UVBC Leadership

Advisory Board

Meet the people supporting U.S.–Vietnam business cooperation.

Olga Buchonina

Olga Buchonina

CEO, Action Spot, San Jose, CA

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Olga Buchonina founded ActionSpot Center in Silicon Valley with the vision to build an environment for entrepreneurs where they are focused on building products by integrating concepts of Data Science, Data Security, and Data Engineering. Blockchain technology helps bring it to the next level of innovation.

ActionSpot promotes innovation through diversity and inclusion and measures people by what they can do to build great companies. Olga serves on boards of organizations such as Women Who Code and IEEE, to name a few. Olga's background is deeply rooted in Oil and Gas and High Tech. She spent over 20 years working at the senior level of business and engineering roles and holds several patents.

Mark Chandler

Mark Chandler

Director, Office of International Trade, San Francisco, CA

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Mr. Mark Chandler first began working on US-Vietnam relations in 1994 and was part of the founding team that established the San Francisco-Ho Chi Minh City Sister City Friendship Agreement in April 1995.

This was the first sister city partnership between a US City and a Vietnamese City and preceded the establishment of diplomatic relations between our two countries by three months. Mark has continually worked to further San Francisco's connections with Vietnam, including support in opening Vietnam's first Consulate General in the USA in 1997 and Vietnam Airlines North American Headquarters in 2002.

During his service as Director of the San Francisco City Office of Global Engagement, Mark hosted dozens of trade and governmental organizations visiting San Francisco and consistently supported strong US-Vietnam partnerships and cooperation.

Benjamin England

Benjamin England

CEO, FDA Imports, Annapolis, MD

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Mr. England routinely represents domestic and foreign companies of all sizes, informing and guiding their understanding, counseling them on compliance, and defending their interests related to the requirements of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and state requirements. His clients operate at all stages of the international supply chain and across all FDA-regulated industry sectors, including food and agriculture, dietary supplements, cosmetics, OTC and prescription pharmaceuticals, homeopathic and natural medicines, medical devices, electronic products, and vaping (tobacco) products.

A 17-year veteran of the FDA, Mr. England last served as Regulatory Counsel to the Associate Commissioner for Regulatory Affairs. Before that, he served as an FDA Investigator, Compliance Officer, and Senior Special Agent with the Office of Criminal Investigations (OCI). He began his career in the Baltimore Lab as an analytical regulatory microbiologist.

Kyle Freeman

Kyle Freeman

Partner, Dezai & Shiran Associate, Washington DC

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Kyle Freeman is a Partner at Dezan Shira & Associates, and leads the International Business Advisory team as well as the firm's North American client services desk in Asia. He advises clients on market entry strategy, corporate structuring and establishment, and related tax and legal issues concerning investment in China, Hong Kong, and Southeast Asia.

Prior to joining Dezan Shira & Associates, Kyle worked in government relations and China trade policy for various public and private organizations. His work included assisting in high-level, US-China bilateral trade dialogues and organizing public-private cooperation programs to promote US and foreign investment in China.

Kyle has a master's degree in economics and international trade from the University of International Business and Economics, in Beijing, and dual bachelor's degrees in economics and global affairs from George Mason University, in Washington D.C. He has also been a visiting fellow at the University of Oxford and the Beijing Language Culture University.

Dr. Thuy Le

Dr. Thuy Le

Professor, San Jose State University

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Thuy T. Le received his Ph.D. (1990), M.S. (1987), and B.S. (1985) degrees from the University of California at Berkeley.

He has served as a Professor and Department Chair of the Electrical Engineering Department at San José State University. His teaching and research interests are in the areas of chip design, embedded systems, hardware accelerators, and quantum computing.

Before joining San José State University in 2001, Dr. Le worked for Fujitsu America in the area of High-Performance Computing and for Westinghouse Savannah River Laboratory in designing five new production nuclear reactors for the United States Department of Energy.

He has also worked part-time as a Researcher in the Physics Department of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, a Nuclear Reactor Operator of the Berkeley nuclear research reactor, and a consultant and advisor of several private high-tech companies.

Dr. Le has also served as a General Chair, Technical Program Chair, Keynote Speaker, Editor, Advisor for many international conferences, symposiums, journals, and non-profit organizations. His publications include more than 60 technical papers and reports in areas of integrated circuits and digital system design, hardware accelerators, high-performance computing, computational nuclear reactor physics, and engineering curriculum development.

