Jong Woo Kang is Director of Regional Cooperation and Integration Division at the Economic Research and Development Impact Department (ERDI) of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). As director, he plays a role as an interface between ADB’s internal and external stakeholders on regional cooperation and integration. He is a seasoned economist with extensive knowledge and experiences on policy and strategic issues. He was Principal Economist at ERDI, Senior Advisor to the Managing Director General of ADB, and Senior Economist at the Strategy, Policy, and Partnerships Department at ADB. He leads the annual publication of Asian Economic Integration Report. Areas of his research interest include regional integration, inclusive growth, macroeconomic policies, international trade and finance, and aid effectiveness. He published articles in economics journals such as Journal of Development Economics, Journal of Applied Economics, and World Economy. Before joining ADB, he was director at the Ministry of Finance and Economy of the Republic of Korea until 2006. He had got his bachelor’s degree in economics and master’s in public administration from Seoul National University, and PhD in economics from University of Washington.

Lisa Sachs is the Director of the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (CCSI), Associate Professor at the Columbia Climate School, and Director of Columbia’s M.S. in Climate Finance. A recognized expert in international investment and sustainable development, Lisa works across law, policy, and finance to align global investment flows with the SDGs and the Paris Agreement. Under her leadership, CCSI has become a leading applied research center known for its practical, forward-looking solutions to complex global challenges. She received a BA in Economics from Harvard University, and an MA in International Affairs and a Juris Doctor degree from Columbia Law School.

Christina Pak works at the intersection of law, economy and ecology. She specializes in international development finance, law and policy reform, dispute resolution and ESG standards and drives thought leadership on sustainable development issues. Christina is currently a Principal Counsel of the Asian Development Bank and manages the Office of General Counsel’s Law and Policy Reform Program which designs and implements legal and judicial reform technical assistance projects across the Asia and the Pacific region. Christina oversees a diverse portfolio in the areas of climate change and environmental protection, gender equality, private sector and public-private partnership development and digital economy.

In her previous role as a project counsel at ADB, Christina worked on complex multi-sector projects across the Central and West, Southeast and East Asia regions. She also served as ADB’s Accountability Mechanism Policy Counsel advising the Board of Directors, Office of the Compliance Review Panel and Office of the Special Project Facilitator. Prior to joining ADB, Christina was a legal counsel and vice president for markets and international banking at a major UK bank based in Singapore and a finance associate at a large law firm in New York City.

She is currently a Steering Committee Member of the IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law and a Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and is a CEDR-accredited mediator. Christina is a US-qualified lawyer, admitted in the States of New York and New Jersey. She holds a Juris Doctor degree, as well as bachelor's degrees in international environmental studies and journalism.