This is a past event. Registration is closed. View other British Chamber of Commerce in China events.
Dame Caroline Wilson
HM Ambassador to China at British Embassy BeijingDame Caroline Wilson has served as British Ambassador to China since 2020.
Caroline joined the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office in 1995 after qualifying as a Barrister-at-law.
She completed Mandarin language training at Beijing Normal University before taking up her first role overseas at the British Embassy in Beijing from 1997-2000.
Caroline was posted to the UK Representation to the European Union in Brussels in 2001 and served as Private Secretary to the Foreign Secretary from 2004-2006.
Caroline was then seconded to the Cabinet Office European Secretariat as Deputy Director. From 2008-12 she served at the British Embassy in Moscow as Minister Counsellor.
Caroline then went on to become Her Majesty’s Consul General to Hong Kong and Macao from 2012 to 2016.
Returning to London, Caroline was appointed Europe Director at the FCDO, a role she held from 2016 to 2019.
Richard Burn
Senior Counsellor at APCO WorldwideRichard Burn has spent his career moving between the public and private sectors but always at the intersection of government and business. He has a lifelong interest in China, most recently spending three years as a British diplomat in Beijing. He also has expertise in sustainable technologies, critical minerals and the energy transition. He currently serves as a senior counselor based in APCO’s London office.
Prior to joining APCO, Richard was the UK’s Trade Commissioner for Europe, covering 33 countries in the EU, EFTA, the Western Balkans and Israel. Appointed to the role in May 2020, he led his Europe-based team at the UK Department for International Trade (DIT) through the Brexit transition and first three months outside the EU. Before that, he was appointed as the first British Trade Commissioner to China and Hong Kong, following the creation of DIT by Prime Minister Theresa May after the EU Referendum result in 2016. Based in the British Embassy in Beijing, Richard led the DIT team in China across the Embassy and four Consulates-General, with responsibility for supporting UK exports, encouraging inward investment from China and tackling market access issues on behalf of UK business.
Richard has also worked as group government affairs director for Johnson Matthey plc, the global sustainable technologies company, whose innovative products and processes help the world to achieve net zero. From 2014-2016, he was global public policy director for the leading beverage alcohol company, Diageo plc, after nine years as corporate affairs director for Diageo Asia Pacific, based in Singapore. In that role, he built a regional corporate affairs network, launched a female empowerment program and negotiated the acquisition of a Chinese white spirits business in China. Before that, he was the managing director of APCO’s Asia region, having co-founded the China investment and public affairs consultancy, Batey Burn, which was acquired by APCO in 1999. During his tenure, he tripled the size of the business, leaving in 2005 to join Diageo. He started his career as a civil servant in the then-British Hong Kong Government and became private secretary to former UK Prime Minister Edward Heath, travelling widely with him to China, the United States and Europe.
Richard holds a first-class bachelor’s degree in classics (Literae Humaniores) from Oxford University.
Evelyn Cheng
Senior Correspondent at CNBCEvelyn Cheng is a CNBC.com Senior Correspondent, covering China’s economy and financial markets from Beijing.
She previously held the position of Beijing Correspondent. Prior to that, Cheng was a staff writer at CNBC’s global headquarters, where she covered daily U.S. market moves and broader market trends across both the United States and China. Before joining CNBC, she interned with several news outlets including The New York Times Shanghai Bureau and Metro New York.
Cheng holds a bachelor’s degree in Journalism, Urban Design and Architecture Studies from New York University. She was a recipient of the Edwin Diamond Undergraduate Award, presented to the top undergraduate journalism student at NYU, and a winner of the Roy W. Howard National Collegiate Reporting Competition. Cheng was also the Editor in Chief of NYU’s Asian American interest magazine, Generasian.
Julian Fisher
Chair at British Chamber of Commerce in China- Results of the Position Paper 2025
- Panel 1: Challenges and Opportunities for British Businesses in China
Julian is the co-founder of Venture Education, Chair of the British Chamber of Commerce in China and Chair of the Chamber's Education Forum.
Julian spent nearly a decade teaching history and history of art in Harrow Beijing (which he joined in its founding year) while also working as an IELTS examiner for the British Council.
In the latter job, speaking to thousands of Chinese students, he understood first hand the challenges that many of them faced in developing confidence, making ideas happen and moving beyond education to lead fulfilling and meaningful careers and lives. Then he met Zhubei and in the first year of Venture they talked. A lot. He leads the consultancy arm of Venture that supports schools, universities and education organisations to thrive in China.
Julian is the Chair of the British Chamber of Commerce in China and Chair of the Chamber’s Education Forum which includes driving initiatives such as Employability Week and the Young Professionals Development Programme. He is also a mentor for Durham University, former president of the China North Entrepreneurs’ Organization and a strategic advisor for the innovative edtech platform Globiliti. He graduated with a joint degree in History of Art from UCL and SOAS and has a masters in Antiques from UCLAN.
