Our organization is led by a team of dedicated volunteers, all of whom care deeply about creating greater space for youth conversation on our region.
Core Team
Our Core Team oversees the overall organization of The SEA Exchange. They are involved in every aspect of the organization’s operations, from planning all programming, to spearheading social media efforts, to liaising with partners to further the work of the Exchange.
Eugene Chua
Eugene is majoring in History & Literature and East Asian Studies at Harvard. He enjoys reading books and watching movies about contemporary Southeast Asia, and can usually be found playing frisbee, listening to music, or generally poking around different parts of Boston and Singapore.
Zara Karimi
Zara studied on the NUS-Sciences Paris Dual Degree Programme. At Sciences Po Paris, she majored in Economy and Society on the Le Havre (Euro-Asia) campus and minored in Urban Sociology. She majored in Sociology at the National University of Singapore. Her academic interests include labour migration and human trafficking in Southeast Asia, particularly with reference to global care chains and low-wage domestic labour.
Catherine Kausikan
Cat is an English and Art History major from Singapore currently at Yale College. She is interested in museum critique and access, Southeast Asian regionality, and art at the intersection of cultures and mediums. In her free time, she enjoys reading and taking long walks near water or trees.
Serena Lee
Serena is a junior at Stanford studying Data Science. In her free time, Serena likes to play golf and write about food – and will proudly defend Southeast Asia's claim to being the world's best food scene.
Charlotte Lim
Charlotte is a senior studying Public Policy and Philosophy at Duke University. She is interested in learning how to cook SEA food despite her lack of culinary ability.
Jin Yin Moh
Moh is a senior originally from Singapore majoring in Economics and Public Policy and completing a coterminal master’s in Management Science & Engineering at Stanford. She loves reading about Southeast Asian current affairs via The Diplomat and exploring the region's film/creative writing scene. She's really excited to learn with and from everyone during the program.
Kamori Osthananda
Kamori is a recent graduate from the University of Queensland with an interest in history and museums. In her free time, she trains Muay Thai and loves to explore local museums in Bangkok.
Ryan Wong
Ryan is a student at Wesleyan University from Penang, Malaysia. He is passionate about Southeast Asian food and literature, and is looking forward to connecting with and learning from others from across the region.
Junior Core Team
Our Junior Core members support the Core Team with all facets of leading the organization. They are incoming undergraduates or university underclassmen who have joined the Exchange recently – and are deeply committed to supporting the organization’s mission.
Dhanya Dhayanand
Dhanya is a Malaysian studying Politics and Economics at the London School of Economics (LSE). She loves how the SEA Exchange is fostering thoughtful young leaders and is excited to contribute to this cause.
Feifei Mei
Feifei is a sophomore from Singapore majoring in Economics and Fundamentals at the University of Chicago. She is interested in regional connectivity—physical, economic, and cultural—within Southeast Asia.
Adora Cheng
Adora is an Psychology major from Singapore studying at the University of Sydney. She is passionate about using music as a medium to communicate with others, Southeast Asian customs and applied philosophy. For leisure, she likes exploring museums and organising mukbangs with friends.
Phonpisith Richkamroph (Boss)
Boss grew up in Thailand and is a first year medical student at Thammasat University. He is excited to be a part of the next generation of the SEA Exchange team.
Henry Tan
Henry is a sophomore at Cornell University, double majoring in Economics and Statistics. Outside of analyzing and visualizing data, he enjoys mentoring others in writing as a college writing tutor and gets involved in school a cappella. He’s excited to join SEAx as a junior core this year and looks forward to gaining new and youthful insights into SEA from the participants.
Knowledge Team
Our Knowledge Team members are the people behind our programming. They directly shape each cycle of the Exchange by identifying the overall theme of the cycle and ideating, designing, and executing the panel sessions.
Joey Ding
Joey is a current student at Kolej Yayasan UEM from Malaysia. Her passions lie in the fields of genetics, biology, Southeast Asian films, and more.
Quang Do
Quang is passionate about exploring the rich cultural tapestry of Southeast Asia, a curiosity sparked by his roots in Tiền Giang, Vietnam. With a keen interest in education equality, he's currently enjoying his gap year, diving deep into the world of traditional music and arts. In his free time, he can be found either exploring, watching, or performing these age-old traditions, binge-watching Interstellar, or savoring a bowl of authentic Vietnamese phở. Whether wandering through the streets of Ho Chi Minh City or engaging in thought-provoking discussions with like-minded (and unlike-minded!) individuals, Quang is always eager to connect, learn, and share his love for his culture (or just yap!).
Ha Anh Mai
Ha Anh is a Vietnamese freshman at Trinity College in Connecticut. She is looking to explore her academic interests by researching various topics with the inspiring and passionate members of the Knowledge Team. School and the SEA Exchange aside, she can also be found drawing, practising her nail-tech skills and inconsistently going to the gym.
