© All pictures by André Hengst, ON EYES PHOTOGRAPHY

The Gen A Day is now behind us, and what a success! For this first edition, 65 people － among whom were figured Fellows from five different Gen A cohorts － joined us for an exceptional afternoon celebrating the Asia Competence of our young leaders. It was also an occasion to make new acquaintances and engage in an intergenerational dialogue with Board Members, Advisory Board Members and Patrons of Asia Society Switzerland of Asia Society Switzerland.

After an icebreaker session, we attentively listened to three thought-provoking panels, each featuring two Gen A experts and one experienced moderator on three burning topics in Asia: demography, culture shock, and sustainability. The panels were followed by the session fittingly named "On The Ground", highlighting the experience of Martín Mosteiro Romero, the recipient of the Gen A Travel Grant 2023, made possible thanks to the generous support of IMP AG.

You wish to be among us next year? Apply to the Gen A - Young Leadership program! The call for applications is published every year in November. Subscribe to our newsletter or follow us on social media to stay tuned.

We look forward to welcoming you next year for another celebration of our Gen A Alumni, the Asia experts of tomorrow!

Gen A Talks:

A conversation for the Alumni by the Alumni.

After graduating from the Gen A – Young Leadership Program, former Fellows stay involved and continue the conversation. On the Gen A Day, some of them took the stage to discuss their takes on big topics of our times and present the projects and research they are currently engaged with.
 

Demography: The Age of Ageing

With Adam Benacka, Samira Hüsler, moderated by Eunice Zehnder-Lai

© All pictures by André Hengst, ON EYES PHOTOGRAPHY

Population ageing is a challenge for many countries － particularly in Asia － because of its various impacts on society, including healthcare systems, workforce dynamics, and economic sustainability. At the Gen A Day, Adam Benacka and Samira Hüsler shared their expertise and research on the subject, and answered Eunice Zehnder-Lai's questions on how the the younger generations are approaching this issue. 

Adam Benacka, Gen A Fellow 2021, is Data Lead Project at Swiss Re. He holds a double degree in International Business and Healthcare Management.

Samira Hüsler, Gen A Fellow 2021, is a social anthropologist. In January 2024, she started her PhD thesis on intergenerational care in institutions in Japan and Switzerland.

Eunice Zehnder-Lai is Vice Chair of the Geberit Group, Member of the Board of DKSH and the Julius Baer Group, and a Board Member of Asia Society Switzerland.

Culture Shock: Context and Awareness

With Saghar Vosough, Lea Hasenzahl, moderated by Angelika Li 

© All pictures by André Hengst, ON EYES PHOTOGRAPHY

Today more than ever, awareness of cultural differences and how they interact to shape perspectives, behaviors, and communication is vital to human communication, notably for the conversation between Europe and Asia. For the Alumni at Gen A Day, Saghar Vosough and Lea Hasenzahl shared their research and knowledge on the subject before answering Angelika Li's questions on how best to take these differences into account in our everyday lives. 

Saghar Vosough, Gen A Fellow 2023, is a PhD candidate and clinical specialist in the field of ADHD and Emotion with extensive experience working with children and adult patients in European and Middle Eastern contexts.

Lea Hasenzahl, Gen A Fellow 2022, is a PhD candidate in communication. With her PhD research, she explores "the public discourse around Chinese Outbound Tourism in Western societies" (working title).

Angelika Li is the founder and curator of HOMELAND in TRANSIT, a curatorial project between Basel and Hong Kong, and is co-founder of PF25 cultural projects, a research initiative focusing on the everyday life and ecologies of the two cities.

Sustainability: Recent Developments

With Rachel Ann Go, Jonas Rüegg, moderated by Bruno Basler

© All pictures by André Hengst, ON EYES PHOTOGRAPHY

Over the past 50 years, the perception of sustainability has undergone a profound transformation, evolving from a niche concern to a global imperative, driving shifts in policy, business practices, and individual behaviors, and impacting our approach to development and growth. At the Gen A Day, Rachel Ann Go and Jonas Rüegg presented their research and exchanged their views on the concept of sustainability and its evolution, especially in Asia. They also answered Bruno Basler's questions on the concept and what it implies for our societies today.

Rachel Ann Go, Gen A Fellow 2023, is currently pursuing a Master's Degree in Sustainable Development at the University of Basel, after working several years in a multinational company in the Philippines and in Switzerland.

Jonas Rüegg, Gen A Fellow 2022, is a scholar in the field of environmental history of Japan, East Asia, and the Pacific. Having obtained his PhD from Harvard University in 2022, he now teaches at the University of Zurich.

Bruno Basler is President of the Board of Directors, Member of the Executive Board, Project leader and expert in strategy and management consulting at EBP since 1994, as well as an Advisory Board Member of Asia Society Switzerland.

On The Ground: The Gen A Alumni Travel Grant

With Martín Mosteiro Romero, moderated by Serena Jung

© All pictures by André Hengst, ON EYES PHOTOGRAPHY

Martín Mosteiro Romero is an energy systems engineer and a postdoc researcher at Delft University of Technology. In 2023, he was the inaugural recipient of the Gen A Alumni Travel Grant, a grant offering a fixed sum of CHF 10'000 for a selected Gen A Fellow to spend a 6-12-weeks-time to conduct research in Asia on a project of their choice. 

During the fall of 2023, he spent two months in Seoul, South Korea, researching urban data sets and thermal comfort. With a globally increasing urban population, the development of sustainable urban areas that support the needs of their dwellers is a pressing need worldwide. Martín's cross-scale approach studying the reciprocal effects between building energy performance, the urban climate, and building occupants' thermal comfort is crucial to designing tomorrow's sustainable cities. 

In conversation with Serena Jung, Asia Society Switzerland's Program and Communications Director, he shared his experience in South Korea and research results.

Thank you!

The Gen A Day is generously supported by Nicolas Oltramare. 

The Gen A – Young Leadership Program and Gen A Travel Grant is made possible with the support of Ernst Göhner Foundation, the Hirschmann Foundation, and IMP AG.

Support Gen A and the Gen A Day

We offer Gen A free of charge and are constantly striving to improve our program to make it even more relevant and useful for Fellows and Alumni alike. If you want to support our work, here are a few suggestions:

• Are you professionally engaged with Asia? Become a Gen A expert! We are always looking for great speakers with interesting career paths and a passion to share their knowledge with our young leaders.
• Support us financially and sponsor a fellowship or an Alumni event like the Gen A Day! 
• Other ideas on how to enhance the program? Please get in touch with us, we would love to hear them!