AAPIP Sips: In Conversation with Women Building Legacy

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Four leaders. Three decades of AAPIP history. One conversation about what it takes to build and sustain AANHPI leadership in philanthropy.

On March 3, AAPIP brings together Peggy Saika, Kiran Ahuja, Bo Thao-Urabe, and Cathy Cha, each of whom has served in leadership at AAPIP and have shaped philanthropy across government, major foundations, and community organizing. Moderated by AAPIP President & CEO Connie Chung Joe, this conversation will cover their journeys to AAPIP, how the organization shaped their thinking on leadership, and what they’d tell the next generation of AANHPI philanthropic professionals navigating today’s landscape.

This session is designed for current AAPIP members, emerging professionals in the field, and anyone in the broader AAPIP network who wants to engage directly with leaders who have built infrastructure that will influence philanthropy for generations.

Submit a question during registration, speakers will address what’s on your mind.

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Speakers

Kiran Ahuja Former AAPIP Board Member | Former Director, U.S. Office of Personnel Management

Kiran served on AAPIP’s board and spent six years as Executive Director of the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders under President Obama. She later served as CEO of Philanthropy Northwest before being confirmed as Director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management in 2021. She is the founding Executive Director of the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF).

Cathy Cha President & CEO, Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund | Former Boston Chapter Co-Chair, AAPIP | 2015 Leader in Action Award Recipient

Cathy leads the Haas, Jr. Fund’s investments in immigrant rights, democracy, and college success. She co-created the California Campus Catalyst Fund to support undocumented students, helped launch the California Black Freedom Fund, and co-founded California Civic Participation Funders. In 2011, she worked with Carnegie, Knight, and Grove foundations to launch the New Americans Campaign, which has helped more than 300,000 legal permanent residents become U.S. citizens.

Peggy Saika Former President & Executive Director, AAPIP (2002–2015)

Peggy led AAPIP for 13 years, expanding its chapter network, launching the National Giving Circle Campaign, and advancing the framework of “Building Democratic Philanthropy.” A social justice leader with decades of experience in environmental justice, immigrant rights, and worker rights, Peggy was born in an Arizona internment camp where her family was among 120,000 Japanese Americans detained during World War II.

Bo Thao-Urabe Former Senior Director, AAPIP | Co-founder, Coalition of Asian American Leaders

Bo served as Senior Director at AAPIP from 2006 to 2016, leading its social justice philanthropy portfolio and organizational learning work. She founded and led the Coalition of Asian American Leaders (CAAL) and has co-founded multiple organizations focused on gender-based violence, civic participation, and community giving, including the BMPP Giving Circle and the Asian Pacific Islander Institute on Gender-Based Violence. She currently serves as founder and principal of Seed Grow Bloom LLC and co-founder of Rooted to Last, a social justice movement organization rooted in Minnesota’s communities of color. Bo arrived in the United States as a refugee child from Laos after her family fled following the Secret War.

Moderator: Connie Chung Joe President & CEO, AAPIP

Connie joined AAPIP in August 2025 after five years as CEO of Asian Americans Advancing Justice Southern California. Prior to that, she served as Executive Director of Korean American Family Services for 11 years. A public interest lawyer by training, she has worked on immigrant rights, fair housing, reproductive rights, and civil liberties. She holds a BA from USC and a JD from Georgetown University Law Center.