategies and actions for the impact initiatives set forth across Asia.
“Today, philanthropy is increasingly seen as a catalyst for innovative solutions and funding mechanisms to tackle environmental and social challenges,” Lim said in her welcoming remarks at the 2024 Philanthropy Asia Summit this past April. “This is buoyed by the rise of family offices in Asia — with 1,400 single-family offices in Singapore alone — and a new generation of wealth owners. These Next Gen funders are passionate about ESG and evidence-based interventions, and are keen to embrace more collaborative, impact-driven approaches to philanthropy.”
‘Anchor mandates’ to focus action
PAA has three primary focus areas that it refers to as “anchor mandates,” and that it treats as interrelated and building upon one another. The first of these three mandates is climate and nature, where PAA supports communities in adopting sustainable practices that protect the environment. The key issues under this mandate include food, water, waste, nature-based and carbon solutions, and biodiversity and oceans. The second mandate is holistic and inclusive education to make improvements in marginalized communities and at-risk groups, starting from early childhood education. And the third mandate is global and public health, where PAA’s goal is to bridge disparities to improve health equity by focusing on pandemic preparedness, maternal and child health, and mental health.
Lim has an impressive background and education that helped guide her to the post of CEO at PAA. She was previously CEO of both the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) and the first CEO of the Singapore International Mediation Centre (SIMC). She’s worked in corporate and securities law in both her native Singapore and in Hong Kong.
In an interview with Mongabay’s Matthew Boyer, Lim discusses PAA’s unique vision, the challenges it faces in a region as diverse as Asia, and its long-term vision. The following interview has been lightly edited for length and style.
Mongabay: Can you share with us your journey to becoming the CEO of Philanthropy Asia Alliance and what inspired you to enter the field of philanthropy? What personal experiences have shaped your approach to leadership in the philanthropic sector?
Lim Seok Hui: Having spent a large part of my career as a corporate lawyer in private practice and in-house, I then worked for the last decade or so in the nonprofit legal sector as CEO of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre, and double-hatted for several years as CEO of the Singapore International Mediation Centre.
I was honored to have played a role in promoting the development of Singapore as a trusted global dispute-resolution hub for parties from all over the world, and am thrilled to be leading the Philanthropy Asia Alliance that aims to contribute to the development of a philanthropic ecosystem, where building trust and fostering effective collaboration are equally critical. No single party has all the answers to the complex global challenges we are facing today, and trusted partnerships will be key to catalyzing impactful solutions to drive positive change.
Mongabay: Philanthropy Asia Alliance has a unique mission. Can you elaborate on the core objectives and vision of the organization?
Lim Seok Hui: The Philanthropy Asia Alliance, an initiative by Temasek Trust, was formally launched in September 2023 with the support of over 80 members and partners globally. Our mission is to prime Asia as a force for good for planet, people, peace and progress, underpinned by a fifth P: Partnerships.
Through private-public-philanthropic partnerships, or PPPPs, PAA aims to foster and scale collaborative philanthropy to tackle wicked problems in the interconnected areas of climate, health and education. In these domains, philanthropic capital can fuel early-stage innovation and de-risk new impact projects, to catalye funding from the public and private sectors for long-term, sustainable impact at scale.
There are three parts to our role. First, we see ourselves as an impact catalyst and curator of high-impact Asia-centered projects with global scalability potential. Whether it’s decarbonizing rice production in Southeast Asia or advancing genomics and genetic testing to tackle rare diseases in children, we work with our partners to create enabling infrastructures that efficiently mobilize funds and resources toward these impactful solutions.
Second, as a trusted convener. We want to break down silos within the dynamic yet fragmented philanthropic landscape, where different organizations are pioneering similar solutions to pressing challenges. By bringing funders and partners together, we facilitate greater synergies, shared learnings, and pave the way for systems-level change.
Third, we aspire to be a center of excellence. Our goal is to help our members and stakeholders institutionalize the data and learnings from their work with us, elevating the impact ecosystem at large. By advancing the role of philanthropy in critical areas such as sustainable financing and development, we hope to play a part in Singapore’s vision of becoming a leading regional philanthropic hub.
