Tanoto Foundation, together with University of Indonesia Faculty of Economics Graduate Program in Management, held another Tanoto Entrepreneurship Series in Jakarta on December 5. The speakers during the event were Ibu Susi Pudjiastuti, founder and owner of Susi Air and Indonesia Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries and Bapak Irwan Hidayat, President Director of PT Sido Muncul.
The background of the two successful business people was rather similar with that of Bapak Sukanto Tanoto, the founder of Tanoto Foundation. Bapak Sukanto Tanoto started his business in 1967 and has been nurturing Royal Golden Eagle (RGE) until now where it has operations in five countries and export its products to 75 nations.
In his statement, Anderson Tanoto, Trustee of Tanoto Foundation said, ”My father never had the chance to continue his education to the university level. This was similar to the experience of Ibu Susi and Bapak Irwan. However, this did not stop them from working very hard and overcoming different obstacles. As we know, they are very successful now. This is proof that success can be achieved by anyone, without exception.”
During the event, both speakers shared their struggles when they started their businesses and experiences as entrepreneurs. Ibu Susi shared the stories of how she developed her business based on her life that was always linked to the ocean. Bapak Irwan Hidayat, on the other hand, told the audience about his innovations that resulted in jamu (traditional herbal medicine ) to be accepted and consumed by the majority of the Indonesians.
Sukanto Tanoto, through Tanoto Entrepreneurship Series, hopes that young people can continue to learn directly from successful entrepreneurs and are inspired to become ones as well.

Heart disease – the leading cause of death in the world and a pressing health concern – was given greater emphasis at the recent SingHealth Duke-NUS Scientific Congress 2014 thanks to a S$3 million gift from the Tanoto Foundation and the launch of the National Heart Research Institute Singapore (NHRIS).

The Congress is a biennial event and this year’s Congress – entitled “Academic Medicine – Transforming Vision into Reality” – showcased the latest medical developments and scientific advances in clinical care, research and medical education.

The gift from the Tanoto Foundation will support research in human genetics to identify new ways of diagnosing, stratifying and testing patients with cardiovascular diseases, thereby allowing early prevention for those who are genetically pre-disposed to the disease. Out of the S$3 million gift, S$2.5 million will be used to set up the Tanoto Foundation Professorship in Cardiovascular Medicine and S$500,000 will fund the Tanoto Foundation Initiative for Genetics and Stem Cell Research at NHRIS.

Tanoto Foundation has, over the years, been a strong supporter of medical research that has the potential to bring about transformative impact to society. Chairman of Tanoto Foundation Board of Governance, Mr Bey Soo Khiang says, “We are particularly delighted to contribute to the advancement of research in cardiovascular medicine for the Asian community, as we believe the breakthrough results will enable healthcare practitioners to address the region’s medical needs more effectively, in relation to heart diseases. To this end, Tanoto Foundation hopes to continue to play a positive role in helping to improve the quality of people’s lives.”

NHRIS, a dedicated cardiovascular research institute to advance treatment for heart disease, was launched by President Tony Tan. The Institute’s key research focus areas are heart function and genetics, regenerative medicine and metabolic heart disease and cardiac imaging.

World-renowned cardiovascular research expert, Professor Stuart Cook from the Duke-NUS Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disorders Signature Research Programme, will head up the Institute. He says, “The vision for NHRIS is to be a premier regional centre for cardiovascular research to drive excellence in patient care. Our research in the Asian population will help us better understand the disease manifestation – this will change the way we treat cardiovascular disease and create a positive impact on outcomes for our patients.”