February 14th, 2012

Thurber talks about what “clean coal” means in Asia

In his National Bureau of Asian Research interview, Mark Thurber outlines the key issues that define Asia’s rising energy demand, the emerging global market for coal, new technologies for this age-old energy source, and how stakeholders can come together to help shape the region's future energy mix. Read more »

February 13th, 2012

Understanding the complexities of China's global interactions

Since opening its doors to the world in 1978, China has pursued a sometimes erratic but reasonably steady course leading to increasing global economic and political interaction. Thomas Fingar is leading a new multiphase Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center initiative to explore the nuances and complexity of China’s foreign relations and domestic issues. The project kicks off with a Mar. 19-20 workshop at the new Stanford China Center at Peking University. Read more »

Rising Japan scholars examine the future of U.S.-Japan relations

The decades-old U.S.-Japan alliance remains a stabilizing force in the Asia-Pacific region, but it continues to evolve with changes in both countries and in the region. In January, Kenji Kushida and Phillip Lipscy joined other rising Japan studies scholars for discussions about issues confronting the relationship. Read more »

Menchik discusses the roots of religious intolerance in Indonesia

The origins of intolerance toward Indonesia's Muslim-minority sect Ahmadiyah go back to the early twentieth century, says Jeremy Menchik. In a Jakarta Post op-ed, he unearths the connections between the Indonesian government and anti-Ahmadiyah sentiment, and makes suggestions for how the country can prevent future violence.

• » Jakarta Post: The origins of intolerance toward Ahmadiyah

February 10th, 2012

Shin suggests balance, few changes as Lee's term ends

With less than a year before South Korean President Lee Myung-bak's term ends, Gi-Wook Shin says that Lee should maintain his current North Korea policy, and keep balanced relations with growing trade partner China and long-time ally the United States. Shin spoke recently with the Korea Times about Lee's final months in office.

• » Korea Times: What President Lee shouldn't do

February 9th, 2012

Negotiating Assad's final exit

In an article for The New Republic's online symposium 'What Should the United States Do About Syria,' Larry Diamond argues that multilateral engagement is the best approach to depose Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Read more »

February 8th, 2012

ARD scholar Elias Muhanna nominated for Next Century Foundation award

Program on Arab Reform and Democracy scholar Elias Muhanna, the blogger behind qifanabki.com, was nominated for a special award for an outstanding contribution to new media by the Next Century Foundation. Read more »

February 6th, 2012

Q&A: Stanford’s Cuéllar and US diplomat on human rights and the Internet

U.S. Ambassador Eileen Donahoe recently brought fellow diplomats to Stanford to meet with scholars, human rights activists, and Silicon Valley leaders to address questions engendered by a free and open Internet. She joins CISAC’s Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar for a discussion about the potential and challenges facing the online frontier. Read more »

International Rights Prosecutions by 2022

Professor Helen Stacy, director of the Program on Human Rights at the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law writes about the impact and future of international rights prosecutions. Read more »

February 4th, 2012

Are the days of web surfing over?

In an opinion piece for The New York Times on Feb. 4, Evgeny Morozov declares the days of cyberspace exploration over, snuffed out by the world of social media and search engine optimization. Read more »

February 2nd, 2012

Indonesian campaign poster symbolism and political identity

Riding around on the back of a motorcycle in 2009, Jeremy Menchik snapped photos of hundreds of Indonesian campaign posters. That number has now grown to over 5000 images, which Menchik and Colm Fox have painstakingly coded and analyzed. The initial results of their research reveal similarities between the United States and Indonesia, and shed light on the transitional democracies of the Arab Spring. Read more »

Taubman discusses unlikely effort to rid the world of nuclear weapons

In a new book, former New York Times reporter Philip Taubman, a consulting professor at the Center for International Security and Cooperation, tells the story of five men who have joined efforts to eliminate the ultimate weapon.