Ngoc Lewis

Ngoc Lewis

Custom Broker, Portland, OR

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Ms. Ngoc Lewis is a licensed U.S. customs broker and international trade consultant with more than a decade of experience in global logistics (air, ocean, and ground transport) and trade compliance. She specializes in simplifying complex customs procedures, reducing regulatory risk, and helping businesses optimize their international supply chains. While working with leading global freight forwarders, Ms. Lewis has supported shippers across a range of industries, providing strategic guidance on trade compliance, logistics efficiency, and navigating evolving international regulations.

With experience as a direct importer, Ms. Lewis has firsthand knowledge of global sourcing, customs procedures, and end-to-end logistics. She now draws on this expertise to help Vietnamese exporters confidently meet U.S. Customs and Partner Government Agency (PGA) requirements while improving operational performance.

Ms. Lewis also advises businesses on contingency planning for changes in U.S. trade policy, including navigating new and changing tariffs affecting Vietnamese exports. As head of the Data Group of the International Compliance Professionals Association (ICPA) in the Pacific Northwest, she is passionate about continuous learning, fostering connections within the trade community, and applying best practices in technology and compliance to strengthen and streamline global trade operations.

Aaron Magenheim

Aaron Magenheim

CEO, Agtech Insight Co., Salinas, CA

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Aaron Magenheim is an entrepreneur who grew up in California Agriculture and has become a global industry leader working across the Agriculture and Technology nexus.

As CEO and co-founder, his companies Growers Insight and AgTech Insight specialize in business process mapping and innovation strategy by aligning business, processes, data, people, and technology.

As a realistic boots-on-the-ground expert, Aaron leads diverse teams advising growers, food companies, Corporates, Governments, NGOs, investors, and startups on building successful ecosystems leveraging best processes, practices, and technology throughout the Agri-Food supply chain.

Portrait not available for Ross Meador

Ross Meador

Managing Partner, Meador Law Firm, Irvine, CA

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Ross Meador is a lawyer, entrepreneur, investor, teacher, and philanthropist.

Mr. Meador graduated from UC Berkeley’s Boalt Hall School of Law in 1986, where he served as Executive Editor of the International Tax and Business Lawyer law review.

He also practiced law with Kim & Chang in Korea, with SSEK in Indonesia, and with VILAF and Kirin in Vietnam for over 10 years.

His law practice focuses on privately held companies and entrepreneurial ventures, particularly in the areas of technology and entertainment. He has negotiated and drafted hundreds of business agreements, and advises clients on business models, financing issues, strategic relationships, and the protection and licensing of intellectual property. He applies all of these skills in service to his clients.

Portrait not available for Dr. Uyen Nguyen

Dr. Uyen Nguyen

CEO, Agricultural Automation Service, HCM City, Vietnam

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Dr. Uyen Nguyen is the founder and CEO of the Agriculture and Automation Service (AAS), a research and development company based in the Quang Trung Software Park, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

AAS is currently working with agriculture companies in Vietnam to develop their own automation in growing mushrooms, automatic aquaponics systems, and container plant factories.

In addition, Dr. Nguyen is also a lecturer on Electrical Engineering at the Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City.

After graduating from Catholic University in Washington DC with a PhD degree in Electrical Engineering in 2001, Dr. Nguyen spent 20 years working for various technology companies in the US before returning to Vietnam to work in the AgTech industry which is greatly needed in Vietnam.

Vasudha Paul

Vasudha Paul

Advisor on IT Marketing, San Jose, CA

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She is a technology marketing professional in Silicon Valley, working with corporations such as Intel, Microsoft, and GE. She is also involved with startup ecosystems in Silicon Valley and India.

She is active in growing and building bridges between communities and works with India, Israel, USA, and now Vietnam to bring forth mutually beneficial partnerships in technology, education, investment, and consumer specialities.

Mohammed Selia

Mohammed Selia

CEO, Fulfill Plus Logistic Co., Houston, TX

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Mohammed Selia is the CEO of FulfillPlus, a Houston-based third-party logistics (3PL) company specializing in e-commerce fulfillment, warehousing, and distribution, with locations on the West and East Coasts. With a career spanning major global markets, including Asia, Mohammed brings extensive experience in the logistics industry. He is a fourth-generation entrepreneur, continuing his family’s legacy in logistics.

Under Mohammed’s leadership, FulfillPlus has expanded its services to help small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) around the world establish and grow their operations in the U.S. market. The company provides tailored solutions, including inventory management, order processing, packaging, and shipping, to meet each client’s unique needs. Mohammed’s vision continues to drive the company’s growth, helping SMBs worldwide navigate the complexities of the U.S. logistics landscape through FulfillPlus’s comprehensive distribution network.