Here Are All 10 Winners Of This Year's Social Impact Awards

For getting children interested in programming

CO-FOUNDER AND CEO, CODEMAO

More parents are sending their children for programming classes, but many find the courses available today unimaginative or uninspiring. This prompted Li Tianchi to establish Codemao in 2015, to offer innovative game-based programming content and tools. The company has since served more than 21,000 schools in China and raised more than US$300 million in funding.

For pioneering plant-based meats in China

CO-FOUNDER AND CHIEF CULTURAL OFFICER, STARFIELD

A long-time vegetarian, Liu Shuman makes it her goal to promote a plant-based diet and raise awareness about the social and environmental impacts of excessive meat consumption. After training at New York’s Natural Gourmet Institute in 2016, she co-founded Starfield in 2019. Now one of China’s leading manufacturers of alternative meats, Starfield works with more than 6,000 retailers, as well as international brands such as Tim Hortons.

For creating technology to tackle the world’s plastic pollution problem

CO-FOUNDER AND CTO, ERTHOS

Chang Dong believes that plants are powerful—and that they can be key to reducing the unacceptable impact of plastic pollution on our planet. That is why she co-founded Erthos, a company producing plant- based plastics that are 100 percent biodegradable and compatible with traditional plastic processing technology. Since it started in 2019, the startup has raised nearly US$6 million from investors such as Li Ka-shing.

For enabling accessibility to energy

CEO, DIPOLE TECH

Through her company Dipole Tech, cleantech entrepreneur Yang Kaikai aims to use blockchain and the internet of things to allow customers to construct and manage their own energy networks. The company has deployed renewable energy projects in Bangkok and the Philippines, while Kaikai leads China’s Energy Blockchain Leadership Committee and cleantech committees such as the Asian Cleantech Entrepreneurs Community.

For providing everyone with tools to reduce their environmental impact

FOUNDER AND CEO, CARBONBASE

Max Song’s climate tech company Carbonbase provides tools to help us all become better environmental stewards. Its carbon footprint calculator and offset engine allow people to easily become carbon neutral, and earn rewards for doing so. The company is also working with businesses to develop ways to track emissions using blockchain. It even helped Hong Kong family-owned shipping company Wah Kwong become the city’s first carbon-neutral such operation.

For making the construction industry sustainable

CO-FOUNDER AND CEO, AMPD ENERGY

Construction is a massive industry, and a massively polluting one. Enter Brandon Ng and his company Ampd Energy, which employs energy storage systems to allow construction projects to be powered entirely without diesel, making them cleaner, quieter and safer. So far, it has powered more than 50 projects for 20 construction companies and property developers in Hong Kong and Singapore.

For making medical insurance more efficient

CO-FOUNDER AND CEO, MEDICONCEN

The medical insurance market is woefully inefficient, with medical professionals and insurers often relying on paper documentation, and customers struggling to make claims. With MediConCen, William Yeung aims to fix all that. Storing records on the blockchain, which guarantees their authenticity, MediConCen connects doctors with insurance companies and allows patients to make claims efficiently.

For making medicines better

CO-FOUNDER AND CHAIRMAN, GREAT BAY BIO

In 2019, Kingsley Leung, chairman of traditional pharmaceutical R&D company Uni-Bio Science Group, spotted an opportunity to use AI and robotics to dramatically improve the drug development process. As a result, he spun off a new company, Great Bay Bio, which makes developing new medicines faster and more efficient, potentially reducing both the time it takes and the risks of the process by half.

For promoting community investment in solar energy

FOUNDER AND CEO, SUNNYFOUNDER

Edison Feng believes in the power of the sun. The problem, however, was that it was prohibitively difficult for most people to participate in the transition towards solar energy. So he created SunnyFounder, Taiwan’s first green energy funding platform, which allows people to invest in solar energy for as little as US$450.

For making the sustainable achievable

COO, RENATO LAB

Imagine old circuit boards transformed into furniture, and convenience stores turned into recycling channels. Imagine dedicated recycling stations just for drinking cups, and circular design exhibitions. Such is the work of Renato Lab, which has a visionary R&D team that works with clients to create what the company’s COO Aining Ouyang refers to as positive impacts on people and the planet.

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