For The Greater Good

Laurence Lien, co-founder of the Asia Community Foundation, explains why businesses need to take into account the social good.

- Indran P

AS LAURENCELIEN sees it, even in the apparently efficiency-driven and amoral world of business, meaningfully factoring in the social good into its best practices brings a win-win outcome for all concerned. At both the granular and abstract level, the philanthropist, former nominated member of Parliament and public servant has had a long and illustrious career in the non-profit sector.

One of the most crucial items in Lien's resume is the co-founding of the Asia Philanthropy Circle (APC) in 2015, a membership platform that allows Asian philanthropists to jointly expand the impact of their benevolence. This year, he co-founded the Asia Community Foundation (ACF), a philanthropic organisation with a regional focus premised on facilitating cross-border giving and connecting donors with access to insight and services that would be otherwise beyond their reach.

What drew you to philanthropic work?