INASIA
Insights and Analysis
A New Chapter for a Storied Books Program
The Asia Foundation’s oldest program, Books for Asia, has a new name and a new mission.
“Let’s Read” Indonesia Helps Children Understand Mental Disabilities
Storybooks and young-adult fiction can introduce children to characters and situations that expand their capacity for empathy.
Quantifying the Care Economy in Mongolia
The nation has taken significant steps in the last year to integrate the care economy into its development vision.
Myanmar: Resistance and the Cost of the Coup in Chin State
The first of February marked the third anniversary of the military coup that upended Myanmar’s democracy and plunged much of the country into open conflict.
A Work in Progress: Nepal’s Bold Bet on Federalism
A major international conference in Kathmandu unpacks the theory and the mechanics of federal governance, with Nepal as the poster child.
Asia and the Pacific in 2024: Elections, Economics, and Geopolitics
In which our experts in Asia and the Pacific bring us the news of the year to come, before it happens.
An Accessibility Conundrum in the Philippines
There were laws requiring accessible infrastructure in the public schools. There was money in the national budget. So why was it not getting built?
Dancing on the Line between Art and Activism
A conversation with two political activists who have secret literary lives—or is it the other way around?
Southeast Asia’s Multipolar Future: A Conversation with Tom Parks and Scot Marciel
Southeast Asia is rapidly becoming a competitive space for geopolitical rivalries. Will U.S.-Chinese tensions create a new Cold War divide in Southeast Asia?
Bangladeshi Workers in Maldives: Reforming a Vital Relationship
Bangladeshi workers in the Maldives are important to both economies, but more needs to be done to protect the rights of labor migrants.
To Save the Philippines’ Forests, He Sued for Future Generations
Does the state have obligations to people who don’t yet exist? Can those people sue? The celebrated case of a pioneering environmental lawyer, today on the InAsia podcast.
Promoting “Social and Behavior Change” in the Philippine Human Rights Sector
Human rights groups have been battered by targeted disinformation. A new behavioral approach to strategic communications offers a way to reclaim the initiative.
It’s Time to Act on Sri Lanka’s Air Quality
From untamed industrial soot to household stoves fueled with wood and plastic waste, Sri Lanka is poisoning its air. New research assesses the problem and points to the path forward.
Catching Up with the Young Asian Diplomats
Much work—and some play—on a U.S. study tour for 15 mid-career Asian diplomats. We meet two of them on this week’s podcast.
Women Are Missing from India’s Border Trade
India’s cross-border trade ecosystem does not include enough women. The country is leaving money on the table.
APEC 2023 in San Francisco: What’s in Store?
It’s the United States’ year to host the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, whose 21 members reach from Russia to the South Pacific and from South America to China. U.S. Senior Official for APEC Matt Murray joins us talk about how the big job is coming along.