Multi-cultural, multi-sectoral dialogue brings together over 150 young leaders from the Asia Pacific

Amina Evangelista Swanepoel, founding Executive Director of Roots of Health, has been named among the 150 next generation leaders from 30 countries in the Asia Pacific region who will participate in the Asia Society’s sixth annual Asia 21 Young Leaders Summit, to be held in New Delhi from November 18 to 20, 2011.

Swanepoel joins a multi-sectoral network of her peers, all under age 40, who will engage in discussions about “Worlds Apart Together: Shared Values for an Asia-Pacific Community.” The diversity of representation – from business, government, academia, media, civil society, and the arts – brings a wide range of perspectives to the discussions, which will explore issues such as developing a sustainable energy policy for Asia, whether corruption is hampering the region’s development, and whether food security should take precedence over civil rights, amongst others.

The Asia Society’s Asia 21 Young Leaders Summit is part of a larger initiative designed to help emerging leaders from across the region to develop common approaches to meet its shared challenges. “The Asia 21 young leaders represent the future of the Asia-Pacific region. The work that this incredible community of leaders is doing today and will do in the future is laying a strong foundation for regional collaboration for decades to come,” said Asia Society Executive Vice President Jamie Metzl.

The Asia 21 Summit is supported by founding international sponsor Bank of America Merrill Lynch. “Bank of America is committed to making a positive impact on the social and cultural fabric of the society that we live and work in. As such, we are particularly pleased that the Asia 21 Young Leaders Summit is being hosted in India this year,” said Kaku Nakhate, President and Country Head for India. “By partnering with global initiatives such as Asia 21, Bank of America can leverage its resources to encourage and support young leaders from across sectors, including social enterprise, non-profit, media, economic and arts, to enable a better and brighter future for business, politics, and civil society in Asia.”

Swanepoel, who has a background in human rights and trained in international affairs and public health, started Roots of Health with her mother, Susan Evangelista, in 2009. The organization fosters self-reliant women and girls in Palawan, Philippines by providing education focused on reproductive health, critical thinking and human rights, as well as access to clinical services.

Established by the Asia Society with support from Founding International Sponsor, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, the Asia 21 Summit is the pre-eminent gathering of Asia’s most dynamic young leaders from the Asia-Pacific region, from every sector including business, government, media, culture and civil society. To date, the network counts more than 700 of the most accomplished young leaders in the Asia-Pacific among its members, including businessmen, documentary filmmakers, environmental activists, human rights advocates, members of parliament, military personnel, performance artists, and social entrepreneurs.