Ross Parsonage
Director of Taozi Tree YogaRoss Parsonage has lived and worked in Beijing for over 20 years, leading a uniquely blended career across legal consulting, intellectual property, wellbeing, and community development.
He has held senior roles with international law and advisory firms, working with multinationals on brand protection and regulatory strategy, before transitioning to co-found Taozi Tree Yoga, one of Beijing's most vibrant international wellness communities.
Ross has been an active member of the British Chamber of Commerce in China for over a decade and has sat on the Executive Committee since 2019.
As a father of four navigating the Chinese education system, Ross brings deep personal and professional insight into the challenges and opportunities of expat life in China. Today, he consults on conflict and relationship management, community engagement, workplace wellbeing, and international family support—helping organisations and individuals thrive across cultures.
Daisy Shen
Head of ESG at KPMG ChinaDaisy Shen has 22 years’ experience with KPMG, including a long term secondment to KPMG’s Global Chairman’s Office and the KPMG Energy Centre of Excellence based in London, where she gained invaluable international experience in executive management and cross border M&A transactions. Daisy is specialized in Strategy, M&A, Energy Transition, ESG and decarbonisation Advisory, providing advice to corporates and governments in climate change, energy transition, low carbon investment, ESG and decarbonisation strategy. Daisy is a member of the Executive Committee of the British Chamber of Commerce in China, dedicated to promoting trade, investment and economic development between China and the UK. She is also a frequent speaker at women leadership forums and mentorship programs.
Yue Su
Economist, China at The Economist GroupAs China economist at The Economist Intelligence Unit, Yue plays a leading role in shaping the EIU’s views on China’s economy at both the national and regional level. Her research focuses on infrastructure development, regional economics, state-owned enterprises and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). She leads the regional forecasting work conducted under the EIU’s Access China service, which offers unrivalled analytical coverage of China’s provinces and cities, and is also involved in advising Chinese companies investing globally.
Yue joined The EIU in 2013, initially as a deputy economist. During her time at The EIU she has contributed to several special reports, including the China Going Global Investment Index (2015 & 2017), Prospects and challenges on China’s "One Belt, One Road”: a risk assessment report and China’s supply-side structural reforms: progress and outlook. She has also acted as a consultant or advisor on several commissioned studies in the infrastructure field, such as on public-private partnerships in China and Asia, and is one of the authors of the BRI Quarterly report available to EIU clients.
Yue holds a doctorate in political economy from the Central Party School/Chinese Academy of Governance. Her research focused on the aid effectiveness of multilateral development banks and analysed the factors that might disrupt the investment returns of infrastructure projects. Before joining The EIU she worked as a local government civil servant in China. Yue holds a BA in Economics from Hunan University and a Masters of Economics from The University of Hong Kong.
Chris Torrens
Vice Chair at British Chamber of Commerce in ChinaChris Torrens is a recognized expert on China’s geopolitical and compliance issues. As the Beijing-based managing director of APCO’s Greater China operations, Chris brings unique insights to support both multinational companies operating in China and Chinese companies going global, with a particular focus on political and regulatory risks.
Before joining APCO, Chris worked at Control Risks for 22 years, serving as partner in the Greater China and North Asia region. Before this role, Chris was based in London as the partner responsible for the geopolitical risk practice for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Chris previously worked as a Shanghai-based associate director in PricewaterhouseCoopers’ advisory practice and as the Hong Kong-based head of research at Batey Burn, a UK government relations and public affairs consultancy acquired by APCO in 1999.
Chris is a regular media commentator and has been interviewed by the BBC, CNN, CNBC, CGTN and Bloomberg. His articles have appeared in the Economist, Financial Times and specialist publications and his book, Doing Business in China, was published by The Economist Group in 2010.
Chris has lived in Greater China for more than 20 years. He holds an MBA from the China-Europe International Business School, a BA Honours degree in Modern Chinese Studies from Leeds University and speaks Mandarin.
Chris has served as vice-chairman of the British Chamber of Commerce in China since 2022.
Graeme Wallace
Managing Director of British Chamber of Commerce in ChinaGraeme Wallace is the Managing Director of the British Chamber of Commerce in China. With extensive experience in the sector, he previously led commercial operations at the European Chamber of Commerce in China. After five years away from Beijing, during which he pursued further education and worked in the UK’s vibrant start-up sector, Graeme has returned to the region to continue driving impactful business engagement between the UK and China.
Graeme holds an MBA from the University of Cambridge’s Judge Business School, where he chaired the Public Policy Special Interest Group, and an MA from the University of St Andrews’ School of International Relations. He is proficient in Chinese and maintains a strong interest in research related to China’s global engagement. Outside of work, Graeme is a qualified kettlebell coach.