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The Inner Mountain Foundation Launches in the US: Empowering Women Through Community and Education

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­­­­Debuting in the US with its first chapter based in California, The Inner Mountain Foundation brings women together to discover their inner strength and overcome self-limitations — consequently expanding the potential of women around the world.

LOS ANGELES, June 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — The Inner Mountain Foundation global women’s empowerment community has launched its first US chapter in California, celebrating with events in Los Angeles and San Francisco on June 3 and 5.

The Foundation empowers women to stand up, speak out, and make a difference — starting with the first step of doing the work within, to overcome the limiting beliefs that hold women back from becoming the best possible version of themselves. Built upon the pillars of “Look Within,” “Community,” and “International,” our programs encourage women to explore, break through, and live up by connecting with their hearts and bodies.

“The Inner Mountain Foundation is a community where women help women. We create an environment that supports self-discovery and mutual upliftment, centered around the concept of ‘holding space,’ which advocates for mindful presence and deep listening,” said Diane Wang, Founder of The Inner Mountain Foundation; and Founder, Chairperson and CEO of DHGATE Group, one of China’s leading cross-border B2B e-commerce marketplaces

“Our goal is to foster a social movement that encourages women to tackle internal challenges and break free of limiting beliefs that hinder their potential.”

Future Steps for The Inner Mountain Foundation

The Inner Mountain Foundation is built on over 20 years of cross-border business expertise and millions of connections forged through DHGATE Group. This wealth of experience and global reach enriches the Foundation’s offerings of practical guidance and support.

One goal for The Inner Mountain Foundation is to create new opportunities for the thousands of female buyers, content creators, and influencers who collaborate on DHGATE Group’s social commerce platform, MyyShop.

“We are enthusiastic about expanding our impact with the launch of our California chapter. We look forward to hosting many local networking events, bringing together DHgate buyers, MyyShop influencers, local female entrepreneurs, and aspiring businesswomen,” Diane said. “The Inner Mountain Foundation is a unique and innovative community that enables its members to grow and give back, creating a sustainable and mutually beneficial environment. With chapters worldwide, each with its own character, we can foster a dynamic and vibrant culture across country borders.”

Kicking Off the US Chapter in Style

The two launch events for The Inner Mountain Foundation were met with widespread support from partners, esteemed industry leaders, and members of the California community of aspiring female entrepreneurs.

Special invitations to the launch event were sent to American content creators working with MyyShop. The creators were also invited to a preliminary networking event on May 30 in downtown LA at the MyyShop Sample Center Couch Area.

Diane personally attended the launch events to engage more deeply with US-based female entrepreneurs, as did Natasha Walstra, Diane’s co-host on The Inner Mountain Foundation’s flagship podcast, The Climb — which features inspirational interviews with women who rose above difficult personal and professional challenges. Natasha is also a founding member of The Inner Mountain Foundation’s California chapter and host of the “Own Your Voice” and “Leading Comments” podcasts.

“I am so excited we are officially announcing Inner Mountain to the world and launching the first US Chapter,” Natasha said in a presentation at the Los Angeles launch event. “Community is key, and that’s essential to what The Inner Mountain Foundation is looking to build: to provide a platform for women to support and nurture each other and their businesses.”

Other notable guests included fintech industry pioneer and expert, Yu Jin; branding expert and Founder of Electric Collab, Emily Paulsen; Dr. Noor Ali, Founder of her own health insurance consulting practice; Founder of Reignite Media, content strategist and podcast coach, Rita Richi; Honorary President of the American International Investment Council (AIIC), Hong; and Peifeng Yang (Allen), Founder and CEO of VIP Store. MyyShop content creators, all of whom are high-achieving creators and social commerce entrepreneurs, were also in attendance.

Building a Community to Last

The Inner Mountain Foundation launched its global website in October 2023 and also has an international chapter in China. Regular offline meetups and events have been ongoing since last year, including a party bus event at ASD Market Week in Las Vegas as well as a mindfulness meditation side-event connecting its China chapter members with more resources and offline experience at DHgate’s Seller Conference in Shenzhen.

Diane has also authored a motivational book titled The Inner Mountain that details her “Inner Mountain” philosophy (which the Foundation is named after). On presale now, the book will be officially released by Forbes Books in October 2024. The Inner Mountain details Diane’s experiences spanning three decades as a corporate executive and entrepreneur, and offers clear insights on how anyone can find their inner mountain of personal strength and conviction to succeed in the modern world.

