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Begin New Search Political Geography Australia/Pacific Content Type Policy Brief Publishing Institution East-West Center

1. Micronesians on the Move: Eastward and Upward Bound

Author:
Francis X. Hezel
Publication Date:
09-2013
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
East-West Center
Abstract:
Is out-migration an admission of a Pacific Island nation's failure to fulfill its economic promise and provide the jobs that its citizens seek in a modernized society? Or is it a legitimate alternative strategy for development, through the export of surplus labor, in lieu of the more conventional methods recommended by donor nations and international financial institutions? In this paper, Francis X. Hezel, SJ, reviews the 30-year history of migration from one Pacific Island nation, the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), and examines the current status of its migrants with an eye to shedding light on this question.
Topic:
Development, Economics, Migration, and Immigration
Political Geography:
United States, Israel, and Australia/Pacific

2. No Hedging in Canberra: The Australia-US Alliance in the "Asian Century"

Author:
Nick Bisley
Publication Date:
04-2012
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
East-West Center
Abstract:
US Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell has just completed a lightning visit to Australia for formal discussions with newly installed Foreign Minister Bob Carr. In spite of the political turmoil that brought Carr to office, the Australia-US alliance is in the best shape of its 60-year history. Having begun as a Cold War convenience, about which the United States was not enthusiastic, it has become a key part of Washington's regional role and a cornerstone not only of Australia's defense and security policy, but of its broader engagement with the world. The arrival in early April of the US Marine Corps to begin six-month training rotations in Darwin is emblematic of the alliance's standing and its evolution.
Topic:
Security, Defense Policy, Arms Control and Proliferation, Cold War, Diplomacy, and Bilateral Relations
Political Geography:
United States, Washington, Asia, and Australia/Pacific

3. "Linsanity," Social Media and US-Asia Relations

Author:
Elina Noor
Publication Date:
03-2012
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
East-West Center
Abstract:
Jeremy Lin, the New York Knicks' former benchwarmer and now worldwide basketball sensation, is the new Cinderella Man or “Linderella” of basketball, and maybe even more. As the National Basketball Association's (NBA) first American-born player of Chinese-Taiwanese descent, Lin has notched impressive game statistics, sparked new “Lin-go” around his name, and enraptured fans from Queens to the Bay Area, Zhejiang to Taipei, and Jakarta to Kuala Lumpur.
Topic:
Mass Media and Youth Culture
Political Geography:
United States, China, New York, East Asia, Asia, Australia/Pacific, and Kuala Lumpur

4. Russia in the Asia-Pacific: Between Integration and Geopolitics

Author:
Paul Richardson
Publication Date:
02-2012
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
East-West Center
Abstract:
For the first time in its history, Russia this year assumed the leadership of a major Asia- Pacific forum—APEC. In September the organization's annual summit will be held in Vladivostok and through this congress Russia hopes to demonstrate to the world, and its own citizens, that the country is once again a power in both Europe and Asia. It is a bold vision, which is bound to Russia's national development strategy and Great Power aspirations. As one Russian diplomat told this author, if Russia really becomes involved in Asia it could change the country and also the world.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Development, International Affairs, and Power Politics
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, Asia, and Australia/Pacific

5. Evolution, Not Revolution: The US-NZ Security Partnership

Author:
David Capie and Robert Ayson
Publication Date:
03-2011
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
East-West Center
Abstract:
The most visible sign of the new warmth in the United States-New Zealand bilateral relationship was US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's visit to New Zealand in November 2010, which culminated with the signing of the "Wellington Declaration." The 400-word document announced a US-NZ "strategic partnership" built on "practical cooperation" in the South Pacific, and enhanced dialogue including regular foreign minister level and political-military meetings. It also noted a joint commitment to tackle pressing challenges including climate change, nuclear proliferation, and extremism. In addition, there was a commitment to an expansion of US-NZ "commercial and trade relations." Robert Ayson and David Capie discuss the possible future direction of the developing US-NZ relationship.
Topic:
International Cooperation and Bilateral Relations
Political Geography:
United States, Australia/Pacific, and New Zealand

