ALUMNI

Suhail Bindra (’13)

I loved being part of the HKA community for twelve years, commencing my studies in Grade 1 (back in 2001) and graduating from the IB Diploma Programme in 2013 with a perfect score of 45 points. I obtained my LL.B. and PCLL from the University of Hong Kong as a HKSAR Government Scholar, being fortunate to receive over HK$400,000 in merit scholarships. After setting up my own consulting social enterprise and working in a startup, I worked in numerous not-for-profit organizations in the UK, Australia and Hong Kong, and also had a brief stint working in a private practice. With a passion for public interest litigation, I went on to obtain a Master of Public and International Law from the Melbourne Law School, graduating with First Class Honors. I had the chance to study under Professor Hilary Charlesworth, now a Judge at the International Court of Justice. Currently, I am a Legal Case Manager at Equal Justice Hong Kong, a not-for-profit community impact initiative that helps underserved people anticipate, prevent and solve their legal problems. In my free time, I run legal education courses for ethnically diverse school children with an NGO called EmpowerU. 

Nearly a decade after graduating from HKA, I treasure the skills, values, and ideas that my education gave me, whilst my IB certificate sits gathering dust in some drawer unknown. It’s a piece of paper largely forgotten, frankly. What I do remember is that HKA taught me to be organized. To be a leader. To speak up. To take initiative. To drive change. To volunteer. To live with integrity. To pursue what I wanted to pursue because I wanted to pursue it. To live authentically. To network. To create and build. To innovate. To imagine. To write concisely. Short sentences. Evidently. To be funny. Clearly. To listen, not to what people say, but what people mean. To be curious. Read widely (and wildly). To take risks. Fail. Handle difficult situations. Adjust. Try again. Try differently. 

HKA is defined by its inclusiveness, its willingness to put people first, and teaches students to prioritize their education over their studies. This is a critical distinction, a point largely missed by many educational institutions. I learned this very early on. I’m so glad I did. It’s made a difference. Looking back, I wish I could do it all over again, exactly the same way, with all of the same people.

Ben Hiley

Ben Hiley (’18) graduated from the Academy of Contemporary Music (ACM) in the UK with a first class honours degree and released his first EP in collaboration with artist, Glæcial Heišt. Check out his album on Spotify or YouTube.

Armon Owlia

Armon Owlia (‘16) graduated from Drexel University with a B.A. in Journalism and Certification in Writing and Publishing. A prolific podcaster, Armon launched the podcasting division of Drexel University’s student newspaper, The Triangle. In his podcast, Shadow Gallery Seminars, Armon interviews academic experts and activists in various fields in the hopes of supporting his listeners to create action plans to better our world.

Max Leali

Max Leali (’13) represents Hong Kong in professional Mixed Martial Arts, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and Shooto and is a martial arts coach in a gym in Sheung Wan. His goal is to compete under “One Championship”, and to continue to represent and grow Hong Kong’s martial arts culture. Please watch our most recent Alumni Portrait video to learn more about Max’s story.

Valeria Riquelme (’19)

I joined HKA in Grade 8 and graduated in 2019 with an IB Diploma score of 40. Having a passion for performing arts, and with a view to developing my production skillset, I was thrilled to take an internship at HKA during which time I created and performed my first full theatre production, a one woman show “So I Went”. 

I am currently studying for a Bachelor of Arts with a double major in comparative literature and history at Hong Kong University. Whilst studying for my degree, I also founded a media and arts company, Tinta Ltd, and wrote, directed and produced the short film ‘For Her’ in 2021. My most recent production is a full-length, experimental physical theatre play which I produced and co-edited. At the same time, I developed a business plan and built a team of 40 people to bring the show to life.

As a student and intern at HKA, I learned that team building is at the heart of any successful enterprise. I was given multiple opportunities to build teams and produce content for events such as the Refugee Race and GIN conference. Faculty mentors gave me the space to ideate and coached me on goal setting and building common understanding; they also modelled strong work ethic, positive and timely communication, and helped me develop my professional persona.

My medium term goal is to make Tinta Ltd a leading force in the Hong Kong media and arts landscape. As part of that aspiration, I am continuously looking for ways to create mutually beneficial internships and meaningful opportunities for young people, so they can be exposed to a professional environment and become the next generation of entrepreneurs.

Tyler Wizenberg

Tyler Wizenberg (’13) visited the Canadian High Arctic to conduct research on atmospheric trace gases as a PhD student in the Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary physics group at the University of Toronto.

Emily Brenker

Emily Brenker, Class of 2019, earned a first class honours degree, Bachelor of Science in Business Management from Bayes Business School in 2022. Having gained experience of marketing, finance and business management during summer internships she joined J.P. Morgan as a Finance Analyst in 2022.