Having been deeply involved in championing women’s empowerment for over a decade, Diane seeks to build new digital inclusion and business leadership opportunities for women around the world. In addition to founding The Inner Mountain Foundation, Diane is also the Founder of the international women’s entrepreneurship community APEC Women Connect, and has worked extensively with the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, the World Trade Organization (WTO), the G20 forum, the BRICS Women’s Business Alliance and other high-level international organizations.

“Our programs focus on soft skills training, equipping women to be their greatest, most empowered selves in every aspect of their lives,” she said.

During her speech at the Los Angeles launch event, Diane shared her personal North Stars, including always listening to her heart and pursuing what ignites a spark in her eyes. These guiding principles have served her well in her life, businesses, and ongoing innovations, inspiring her to dedicate over 10 years to international women’s empowerment initiatives and activism. She explained how The Inner Mountain Foundation was formed to help women overcome their self-doubts and self-limitations, which she identifies as greater barriers to women’s success than any lack of technical skills. “We create an environment that supports self-discovery and mutual upliftment, centered around the concept of ‘holding space,’ which advocates for mindful presence and deep listening,” Diane said.

With the Foundation’s link to DHgate, its programs are able to leverage on a huge, established network of international business connections. In particular, the Foundation can connect international small businesses and aspiring entrepreneurs (such as social commerce content creators) with the Chinese supply chain.

Diane shared the story of Serena, an American entrepreneur who sells wellness products and member of the Foundation’s California chapter. Many entrepreneurs and social commerce content creators lack access to good and established supply chains for their businesses, while many DHgate’s Chinese suppliers have great products but limited access to international businesses. Drawn together by shared values and a desire for business growth, entrepreneurs like Serena and DHgate are able to help each other grow and strengthen business relationships, which in turn sparks new ideas for collaboration — demonstrating the power of the Foundation’s supportive network.

“Serena told me, ‘I hope to connect local women in California with more female sellers from China. We can become friends — and friends’ products are always more trustworthy,'” Diane said.

“And on that point, I wholeheartedly agree. We are working hard to facilitate direct communication between our American and Chinese members as soon as possible.”

The Inner Mountain Foundation invites you to join our mission to empower women to overcome challenges and reach their fullest potential. Whether as a member, supporter, or partner, your involvement is crucial to our cause.

Together, we can make a meaningful impact and create a world where every woman has the opportunity to thrive. Join us and be part of this transformative journey. Please visit https://innermountain.org/ .

About The Inner Mountain Foundation

The Inner Mountain Foundation promotes the empowerment of women through education, community, and outreach. We are led by our Founder and Chairperson Diane Wang, who first articulated the principles of Inner Mountain Thinking in her 2024 book, The Inner Mountain. As a global foundation and women’s empowerment community, we invest in impact-making educational resources that we seek to make as broadly accessible as possible. Our goal is to focus the work of the Inner Mountain on the soft skills training that we believe helps equip women to be their greatest, most empowered selves across their most wholly integrated life (connecting the self with work, family, community, and legacy).

For more information, please visit innermountain.org

About DHgate

Founded in 2004, DHgate has become the leading B2B cross-border e-commerce marketplace in China, boasting over 34 million live listings annually. Through their global operations and offices, including in the USA and UK, DHgate reaches millions of people with trusted products and services. As of December 31, 2023, DHgate served more than 77 million registered buyers from 225 countries and regions, connecting them to over 2.6 million sellers in China and other countries.

For more information, please visit DHgate.com and follow @DHgate.com.

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SOURCE DHGATE Group

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RSPO Launches New Guidance to Leverage Sustainable Palm Oil Certification for IFRS® Sustainability Disclosure Standards

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KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, July 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) has released a guidance document, “Leveraging RSPO Principles and Criteria for IFRS® Sustainability Disclosure Standards”. This new resource supports certified sustainable palm oil producers to align their sustainability practices with the IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 disclosure standards that serve as the global framework for reporting sustainability-related financial information.

As more than 30 jurisdictions, representing around 60% of global GDP, move towards adoption of the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards (IFRS SDS), companies are increasingly required to disclose how sustainability-related risks and opportunities affect their financial position and prospects.1

This resource provides a practical pathway for palm oil producers to respond to these requirements by leveraging their existing compliance with the RSPO Principles and Criteria (P&C), without duplicating efforts or creating parallel systems.

Informing investor-relevant disclosures: A four-step approach

Certification and the IFRS SDS serve different purposes. This guidance, developed with support from PwC Malaysia, provides a practical bridge between operational sustainability practices and financial disclosure expectations by helping members translate certification-related topics, metrics, and evidence to inform investor-relevant disclosures.

