Less Borders
BordersLess explores global Asian diaspora stories and perspectives from East & SE Asia, highlighting cross-cultural individuals who all chose a different path in life.
The Asian Diaspora (or Asians Between Borders) can bring about positive change around the world if they utilise their inherent cross-cultural skills to bridge gaps between communities, cultures & countries.
Featured Posts & Podcast Episodes
Returning to Asia: Entrepreneurs & Success Stories
Viet Kieu Startup: Denise Sandquist
Born in Vietnam and adopted to Sweden, Denise is the CEO & Co-founder of Fika, a female-focused AI social & dating app creating meaningful connections in Vietnam and Asia.
Philippine Startups: Franco Varona
Born in Canada, Franco is the Managing Partner of Foxmont Capital Partners - the 1st independent VC firm in the Philippines. Listen to why the Philippines will become the next leading tech hub in SE Asia.
Cambodia Opportunity: Kenneth Tang
Born in Cambodia and coming to Australia at a young age, Ken decided to return and is now the Managing Director of Dynamic Technologies, helping provide smart city solutions for the Kingdom.
Returning to China: Huihan Lie
Born in the Netherlands, Huihan Lie moved to China 18 years ago & has stayed there since. He is the founder of My China Roots, a platform helping Overseas Chinese reconnect with their roots.
Asia Opportunity: Rosaline Chow Koo
Born in the US, Rosaline founded CXA Group, Asia’s leading InsurTech startup in Singapore. Listen to her thoughts on navigating business in Asia as an Asian American serial entrepreneur.
Taiwan Innovation: Elisa Chiu
Elisa returned to Taiwan after leaving her comfortable corporate life abroad in Canada & Hong Kong and started Anchor Taiwan to help corporates, startups & investors harness cross-border innovation.
Asian-Australians & Asian Diaspora Stories
Asian Australian Entrepreneurs
Interested in startups? Click here to find out which young Asian-Australian entrepreneurs (aged 40 and under) made the Australian Financial Review's Young Rich List in 2020.
Women Leaders: Sarah Liu
Sarah is the founder of The Dream Collective, a global leadership consultancy, helping businesses in Australia and Asia build diverse and inclusive workplaces.
Quiet Leaders: Brad Chan
Brad is the CEO of Banna Property Group and the founder of Haymarket HQ (a startup incubator connecting entrepreneurs to Asia), with close ties to the Asian-Australian community.
Meaning Over Money: Su-Lin Tan
Su-Lin is a correspondent at SCMP. Click here to hear how she changed careers from accounting to journalism, her thoughts on racism in Australia, and the Australia-China relationship.
Mental Health: Asami Koike
Asami is the founder of Shapes and Sounds, the leading voice for Asian Australian mental wellbeing, seeking to normalise conversations about mental health in the community.
Investing in Asia: Joseph Lai
Dr Joseph Lai is the founder of Ox Capital and an expert in investing in Asia & emerging markets. Watch this video to hear his thoughts on China, Indonesia and the recent recession & inflation news.
Blog Posts
Studying in Taiwan on the Huayu Scholarship - Australian Perspective
How I applied for the Huayu Scholarship (華語文獎學金) to study Mandarin Chinese at the National Taiwan Normal University in Taipei, plus some other tips as an Australian applicant.
Lee Kuan Yew: The Importance of Mandarin & Bilingualism
Born to English speaking parents, Singapore's founding father, Lee Kuan Yew, never learnt Chinese. Only in his 30s did he decide to understand his roots and reclaim his heritage.
Malaysian Billionaires: Jho Low vs Robert Kuok
The Sugar King of Asia vs The Asian Great Gatsby. Click here to read more about the tales of two contrasting businessmen who represent the two sides of “Malaysia Boleh!”
The BordersLess Podcast focuses on guests that have taken alternative pathways in their careers and life. It aims to encourage listeners to take risks, explore options abroad and understand perspectives from Asia. I have show notes to most episodes on the blog page. I have also contributed to the Professional Development Forum podcast.
The podcast is available on: YouTube, Spotify, iTunes, Google Podcasts and other major podcast services:
Spotify
Apple Podcasts
YouTubeAsia & Asian-Focused Organisations I've Worked With
Quotes of the Week
“Risk-taking is a part of Asian business culture. Asians have a natural bent for technology. But Asia has yet to nurture a critical mass of ‘technopreneurs’ that drives the digital economy by innovating cutting edge technology and new business models. But this will come…”
– Lee Kuan Yew, Founding Father of Singapore (2000)
Australia is going to have a very difficult time in the Asian century… how many of your schools are teaching Bahasa Indonesia, how many are teaching Mandarin? How many are teaching French and German or other European languages? Simple tests. And then you’ll know whether or not you’re adjusting to the Asian century.
– Kishore Mahbubani, Singaporean academic & diplomat (2020)
“For the first time in history, we live in a truly multi-civilizational and multipolar order. There will be no number-one nation. China’s rise does not replace the U.S. as the world’s largest economy but rather represents it joining an already multipolar global system in which there are many multi-trillion-dollar economies, including Europe, Japan, India, and others.”
– Parag Khanna, author of The Future is Asian (2017)