Where I will be next, and what I have said lately.
Talks and panels·Radio and podcast·Kuala Lumpur and beyond
Most of what I am asked to speak about now comes from Sarawak. The rooms change: an embassy conference on durian, a university forum on green supply chains, a TEDx stage at Universiti Malaya, a radio studio, a dinner for people building their first businesses. The questions underneath stay close to each other. Who holds the knowledge behind an ingredient, and who is paid when that ingredient travels? This page lists where I will be next and keeps the record of where I have been.
Panellist · Panel 2: Green Economy for Corporates and Entrepreneurs · 10.40 to 11.40am School of Business and Economics, Universiti Putra Malaysia
A half-day forum on turning ESG commitments into action, for corporate leaders, women entrepreneurs, financiers and students. Panel 2 brings buyers and entrepreneurs together on green procurement criteria, SME readiness and grants. Dr Muhammad Daaniyall Abd Rahman of UPM moderates, and Dr Surina Ismail of IOI Corporation joins the panel. I will speak from the kitchen's side: what a restaurant asks of the people who supply it, and what it ought to ask.
Speaker · A talk of up to eighteen minutes Universiti Malaya
A full-day programme of talks for an audience of about a hundred. TEDxBangsar Baru is an independently organized TED event. The talk will be filmed, and an edit may appear on the TEDx YouTube channel. The title will be announced nearer the day.
Guest · Conserving and Profiting: Sarawak's Food Heritage · with Elaine Boey
Forty-one minutes on whether conservation and commerce can work together. We talked about why the knowledge and the produce belong to the communities rather than to Serumpun, which indigenous ingredients are ready to travel and what stands in their way, and how a business can source them so that the community benefits, not only the exporter.
Speaker · Durian, The Galaxy · 10.20 to 10.40am Taylor's University, Lakeside Campus
A morning conference on durian from French and Malaysian perspectives, opened by His Excellency Marc Abensour, Ambassador of France to Malaysia. My talk, Durian, The Galaxy, followed the opening addresses, ahead of a roundtable on durian as fruit, terroir and identity and a dialogue on taking it from the orchard to global markets. That evening I cooked the dinner that closed the day, at the Residence of France.
Mostly Sarawak: who holds the knowledge behind an ingredient, and who is paid when that ingredient travels. The rooms range from conservation and supply chains to the kitchen and first businesses, and the questions underneath stay close to each other.
What formats does James Won take on?
Talks, panels, and radio and podcast conversations. Recent rooms include an embassy conference, a university forum, a TEDx stage, a radio studio and a dinner for founders.
How do I invite James Won to speak?
Write to connect@chefjameswon.com with the date, the audience, and the question you would like the room to leave with.
What can organisers use to promote a talk?
The biographies in the press kit. Portraits and brand marks need written permission, which is given on request through the same address.
Can I listen to past conversations?
Yes, where a recording exists. The BFM 89.9 Enterprise Explores conversation of September 2026 is on BFM, and each engagement on this page links to its own page where there is one.
I cook. I think alongside the people who grow what I cook with. I try to listen first.
