HPAIR Conference in Summary

On Monday 21 August, The Legal Forecast headed to Sydney for the Harvard Project in Asian and International Relations (HPAIR) Conference. We had the chance to engage with students from across 60 different countries about the work that we do, generating heaps of interest for collaboration and involvement for our events and expansion into different parts of Australia and the Asia-Pacific.TLF’s Asia Insights head, Josephine MacMillan, also had the opportunity to sit on the Entrepreneurship and Technology Panel, discussing issues around innovation in the legal industry, spruiking Disrupting Law, and more broadly speaking about solving problems through entrepreneurship.Alongside other panellists, James Alexander of Incubate, Katie Richards of Virtual Legal, and Tianyu (Joe) Zhu from Smarthealth Ventures, the panel gave delegates insights into being part of startups and advice for overcoming challenges and tackling setbacks. Key takeaways from the panel included maintaining connections, finding good mentors and thinking not just about entering the cutthroat world of business entrepreneurship, but also considering other avenues such as social entrepreneurship and innovation through non-for-profits. The panellists stressed the importance of being flexible and keeping an open mind to change. With their different perspectives from different industries, it was an insightful and thought-provoking discussion, inspiring delegates to expand their horizons and challenge their world-view.By Jessica Wat (TLF ACT)