This August, Seattle, Washington will be hosting the third Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Senior Officials’ and Ministerial Meetings, including the Women and the Economy Forum. Private and public sectors' representatives from 21 Asia-Pacific economies will discuss a range of topics including partnerships and key issues for women's empowerment. On Tuesday, August 8 from 11:00am - 1:00pm PT, join us in welcoming Wendy Cutler, Vice President at the Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI), Kristin Ang, Port of Tacoma Commissioner, Sherry Carbary, President of Boeing China, Dorothy Dwoskin, a trade expert and former trade negotiator, and Claire O’Donnell, Director for the Selling Partner Empowerment, Communities and Trust organization at Amazon, to discuss women and the economy. Dr. Rebecca Sta Maria, Executive Director of the APEC Secretariat will provide opening remarks. 

Trade plays an important role in economic growth by supporting women empowerment and promoting gender equality. What are the mechanisms through which trade can empower women? Our speakers will also discuss anticipated trade policy frameworks, innovation, and recommendations to potentially drive economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region.

This program follows our APEC 101 (What Can We Expect from APEC 2023 in San Francisco), APEC 201 (Where Are We Headed Now), and APEC 301 (What's Happening in Seattle) events hosted on February 28, 2023, June 21, 2023, and July 20, 2023.

This is an in person, invite only event in Seattle. On the record. Registration and confirmation of registration is required. Space is limited. Light refreshments will be provided. 

As we launch our new Asia Society Seattle, we are offering exclusive complimentary virtual access to Asia Society Northern California's members. Zoom link will be sent a day before the event.

AGENDA

In person in Seattle. Virtual access to Asia Society Northern California members starting from 11:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

• 11:00 a.m.     Registration and Networking
• 11:15 a.m.     Event Starts
• 12:30 p.m.     Networking
• 1:00 p.m.       Event Concludes

SPEAKER BIOS

Wendy Cutler is Vice President at the Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI) and the managing director of the Washington, D.C. office. In these roles, she focuses on leading initiatives that address challenges related to trade, investment, and innovation, as well as women’s empowerment in Asia. She joined ASPI following an illustrious career of nearly three decades as a diplomat and negotiator in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), where she also served as Acting Deputy U.S. Trade Representative. During her USTR career, she worked on a range of bilateral, regional, and multilateral trade negotiations and initiatives, including the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, U.S.-China negotiations, and the WTO Financial Services negotiations. She has published a series of ASPI papers on the Asian trade landscape and serves as a regular media commentator on trade and investment developments in Asia and the world.

Kristin Ang is an attorney, Port of Tacoma Commissioner and Northwest Seaport Alliance Managing Member. She serves on the executive board of the Central Puget Sound Economic Development District and the Washington Council of International Trade. She made history as the first person of color elected on the Port of Tacoma Commission, along with the historical endorsement of the Puyallup Tribe of Indians. She is on the Port’s Environmental, DEI, Tribal Liaison, Workforce Development, and Joint Municipal Action committees. Commissioner Ang is focused on environmental leadership, building community relationships, and creating economic prosperity for all. She believes in the power of community and is a Rotary 8 member and Greater Tacoma Community Foundation Ambassador.

Sherry Carbary was named president of Boeing China in February 2019. She serves as Boeing’s senior in-country executive, leads company-wide activities including government affairs, and supports the implementation of Boeing’s China strategy. Carbary is also responsible for supporting new business and industrial partnerships, community engagement, and expanding Boeing relationships with stakeholders in China. 

Prior to this appointment, Carbary served as vice president and program manager for 2nd Century Human Resources and was responsible for technology integration, functional excellence and change management across the Boeing’s Human Resource function. Previously, she served as vice president of Flight Services for Boeing Commercial Airplanes (BCA) Commercial Aviation Services and led nearly 5,000 employees across 15 training campuses on six continents. Prior to that, Carbary was vice president of Strategic Management for Commercial Airplanes and facilitated the development of BCA’s competitive, market-driven business strategy. Other positions at Boeing included BCA business director & deputy vice president of SE Asia sales, director of Boeing Corporate Investor Relations, BCA director of Revenue Management, regional director of Marketing for Airline Financial Analysis and senior financial analyst in the Corporate Credit Office. Carbary currently serves on the Board of Governors of AmCham China and is Co-Chair of the US-China Aviation Cooperation Program.

Dorothy Dwoskin is an experienced trade negotiator and expert in trade policy. She retired after leading her own consultancy. Prior to that, she was Senior Director of Global Trade Policy and Strategy for Microsoft Corporation. In addition to leading trade support to subsidiaries, she worked with Congress and the Executive Branch on trade issues of concern to Microsoft. Prior to joining Microsoft in 2007, she had a lengthy career at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR). Her last post was as Assistant USTR for the World Trade Organization (WTO) and Multilateral Affairs, responsible for multilateral trade negotiations and policy matters before the WTO and OECD. She was also a senior member and coordinator for the U.S. team in the Uruguay Round of GATT negotiations, participating in negotiations that resulted in the creation of the General Agreement on Trade in Services. She was lead U.S. negotiator on the original landmark Information Technology Agreement (ITA), and setting the terms of membership for countries acceding to the WTO, including China and Taiwan. She also led negotiating teams that completed successful bilateral WTO market access agreements with Russia and Ukraine and concluded membership negotiations for the accession of Vietnam and Saudi Arabia to the WTO. 

While at Microsoft, she served as an Alternate-Member of the APEC Business Advisory Committee (ABAC) and was on the Board of the National Center for APEC (NCAPEC) serving in various roles. In 2020, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of Women in International Trade (WIIT). She served as Chair of the Washington Council on International Trade (WCIT) in Washington State. She remains an active board member of WCIT as well as the Washington International Trade Association (WITA) in Washington DC.  

Claire O’Donnell is a Director at Amazon, leading the Selling Partner Empowerment, Communities and Trust organization.  She is a seasoned product, business and technology leader, who has built and led teams across multiple disciplines, and over the last 11 years has held a number of different roles within Amazon Stores, both launching new and managing existing businesses. Prior to Amazon, she worked at Bain & Company, a management consultancy firm. Claire has a Bachelor’s degree in History and Politics from the University of Edinburgh and a Master’s in Business Administration from Harvard Business School. Originally from the UK, Claire has lived in five different countries and currently resides in Seattle WA with her husband, son, and dog. She is a Board member at KUOW, Seattle’s NPR news station.