The OECD Forum 

31 May - 1 June 2016

This year, the OECD Forum will see thousands of attendees from civil society, government - including heads of state - the private sector, trade unions, academia and the media meet at the OECD's own conference centre in Paris.

In 2016, over 250 high level speakers and a diverse mixture of traditional and innovative session formats will explore the theme 'Productive Economies, Inclusive Societies', with topics including integrating migrants, closing the gender gap, and the future of work and the economy.  While the programme is yet to be announced, past heavy-hitting speakers include the likes of Helen Clark, Yvo de Boer, and Elizabeth Nyamayaro. 

Read about our previous delegations' experiences in their blog posts and on Twitter!

Head Delegate

SWAN-LYNN LEE | @swanlynn

Swan-Lynn is a 25 year old tech professional learning how to navigate the complexity of corporate business. She believes in the importance of leveraging economically attractive solutions to human problems, and is looking for ways to be a part of that solution.

Delegates

APRIL KWAK | @AprilHyoRin

April was born in Korea but bred in New Zealand.  She is a student at the University of Auckland studying toward an LLB/BA, majoring in Politics and Economics. Having recently come back from an internship at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, April was also a New Zealand representative to attend the Korean Young Leaders' Global Network conference.  She lived in France for a year during high school as an exchange student, and also studied at the Seoul National University with a scholarship for a semester in 2013.

CAROLLE VARUGHESE | @cazvarughese

Carolle has a BSc in Astronomy from the University of Canterbury and grew up mostly in New Zealand. She works at the Otago Museum as a Science communicator. Carolle is passionate about the eradication of extreme poverty as well as the role of STEM in the community, mostly because of her exposure volunteering with organisations such as P3 Foundation and School in the Cloud, and working with Child Youth and Family Services. 

SAM MORTON | @sammorton91

Sam is 24, living in Auckland. She is passionate about the future of New Zealand across economic and environmental sustainability, in particular how education can impact diversity and inclusion across our economic strategy as a nation. Currently working at Microsoft New Zealand, Sam also has a passion for the technology industry and the impact technology can make as New Zealand diversifies its economy to include knowledge-based industries. 

SAM YOON

Sam's goal to make a change in this world started when he represented 500,000 + young people on the Auckland Mayor’s Youth Advisory Panel and took part in the Office of Ethnic Affairs Young Leader program. From there, using his Law and Economics knowledge he worked with key economic institutions, namely NZIER and the NZ Treasury. In Sam's spare time, he co-founded a social enterprise. Sam is interested in how disruptive technologies like artificial intelligence can shape our economy. 

ZABIN FARISHTA | @ZabinFarishta

Dreamer. Philosopher. Traveller. Restless soul. Inspired by Swades (the Bollywood movie), Zabin undertook her undergrad in Engineering so that one day she could create electricity in a small rural town in India. Her hopes were dashed when she realised that she was way better at breaking than making things and so she quietly majored in Operations research and optimisation before undertaking a career in Management Consulting, with the aim of inspiring a shift in focus from the bottom line to the triple bottom line.

JOANNA JI | @lemoncoeurd 

Joanna is a second year Law student at the University of Auckland. She loves collecting languages and tapping into different worlds of cultures. Joanna speaks English, Korean and French, started learning Russian this year and is planning on picking up Japanese.

MAX BEECH

Max is 21 and has just competed his BA in International Relations and Psychology. He is keenly interested in the environment and the growing influence it will have on our way of life and our planet. Currently, Max is working for Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament - and he is highly motivated to be on the forefront of developments that shall insure the future survival of the human race. 

ANNA GOBLE | @anna_goble

Anna is a Policy Analyst with the Invercargill City Council. Her background in Law, Politics and Māori makes for a great marriage in her policy role. Born and bred in Southland, she is passionate about her region and proud of her rolling R. Her passion is creating growth in the region and encouraging greater conversation with Māori in local government.