Mongabay: What are some of the most impactful projects or initiatives Philanthropy Asia Alliance has undertaken since its inception?
Lim Seok Hui: PAA is less than a year old, but I am grateful and heartened by what we have achieved together with our valued members and partners.
For example, at the Philanthropy Asia Summit this year, we announced our new Communities initiative: a funders’ collective aimed at scaling impact more effectively and quickly across geographies. Besides fostering collaboration and knowledge sharing, the Communities initiative seeks to drive collective funding toward a portfolio of high-impact projects. These projects are curated by PAA in partnership with the Temasek Foundation, our programs collaborator for communities and dedicated programs hub. We co-developed this collaboration model with our Community Pioneers: PAA members who will actively shape, fund, and advance each community’s work.
Together with the Temasek Trust ecosystem and other industry partners, we have also introduced several initiatives to grow capacity, competency and momentum within Asia’s impact sector. This includes a new Asia Centre for Changemakers, a learning lab hosted by the Wealth Management Institute to upskill the philanthropic community, as well as the beta launch of Co-Axis, a digital catalytic capital marketplace to connect funders with early-stage or catalytic organizations and projects with strong impact potential.
Additionally, PAA partnered with the Centre for Impact Investing and Practices, another Temasek Trust ecosystem entity, to launch the Amplifier mentorship program last year. This 12-month program aims to nurture impact startups to become commercially viable and scale positive impact in Asia. We recently introduced the inaugural cohort of mentees at PAS 2024.
There is so much more to be done to mobilize collective action and catalyze innovative solutions, and we are only just getting started. We hope to see more like-minded partners joining PAA to make an impact in Asia, for the world.
Mongabay: What are the biggest challenges Philanthropy Asia Alliance faces in its mission to promote philanthropy in Asia?
Lim Seok Hui: PAA is focused on driving collaborative philanthropy to harness synergies and maximize impact across Asia’s philanthropic sector. However, collaboration is never easy. Differing priorities and considerations often complicate the process, and many parties may work on similar projects without being aware of each other’s efforts. Additionally, individuals may be unsure how and where to start, or feel intimidated by established names who have been active in the field for much longer.
Tackling global challenges is also no easy feat. Findings from a recent climate philanthropy report by the World Economic Forum’s Giving to Amplify Earth Action (GAEA) initiative, ClimateWorks Foundation and PAA indicate that efforts to accelerate climate action are not hindered by a lack of issue awareness, but by challenges such as the lack of technical understanding, implementable solutions, structured data collection, and measurable impact metrics or KPIs.
We are working to address these challenges by providing a more coordinated and integrated approach to deliver impactful outcomes, while advocating for data disclosure and transparency to build trust. This mission is supported by our over 80 global members and partners, who recognize the immense potential to drive positive change in Asia. We work with our members and partners to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and best practices, while also ensuring that all the high-impact projects we co-curate are thoroughly evaluated for their intended impact. By pooling resources, networks, and insights, we are better equipped to tackle the complex challenges we face today.
Mongabay: How does the organization address the diverse socioeconomic issues across different Asian countries?
Lim Seok Hui: PAA aims to tackle socioeconomic challenges though collaborative philanthropy and multisector partnerships, while leveraging new funding models.
Asia is a dynamic and diverse region that accounts for over half of the world’s emissions and three in five of its population. We are focused on scaling impact solutions across our three interrelated anchor mandates: Climate and nature, holistic and inclusive education, and global and public health. These are the areas where we encounter the most pressing, interconnected issues confronting Asia, and where philanthropy can most effectively catalyze change. They are also closely aligned with the focus areas of our members and partners.
Guided by these anchor mandates, we work with the Temasek Foundation to identify project partners who are piloting Asia-focused solutions to these socioeconomic and environmental issues. These range from improving access to safe water and using genomic detection to eliminate infectious diseases, to advancing girls’ education and holistic early childhood development.
We work closely with our members to allocate funding to the various projects within our portfolio through innovative, outcomes-based financing models such as pay-for-success (PFS). A funding strategy that incentivizes data-driven collaboration among the public, private and philanthropic sectors, PFS integrates cross-sector collaboration, data analytics and innovation in impact investing to improve outcomes and address pressing and complex social challenges.
