Edwin is a fond father, old-school audiophile, voyeur of the future, passionate chef, empathetic leader, innovation driver, complex problem solver, incessant entrepreneur, and an angel investor...discovering his IKIGAI.

Originally from Madras, Edwin has called Aotearoa home for over two decades. He is deeply committed to fostering commerce and trade between India and New Zealand, having founded and managed businesses in both nations. Edwin has
accompanied New Zealand's prime minister and ministers on business and ministerial delegations to the sub-continent as a trailblazer in facilitating mutually beneficial bilateral business engagements. With an unbridled passion exceeded only by his connections and capability, Edwin is adept at delivering impactful
collaborations between diverse stakeholders due to his extensive experience in government-to-government (G2G) and business-to-business (B2B) relations,
providing commercial and social benefits across borders.
 

Edwin's commitment to education is a part of his past and a driving force in his future. As a proud alumnus of the University of Auckland and the University of Oxford, he is passionate about transnational educational initiatives. Edwin looks forward to supporting organisations in the knowledge sector, helping them thrive and positively impact the communities they serve.

Antje Fiedler (PhD, University of Auckland, NZ) is Senior Lecturer in Management specialising in entrepreneurship and International Business. She is also the Director of the New Zealand Asia Institute (NZAI) at the University of Auckland Business School. She is also a Director of the Board of the Small Enterprise Association of Australia and New Zealand (SEAANZ).

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She is passionate about conducting research that is relevant to practice. Her research interests centre around how SMEs can productively engage with Asia. Her research has informed courses at the Business School (University of Auckland) and practitioner workshops around New Zealand. Antje has received three Excellence Awards for her Teaching at the University of Auckland Business School.

She is an Editor of Small Business Economics, an Associate Editor for the Journal of Small Business Management, and serves on the editorial boards for other leading international journals, including Critical Perspectives on International Business (editorial review board), and Review of Managerial Science (editorial board) and Small Enterprise Research (Deputy Editor)

Prince Kumar gained his Masters in Industrial Engineering from Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India and his Management degree from Loyola Institute of Business Administration, Chennai, India.

Prince received the “Pride of India”, “Rastriya Ekta”, and the Bharatiya Udyog Ratan” Awards for his contributions to the business community in India.

Prince has been a board member of India New Zealand Business Council in the past. He has been involved extensively in promoting New Zealand Education to various countries in Asia and predominantly in India. In 2012, he was part of the trade delegation to India led by Hon Prime Minister John Key.  In recent years, Prince is also involved in import of biodegradable material for NZ market.

Tony Martin is the Chief Executive Officer of Prevar, a leading New Zealand-based horticultural intellectual property company. With a robust background in international trade, he previously served as New Zealand's Trade Commissioner and Consul General in Vietnam, and as Regional Director for New Zealand Trade & Enterprise across India, the Middle East, and Africa. 

In addition to his executive role, Tony is a Senior Executive Coach with 2b Limitless, delivering strengths-based leadership and performance coaching across New Zealand, Australia, and Asia. 
 

He holds a Master of Business Studies (Hons) in International Marketing and is Certified with the International Coaching Federation.

Bharat has been a member of the India New Zealand Business Council board for the last two years. He is also a former member of the Institute of Directors, New Zealand, and a Chartered Manager (CMI UK) / Fellow at the Institute of Managers and Leaders, Australia and New Zealand. The Superdiversity Institute of Law and the Ministry of Ethnic Communities selected him as the Top Diverse board-ready director.

With a career spanning two decades in the International education space, Bharat has travelled to more than 40 countries and cultures. His unwavering commitment to integrity is evident in his approach to building business through solid relationships and exceptional customer service.

Looking ahead, Bharat's primary goal is to foster a robust education policy partnership
between India and New Zealand. His vision involves establishing New Zealand Education delivery centres in India and strengthening the collaboration between the two countries, with education at the forefront.
 

I follow a straightforward rule: “Together, we can make a small initiative a big success.” I
enjoy collaborating to help and improve the partnership.

Rachel is Zespri’s Government and Community Affairs Manager and manages the team responsible for government engagement as well as policy, advocacy and trade strategy, along with Zespri’s New Zealand community investment programme.

Over the past 12 years at Zespri, Rachel has led communications, media and engagement work, as well as a period in new cultivar commericialisation, and successfully led the industry’s response to the EPA’s reassessment of the widely-used agrichemical hydrogen cyanamide (Hi-Cane). Rachel has an extensive background in strategic communications and public engagement, with experience across local and national government.

Jonathan is a sales and marketing professional from India. He has worked for several iconic brands for
15 years before embarking on his life’s passion into aviation.

He trained towards his Commercial Pilot Licence in New Zealand. Post completion of his CPL he worked
for a flight training organization in NZ and went on to work for the national airline – Air New Zealand. He has been actively promoting NZ’s aviation training capabilities to the global audience for the last 17 years. His endeavours have helped flight schools in NZ to be certificated by overseas aviation regulators and helped gain airline training contracts.

Jonathan along with his friend Celroy Mascarenhas and their respective wives started the New Zealand
Airline Academy (NZAAL) - a modern, state-of-the-art pilot training school in Oamaru, NZ. NZAAL beat 15 other globally recognised flight schools to be awarded the training contract to train Air Asia India cadet pilots. They recently acquired Eagle Flight Training; a flight training organisation primarily
focused on Vietnam.

Jonathan is currently the CEO & Director of New Zealand Airline Academy and Eagle Flight Training.

Jonathan has served on the board of Christchurch Educated to aid in the post-earthquake recovery of international education in Canterbury and currently serves on the board of India NZ Business council. He has been selected by the New Zealand Ministry of Ethnic Affairs as a Board ready Director.

Drawing on his own experience of being run over by a bus, being given up for dead and now pursuing his dreams, Jonathan passionately motivates youngsters to achieve their true potential in life.

Jenny is a Senior Manager of Trade Strategy at Fonterra, responsible for driving Fonterra’s engagement and advocacy on key strategic global trade issues.

A former New Zealand official, Jenny has held a number of roles across Government, including at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT)  and Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), where she was Trade Policy Manager.   In these roles, she has been a senior member of various New Zealand trade negotiating teams, leading agriculture negotiations during the CPTPP negotiations and representing New Zealand at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in Geneva.

Jenny joined Fonterra ten years ago and has worked closely on trade-related issues during this time, including as General Manager Trade Strategy. She has previously held roles on the Export NZ Advisory Board and on the NZ-US Business Council.

Jenny is a graduate of the University of Auckland with a Bachelors degree in Arts and Commerce. She also holds an Honours degree in Political Studies from Victoria University of Wellington.

Sumant Khedkar (Master in Business Administration, BE - Chemical Enginering) is a Senior Partner at Bank of New Zealand with 20+ years’ experience spanning two continents (India and New Zealand). Known as a connector and bridge-builder, he creates powerful links between customers, colleagues, communities, and governments.

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He works closely with the Indian diaspora, driving opportunities that strengthen NZ–India ties in trade, culture, and business. His ability to navigate boardrooms and community halls with equal ease has made him a trusted voice in both spheres.

A dynamic speaker, Sumant has shared insights at premier management institutes in India, inspiring future leaders on customer excellence, leadership, and cross-cultural collaboration.

Guided by the values of excellence, respect, and ownership, he blends deep banking expertise with a genuine passion for empowering people. From closing high-value business deals to championing cultural celebrations, Sumant’s approach is the same connect people, spark ideas, and create outcomes that last.