Lee I-Shiang
I-Shiang recently graduated from high school in Singapore and will be matriculating at Yale College in the fall of 2026 after serving his national service. He is interested in exploring the intersection of culture and technology in Southeast Asia. In his free time, he enjoys bopping to pop music and watching K-dramas.
Erica Rogelio
Erica is a junior at the University of the Philippines - Los Banos. As a Development Communication student, she is interested in learning about the realities and challenges of developing countries. In her free time, she likes to read books and post reviews online. She has a newfound love for matcha.
Marco Rafael Macalintal
Marco is a Filipino sophomore studying Development Studies at the University of the Philippines - Manila. He dreams of becoming a lawyer in the international field, and is interested in video games, linguistics, and economics.
Peifeng Huang
Feng is a freshman at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. At UNC, he is majoring in Economics and Environmental Studies with a minor in Public Policy. He is really interested in Environmental Economics and Policy — specifically in environmental policy, International trade, and climate change. In his free time, he likes to play soccer, badminton, and video games.
Victor Ngow
Victor grew up in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and is a freshman at Harvard College. He is passionate about youth development and education and is exploring public policy, finance, and tech. In his free time, you would find him in bed binge-watching "How I Met Your Mother" or running around trying new and random sports. He is excited to see the collaboration of ideologies and cultures that comes with the SEA Exchange.
Nadia Tjiptadjaja
Nadia is a high school senior hailing from Indonesia studying history, economics, and literature. Driven by a passion for educational accessibility (and a fervent love for her regional foods!), she was drawn to The Exchange's framework of encouraging dialogue and critical engagement with the SEA region's diversity. When not dreaming of opening her own books & flower shop, Nadia balances her time between lively debates with friends, indulging in Harry Potter rewatches, and attempts to cook, with mixed results.
Juliana March Mendoza
Juliana studies Applied Economics, majoring in Financial Economics and minoring in American Studies at the Philippines’ De La Salle University. She loves learning about languages, culture, and history, and in her free time, she mostly scrolls through Goodreads and Letterboxd to find the newest title to devour.
Debbra Goh
Debbra grew up in Singapore before majoring in Environmental Studies and Religion at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut, USA. She now conducts climate and geopolitics research at a Washington DC based think tank. She is interested in the green energy transition, environmental justice, and sustainable solutions for urban environments.
Curation Team
Our Curation Team is principally responsible for reviewing past Capstone Projects, identifying particularly promising work, and thoughtfully curating them to showcase the full range of themes and ideas that our students have worked on.
Catherine Kausikan
Cat is an English and Art History major from Singapore currently at Yale College. She is interested in museum critique and access, Southeast Asian regionality, and art at the intersection of cultures and mediums. In her free time, she enjoys reading and taking long walks near water or trees.
Raffal Izzandrea Sunitiyoso
Raffal is an Indonesian Highschool student currently in his Sophomore year. Raffal likes to create animations, stare at wikipedia pages, eyeball statistics, and wait until his friends are awake to bother them. He has an extreme interest in the social sciences, specifically history and politics, participating in Model United Nations (MUN) almost every month.
Aulia Rahmadina Firdaus
Aulia is a highschool junior from Jakarta, Indonesia. Currently studying a combination of both social and natural sciences subjects to really find her footing. She plans on majoring in International Law and hopefully pursue a masters degree and career abroad, which is why meeting new people at the SEA Exchange really excites her. In her downtime when she's not studying or volunteering in an organization, you'll find her geeking over fictional characters mainly from the MCU.
Justice Aguinaldo
Justice Aguinaldo is a senior high school student in the Philippines. A storyteller and historian at heart, she believes that the world holds many stories waiting to be heard or read, and is driven to share them with others and give them justice. Her deep passion for writing and journalism, as well as Philippine and Southeast Asian history, led her to become a published author. Away from her desk, she also enjoys reading, playing sudoku, and watching Filipino indie films.
Newsletter Team
Our Newsletter Team leads the publication of our monthly newsletter for Southeast Asian youth. The newsletter is envisioned as a space for the highlighting of current affairs in the region, and the exploration of the cultural and artistic landscape of Southeast Asia.
Zara Karimi
Zara studied on the NUS-Sciences Paris Dual Degree Programme. At Sciences Po Paris, she majored in Economy and Society on the Le Havre (Euro-Asia) campus and minored in Urban Sociology. She majored in Sociology at the National University of Singapore. Her academic interests include labour migration and human trafficking in Southeast Asia, particularly with reference to global care chains and low-wage domestic labour.
