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Conference Program

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Asia Pacific Week 2014

The Australian National University’s Asia Pacific Week is an interdisciplinary conference aimed at high-achieving students from around the world who have an interest in Asia and the Pacific. Now in its sixth year, the 2015 conference explores the theme 'Forward Thinking'

The conference will draw in diverse and innovative perspectives to challenge what development and progress means within the Asia-Pacific Region. Aiding delegates will be ANU's unrivaled expertise in the study of the region and the outstanding resources available in Australia's capital.

Bringing together 100 of the best students from across the globe, the 2016 conference continues the tradition of bringing together scholars, policymakers and senior officials of the highest calibre for a week of stimulating discussion and debate. As a delegate you will have the opportunity to not only hear from peak experts, but to engage in interactive panels, debates and simulations. The next generation of Asia-Pacific specialists leave with a network of friends and contacts from across the globe.

Asia Pacific Week examines significant and controversial issues facing the region, its place in the world and how it is shaping the globe. 

Conference Program

Conferences in previous years have included prominent and distinguished policymakers, academics, diplomats and politicians including Peter Drysdale, Michael Wesley, Zhao Jianfei, Stephen Howes, The Honourable Gareth Evans AO QC, Admiral Chris Barrie AC, The Right Honourable Malcolm Fraser AC CH GCL PC and The Honourable Bob Hawke AC GCL.

Find below brief blurbs on only some of the panels, discussions and simulations that will take place at Asia Pacific Week 2015. This page will be updated as panels are finalised, with a final program to be released closer to the conference date itself. Please refer to the 'Past Conferences' links for programs of past Asia Pacific Weeks.

Language Politics

How are official languages decided upon and who makes the decisions? Does this have an impact on literacy rates, and are minority languages inevitably ostracised? Drawing from examples in Asia and the Pacific, a region which contains over half of the world's languages, this panel aims to discuss the effects of language policy and whether certain societies are better at promoting the status of minority languages over others.

Political Dynasties

While every country in the world has its prominent political families, political dynasticism is extremely evident in all sub-regions of contemporary Asia and the Pacific, and occurs within all systems of government. Indeed, no less than six current heads of government in Asia and the Pacific has a parent who once held the same role. This panel will explore the extraordinary success of political dynasties in contemporary Asia in a comparative perspective.

Political Protest and Power to the People

This year’s Asia Pacific Week wants to uncover creative protest movements across the Asia-Pacific. How did these movements come about and what impact did they have?

Localising Climate Change — Community Action in Asia and the Pacific

While climate change is a global challenge that all humanity must face, local communities are taking action right now to protect their people’s livelihoods.

Social Media

How, if at all, have Facebook and Twitter affected the outcomes of recent elections in Asia and the Pacific? To what extent has Sina Weibo facilitated discourse on social and political issues in China? This panel will examine the political, social and cultural impact of social media in contemporary Asia and the Pacific.

Marriage Migration

Often out of the spotlight, marriage migration has become an attractive option for people from lower socio-economic backgrounds in Asia and the Pacific. This panel seeks to explore the circumstances behind marriage migration and the impact it has on societies. Predominantly looking at migration from Southeast Asia to Northeast Asia, questions raised include how marriage migrants are treated in their countries of origin and in their destination countries, and whether or not the trend is likely to continue in the foreseeable future.

Scholarships

The Australian National University is committed to minimising the costs of attending Asia Pacific Week 2016. As such, the committee is proud to announce that there is no conference fee for delegates.

Please note that unfortunately the ANU no longer provides scholarships or travel grants for Asia Pacific Week. The best course of action is to contact your university to see if you can apply for a grant from them.

Delegates from IARU partnership universities may also be eligible to receive travel scholarships to aid in covering flight costs (or other travel expenses). Asia Pacific Week 2016 has confirmed that students who attend the following universities are eligible for the specified scholarships.

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UNIVERSITY

SCHOLARSHIP AMOUNT

National University of Singapore

Delegates are eligible to receive up to $1500 to cover flight costs.

Indiana University

Delegates are eligible to receive up to the full costs of airfare and incidental travel costs such as visas.

ETH Zurich

Delegates are eligible to receive up to $1500 to cover flight costs.

Peking University

Delegates are eligible to receive up to $1500 to cover flight costs.

University of Copenhagen

Delegates are eligible to receive up to $1500 to cover flight costs.

University of Oxford

Delegates are eligible to receive up to $1500 to cover flight costs.

University of Tokyo

Delegates are eligible to receive up to $1500 to cover flight costs.

Yale University

Delegates are eligible to receive up to $1500 to cover flight costs.

 

Eligible delegates will be automatically considered for a scholarship for Asia Pacific Week 2016 through the submission of an application form for the conference. Scholarships will be awarded on the basis of merit.

