Event: EWC Senior Journalists Reception

June 17 - The East-West Center in Washington hosted a reception to welcome the Senior Journalism Fellows from South and Southeast Asia, a group whose 20-day program includes tours through Washington, DC; Colorado; New York; Hawai’i; India; and Malaysia. The program is designed to promote understanding between the United States and the Muslim world by providing opportunities for Asian and American journalists to meet and discuss issues that appear to have caused deterioration in their countries’ relationships, especially since 9/11. Read more...

Event: EWC Pacific Islands Reception

The East-West Center’s U.S. South Pacific and Timor-Leste Scholars enjoyed a welcoming reception at the East-West Center in Washington to kick-off their month-long internship program in the nation’s capital.

The eight scholars currently in DC—who hail from the Cook Islands, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, and East Timor—were greeted by dignitaries from a number of Pacific Island embassies, and were also joined by Ambassador G. Joseph Rees, the U.S. Ambassador to Timor-Leste from 2002-2006. Their internship placements in Washington include positions at the Smithsonian Institution, the National Democratic Institute, and the Academy for Educational Development, among others. Read more...

Event: After the Storm: Rethinking International Engagement in Post-Cyclone Burma

Following the tragic effects of Cyclone Nargis, the Burmese people have been attempting a return to normal everyday life. However, the process of doing so has been fraught with challenges, as citizens find themselves working against their own government, a military-backed regime that has sought to maintain total political control amidst the chaos. During this luncheon seminar, discussants Ambassador (ret.) Priscilla Clapp, independent scholar Dr. Kyi May Kaung, and Professor David Steinberg of Georgetown University spoke about the effects cyclone Nargis has had on Burmese society, as well as the future of international engagement with this country. Read more...

Event: The China Price: The True Cost of Chinese Competitive Advantage

April 23 – Over the past decade, China has dominated the global manufacturing sector, defying conventional economic wisdom by posting staggering annual export growth figures while retaining a comparative advantage on everything from basic consumer goods to high-tech products. But while cheap Chinese goods save international consumers billions of dollars each year, they may also be exacting unseen costs on Chinese laborers and the environment.  Alexandra Harney, a former correspondent and editor for the Financial Times, calls this forgotten toll the “China Price,” and elaborated on what she deems “the true cost of Chinese competitive advantage” in a book discussion roundtable seminar at the East-West Center in Washington. Read more...

Event: Collective Labor Rights and Labor Market Flexibility in East Asia

Mar. 19 – What is the state of collective labor rights and labor market flexibility in Asia today?  Although new labor laws have provided stronger guarantees for the collective rights of workers in some countries in the region, labor regulations in most countries fall far short of international labor standards. Dr. Teri L. Caraway, assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Minnesota, discussed the state of labor market flexibility in Asia during a Democracy and Human Rights seminar at the East-West Center in Washington, explaining how labor law reforms in the region, contrary to world trends, have seldom introduced greater market flexibility—and in many cases have actually perpetuated inflexibility. Read more...

Event: Asia's New Regionalism

Feb. 26 – Asian integration has acquired new momentum. Asian governments are forging closer links and building new regional architecture, while globalization is fueling the spontaneous (re)integration of Asia’s maritime regions. What does all this mean for the United States?  In a seminar at the East-West Center in Washington, Ellen Frost, Visiting Fellow at the Peterson Institute of International Economics and Adjunct Research Fellow at the National Defense University, discussed the nature of this regional resurgence and its implications for the U.S. Read more...

APB: Pakistan: Between Rocks and Hard Places as Elections Approach

No election in Pakistan’s history has been followed so closely worldwide as that scheduled for February 18, 2008. There are three main reasons for this: the strategic role of Pakistan in support of U.S.-led operations in Afghanistan against Al-Qaeda and the Taliban; concerns over Pakistan’s nuclear weapons falling into the hands of extremist Islamist groups; and the recent assassination of former Prime Minister and Leader of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Benazir Bhutto. Dr. Toufiq Siddiqi highlights some of the challenges facing U.S.-Pakistan relations in light of the upcoming elections and suggests that whoever emerges victorious after the 18th will be forced to address a litany of critical domestic issues that will dictate the survival of the new government. Read more...

Event: Seoul Shift: What to Expect from South Korea's New President

Feb. 21 – As the February 25, 2008, inauguration date for ROK President-elect Lee Myung-bak approaches, questions abound as to what  directions the new conservative administration will take.  Constitutional reform, economic management, the Six-Party talks, and the future of the ROK-U.S. alliance were among the topics discussed by J.J. Suh, Director of the Korea Studies Program at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and a Visiting Fellow at the East-West Center in Washington, and Peter Beck, Executive Director of the U.S. Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, during a seminar on “What to Expect from South Korea’s New President” at the East-West Center in Washington on Feb. 21. Read more...

USAPC Event: The New Geography of Innovation: Asia's Role in Global Innovation Networks

Feb. 14 – Over the past decade, the rise of Asia as an important location for “innovation offshoring” has begun to challenge the notion that policies which encourage strong investment in research and development (R&D) and innovation are the critical ingredients for economic growth and competitiveness.  Increasingly, Asian governments and firms are playing an active role as promoters and new sources of innovation. Dr. Dieter Ernst, Senior Fellow at the East-West Center, discussed the implications of what he has termed the “new geography of innovation” in a seminar at the East-West Center in Washington. Read more...