It sets out a four-step approach to IFRS SDS-aligned reporting, guiding RSPO Members on applicability, reporting boundaries, identification of sustainability-related risks and opportunities, and links to financial performance. It also includes seven practical examples, illustrating how the RSPO P&C requirements and implementation evidence can inform disclosures across key sustainability topics, from ethical conduct and legal compliance to environmental protection and worker health and safety.

Beyond growers, the guidance document also supports financial institutions by helping banks, insurers, and investors understand how palm oil sustainability issues, such as labour disputes and traceability gaps, can translate into financial risks, impacts, and opportunities, enabling clearer risk profiling and more informed financing decisions.

Joseph D’ Cruz, RSPO Chief Executive Officer, said: “As sustainability reporting becomes an integral pillar of financial performance, this guidance bridges certification and disclosure, providing RSPO members with a practical framework to demonstrate sustainability performance in ways that resonate with global capital markets. In line with the growing importance of sustainability disclosures in financing and investment decision-making processes, this guidance illustrates how RSPO Principles and Criteria practices can complement an organisation’s strategy and risk assessment processes.”

Andrew Chan, Partner, Sustainability Leader at PwC Malaysia, said: “This guidance responds to the broader shift towards measuring sustainability through a financial lens, with the adoption of the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards (IFRS S1 and IFRS S2). For RSPO growers, this creates an opportunity to demonstrate how sustainability practices contribute to business resilience as well as value creation — building investor confidence for the long term.”

Importantly, the guidance also reflects RSPO’s longer term interest in progressively strengthening linkages with sustainability disclosure frameworks. As disclosure expectations continue to evolve, RSPO intends to further explore how certification-related data metrics and assurance processes can support broader and more integrated sustainability disclosures in the future.

The Guidance Document can be downloaded here.

For more information, visit www.rspo.org 

About RSPO:
The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) is a global partnership to make palm oil sustainable. Formed in 2004, the RSPO is a multi-stakeholder non-profit organisation that unites members from across the palm oil value chain, including oil palm producers, palm oil processors and traders, consumer goods manufacturers, retailers, banks and investors, environmental or nature conservation non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and social or developmental NGOs.

As a partnership for progress and positive impact, the RSPO facilitates global change to make the production and consumption of palm oil sustainable. To inspire change, we communicate the environmental and social benefits. To make progress, we catalyse collaboration. To provide assurance, we set the standards of certification.

The RSPO is registered as an international association in Zurich, Switzerland, with main offices in Malaysia and Indonesia, and offices in China, Colombia, Netherlands, United Kingdom and the United States. 

About PwC:
At PwC, we help clients build trust and reinvent so they can turn complexity into competitive advantage. We’re a tech-forward, people-empowered network with more than 364,000 people in 136 countries and 137 territories. Across audit and assurance, tax and legal, deals and consulting, we help clients build, accelerate, and sustain momentum. Find out more at www.pwc.com

1

IFRS Foundation, ISSB Podcast February 2025

 

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SOURCE Roundtable On Sustainable Palm Oil

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Nordic Capital announces agreement to sell ArisGlobal to Dassault Systèmes, following its transformation into a scaled and AI-enabled life sciences platform

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WALTHAM, Mass., 23 July 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Nordic Capital today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell ArisGlobal, a leading provider of software to the life sciences industry, to Dassault Systèmes (Euronext Paris: FR0014003TT8) (Paris: DSY.PA). The transaction represents a full exit for Nordic Capital and marks the successful culmination of a partnership that has transformed ArisGlobal into a scaled, cloud-native and AI-enabled platform serving more than 200 life sciences companies, CROs and government health authorities worldwide.

Founded in 1989 and headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts, ArisGlobal develops and delivers regulatory, safety, and quality software to a global client base that includes many of the world’s largest pharmaceutical and biotech organisations, as well as regulatory authorities. Its flagship LifeSphere® platform is a fully integrated, cloud-native suite that enables life sciences organisations to manage complex regulatory submissions, pharmacovigilance workflows and clinical data on a single platform, improving compliance, speed and operational efficiency. The platform also embeds advanced AI-enabled automation across core pharmacovigilance workflows, reducing manual processing and accelerating safety case management.

