By Scott Snyder

Scott Snyder is a Senior Associate for International Relations at The Asia Foundation.

The second North Korean nuclear crisis initiated a new chapter in efforts to promote security and stability in Northeast Asia. It also marked a new phase in efforts to develop regional multilateral dialogue to address regional security issues. Although the North Korean stand-off has often been cited as the primary obstacle to the promotion of regional security cooperation in Northeast Asia, the North Korean nuclear crisis has also long been the primary catalyst for promoting multilateral cooperation among neighboring stakeholders surrounding the Korean peninsula.
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By Chris Plante and Bill Foerderer Infante

Chris Plante is the Director of The Asia Foundation’s Environment Program; Bill Foerderer Infante is The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative in Mongolia.

On Monday, Tsetsge Munkhbayar of Mongolia, founder of a mass citizen’s movement to protect Mongolia’s national waterways, won a 2007 Goldman Environmental Prize–the largest accolade in the world for grassroots environmentalists. Often referred to as the “Green Nobel,” the $125,000 annual award was established in 1990 by San Francisco civic leader and philanthropist Richard N. Goldman and his late wife, Rhoda H. Goldman, to recognize outstanding individuals who are combating pressing environmental challenges, and was created to allow these people to continue their important work.

The only Asian recipient of the award this year, Mr. Munkhbayar, 40, was recognized for having successfully pressured 35 of 37 mining operations working in Mongolia’s Onggi River basin–a precious drinking water supply for rural Mongolians–to permanently stop harmful, ruinous mining and exploration activities.
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Each year, hundreds of thousands of unmarried Chinese women between the age of 18 and 25 leave their rural homes to travel for days to start a new life working in various industries in coastal China. Last week, three of these women were granted opportunities to become their own bosses.
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With Dr. James Klein, Country Representative in Thailand, The Asia Foundation

On September 19, 2006, military leaders in Thailand staged a bloodless coup to overthrow the administration installed by Thaksin Shinawatra. The coup was welcomed by most Thai citizens, who deemed it necessary to rid the nation of systemic corruption and restore democracy, but condemned by the international community as a blow to democracy. Seven months later, as promised, a military-appointed Constitution Drafting Assembly has proposed the draft of a new constitution that will be open for public comment until May 26, 2007.

Has the coup in fact been “good” for Thai democracy, and will the new constitution help ensure the coup’s promises of ending political divisiveness, corruption, and the violence in southern Thailand?

Please join The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative in Thailand, Dr. James Klein, a renowned Thailand expert who — with over 30 years of experience in the country — is widely published on Thai democracy, rule of law, and conflict resolution.

Co-sponsored by Asia Society Northern California.

Location:
The Asia Foundation, Haydn Williams Conference Room
465 California Street, 8th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94104

To attend or for more information, please e-mail rsvp@asiafound.org.

With Hamid Sharif, Country Representative in Pakistan, The Asia Foundation

The Asia Foundation is pleased to invite you to a breakfast discussion with Mr. Hamid Sharif, who will provide first-hand insight and analysis of recent political developments in Pakistan. His presentation will cover Pakistani perceptions and response to US foreign policy, preparations for the upcoming elections, and the situation in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA).

Before joining the Foundation in 2005, Mr. Sharif served as the Assistant General Counsel for South Asia, and law and policy reform at the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Mr. Sharif’s career also includes professorships at the Lahore University of Management Sciences and at the International Islamic University in Islamabad. In 2004, Mr. Sharif co-authored a study on Devolution in Pakistan that was published by the ADB, the World Bank, and the Department for International Development.  Mr. Sharif received an LL.M from Cambridge University U.K. and qualified as a barrister-at-law from Lincoln’s Inn, U.K.

Location:
The National Trust for Historic Preservation, 2nd Floor
(Corner of 18th Street and Massachusetts Avenue, NW)
1785 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, DC

RSVP:
To attend or for more information, please contact Mr. Guyltone Sukawati at gsukawati@asiafound-dc.org, or 202-588-9420 ext. 1304.
If leaving a message, please include your name, title, affiliation, and contact details.

