Asia Pacific Week

Asia Pacific Week
source
Name	Asia Pacific Week
Genre	Academic conference
Frequency	Annual

Asia Pacific Week is an annual regional forum held to convene scholars, diplomats, business leaders, and civil society representatives from across the Asia-Pacific region for policy discussion, networking, and simulation programs. The event brings together participants associated with institutions such as United Nations, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, World Bank, and International Monetary Fund to address transnational issues. It typically features panels drawing experts from universities, think tanks, and multilateral bodies including Harvard University, Stanford University, National University of Singapore, University of Tokyo, and Australian National University.

Overview

Asia Pacific Week functions as a multidisciplinary platform linking actors from China, Japan, India, Australia, South Korea, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, and Brunei. Its program integrates speakers from institutions like Brookings Institution, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Chatham House, Council on Foreign Relations, and Asia Society. Sessions often reference frameworks such as Trans-Pacific Partnership, Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, Belt and Road Initiative, Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, ASEAN Regional Forum, and Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. The forum regularly collaborates with academic centers including East–West Center, Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, and China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations.

History

The event traces intellectual lineage to post‑Cold War dialogues like the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation ministerial meetings and scholarly exchanges tied to the Third Taiwan Strait Crisis, 1997 Asian financial crisis, and the expanded multilateralism following the 1997 APEC summit in Vancouver. Early iterations engaged alumni networks from Ivy League institutions and regional universities, drawing figures associated with Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, London School of Economics, ANU College of Asia and the Pacific, and Peking University. Historically, discussions responded to crises such as the Southeast Asian haze crisis and events like the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami that shaped disaster diplomacy and regional coordination. Over time the Week incorporated simulation components modeled after Model United Nations and crisis simulations inspired by Korean Armistice Agreement dynamics and South China Sea arbitration (Philippines v. China) fallout.

Organization and Structure

The Week is typically organized by a consortium of universities, diplomatic missions, and research institutes including Ministry of Foreign Affairs (various states), university international relations departments, and NGOs such as International Crisis Group and Human Rights Watch. Governance often involves advisory boards populated by alumni of programs like Fulbright Program, Rhodes Scholarship, Chevening Scholarships, and fellows from Yenching Academy. Program tracks are structured around plenaries, workshops, roundtables, and simulations run by coordinators affiliated with United Nations Development Programme, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, World Health Organization, and regional development banks like Asian Development Bank. Funding sources typically include grants from foundations such as Ford Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, and corporate partners from conglomerates like Mitsubishi, Tata Group, SoftBank, and Samsung.

Themes and Programs

Recurring themes link to initiatives like Sustainable Development Goals, Paris Agreement, Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, and trade arrangements such as Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. Program strands typically cover topics invoking actors like People's Liberation Army (China), United States Indo-Pacific Command, Royal Australian Navy, Indian Navy, and law instruments such as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The Week hosts policy labs on digital governance referencing General Data Protection Regulation, cyber panels citing China Cybersecurity Law, and climate sessions involving research from Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cultural diplomacy features collaborations with institutions like British Council, Japan Foundation, and Alliance Française.

Participant Selection and Outreach

Selection processes engage applicants from universities, ministries, think tanks, and private sector firms in cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Seoul, Tokyo, Mumbai, Bangkok, Manila, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Hanoi, Singapore, Wellington, Canberra, Ottawa, Washington, D.C., and London. Outreach utilizes partnerships with student groups like Association of Southeast Asian Nations University Network and professional associations such as Asia-Pacific Lawyers Association and Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative. Scholarships and fellowships mirror models from Erasmus Mundus, Chevening, and Asian Development Bank-Japan Scholarship Program, enabling participation by delegates from Timor-Leste, Solomon Islands, Fiji, Samoa, Vanuatu, and Tonga.

Notable Events and Outcomes

Past editions have produced outcome documents referenced by ministries and multilateral secretariats, informed policy briefs submitted to entities like ASEAN Secretariat, APEC Secretariat, UN ESCAP, and influenced research agendas at Center for Strategic and International Studies and International Institute for Strategic Studies. Notable guest speakers have included diplomats from Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Japan), ambassadors to United Nations, trade negotiators involved with Trans-Pacific Partnership (negotiations), and heads of institutions such as Asian Development Bank and World Health Organization. The Week's simulations have been cited in media coverage alongside events like the Rohingya crisis and Myanmar coup d'état (2021) as capacity‑building touchstones.

Impact and Criticism

Supporters credit the forum with facilitating networks linking alumni of Fulbright Program, YSEALI, and university exchange programs, contributing to policy diffusion across capitals from Beijing to Wellington. Critics argue that conferences of this type replicate elite networks centered on institutions like Harvard Kennedy School and London School of Economics while offering limited engagement with grassroots movements represented by Amnesty International and regional labor unions. Others raise concerns about sponsorship ties to corporations such as Chevron, ExxonMobil, and Glencore influencing agenda setting, and about access inequities for delegates from low‑income Pacific states like Kiribati and Nauru.

Category:Conferences in Asia