“Nordic Capital invested in ArisGlobal because the business had strong fundamentals, a loyal blue-chip client base and significant potential to modernise its technology and scale its commercial reach. Working closely with Aman and his team, Nordic Capital has supported the company’s transformation into a leading cloud-native platform for the life sciences industry with differentiated AI-enabled capabilities and a strengthened market position. Nordic Capital is proud of what has been achieved together with management and looks forward to seeing the company continue to grow under Dassault Systèmes ownership,” said Daniel Berglund, Partner and Head of Healthcare, Nordic Capital Advisors.

Nordic Capital first invested in ArisGlobal in 2019, partnering with the founding family and management team to pursue an ambitious development strategy. In 2021, Nordic Capital made a further investment in the company, reflecting its conviction in ArisGlobal’s growth potential and the progress achieved since the original partnership began. Throughout the ownership period, Nordic Capital worked closely with management to accelerate the SaaS transition, professionalise the go-to-market organisation, broaden the product offering and strengthen the leadership team.

The migration to a modern, cloud-native architecture created the foundation for ArisGlobal to become an early leader in the application of AI to drug safety. A key milestone was the development and launch of NavaX, ArisGlobal’s generative AI solution for safety case processing, which automates and accelerates core pharmacovigilance workflows and has been adopted by a number of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies. NavaX has further differentiated ArisGlobal’s offering and marked an important step in the Company’s evolution into a broader, AI-enabled safety and regulatory software platform.

“The life sciences industry is at an inflection point as regulatory complexity is increasing, data volumes are growing and our clients need software that can keep pace. The partnership with Nordic Capital gave us the resources and the runway to build exactly that. NavaX and our expanded platform are the result of that ambition, and I am confident we are well placed for what comes next,” said Aman Wasan, CEO, ArisGlobal.

Alongside its technology transformation, ArisGlobal strengthened its management team and commercial organisation, while two strategic acquisitions broadened the Company’s platform capabilities. Today, ArisGlobal serves more than 200 enterprise customers, including half of the world’s top 50 biopharma companies, processes more than 12 million safety cases annually and is expected to generate approximately USD 175 million in revenue in 2026. As rising regulatory complexity and increasing volumes of adverse event reporting continue to drive demand for advanced life sciences software, ArisGlobal is well positioned for future growth through solutions that automate compliance workflows, reduce manual processing and enable organisations to manage regulatory risk more effectively.

The transaction brings together ArisGlobal’s leadership in AI-enabled safety and regulatory software with Dassault Systèmes’ capabilities across research, clinical development and manufacturing. Nordic Capital believes the combination represents a highly compelling strategic fit, pairing complementary capabilities to create a broader, end-to-end offering across the life sciences value chain. ArisGlobal will also benefit from Dassault Systèmes’ global scale, customer reach and investment capacity, providing a strong platform for its next phase of innovation and growth.

The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the second half of 2026.

Evercore and Jefferies LLC acted as financial advisors to ArisGlobal and Kirkland & Ellis acted as legal advisor to ArisGlobal.

Media contacts:

Nordic Capital
Katarina Janerud
Communications Manager, Nordic Capital Advisors
+46 8 440 50 50
katarina.janerud@nordiccapital.com

ArisGlobal
Morgan Scott
Vice President, Marketing & Communications and Chief of Staff
mscott@arisglobal.com

About ArisGlobal

ArisGlobal is a leading provider of software to the life sciences industry. Its LifeSphere® platform delivers integrated regulatory, safety, and quality solutions to more than 200 life sciences companies, CROs and government health authorities worldwide. Founded in 1989 and headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts, ArisGlobal combines deep domain expertise with advanced technology to help clients improve compliance, accelerate development cycles and manage regulatory complexity at global scale. For more information, visit www.arisglobal.com.

About Nordic Capital

Nordic Capital is a leading international private equity investor and subsector specialist dedicated to building stronger, more resilient businesses through transformative, long-term growth in partnership with management teams. With over 35 years of experience, Nordic Capital currently manages approximately EUR 39 billion in assets, investing in middle-market companies across Northern Europe and North America. Rooted in its Nordic heritage and values, it combines global reach with local presence through dedicated sector investment advisory teams, bringing deep expertise across its core sectors: Healthcare, Technology & Payments, Financial Services, and Services & Industrial Tech. Through active ownership, strong operational capabilities, a global network of experts and technology-enabled transformation, Nordic Capital helps companies scale, innovate and become sustainable leaders. For more information, visit www.nordiccapital.com or connect on LinkedIn.