Nguyen Minh Nhat
Minh Nhat is drowning in schoolwork trying to simultaneously complete a Bachelor's in English Teaching and a Intermediate Certificate in Singing. She unsuccessfully attempts to balance studying, hibernating, and crying about obscure TV shows and podcasts that people find lame. This obviously makes her fall behind all her peers’ usual milestones, so she'd appreciate it if people would stop asking when she’s going to graduate (she’s insecure about it). Recently, she’s taken to making Southeast Asian baked goods.
Syiva Zahra Arhanni
Syiva is a final-year ICT Business Management student at Telkom University. Growing up in Indonesia, she has been deeply immersed in the nation’s rich culture, which has fueled her passion for culture writing. In her spare time, she enjoys photography and exploring the traditions of coffee and tea.
Joycelyn Hon
Joycelyn is from Malaysia and studying the IBDP under United World College in Southern Africa. She's excited to learn more about the intersection of quality storytelling and community building through The SEA Exchange. In her free time, she enjoys binge-watching stand-up comedies, volunteering with performing art projects and running marathons!
Piseth Baramey Chhoun
Baramey is currently a Khmer undergraduate student studying Education, Politics and International Relations at the University of Auckland. Her main interests lie in exploring the rich culture and history of Southeast Asia. The opportunity to engage in cross-cultural dialogue and being in community with her neighbours was what drew her to being a part of the SEA Exchange team. In her free time, Baramey can be found binge watching anything binge watchable.
Publicity Team
Our Publicity Team leads all initiatives aimed at raising awareness of the Exchange’s work.
Jase Michael Manatad
Jase studies agriculture and majors in animal science in the University of the Philippines - Los Baños. His other interests include watching cartoons and drawing. He is eager to learn more about and build community with his Southeast Asian neighbors.
Chloe Lim
Chloe is a high school student from Singapore. She is interested in learning about SEA cultures, history, and literature. In her free time, she enjoys reading contemporary fiction or watching horror movies.
Vanessa Lim
Vanessa recently graduated from UC Berkeley and is presently a graduate student from Singapore doing her masters at ETH Zurich in Science, Technology and Policy! She is excited to contribute to this amazing project and meet other passionate Southeast Asian students.
Jing Ling Wong
Jing Ling is a high school student from Singapore. She is interested in art, linguistics, and the rich history of Southeast Asia. In her free time, she enjoys reading and going for a run at the park.
Logistics Team
Our Logistics Team ensures the smooth operation of the Exchange, from leading the overall organization of student recruitment, to managing mentor experience and training, to organizing our ad-hoc fireside chats.
Li Kelun
Kelun recently graduated from high school in Singapore and will matriculate at Princeton University in 2026, after serving his National Service. He is interested in current affairs in Asia and looks forward to learning from everyone in the Logistics Team.
Ingyin Kay Khaing Kyaw
Ingyin is a high school senior from Yangon, Myanmar. She is interested in the field of international economic development, especially with regards to Southeast Asia, and is passionate about providing accessible education opportunities to youth in Southeast Asia. She hopes to pursue this passion through the Exchange!
Mentors
Our Mentors facilitate Track 2 discussion sections to spark thought-provoking conversations on the region. Mentors also guide students to create a capstone project on a topic of interest related to SEA.
Natania Tan
Natania is a recent high school graduate from Singapore. Her passion lies in exploring how we can leverage education as a social leveller and a tool for sustainable development in Southeast Asia. Natania looks forward to contributing to a warm and inclusive environment in the programme, where everyone can bring out the best in each other.
Darrius Tan
Darrius is a freshman at Stanford studying International Relations & Economics. I love watching movies from Singapore and Southeast Asia! I also enjoy debating, running and spending quality time with loved ones and friends :))
Lisa Tauch
Lisa is a sophomore at Yale from Phnom Penh, Cambodia. She is a Global Major Affairs major who's interested in studying international security and southeast asian politics! She's very excited to get to meet everyone in the program very soon!
Marianne Wang
Marianne is a freshman at Harvard College, originally from Singapore. Looking to study Economics and Government, she is interested in the geopolitics and economics of the Southeast region, both domestically and in relation to wider international affairs. Outside of that, she is a huge fan of spicy food, and loves wandering aimlessly around wherever she goes.
Mughni Ali
Mughni is a first year university student from Indonesia that studies at Keio University, Japan. He's majoring in policy studies with a focus on education & cultural developments, especially passionate for Southeast Asia. While also being an athlete for his university boxing club and muay Thai camp here in Japan, he's currently in a research group that grants him the opportunity to do collaborative and individual research projects, based on Curriculum Development and Second Language Teaching & Learning, even in his first year. He would love to get to know and work together with you guys during and after the SEA Exchange! (Let's try our very best!!!)
