The Asia Foundation Honors Global Champions of Women’s Rights at 2025 Lotus Leadership Awards

On April 22, The Asia Foundation hosted its 2025 Lotus Leadership Awards dinner at the Mandarin Oriental in New York City. The event celebrated global champions of women’s rights and raised funds for critical women’s empowerment programs across Asia and the Pacific. Proceeds from the annual event directly fund The Asia Foundation’s initiatives that protect women from violence, expand access to legal support, advance economic opportunities, and empower grassroots organizations in the region.

This year’s Lotus Leadership Award honorees were recognized for their powerful and complementary approaches to advancing women’s rights and opportunities:

• Natasha Stott Despoja AO, Australian diplomat and member of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, was honored for her global leadership in advocating for women’s rights and freedom from violence. Her work has demonstrated how international alliances can catalyze bold systemic reforms and positively impact millions of women.
• Association for Development of Women and Legal Education (ADWLE), based in Lao PDR, was recognized for its grassroots efforts to end violence against women and girls. Through its legal aid services, ADWLE has empowered more than 350 women, including women with disabilities, to access justice and assert their rights.
• Chanel and Fondation CHANEL received the award for its long-standing commitment to supporting women and girls worldwide. Since 2017, Fondation CHANEL and The Asia Foundation have partnered to implement innovative programs promoting women’s entrepreneurship and environmental leadership in countries including South Korea and Indonesia.

The Lotus Leadership Awards are supported by the Lotus Circle, a vibrant community of committed philanthropists and business leaders who help drive The Asia Foundation’s work to expand economic, social, and political rights for women and girls. Funds raised through the Lotus Circle have enabled TAF to pioneer and scale high-impact, locally driven programs throughout the region.

The 2025 event’s champion sponsors included Winnie C. and Michael Feng, Lin and Stephen Jamison, Courtney Kline, Meredith Ludlow and Marc Teillon, and Janet Middleton Montag.