Dr. Melati Nungsari is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the Asia School of Business, a Research Affiliate at MIT Sloan School of Management, and Faculty Director of the ASEAN Research Center. She is an applied microeconomist specializing in industrial organization, public economics, market design, and economic education.

She received her Bachelors of Arts in Mathematics and Economics (Magna Cum Laude) with Honors in Mathematics from Knox College and her Ph.D. in Economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her research focuses on two-sided matching platforms with search, and how firms use pricing to correct for negative externalities on the platform. She also studies public policy issues such as the labor market integration of refugees, policy design for retirement markets in Chile and Malaysia, and labor market discrimination. Additionally, she has published research on pedagogy in economic education.

While at UNC-Chapel Hill, Dr. Melati was a Chancellor’s Fellow with the Royster Society. She has won multiple teaching awards throughout her career, and is also a member of Phi Beta Kappa, the most prestigious academic honor society in the United States. She is an active Op-Ed writer and her pieces have appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly and the Chronicle of Higher Education.

Prior to joining ASB, Dr. Melati was a professor of economics at Davidson College at Butler University. She has given research talks all over the world, and is originally from Penang, Malaysia.

Liuqing is an analyst in the Asia team based at The Economist Intelligence Unit's Singapore office. Liuqing covers India, Indonesia and Singapore. His research interests include macroeconomy, public policy and international relations.

Before joining The EIU, Liuqing worked with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in a project that surveyed monetary policy operations post-global financial crisis. He also has worked with various Chinese economic policymaking agencies.

Liuqing holds a Master's degree in Public Administration from Columbia University where he specialised in International Finance and Economics Policy and South Asia studies.

William Thomas is the Director of the Economist Corporate Network in South-east Asia. An experienced advisor to senior business and government leaders, he helps organisations understand the strategic, operational, and talent implications of geopolitical changes.

William holds a PhD in public policy from George Mason University in the US, as well as a degree in economics from the University of Virginia and an MBA. His academic research has centered on managing change in large, multinational organisations, with an emphasis on organisational culture.

William is a retired United States Air Force lieutenant colonel, having spent much of his 21-year career as a strategic planner for complex operations such as humanitarian assistance and counterterrorism. He was Associate Professor of Political Science at the US Air Force Academy, and later taught at Georgetown University in Washington DC and as a Fulbright Scholar at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.

Having worked in Asia since 2012, William has focused on leadership development and organisational change as a consultant, leadership coach, and training facilitator.