Dr. Donald Hanna has an insightful blend of both global perspective and local ASEAN experience in analyzing global macroeconomic and policy developments, having done his first work on ASEAN while still in graduate school. He began his professional career with the World Bank working in Washington DC and Jakarta, Indonesia. He has managed macroeconomic teams for Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, ending his stint with Citi as their Deputy Chief Economist. In addition to sell-side experience, Dr. Hanna has worked on the buy-side providing macro and market views to risk takers at two hedge funds. He has also set up and managed an independent, Asian-focused macro research office.

Dr. Hanna is a Fulbright Scholar, and has a PhD in Economics from Harvard University and a BA, summa cum laude, in Economics and Spanish from the University of California at Berkeley. He is also a member of the Advisory Board of the Centre for Applied Macroeconomic Analysis at Australia National University and the Asian Development Bank’s International Advisory Group. He is fluent in both Spanish and Bahasa Indonesia.

Lydia Ruddy is the Director of Communications for the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), an international organization based in Jakarta. With over 20 years of experience, she has worked at the nexus of the public and private sectors focused on development from the local to the international level. Fluent in Indonesian, she has spent over 10 years advising Indonesian and International businesses and organizations on strategic planning, communications, sustainability and policy issues. Prior to ERIA, she served as Advisor to the Chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry where she managed public relations, hosted foreign delegations, researched special topics, and wrote the Chairman’s speeches. Trained in Law (J.D.) at Georgetown University and Urban Planning and Geography (M.U.P, A.B.D.) at the University of Washington, Ms. Ruddy has lived and worked in Indonesia since 2006 when she came as a Fulbright scholar to research private investment during Aceh tsunami reconstruction. Clients and employers have included USAID, ADB, Save the Children, private equity firms, forest products (paper and timber) companies, and business advisory consultants. Before coming to Indonesia, Ms. Ruddy’s career focused on legal practice, real-estate development and land conservation on the West Coast of the United States.

Tan Sri Dr. Munir is currently Chairman of CIMB ASEAN Research Institute, of Bank Muamalat Malaysia Berhad, of the Financial Services Professional Board, of ASEAN Business Advisory Council, Malaysia, as well as President of the ASEAN Business Club. He is a member of the Economic Action Council chaired by the Prime Minister of Malaysia. He also sits on the board of the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS) Malaysia. He is an active advocate of deeper ASEAN economic integration.

He has an extensive experience and is well known in the Malaysian corporate world. He had been the Group Editor of the New Straits Times, first executive chairman of CIMB and founding chairman of the Malaysian Securities Commission. After stepping down from the Securities Commission, he became Independent Non-Executive Director of Telekom Malaysia Berhad, Chairman of Celcom (Malaysia) Berhad and Non-Executive Chairman of Malaysian Airline System Berhad. He was Founder President of the Kuala Lumpur Business Club, established in 2003 and is a member of the Court of Fellows of the Malaysian Institute of Management.

Tan Sri Dr. Munir obtained a B.Sc (Econ) and Ph.D in International Relations from the London School of Economic and Political Science (LSE) in 1971 and 1978. He is an Honorary Fellow of LSE and continues the long association with his alma mater as Visiting Senior Fellow at the Centre of International Affairs, Diplomacy and Strategy. Tan Sri Dr. Munir is an associate of Southeast Asia Centre (SEAC) at LSE.