What is the state of teaching and research on Asia-related topics at Australian universities? Do students have more or less opportunity to learn about Asia than in the past? Is there much variation in Asia content across disciplines? Which Asian languages are in decline at our universities and which are on the rise? What are […]
Former President of the ASAA, Emeritus Professor Purnendra Jain, has been awarded the highest Japanese honour open to an academic. In a ceremony held in Adelaide on Friday 26 March, Consul-General Shimada Junji awarded Professor Jain the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon in recognition of his “contribution to promoting academic […]
Notwithstanding the consensus between European Union (EU) and ASEAN to upgrade inter-regional relations into a strategic partnership in December 2020, the Munich Security Conference (MSC) 2021 has painted a different picture on the ground. Far from attributing any significance to its newly upgraded strategic partner, the MSC’s agenda was largely concentrated on the transatlantic alliance […]
One effect of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has been the development of significant diplomatic tensions between China, the world’s second largest economy, and various ’Western’ powers. In Australia, China-scepticism has resulted in Australian-born Chinese being targeted. A recent survey showed that eight in ten Asian Australians reported having been physically threatened or attacked in the […]
In the Philippines, it was reported that for school year 2020-2021 (“the pandemic school year”) around three (3) million learners opted not to enroll or continue their education at the basic education level. For context, this number is almost equal to the entire population of Quezon City (2.94 Million), a highly urbanized city in Metro […]
Can you tell us a bit about your thesis. What’s the problem it explores and what did you find? My thesis, In the Shadow of the Palms: Plant-Human Relations among Marind, West Papua, investigates how Indigenous Marind communities in the Indonesian-controlled region of West Papua experience, conceptualize, and contest the adverse social and environmental impacts […]
Earlier this month a fresh round of commentary kicked off regarding the failure of the long-term cultural and public policy project of fostering the sustained study of Asian languages in Australia. The latest expression of concern was sparked by reports that Australian universities, including La Trobe, Murdoch and Swinburne, were set to close some or […]