• » Stanford Report's Q&A with Philip Taubman

Make Parliament bigger, says popular blogger Elias Muhanna

Arab Reform and Democracy scholar Elias Muhanna spoke with The Daily Star, a Beirut-based newspaper, about the idea of introducing a bicameral legislature to Lebanon. Muhanna commented on what this would mean for the political system at large and how far it would go in repairing the deep governance issues that have divided the Lebanese polity for decades. Read more »

February 1st, 2012

Stanford democracy experts examine Asia, Middle East

CDDRL scholars Larry Diamond, Francis Fukuyama, and Ahmed Benchemsi published articles in the January issue of the Journal of Democracy examining the state of democratic development in two pivotal regions – Asia and the Middle East. Read more »

New Asia Pacific Observatory represents unique regional partnership

The Asia Pacific Observatory of Health Systems and Policies is a new regional initiative to promote evidence-based health policymaking in the Asia-Pacific region. The Observatory represents a unique partnership of governments, development agencies, and the research community working together. Read more »

The Europe Center announces publication of new Nelly Sachs biography

The richly illustrated Nelly Sachs: Flight and Metamorphosis marks the first time that the biography of Nelly Sachs has been made available in English. Read more »

January 31st, 2012

Shin and Stanford's Korean Studies Program

Gi-Wook Shin, founding director of Stanford's Korean Studies Program (KSP), spoke with the Stanford Daily about creating a unique niche for KSP over the past 11 years, and about being a student during an era of change in Korea.

• » Stanford Daily: Gi-Wook Shin: Focusing on the future of Korea

Trafficking victim turns personal story into powerful force for advocacy

Roni Hong, a human trafficking survivor and founder of the Tronie Foundation presented her testimony at the third installment of the Sanela Diana Jenkins International Speaker Series. Read more »

January 30th, 2012

Signs of growth in post-Fukushima Japan, say Stanford experts

Nearly a year has passed since an earthquake triggered a tsunami that swept away entire communities on Japan's northeastern coast, leading to a series of accidents at the Fukushima nuclear complex. Masahiko Aoki and Kenji Kushida discuss post-March 11 developments, and a related conference at Stanford scheduled for February 27. Read more »

Katsunori Hirano envisions a sustainable future

South of Mount Fuji, along Japan’s central eastern coast, sits Shizuoka Prefecture. Home to green tea plantations, hot springs resorts, and Yamaha pianos and motorcycles, Shizuoka Prefecture is a vibrant agricultural, tourist, and manufacturing region. It is also home to Katsunori Hirano, a current Corporate Affiliates Visiting Fellow at the Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center. Read more »

January 25th, 2012

Now accepting Developing Asia Health Policy Fellowship applications

The Asia Health Policy Program offers the opportunity for leading health policy experts from low-income Asian countries to come to Stanford as visiting fellows for three to nine months between Sept. 1, 2012 and Aug. 31, 2013. Applications accepted until Mar. 5, 2012.

• » Developing Asia Health Policy Fellowship

January 24th, 2012

Aoki suggests a new approach to Japan's power industry

As the one-year anniversary of Japan's Great Tohoku Earthquake and Fukushima nuclear disaster approaches, Stanford economist Masahiko Aoki says now is an opportune time to restructure the country's electric power industry.

• » Asia Pathways: Urgent need to restructure Japan's electric power industry after Fukushima

Madeline Rees speaks out against human trafficking abuses within the UN system

Madeline Rees, former U.N. high commissioner for human rights in Bosnia and secretary general for the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom spoke at the second installment of the Sanela Diana Jenkins International Speaker Series on human rights abuse during peacekeeping operations and how to improve accountability. Read more »

January 23rd, 2012

Stanford scholars reflect on Arab Spring

A year after the Egyptian uprising, five scholars talk about democracy in the Middle East, how lives have changed in the Arab world, and what the U.S. has learned from the Arab Spring. Read more »

January 19th, 2012

Poverty and Governance program launches policy brief series

The Program on Poverty and Governance at Stanford University's Center on Democracy, Development and Rule of Law is proud to announce the launch of its inaugural policy brief series. Read more »