Obama Q&A with Jack Ma and Aisa Mijeno

Chinese e-commerce tycoon Jack Ma and Filipina Aisa Mijeno, CEO of environmental tech start-up Sustainable Alternative Lighting (SAlt) had a dialogue moderated by U.S. President Barack Obama during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit on Wednesday.

The entrepreneurs, both climate change advocates, stressed the importance of an advocacy that would help save the planet.

Mijeno shared that her business stemmed from the need to bridge the light inequality gap in the Philippines, as 15-20% of Filipinos live in islands disconnected from power grids. According to the SAlt CEO, these families rely on kerosene lamps, a dangerous and unsustainable source of light.

Ma, on the other hand, said that the effects of climate change affected how he molded his business.

"If we do not care about this Earth...nobody could survive, whether you're big or small," Ma said.

Learn more about their businesses and their efforts to battle climate change in the Question and Answer portion of the dialogue. –Jessica Bartolome/VS, GMA News