As seating is limited, please RSVP by Wednesday, May 16th.

With George Varughese, Deputy Country Representative in Afghanistan, The Asia Foundation

The Asia Foundation is pleased to invite you to a breakfast discussion with Dr. George Varughese, who will discuss The Asia Foundation’s recent study, “State Building, Political Progress, and Human Security in Afghanistan: Reflections on a Survey of the Afghan People.”

This 2007 study examines areas of intense, current interest in Afghanistan, and describes how Afghans view their personal situation, democratic values, trust in formal and informal institutions, political progress, human security, and women’s advancement.  This survey, the culmination of a three-year research program, is the companion piece to The Asia Foundation’s November 2006 public opinion poll, “Afghanistan in 2006: A Survey of the Afghan People.” This research seeks to initiate discourse on public opinion in Afghanistan by providing a citizen perspective on the changes that are transforming Afghan society and politics.

Dr. Varughese’s expertise is in governance, rule of law, access to justice, human rights, conflict and post-conflict situations, and public policy analysis and formulation. Dr. Varughese formerly served as the Foundation’s assistant country representative for Nepal. Prior to joining the Foundation, he was country program advisor for the United Nations Development Program in Nepal, responsible for program research, development, and management related to local governance. Dr. Varughese received his doctorate from Indiana University.

Location:
The National Trust for Historic Preservation, 2nd Floor
(Corner of 18th Street and Massachusetts Avenue, NW)
1785 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, DC

RSVP:
To attend or for more information, please contact Mr. John Stinner at jstinner@asiafound-dc.org, or 202-588-9420 ext. 1301.
If leaving a message, please include your name, title, affiliation, and contact details.

As seating is limited, please RSVP by Monday, May 14th.

With George Varughese, Deputy Country Representative in Afghanistan &
Hamid Sharif, Country Representative in Pakistan, The Asia Foundation

Hosted by the World Affairs Council of Northern California, Peninsula Chapter
Note: This program is in Los Altos, CA – 37 miles south of San Francisco.

For over 50 years, The Asia Foundation has maintained an on-the-ground presence for programming with Afghanistan and Pakistan. The San Francisco-based nonprofit’s representatives in each of these two countries will provide first-hand insight and analysis of recent political developments. The discussion will include a presentation on findings from a recently-released poll of Afghan public opinion on democracy, security, religion, and their future and the preparations for Pakistan’s upcoming elections.

Location:
Los Altos Public Library
13 South San Antonio Rd.
Los Altos, CA

To attend or for more information, please e-mail kbrown@asiafound.org.

By Brooke Shull

Brooke Shull is a Program Officer for The Asia Foundation’s Environment Program.

In Phuket, the Green Leaf Foundation (GLF) and the Association for the Development of Environmental Quality, non-profit partners of The Asia Foundation, are working with hotels to reduce their environmental impact as they rebuild after the devastating 2004 Asian tsunami. By participating in the Green Leaf Environmental Audit Program, hotels and resorts are able to identify new ways to improve their environmental performance, achieve significant savings, market themselves as “green” businesses and conserve the region’s valuable natural resources.
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Rapid industrialization in China has contributed to some of the highest rates of air and water pollution in the world, severe land degradation, and a range of emerging natural resource challenges. Of particular concern is the pollution of China’s rivers and groundwater, which are rapidly becoming depleted and unfit for any purpose. Through partnerships with Chinese institutes, regulatory agencies, industry associations and community organizations, The Asia Foundation is developing an integrated environmental program strategy for rivers in China that will go beyond treatment, which only cleans up the problem, to prevention of water pollution. 
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By Chris Plante 

Chris Plante is the Director of The Asia Foundation’s Environment Program.

This Earth Day, we’re reminded that hundreds, if not thousands, of life-threatening, significant toxic pollution events occur every year in Asia, not including the millions of everyday pollution releases allowable or not accounted for by law.  And because the physical laws of nature do not respect geopolitical boundaries, the ecological, economic, and social impact of environmental harm is free to transcend all borders.
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