Daniel Lim did his architectural education at Kent State University in the United States of America, graduated in 1992 with a Bachelor of Architecture degree. While in the USA, he worked for 4 years in an architecture firm called HFP/Ambuske Architects, which specializes in health care facilities planning and
design.

Upon returning to Malaysia and Singapore, he worked for a year at Chao Tse Ann & Partners in Singapore and later joined RSP Architects Planners & Engineers (Pte) Ltd where he got promoted to a Senior Architect within 2 years and worked on many projects such as Shangri-La Regency Apartment Projects in Yangon, Myanmar, the Abbott Nutritional Factory, the refurbishment and addition to Terminal 2 Changi Airport and the Draycott 8 Condominium in Singapore.

In Nov 2006, he was promoted to head the RSP office in Vietnam which has grown from a staff of 3 when he first arrived, to an office of 35 with offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.

Safeer Shersad is a New York-based urban strategist and designer with a passion for multidisciplinary collaboration and breaking down silos between professions. Originally from India, his design philosophy is deeply rooted in understanding local histories and contexts, with a strong emphasis on community-centered urban solutions.

As Senior Manager at Lime, Safeer develops place-based shared mobility strategies for over 100 cities worldwide, shaping the future of urban transportation. Prior to Lime, he was a consultant at Buro Happold, where he worked on design projects for leading architecture firms, including Bjarke Ingels Group, OMA, SOM, and Diller Scofidio + Renfro. His research experience also includes working with UN-Habitat on urban youth socioeconomic data.

His expertise lies at the intersection of mobility, urban experience, and climate-sensitive design. Academically, Safeer holds a BA in Architecture and Urban Planning from Newcastle University, an MSc in Urban Design and City Planning (Distinction) from The Bartlett, University College London, and a Master in Urban Planning from the Harvard Graduate School of Design. He was also the inaugural recipient of Nippon Paint’s Gennosuke Obata Fellowship.

Lim Wenhui is a Partner at SPARK, where she has played a key role in shaping the studio’s national and international portfolio for over 15 years. Her expertise spans urban planning, mixed-use developments, and architectural design, with a strong focus on projects that uplift communities and promote sustainable development.

She has led the design of several award-winning projects including Fai-Fah in Bangkok—nominated for the Aga Khan Award—and the Starhill Gallery in Kuala Lumpur, which earned SPARK the German Design Council’s “Architect of the Year” award. Her work on Homefarm and Beach Hut reflects her commitment to SPARK’s ethos that “architecture and design should make peoples’ lives better.”

Wenhui actively champions social sustainability through collaborations with organisations such as Blue Cross and her leadership of SPARK’s research and charity initiatives. As a guest speaker, award recipient, and former Chair of the PropertyGuru Asia Awards Singapore panel, she brings a community-first lens to her role on the AYDA jury.

Suhasini Ayer is an Architect and Urban Planner, and the co-founder of the Auroville Centre for Scientific Research (CSR) Trust. This collaborative organisation works with multiple agents and agencies in applied research for sustainable settlement planning, solar passive architecture, appropriate building materials and technologies, water and waste management, and renewable energy.

She heads Auroville Design Consultants, a planning and architectural design studio focused primarily on planning, designing, and implementing applied research development projects within Auroville. This approach responds to the natural and human geography, local climate, and culture to evolve minimal and elegant built forms. The underlying theme in all the projects is creating integrative systems, including water, energy, waste, building materials, and technology, to create passive sustainable networks between people and the built and unbuilt spaces, empowering them to take responsibility for their environment.

Suhasini hopes to bring her sustainability perspectives to the AYDA participants.

Michael Pizarro was a Partner and Principal Interior Designer for Mercado Mercado Amadeo Pizarro Architecture and Interior Design Consultancy Company (MMAP), until he founded his own firm, Michael Pizarro Interior Design (MPID) and its subsidiary company, Acanthus Home Furniture and Furnishing.

Currently, he is an executive board member of the International Federation of Interior Architects/ Designers and the College of Fellows (COF) to the professional interior design association, Philippine Institute of Interior Designers (PIID).

Last but not least, Michael is a long-serving judge and recent outgoing advisory panel member at the Asia Young Designer Awards. In his commentaries, through his journey with AYDA, he exclaims: “What I find exciting for me is not how enticing the future looks like to them. What draws me is the amount of passion, commitment and enthusiasm each and every student devoted over the last months, if not a year. If that is how the future looks based on their intentions, we will be in good hands.”

Upon receiving his master degree in Architecture from Harvard University, Graduate School of Design in 1985, Paul Tange joined the architectural firm headed by his father, renowned architect, Kenzo Tange. In 1997, Tange became President of Kenzo Tange Associates and in 2002, he founded Tange Associates. Tange Associates has designed landmark buildings both in Japan and abroad and has designed the Tokyo Aquatics Centre for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Tange Associates' design of the Olympic gymnasiums is the first time that father and son architects have designed the same facilities in the same city for two separate Olympics (Tokyo 1964 and 2020). Paul is a registered architect in both Japan and Singapore.