For further inquiries about scholarships for Asia Pacific Week, please email asiapacificweek@anu.edu.au.

Testimonials
Desmond Narain Doulatram

ANU’s Asia Pacific Week 2022 was a wonderful interdisciplinary event rich in academic discussions where learners, observers, lecturers, and culture practitioners weaved together the existing reality of the Asia Pacific region through the art of story-telling. As a lecturer at the College of the Marshall Islands teaching Pacific Studies and Micronesian Studies and as a PhD Candidate in Pacific Studies at the University of the South Pacific, I felt that this Conference was a nice opportunity to build my own understanding of the dynamics of the Asia Pacific region while opening up to new stances of interpreting the need for historical justice by practising greater cross-cultural empathy. I had the opportunity to observe this first-hand through Asia Pacific Week where I got to see this in action with young delegates, young professionals, and young academics displaying greater cross-cultural empathy making me more optimistic about our collective future.

Akash Mehta

APW 2015 proved out be an immensely irreplaceable experience for me. First, I got to know so many people from around the world, about their diverse views on Asia and the Pacific regions and their experience so far. Secondly, I got an opportunity to meet not only the highly knowledgeable PHD scholars but also the government officials, professors and last but not the least, the conference organisers did a commendable job in packing up the sessions with knowledge and information and at the same time sparking the debate in and outside of the sessions. One of my favourite moments of the conference was "The Great Debate" which showcased three of our fellow delegates in an oxford style debate against ANU's finest academics on the topic ' Is local pop culture more influential than western popular culture in the Asia and Pacific regions'.

I think ANU is the best place where one can interact with notable scholars and wonderful students from all around the world.

Brianna Ruth Audrey

When I first saw ANU Asia Pacific Week 2020’s (ANU APW 2020) ad on YouthOp, I knew I had to sign up. My seniors once told me about their extraordinary week in Canberra, learning about Asia and Pacific regions more than they ever did during our daily classes. As I also have taken interest in the region, it became my dream to experience this event firsthand. If it weren’t for YouthOp, I would never know that ANU APW was still conducted, even amid the pandemic.

I was very happy throughout the event. I was constantly motivated to find out more about the topics discussed by the panel and delegates. I don’t think that I have ever attended a conference this lively and substantive. The committee was very wonderful, and the other delegates were very insightful and friendly.

My favourite part of the entire conference has to be the Pacific Dance Workshop. I never thought that I would ever have the chance to learn such a beautiful dance from a country so far away from Indonesia, let along learning about it online. The fact that the committee was able to execute a dance lesson perfectly online is beyond my comprehension. I was able to have so much fun with 80 other delegates from all around Asia and the Pacific regions through my screen, and that is an experience that I will never trade for anything else.

It is safe to say that ANU APW 2020 were one of my 2020 highlights. I made new friends and gained new insight. I was also able to experience things that I could probably never have gone through if the pandemic didn’t happen. So, I thank the ANU APW committee for accepting me as one of the delegates, as well as YouthOp for giving me exposure towards this wonderful event.

Ibrahim Jalal

The 2018 Asia Pacific Week (APW) was a well-organised and thought-provoking multidisciplinary program balancing between academic-policy panels and social activities, intellectual stimulation and friendship-building. In a professional manner, we unpacked contemporary issues – from international security and environment to public health and untold stories of indigenous Aussie communities – with a very competent calibre of junior researchers, professors and practitioners from across the world. It was incredible to engage in thorough discussions on my research project – ‘alliance recalibration’ of US’ allies in the Pacific – deepening personal insights from Australian, Filipino and Japanese viewpoints. We also visited the Australian parliament, had night walks and most importantly, photographed our memories (make sure you don’t miss the serenity of ANU’s lake!).

Not only were the delegates top-notch and sociable but equally the organising committee, making APW unforgettable. Having delightedly attended on an APW scholarship, in partnership with Youth Opportunities, and compared it to several programmes in Asia, Europe and the Arabian Peninsula, I happily recommend attending APW 2019 for the outstanding quality of the conference, competence of delegates, invaluable friendships and networking opportunities. Canberra won’t disappoint you as any airport immigration officer would indicate upon arrival - I promise, there is a lot to learn and earn at the Australian National University’s Asia Pacific Week!

Lewe Paul

Asia Pacific Week 2013 proved an immensely valuable platform for putting my knowledge into context. Asia Pacific Week allowed me to see what is beyond one’s own specialised but also biased lens, and to challenge each other’s perspectives and appreciate a whole new view of Asia and the Pacific regions. The program offered more than the traditional panel discussion — the organising committee prepared innovative setups like a war game simulation and an ambassador’s panel, constantly shifting the delegates’ mindsets by exploring unfamiliar concepts.

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For general enquiries please contact asiapacificweek@anu.edu.au

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