Mongabay: What is your long-term vision for Philanthropy Asia Alliance? Where do you see the organization in the next five to 10 years?
Lim Seok Hui: The long-term vision for Philanthropy Asia Alliance is to build a vibrant community of like-minded, multisectoral partners worldwide, collectively directing catalytic capital toward high-impact projects in Asia to tackle global environmental and societal challenges. We aim to build innovative financing models that crowd in public-private funding, enabling sustainable impact at scale.
To realize this goal, we are committed to establishing the foundational infrastructure and frameworks. These will empower funders, project owners and stakeholders within the philanthropic ecosystem to synergize their knowledge, efforts and resources to tackle complex issues through our impactful initiatives.
Mongabay: Can you provide an example of a successful collaboration that had a significant positive impact?
Lim Seok Hui: Private-public-philanthropic partnerships thrive on collective action and the inclusion of local voices and NGOs, who bring essential insights and perspectives. This approach ensures that projects meet local needs while building community capacity with the skills and tools to drive systemic change.
A notable example improving health care access in the Philippines highlights this potential. In a country where 60 million Filipinos face health care poverty, residents in rural areas and urban slums struggle to access clinics, lack health literacy, and cannot afford care. Local community clinics often face shortages of doctors, nurses, equipment and medicines.
Together with the Temasek Foundation, PAA project partner CareSpan Asia catalyzed a pilot program aimed at unlocking greater health care access by enrolling underserved Filipinos into the government’s universal health care initiative. The pilot results helped crowd in support from government agencies and the Ayala Foundation. The Ayala Foundation, which has a large presence in the Philippines, has since partnered with CareSpan Asia to roll out their telehealth package as a key element of an integrated poverty reduction program in El Nido, Palawan province.
This collaboration harnesses the strengths of public institutions, private enterprises and philanthropic organizations to drive systemic change, accelerating efforts to make quality health care accessible and affordable for all Filipinos.
Mongabay: Are there any upcoming initiatives or projects you are particularly excited about?
Lim Seok Hui: Our Communities initiative, which was launched in April this year, has seen some early momentum. Already, PAA and our Community Pioneers have committed S$40 million [$30 million] in funding, with more to come in time.
In addition to collective funding, Communities aims to mitigate the duplication of efforts and minimize the repetition of past mistakes among funders by providing a platform for collaboration. PAA facilitates the interactions and manages various considerations, enabling members and project partners with shared interests to focus on systematically combine their expertise, resources, and capital to amplify impact in Asia.
Each community will also establish a collective impact statement to guide priority setting and design collective funding mechanisms, laying the foundation for successful public-private-philanthropic partnerships in the long term.
The selection of focus areas for Communities is driven by urgency and impact, and anchored on PAA’s interconnected mandates of climate, health and education. We introduced the first three Communities — Blue Oceans, Sustainable Land Use, and Holistic and Inclusive Education — at this year’s PAS, and are actively working with our members to introduce additional Communities in the near term.
Mongabay: There is a lot happening in philanthropy in general, but philanthropy in Asia seems to be evolving even more rapidly. Can you give your view on why this is? What emerging trends in philanthropy do you think will shape the future of giving in Asia?
Lim Seok Hui: We have been witnessing profound shifts in Asia’s philanthropic landscape. Our region is poised for transformative change, with almost 900 billionaires collectively holding a staggering $3.4 trillion in assets. Furthermore, an estimated $2.5 trillion in intergenerational wealth is expected to change hands across Asia by 2030.
There has been an emergence of a more strategic approach to giving, driven by a younger generation with international exposure and an ambitious vision for societal transformation. These next-gen philanthropists are embracing innovative financing models, moving beyond traditional grant-making to maximize impact.
We are also seeing collaborative models of philanthropy gain traction. Funders are pooling their resources and expertise to tackle systemic issues. There is an immense opportunity for greater collaboration among philanthropic entities, and the need for a more systematic and structured approach to catalyze partnerships for action.
Banner image: An elephant in Udawalawe, Sri Lanka. Image by Rhett A. Butler/Mongabay.
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