The window of opportunity to prevent the most catastrophic effects of climate change is quickly closing. According to the latest science from the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, we must peak global emissions by 2025 and reduce them to net zero by the middle of the century.

Yet the transition to net zero is also a massive opportunity for Asia, which currently accounts for over half of global emissions. Strong climate action in line with the Paris Agreement's 1.5-degree temperature limit would add $47 trillion dollars in gains to the Asia-Pacific economy by 2070.

Asia Society Policy Institute and its President Kevin Rudd are spearheading a high-level policy commission on Getting Asia to Net Zero. The Commission’s diverse set of recognized Asian leaders will provide recommendations on how Asia and key countries can realize net zero emissions, including how climate action can boost the region’s economy, trade, interconnectedness, and livelihoods. 

This event will explore Asia's net zero opportunity and also serve as the virtual launch of the Commission. It will feature keynote remarks by former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who is one of the commissioners, followed by a panel discussion moderated by Kevin Rudd and featuring a selection of other commission members.

Keynote Remarks

H.E. Ban Ki-moon is President & Chair of the Global Green Growth Institute, and served as the Eighth Secretary-General (2007-2016) of the United Nations. He is Chairman of the Ban Ki-moon Foundation for a Better Future, Chair of the Boao Forum for Asia, and Co-Chair of the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens. He is also the Chairman of the International Olympic Committee Ethics Commission, and he serves as Deputy Chair of The Elders, an independent group of global leaders established by President Nelson Mandela. Prior to leading the UN, he was Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Republic of Korea. His 37-year career as a diplomat included postings in New Delhi, Washington D.C., and Vienna, as well as key responsibilities for a variety of portfolios, including as the Foreign Policy Advisor to the President, the Chief National Security Advisor to the President, the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Deputy Minister for Policy Planning, and the Director-General for American Affairs. He contributed significantly to issues relating to inter-Korea relations and WMD proliferation by serving as Vice Chair of the South-North Joint Nuclear Control Commission, and Chairman of the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization.

Speakers

H.E. Dr. Muhamad Chatib Basri is Chairman of the PT Bank Mandiri tbk. and Chairman of the PT XL-Axiata tbk. He previously served as Minister of Finance of Indonesia, and as Chairman of the Indonesian Investment Coordinating Board. He is a member of various International Advisory councils including the High-Level Advisory Group on Sustainable and Inclusive Recovery and Growth, formed by the World Bank and the IMF in the face of dual crisis posed by COVID-19 pandemic and climate change; the World Bank Advisory Council on Gender and Development; Group Eminent Personalities of the OECD Development Centre and the Advisory Board, Centre for Applied Macroeconomic Analysis, the Australian National University. He is also member of the Governing Board of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore. He teaches at the Department of Economics University of Indonesia and co-founded CReco Research, a Jakarta based economic consulting firm. He was a senior fellow at the Ash Centre  at the Harvard Kennedy School (2015-2016), Pacific Leadership Fellow at the Centre on Global Transformation, University of California at San Diego (2016),  NTUC Professor of International Economic Relations, RSIS, NTU, Singapore (2016) and Thee Kian Wie Distinguished Visiting Professor at the Australian National University (2016-2017).

H.E. Taro Kono is a nine-term Member of the House of Representatives of the National Diet of Japan. He previously served as Minister for Administrative Affairs and Minister for Vaccine Roll-out, as well as Minister of Defense; Minister for Foreign Affairs; Chairman of the National Public Safety Commission, or Minister-in-charge of the National Police Organization; Minister in Charge of Consumer Affairs and Food Safety; and Minister-in-Charge of Disaster Management. He has also served as Parliamentary Secretary for Public Management, Senior Vice-Minister of Justice, and Chairman of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives. He was Chairman of the Japan Race Horse Association and Chairman of the Shonan Bellmare Football Club, the 1995 Asia Champion Soccer Club.

The Hon. Kevin Rudd AC is President and CEO of the Asia Society, and inaugural President of the Asia Society Policy Institute. He served as 26th Prime Minister of Australia (2007 to 2010, 2013) and as Foreign Minister (2010 to 2012). He is Chair of the Board of the International Peace Institute in New York, and Chair of Sanitation and Water for All – a global partnership of government and non-governmental organizations dedicated to the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 6. He is a Distinguished Fellow at Chatham House and the Paulson Institute, and a Distinguished Statesman with the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He is also a member of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization’s Group of Eminent Persons.

Kate Logan (Moderator) is Associate Director of Climate at the Asia Society Policy Institute where her work focuses on enhancing climate action across Asia and in key national jurisdictions, especially China. Prior to ASPI, she managed grants for the Clean Energy, Clean Air initiative at ClimateWorks Foundation and engaged subnational governments to join the Race to Zero campaign in the lead-up to COP26 in Glasgow. She began her career in Beijing, where she was a Princeton in Asia Fellow at the Natural Resources Defense Council and later directed international outreach and green supply chain initiatives for the Institute of Public & Environmental Affairs, a non-profit founded by Chinese environmentalist Ma Jun. She also co-founded and produced Environment China, a podcast on solutions to China's environmental challenges.