Innovation Spotlights #1

Rowena Gonzales is a purpose-driven creative and the Principal and Founder of Liquid Interiors, an award-winning interior design firm that she founded in Hong Kong in 2009. A pioneer in integrating environmental responsibility with human health, she has dedicated her career to making sustainable, wellness-focused design the standard for city living.

Holding LEED AP ID+C, WELL AP, and BEAM Pro (BI) credentials, Rowena applies a rigorous, science-based approach to the built environment. Her work transforms high-density urban spaces into restorative sanctuaries by prioritising non-toxic materials, superior indoor air quality, circadian lighting, acoustic comfort, and biophilic design.

Under her leadership, Liquid Interiors has developed a diverse portfolio spanning private clubs, family offices, bespoke residential homes, multi-generational living spaces, workplaces, and community environments. The firm’s commitment to meaningful, lower-impact design has been recognised through LEED ID+C certification for commercial design and BEAM Plus V2.0 certification for a luxury residential project.

As a speaker, Rowena draws on her extensive practical experience to demonstrate how intentional design choices can enhance emotional and physical well-being while respecting the planet’s natural resources. She is a passionate advocate for the circular economy and a regular voice in discussions on how to build healthier, happier futures in urban environments.

My Sustainability Goals for 2026:

1- Sustainability and Wellness considerations are mandatory for interior fit-outs in Hong Kong

2 – Demolition waste can be easier to recycle in Hong Kong.

3 – Green Building Certificates can transparently increase the property value of interiors.

Sunny YAURY is the founder and director of United Technologies (Int’l) Ltd., a veteran advisor on abss (previously named MYOB) and Microsoft platform technology, with team United Technologies servicing SMBs on information technology for 30+ years. Sunny has enabled digital transformation of many HK SMBs through business applications and cloud technologies which are easy to use, deploy, maintain, and recruit.

Sunny works close as industry partner with different authorities, education bodies on research and internship programme, and business associations promoting AI Digital Transformation to SMBs, and witness successes riding on GBA solid infrastructure and government talent policies.

Xiaoli Ding is a brand director and sustainability leader dedicated to driving the green transformation of China’s footwear and apparel industry. She integrates sustainability principles into business practices, combining local industrial strengths with global environmental standards to explore a uniquely Chinese path to sustainable development.

Xiaoli has led the sustainable outdoor brand RESOON since 2022, evolving it from a sustainable product brand into a circular infrastructure platform. She is committed to building systems that enable products, materials, and stakeholders to retain value throughout their lifecycle. Through experiments in circular transformation, RESOON connects product traceability, lifecycle data, and cross-sector collaboration to address the challenges preventing circular practices from scaling. Her work focuses on creating scalable solutions that bridge brands, circular operators, and innovation partners while advancing resource efficiency, environmental impact reduction, and a more regenerative outdoor industry.

Her mission is to transform grassroots sustainability innovations within China’s footwear and apparel industry into scalable blueprints. By merging local industry expertise with global environmental governance, she aims to accelerate equitable decarbonization. Through initiatives like the “Sustainable Wardrobe” pop-up store, she raises public environmental awareness. She actively participates in public welfare climate action projects, collaborating with organizations like Friends of Nature to promote the development of eco-friendly footwear and the establishment of circular production systems.

Xiaoli holds a Master’s degree in Strategic Fashion Management from the University of the Arts London and a Master’s degree in Distributed Design for Distributed Innovation from the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC). During her studies, she conducted in-depth research on how fashion brands leverage digital tools to tell compelling stories and explored climate-resilient futures. She applied agile production supply chains and blockchain technology to brand traceability, promoting the adoption of circular design frameworks to reduce linear waste.

My Sustainability Goals for 2026:

1. Establish a Digital Repair Grid: Activate and digitize 30+ repair nodes across the Greater Bay Area, providing urban infrastructure for clothing longevity.
2. Decarbonize Supply Chains: Divert 10,000+ units of brand deadstock from landfills through our modular remanufacturing pilot.
3. Enable Regulatory Compliance: Provide verifiable Digital Product Passport (DPP) data for 10+ global fashion brands to navigate international ESG regulations.
4. Social Empowerment: Empower 100+ female artisans and micro-entrepreneurs with digital SOP tools, increasing their professional income and economic agency.
5. Standardize Circularity: Collaborate with industry partners to integrate carbon-saving data from repairs into cross-border carbon credit clearing systems.

Yuanyuan Song is a founding team member at DeCarbon Tech, where she built the company’s carbon asset development function from the ground up. DeCarbon Tech operates Direct Air Capture (DAC) facilities across China, converting captured CO₂ into permanent carbon removal through mineralization.

Yuanyuan leads carbon asset development and commercialization for DeCarbon Tech’s DAC and mineralization portfolio, working with international registries including Isometric and Puro.earth to bring high-integrity carbon removal to market. She holds a Master degree from the University of Copenhagen and a CFA ESG Investing qualification, and is dedicated to accelerating corporate net-zero transitions through carbon removal technology across the region.

My Sustainability Goals for 2026:

1. Strengthen Hong Kong’s role as a bridge connecting Mainland China’s carbon removal supply with international buyers, registries, and capital.

2. Build stronger local expertise and infrastructure in Hong Kong for carbon asset transactions.

3. Grow regional partnerships and demand for high-integrity CDR through Hong Kong’s climate and finance networks.

Founder & CEO Celeste Yeung has 25+ years fashion & luxury retail regulatory compliance experience plus deep expertise in retail supply chain operations.

She previously served as APAC Head of Product Regulatory Compliance at the Richemont Group and being recognized as product regulatory expert advisor including China National Standards (GB standards) across diverse product categories: watches & jewelry, precious ornaments, premium leather goods, luxury fashion apparel & accessories, footwear, eyewear, electronic appliances, cosmetics & writing instruments.

Celeste founded her start-up company CplusE Eco Tech Ltd. with her passion to transform complex regulatory compliance requirements into a Governance ecosystem – an integrated solution combining consulting, regulatory research, training, compliance solution under one platform.

Our platform covers critical EU & Asia frameworks such as PPWR, EPR, DPP, and IoT-enabled carbon footprint management, helping businesses stay ahead of evolving regulations while driving sustainability.

CplusE Eco Tech Ltd. – HKSTP 2026 Ideation member

Google Asia Pacific Ltd, Hong Kong – APAC Trade Operations Lead, Device & Services (2021-2022)

Richemont Asia Pacific Ltd. – Regional Associate Trade Compliance Director (2013-2021)

Gap International Sourcing (Holdings) Ltd. – Regional Logistics & Trade Compliance Director (2000-2013)

My Sustainability Goals for 2026:

1. Launch Asia 1st Governance Solution – “CpluseRegAI.com” platform empowers businesses to design and manage their own compliance governance regimes with proactive, ongoing requirement monitoring across Europe and Asia.
2. Transforms Regulatory Monitoring
3. Unlock compliance obligations & convert into business opportunities for sustainable growth.

Fast, predictable costs, standardized, consistent and efficient ESG solutions

Please visit CplusE — Carbon Compliance Center for more details