The regional finals brought together 48 students from eight markets to develop sustainable business solutions for Cambodia, marking two decades of entrepreneurship and international trade education.
Federal Express Corporation and Junior Achievement have announced the winners of the 2026 FedEx/JA International Trade Challenge Asia Pacific finals, held at a live event in Singapore. This year’s competition also marked the program’s 20th anniversary, highlighting two decades of entrepreneurship, international trade, and cross-cultural business education for young people across the region.
More than 4,000 students from eight markets participated in this year’s program, including Hong Kong SAR, Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. From that pool, 48 students advanced to the Asia Pacific finals, where they were paired into teams of two with participants from different markets to encourage cross-cultural collaboration.
Turning sustainability into a business challenge
For the regional finals, students were tasked with developing a market-entry strategy for an innovative and sustainable product that repurposes used packaging materials into a solution with economic, environmental, or social value. Cambodia served as the target market, giving participants a specific business context in which to test their ideas.
The teams then pitched their concepts to a panel of entrepreneurs and business leaders in Singapore. The challenge required students to combine sustainability, market understanding, commercial thinking, teamwork, and international trade principles into a practical proposal that could respond to real-world needs.
“As we celebrate the 20th year of the FedEx/JA International Trade Challenge, we are proud of the lasting impact the program has had on thousands of young people across Asia Pacific,” said Salil Chari, president for Asia Pacific at FedEx. He said the program has grown from an introduction to international trade into a platform that develops entrepreneurial thinking, cross-cultural collaboration, and real-world problem-solving skills.
Team Ascent takes first place
First place went to Team Ascent, composed of Farra Santoso of Indonesia and Harry Jang of the Republic of Korea. Their concept was a lightweight thermal shield made from recycled industrial packaging and designed for Cambodia’s hot climate.
The solution is intended to reduce heat entering existing buildings without electricity, helping lower factory energy costs while also addressing worker heat exposure and packaging waste. Judges recognized the concept for combining sustainability with a practical application suited to the target market.
“Winning the 2026 FedEx/JA International Trade Challenge has been an unforgettable experience,” Santoso and Jang said. They added that working across markets challenged them to think beyond their own perspectives and helped them better understand how international trade, sustainability, technology, and cultural awareness can come together in solving business problems.
Philippines represented among the runners-up
Two teams finished as runners-up. Team Baksei, composed of Masato Hirozane of Japan and Sara Nileshkumar Jasani of Malaysia, proposed turning discarded soft-plastic packaging into durable, flood-resilient permeable tiles.
Team Ventra, meanwhile, included Minette Cabaluna of the Philippines and Rayden Cleverson Suhardi of Indonesia. Their concept was a modular cooling solution made from recycled plastic waste, designed to help reduce indoor temperatures without electricity.
The three winning teams reflected the competition’s emphasis on environmental sustainability, commercial relevance, and solutions tailored to local conditions. They also demonstrated the cross-market collaboration built into the challenge, with each finalist team combining students from different Asia Pacific markets.
A 20th anniversary focused on future-ready skills
To mark the program’s 20th year, the 2026 finals introduced several new elements. For the first time, the program incorporated findings from a region-wide student survey that gathered more than 4,000 responses across 10 Asia Pacific markets, covering areas such as workplace readiness, entrepreneurial capability, global trade literacy, and perceptions of artificial intelligence.
Alumni from across the program’s two-decade history also returned as mentors, judges, and speakers. Their participation created a direct link between earlier generations of participants and this year’s finalists while underscoring the program’s long-term focus on business and entrepreneurship education.
“These winners, and indeed all the 48 finalists, represent the very best of the impact that the FedEx/JA International Trade Challenge was designed to achieve,” said Vivek Kumar, president and chief executive officer of JA Asia Pacific. He pointed to the students’ ability to collaborate across cultures and translate classroom learning into practical business solutions.
Learning beyond the competition
FedEx said the 2026 Asia Pacific winners will also receive opportunities to deepen their understanding of global commerce through visits to FedEx operational facilities in their respective markets. They will engage directly with FedEx team members to gain more exposure to logistics, supply chain management, and international trade.
The additional experience is intended to complement the entrepreneurial and business skills developed during the competition. FedEx positions mentorship and practical exposure as key to helping young people understand how international commerce works beyond the classroom.
Two decades of entrepreneurship education
The FedEx/JA International Trade Challenge is jointly organized by FedEx and JA Asia Pacific, a member of JA Worldwide. Now in its 20th year, the program has reached more than 54,000 students across Asia Pacific, combining classroom learning, entrepreneurship education, and international business challenges.
The program focuses on practical skills in business, economics, global trade, teamwork, and problem-solving. According to FedEx and JA, its broader aim is to prepare students for an increasingly interconnected economy where commercial thinking, cultural awareness, sustainability, and adaptability are becoming more important.
The judging panel for this year’s finals included entrepreneurs and business leaders who highlighted the students’ creativity, confidence, commercial thinking, and willingness to learn. Their feedback reinforced the program’s emphasis on practical problem-solving and communication rather than purely academic performance.
In Summary
The 2026 FedEx/JA International Trade Challenge Asia Pacific finals brought together 48 students from eight markets in Singapore, marking the program’s 20th anniversary. Participants developed sustainable market-entry strategies for Cambodia using products made from repurposed packaging materials.
Team Ascent, composed of Farra Santoso of Indonesia and Harry Jang of South Korea, won first place with a lightweight thermal shield made from recycled industrial packaging. Team Baksei from Japan and Malaysia and Team Ventra from the Philippines and Indonesia were named runners-up. The program has reached more than 54,000 students across Asia Pacific over the past 20 years.