Senator Tunku Abdul Aziz is best known for his robust advocacy of good governance. Tunku Aziz established the United Nations Ethics Office in New York during his tenure as Special Adviser to the UN Secretary General. He was for some years a vice-chairman of the Board of Transparency International and was responsible for setting up its Malaysian chapter.

Executive Director Teh Chi-Chang has plenty of paper qualifications, thanks to the once-proud Malaysian education system and good parenting. He holds degrees from the Universities of Warwick and Cambridge, the CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) charter and is a CELTA-qualified teacher. He spent 16 years at the fore-front of capitalism, in investment research and corporate finance during which he managed highly-rated teams in addition to being a top-ranked analyst himself. He joined REFSA because he believes Malaysia will succeed if more of us stop whining about all that is wrong and  instead use the time to work productively on making things better.

10 years of tertiary education in Malaysia and Taiwan culminating in an MA in Sociology from the National University of Taiwan transformed Cheong Wey Jin into a dialectic thinker on social issues. Her experience as a foreign ‘alien’ while studying and working overseas bred her interest in migrant issues, particularly from the female perspective. In addition, she is also interested in urban and spatial sociology. As our CEO – Chief Everything Officer – Wey Jin manages the office, coordinates events, does research and figures out ways for REFSA to reach out to the public to create awareness and raise participation in the public policy decision-making process. She believes in the REFSA ideals of democracy, freedom and the well-being of all regardless of gender, class or ethnicity.

Sandra Rajoo spent more than 20 years as an educator and believes there is no substitute for education. It unlocks doors, including that of the mind. Knowledge also empowers us to make informed decisions. Sandra holds a Bachelor’s degree in  English from the University of Malaya and a Master’s from the University of Reading. She also studied at Regional Language Centre, Singapore and completed a ‘Critical Thinking Skills’ course with the University of Oregon. She has high hopes for Malaysia and believes that the threads of justice, equality and democracy help bind a community together.

Foong Li Mei pledged her loyalty to the exciting sea of journalism and was rather surprised to find herself behind a desk making sense of numbers for REFSA. She was even more surprised that numbers do make sense. Better yet, some make adventures. Li Mei also keeps REFSA’s flag flying high in the capricious digital oceans of Facebook and Twitter newsfeeds. When situations call for it, she is notorious for shooting out the regular email blast to subscribers. For those who consider history important, Li Mei has regularly contributed to print publications since 2005, and her work has been spotted in the likes of theSun Daily, Malaysian Today and Female magazine.

Bentong-born Nicole Nui works hard to help REFSA reach the widest possible audience. As our marketing manager, she travels far and wide selling our books directly at fairs and persuading book stores to carry our titles besides helping to organise and coordinate our various events. She believes REFSA plays a vital role in creating a better Malaysia by bridging the gap between the mainstream and non-mainstream media. We also appreciate the consignments of famous Bentong ‘sat kek ma’ and ice-cream she brings back from her hometown. Nicole holds a Bachelor (Hons) degree in journalism from Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman.

Ahmad Fuad Rahmat is a research fellow for the Islamic Renaissance Front. He earned his M.A. in Politics from University College Dublin and his M.A. in Social Philosophy from Marquette University. He has been published in MRZine, Radical Philosophy, Harakah Daily and the Journal of South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies. He continues to research independently on Malaysian-related issues of decolonization and the politics of equality. He was a delegate at the 2010 World People’s Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth in Bolivia and has presented at numerous international conferences on political and social issues.

Independent contributor James T. Cherian is an active advocate for water conservation and is a member of Academy of Science Malaysia’s Taskforce on Water Demand Management. In 2009, he served as the lead author of the multi-stakeholder proposal for a Water Demand Management Plan that was presented to SPAN, the national water authority. Previously, he was an environmental consultant in Singapore and then in Australia where, on the merit of introducing Life Cycle Assessment to Queensland industry, received an Australian permanent residency. He has also worked as a Chemical Engineer in Goodyear Canada and in Philips Singapore where he developed the first non-disposable anti-scaling device in steam irons. He holds a Bachelor of Chemical Engineering from the University of Toronto and an MSc in Environmental Engineering from the National University of Singapore.