“Nordic Capital” refers to, depending on the context, any, or all, Nordic Capital branded entities, vehicles, structures, and associated entities. The general partners and/or delegated portfolio managers of Nordic Capital’s entities and vehicles are advised by several non-discretionary sub-advisory entities, any or all of which are referred to as “Nordic Capital Advisors”.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

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Cognizant and Gulf Edge Announce Strategic Partnership to Accelerate Enterprise AI Adoption in Southeast Asia

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Partnership combines Cognizant’s global AI engineering capabilities with Gulf Edge’s sovereign digital infrastructure to capture the region’s growing demand for secure, scalable AI solutions.

BANGKOK, July 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Cognizant (Nasdaq: CTSH), a leading AI builder and global technology services provider, and Gulf Edge Company Limited, the digital infrastructure arm of Thai energy and infrastructure conglomerate Gulf Development Public Company Limited (GULF) or Gulf Group, today announced a landmark strategic partnership. The alliance is designed to accelerate enterprise AI adoption and establish a resilient, AI-native digital economy in Thailand and the broader region.

As artificial intelligence (AI) rapidly reshapes industries, economies, and societies worldwide, the partnership aims to establish the foundational ecosystem needed to enable Thailand’s next phase of digital transformation. By combining trusted sovereign digital infrastructure with world-class AI engineering and enterprise transformation capabilities, Gulf Edge and Cognizant will help organizations deploy AI securely, responsibly, and at scale.

The collaboration brings together Gulf Edge’s leadership in digital infrastructure, energy, cloud, and strategic relationships across Thailand’s most important industries with Cognizant’s global expertise in AI, digital engineering, cloud modernization, data, and intelligent operations. Together, the two companies will deliver end-to-end AI capabilities spanning infrastructure, AI platforms, enterprise solutions, systems integration, and managed services.

The partnership will initially focus on accelerating AI adoption across key sectors including banking and financial services, energy and utilities, healthcare, telecommunications, manufacturing, and the public sector. Through industry-specific AI solutions, organizations will be able to improve operational efficiency, enhance customer experience, strengthen decision-making, automate complex business processes, and unlock new opportunities for innovation and growth.

Beyond enterprise transformation, Gulf Edge and Cognizant share a broader ambition of strengthening Thailand’s position as a regional AI hub. The partnership is expected to attract global technology expertise, stimulate investment in advanced digital capabilities, and create high-value employment opportunities across AI engineering, data science, cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, and digital transformation. The two companies also plan to collaborate with universities, research institutions, technology partners, and public-sector organizations to develop AI talent, promote responsible AI adoption, and foster a sustainable innovation ecosystem for the country.

Mr. Sarath Ratanavadi, Chief Executive Officer, Gulf Development Public Company Limited, said, “Our partnership with Cognizant marks an important milestone in our vision of helping Thailand become an AI-native economy. By combining Gulf Edge’s strengths in digital infrastructure, energy, cloud, and deep understanding of the Thai market with Cognizant’s global expertise in enterprise AI, digital engineering, and transformation services, we are creating a comprehensive platform that enables organizations to adopt AI with confidence and generate measurable business outcomes. Together, we will develop secure, resilient, and future-ready sovereign digital infrastructure while delivering industry-specific AI solutions tailored to the needs of Thai enterprises and public institutions. We believe AI has the potential to transform every sector, creating new opportunities for productivity, innovation, and sustainable economic growth.”

Mr. Ganesh Ayyar, President of Asia Pacific & Japan (APJ), Cognizant, said, “As Thailand works toward its ambition of becoming an AI-native economy, we see this partnership as a meaningful way to help contribute to that vision, not just through the projects we deliver, but by building lasting AI and technology capability inside the country. With Gulf Edge’s market reach and Cognizant’s AI Builder strategy and global delivery capability, we are positioned to deliver transformative outcomes for Thai enterprises across every major sector.”

About Gulf Edge
Gulf Edge Company Limited is the digital infrastructure arm of Gulf Development Public Company Limited, Thailand’s leading energy and infrastructure conglomerate. Gulf Edge is building a robust digital ecosystem, spanning data centers, cloud services, satellite technology, and AI infrastructure, to accelerate Thailand’s digital transformation and position the country as a regional hub for the AI economy.

About Cognizant
Cognizant (NASDAQ: CTSH) is an AI Builder and technology services provider, building the bridge between AI investment and enterprise value by building full-stack AI solutions for clients. Its deep industry, process, and engineering expertise enables it to build an organization’s unique context into technology systems that amplify human potential, realize tangible returns, and keep global enterprises ahead in a fast-changing world. See how at www.cognizant.ai or @cognizant.

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SOURCE Gulf Development Public Company Limited (GULF)

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