Growth in Asia

Dr Cheng Cheng is an Assistant Professor of Sociology and Lee Kong Chian Fellow 2022-2024. Her research interests center on gender, family, health, and aging. Her work focuses on understanding the production of social inequality through the lens of the family. She studies how extended family relationships shape gender power dynamics, wealth and income inequalities, and health disparities.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Ph.D. in Economics, Harvard University, 1989
• A.M. in Economics, Harvard University, 1986
• B.Soc.Sci. in Economics, National University of Singapore (First Class Honours), 1984

RESEARCH INTERESTS:

• Urban economics
• Housing and transport economics and policy
• Economics of regulation and competition law

Professor ZHANG Liandong is the Dean of the School of Accountancy at Singapore Management University (SMU) and the Lee Kong Chian Professor of Accounting. Since joining SMU in 2017, he has held key leadership roles in the School’s strategic development, serving as Associate Dean (Research) from 2017 to 2023 and as Deputy Dean from 2023 to 2025. He was appointed Dean on 1 July 2025 following an international search.

Dr Qian Forrest Zhang joined Singapore Management University in 2005. Currently, he is Associate Professor of Sociology and the Associate Dean for Research at the School of Social Sciences. He completed his undergraduate training at Fudan University in Shanghai and obtained a PhD in sociology from Yale University in 2004. His research focuses on China’s agrarian political economy and rural development but extends to a range of other issues in contemporary China, including self-employment, stratification and inequality, social mobility, and family relations.

Cyndi Man Zhang is an Associate Professor of Strategic Management at the Lee Kong Chian School of Business, Singapore Management University. She received her Ph.D. from INSEAD.

Dr Yue Heng joined SMU in 2015. He obtained his PhD from Tulane University and BS from Peking University. Before joining SMU, he has taught at Peking University. His research interests include corporate governance, earnings management, voluntary disclosure, and the use of accounting information in emerging markets.

Aidan M Wong is Assistant Professor of Urban Studies (Education), College of Integrative Studies, and Urban Fellow, SMU Urban Institute, Singapore Management University. Trained as an economic geographer, Aidan’s teaching interests span urban cultures, Singapore studies, and food cultures. His research interests are diverse and include urban waste management, circular economy and environmental citizenship; urban heritage and active citizenship; and labour geographies, particularly the informal economy, the gig economy, and youth entrepreneurship.

Qualifications

• PhD, University of British Columbia, 2014
• MA, University of British Columbia, 2009
• BA (Hons), University of British Columbia, 2007

Research Interests

• Social and Cultural Geography
• Pacific Rim
• Religion and Secularization
• Chinese Diaspora
• Postsecular Cities

Course(s) Taught in SMU

• Big Questions
• Publics and Privates on the Pacific Rim
• Finding Home in a Globalized World