6. Why Science Alone Won't Solve the Climate Crisis: Managing Climate Risks in the Pacific

Author:
Melissa L. Finucane
Publication Date:
08-2009
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
East-West Center
Abstract:
The Pacific Islands are extraordinarily vulnerable to the effects of climate change. And although policymakers are turning to science to answer questions of how communities should deal with climate challenges, scientific knowledge is only one element of an effective risk-management process. The people of the Pacific Islands hold diverse beliefs about climate change and these beliefs inform their decisions. In addition, a dynamic social context influences the extent to which people are able to respond meaningfully to climate impacts. To solve the climate crisis, policymakers need to set a risk-management agenda that integrates sound science with an understanding of how that science is interpreted and translated into action in society. They will need to work not only with scientists, but also with cultural leaders, theologians, philosophers, and community groups. Lessons learned in the Pacific region, along with broader knowledge about factors affecting human decisionmaking, illustrate how policymakers can bridge the gap between climate science and society to facilitate adaptation.
Topic:
Climate Change and Energy Policy
Political Geography:
Israel, Asia, and Australia/Pacific

7. Renewing the Pacific Partnership

Author:
Charles Morrison and Peter Petri
Publication Date:
09-2007
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
East-West Center
Abstract:
The rise of China, India, and other Asian nations is creating a new “core” of the world economy centered on the Pacific. It is essential for the United States to remain vigorously engaged in this region, yet the climate of our relations with Asian partners is cooling. The United States and Asia have yet to find a way to cooperate effectively on any significant global issue. This dilemma, we argue, requires urgent attention on both sides of the Pacific, and specifically a U.S. strategy that features innovative civil diplomacy alongside official initiatives.
Topic:
International Cooperation
Political Geography:
United States, Israel, Asia, and Australia/Pacific

8. The Politics of Environmental Policy with a Himalayan Example

Author:
Piers Blaikie and Joshua Muldavin
Publication Date:
06-2004
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
East-West Center
Abstract:
How we arrive at knowledge—and how we draw on knowledge to make policy—have been the subject of vigorous debate and analysis. Simple models of expertise and action are gradually yielding to a more complex vision of how truth speaks to power and power talks back. The Himalayan region—where scientists, statesmen, and citizens confront a unique set of environmental challenges and political legacies—provides a powerful case study. For more than a century, it was believed that over-use by local farmers and pastoralists threatened fragile mountain and river environments. Beginning in the colonial era and continuing into the present, governments have strictly curtailed traditional land-use practices. In the 1980s, scholars began to question the science on which those restrictive laws were based. But new science has not, in most cases, led to new policy. This disconnect inspires questions about the nature of both science and policy, their influence on each other, and whether each could benefit from greater openness to the insights of people who fall outside the narrow roles of expert and politician.
Topic:
International Relations and Development
Political Geography:
Asia, Australia/Pacific, and Southeast Asia

9. Tourism in a 'Borderless' World: The Singapore Experience

Author:
T.C. Chang
Publication Date:
05-2004
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
East-West Center
Abstract:
The development of tourist destinations that transcend national borders, first envisioned in the 1950s, gained momentum in the 1990s. Whether facilitated by large regional organizations such as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) or bilateral agreements, countries—especially smaller ones— have worked to identify and leverage their neighbor's strengths. Singapore, for example, adopted a national tourism plan based on the concept of "borrowed attractiveness." It has compensated for its limited natural resources and high costs by collaborating with Indonesia and Malaysia, which contribute cheaper labor and land in exchange for infrastructure, financing, and expertise. The city-state also aggressively sells its tourism expertise overseas and aspires to be Asia's tourism hub. But Singapore's experience demonstrates that regional tourism, while diversifying tourism development opportunities, can also perpetuate inequities between wealthier and poorer collaborators and present serious challenges to businesses operating in unfamiliar settings.
Topic:
International Relations and Development
Political Geography:
Asia, Australia/Pacific, Singapore, and Southeast Asia

10. "Failed State" and the War on Terror: Intervention in Solomon Islands

Author:
Tarcisius Tara Kabutaulaka
Publication Date:
03-2004
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
East-West Center
Abstract:
A heightened sense of vulnerability to terror has touched every part of the world, including the Pacific Islands, and has linked small nations to large in new ways. Since the September 11 tragedy, concern has risen that so-called “failed states,” losing the struggle to maintain law and order at home, could become springboards for terrorism. Australia has shed its reluctance to intervene militarily in the Pacific trouble-sports—such as Solomon Islands, whose descent into chaos and violence was sparked in 1998 by civil unrest in Guadalcanal. With regional support, Australia led a mission in 2003 to restore law and order. A short-term success, the mission leaves questions about its long-term ability to achieve either well-being for Solomon Islands or security for the region. Its emphasis on shoring up a perennially weak central government, and its inattention to other pillars of Solomons society, threaten to undermine its success and create a crippling sense of dependency. For the mission to succeed, it must empower Solomon Islanders to take charge of their own destiny.
Topic:
Democratization, Ethnic Conflict, and Politics
Political Geography:
Australia/Pacific, Solomon Islands, and Southeast Asia