Joel Lim
Joel is reading History and Political Economy at King’s College London. He is particularly interested in environmental and cultural preservation policies in Southeast Asia. In his free time, he enjoys running, cooking and watching football.
Ashley Ong
Ashley is a sophomore currently reading law at Singapore Management University. She is excited to return to the SEA exchange for a third year as a mentor. In her spare time outside of law school, she can be found hunting for good food around Singapore.
Kevyn Gunawan
Kevyn is a freshman from Singapore and Indonesia studying Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell. He is interested in employment law and economic development across SEA. In his free time, he enjoys watching football (including both national teams), playing squash, and going for runs at the Singapore Botanic Gardens.
Arianna Shay Zafra
Ari is a Business Economics major in the University of the Philippines Diliman. She loves travelling and meeting people from all around the world, getting to know their culture and identity. She enjoys doing creative activities, such as photography, graphic design, and video editing. Through this passion, she wants to make change in the world with her main advocacies on accessible education and climate justice.
Emily Tan
Emily is currently a freshman at Stanford. Originally from Singapore, she loves reading about Southeast Asian history, politics and religion. Her favourite food is Indomie and her favourite drink is Milo.
Samyak Jain
Samyak Jain (he/him) is a first-year at Brown University hailing from Singapore. His personal interests span from the sand dunes hidden in Tampines to the nuances of different sex work policies across the region. His current major is undecided and he dabbles in Computer Science, Math, Economics and Sociology. He is excited to find out about your interests and what drives you to pursue them.
Michelin Sallata
Michelin Sallata is an indigenous youth climate advocate currently studying Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution at Gadjah Mada University (UGM) in Indonesia. With a passion for promoting social justice, she focuses on strategies for addressing climate issues and its intersectionalities. Her academic interest include indigenous peacebuilding highlighting traditional and community-based peace process. She also contributes in contextual education movement which resonate with SEA Exchange value. She builds interests in movies and series and write commentaries about them in her blog.
Raphael Niu
Originally from Singapore, Raphael is now an undergraduate student at Harvard, where he will likely study some permutation of philosophy, economics or government. In his free time, you can find him making coffee in his french press, cooking instant noodles in his microwave, or planespotting in an airport.
Rayson Dai
Rayson is majoring in Sociology at Columbia. Whether he is in New York or Singapore, he loves eating, wandering aimlessly with his camera, playing violin or fumbling about with a guitar. He's excited to meet others in SEA and learn together.
Yuda Effendie Suhianto
Yuda Effendie Suhianto, often called Yuda, is from Indonesia and a recent graduate of Parahyangan University, where he majored in International Relations. Passionate about political leader, policy studie, development studies, and sports development, he’s excited to join the SEA Exchange as a mentor. Yuda sees this as a fun and meaningful opportunity to share knowledge and strengthen bonds across Southeast Asia. Travel to every SEA country is in his bucket list.
Lim Yi Hang
Yi Hang is a fresh graduate from Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, majoring in Public Administration. Before that, he studied PPE at Peking University but dropped out because there was no nasi lemak in China (How ridiculous!). His favourite activities include daydreaming and philosophying in his room, while sometimes he also joins youth-led initiatives if he feels bored.
Nuur Batrisyia
Born and raised in Brunei, Batrisyia recently completed her final semester at the University of Brunei, majoring in History and International Studies. In her free time, she enjoys reading non-fiction historical books. Her current read is Nigel Barley’s White Rajah. Other than busying herself with books, you would find her at the gym! She’s excited to contribute her knowledge to the SEA Exchange while also looking forward to learning from diverse perspectives.
Victoria Utomo
I came from Indonesia and I am studying Industrial Mechanical Engineering in Münster University, Germany. Asian food is my Lifestyle ;). I really love to read about the economic growth, politics and culture in south east asia. And I am excited to see the amazing projects during this years panel.
Shayna Leng
Shayna is a student at Harvard College. She is a Singaporean who has grown up overseas, and wider engagement with Southeast Asian perspectives remains a cause that is close to her heart. Outside of class, she enjoys baking and crocheting. Shayna is excited to rediscover Southeast Asia hand in hand with her mentees.
Rethkry Somonineath (Jessie)
Hello! I'm Jessie and I'm from Cambodia! Currently, I am an incoming student at Monash University Malaysia doing a double degree in business and digital communications. This is my second year here at the SEA Exchange and I'm so excited to be working with the SEA Exchange team and participants from all around the region while learning alongside them <3
Glenise Celis
Glenise is a Junior from the Philippines studying International Studies major in Asian Studies at Cavite State University. Her goal is to travel to every country in Asia. She is very fond of Asian culture, food, history, and politics and she’s always excited to impart her knowledge to others.