Meet the Team
Tatum and Fay share a common story: both were born in Hong Kong, spent their formative years in the US and Canada, and returned home eager to reconnect with their roots. They found a shared purpose at the Urban Land Institute (ULI), a global non-profit real estate think tank where they engaged in thought leadership and tested their ideas.
United by a mission to celebrate Hong Kong’s past and present, they were awarded multiple grants to spearhead the inaugural 2023 ULI global Art in Place (AIP) initiative. They fruitfully developed three site-based placemaking projects with local partners to energize urban spaces. This demonstrated a powerful model for co-creation among the real estate sector, creatives, and the community.
The proven impact of this work became the foundation for Nectere Partners. Their venture connects local creatives to public and private entities, generating shared value that meaningfully activates the city and promotes sustainable economic growth.
Tatum Lau
Co-Founder & CEO
I light up when I connect with people and unearth new stories; an eternal optimist with a contagious, high-voltage energy.
Tatum Lau
Co-Founder & CEO
Tatum is an architect, urban planner, and strategist with a perpetual curiosity for how spaces can bring people together and express a city’s identity. She is always uncovering hidden gems and local nuances in every city she visits or calls home. “A city is its people” – her core belief that drives her mission to enhance the built environment by integrating her expertise in socio-economic development, human centric design, and creative placemaking.
Tatum received her B.Arch at Cornell University and her M.Arch in Urban Design with a concentration in Real Estate at Harvard Graduate School of Design. In Kohn Pedersen Fox New York she built a strong foundation for collaboration in an array of international architecture projects. Later, at Oval Partnership Hong Kong, she oversaw multiple large scale heritage projects and rediscovered Asia’s rich cultural assets.
As Project Lead for Urban Land Institute’s 2023 global Art in Place (AIP) initiative, she and Fay found a creative synergy which sparked the vision of Nectere. She serves as a Board Director at the Harvard Club of Hong Kong, Co-Chair of the ULI Young Leaders Group Committee, and Vice President of the Hong Kong Shanghai Women’s Association.
Fay Li
Co-Founder & COO
I feel most alive when I connect with our multifaceted world—grounding my body through movement, and lighting up in the presence of people and animals I love.
Fay Li
Co-Founder & COO
Fay is a communicator and organizational analyst who applies people development expertise to community building. Trained in mapping how people, roles, and organizations intersect, she brings a practitioner’s understanding of social dynamics and systems to aligning stakeholder perspectives and resources in urban environments.
She co-founded Nectere Partners with Tatum to help places better serve people, connecting brilliant minds to nurture flourishing communities and economies. Previously, she partnered with Swire Properties, Sino Land, PAG, and Warburg Pincus to build organizational capabilities and resilience. Her deep insight into human behavior and intergenerational dynamics drives collective outcomes that enable places to thrive.
An ICF-certified coach and Women’s Foundation alumna, Fay serves on the ULI Hong Kong Executive Committee and is a ULI Health Leader (Cohort 8), representing Hong Kong and Asia Pacific among 28 global leaders.
