Meet the committee

Empower committee strives to provide our members with the optimal club experience. 

Toastmasters is often seen primarily as a public speaking organisation but it is also a leadership development program. There are several opportunities for you to develop your leadership abilities in a meaningful way. The Empower Club Executive Committee is elected every year and consists of seven members who are elected by the club members. This committee leads all aspects of club management and also represents us at the wider Toastmasters network. 

2022-2023 Empower Committee Members

MEgha

Club President

As President, Megha is responsible for setting the tone of the club and prioritizing its progress and welfare. Megha envisions Empower as a Basecamp that will strive to nurture, equip and propel its members to scale new heights in their journeys. 


Megha joined the club in 2017 and has served in various leadership roles. Megha believes in the power of community to solve common problems, having catalyzed the LivetoLearn and Buy Nothing projects in Bangkok. Megha loves learning, reading, and writing.  

Sophie

VP Education

As Vice President of Education, Sophie's post-pandemic aim is to ensure that club members get the most from their Toastmasters education journey. Sophie has been part of Empower's adventure since 2018. She is a mother of four and is currently undergoing professional retraining in order to become a French literature teacher.  


With 18 years of professional experience in the legal field, Sophie attaches great importance to the precision of terms, to the choice of the right term and this is in line with her literary project as well as her passion for better & more accurately communicating, using fewer, but more impactful words. 


"Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away". This quote from Antoine de Saint Exupéry, a famous French author drives Sophie's targets in entering Empower's committee this year. 



Étienne

VP Membership

As the Vice President of Membership, Étienne is responsible for member retention and new member recruitment. Étienne joined Toastmasters in 2013 and has since then developed a passion for public speaking and helping people achieve their full potential. 


Étienne has held several leadership positions in both club and district in the past. Étienne is the current past President of Empower Toastmasters Club and the Public Relations Manager for District 97 from 2021 to 2022.  


After completing a Bachelor of Commerce in Montreal, Canada, Étienne began traveling around the world and enjoyed discovering new places and cultures. Étienne launched Desire to Trade, a company that helps educate people in the field of trading, and currently leads a team of people passionate about making a difference. 

Bua

VP Public Relations

Bua first walked into her first Toastmasters meeting five years ago in 2017 after realizing that public speaking would continue to play a large part in both her personal and professional life. She is determined to work through her - decades-long - fear of public speaking by speaking in public. Bua is not yet an International World Champion Speaker, but she is happy that she is now a much better communicator today than she was five years ago. 


Bua has a professional background in advertising and business management and has served as Vice President of Education at Empower Toastmasters from 2020 to 2021. 

Pongsakorn

Treasurer & Secretary

Pongsakorn has served two terms as the club's treasurer. In this term, he is eager to expand his responsibilities as club treasurer by also serving as secretary. 


Pongsakorn attended UCSD, USA for a Master's degree in Computer Science and worked for Amazon.com in Seattle, USA, as a Software Engineer for almost 8 years. Pongsakorn is now back in Thailand and founded a start-up company called Indy Dish and has taken a CTO role since then. 


Pongsakorn is passionate about technology and believes that technology can help make the world a better place. 

Nana

SAA Team Leader

Nana is responsible for club property management, meeting room preparation, and hospitality. In the past, Nana was an interior consultant for a membership furniture store specializing in high-end imported furniture, curtains, lighting, and other decorative items. Since her marriage ten years ago, Nana has worked as a web editor for a city guide. In addition, Nana also taught Japanese to foreigners living in Japan as a volunteer for a Japanese language class. 


Nana's preferred activities in Thailand include visiting museums, temples, interior design stores, and events. For Nana, Empower is a place where she can broaden her horizons and meet people of various nationalities. 


Carly

Zoom Team Leader

Carly has been an active Toastmasters since 2021. Originally from the West Coast of Canada, she currently resides in Taipei. She initially joined Empower Toastmasters because she was mortified by the amount of ah-ums in her presentation. Toastmasters has grown to be more than a public speaking space for her, it is a playground of possibilities, a community, and a space for leadership development. 

Carly worked in the field of international development. Carly considers herself a life long learner, educator, collaborator, community builder and a creatively curious person. 

Carly enjoys listening to podcasts. She is passionate about mental health, well-being, movement and play. She is a proud mama of two beautiful cats (also known as the yin yang brothers) and the sweetest doggie on Earth.