Episodes

  • Lesbian Poetry in the Philippines

    Lesbian Poetry in the Philippines
    Sep 12 2024
    Lesbian poetry as a form of socio-political praxis in the Philippine context. This episode’s guest argues that lesbian writing – by lesbians and about lesbians – is a form of activism and decolonial praxis, as well as an important form of political identity. Dr Naomi Cammayo’s academic/literary interests are within the fields of poetry, Philippine Studies, lesbian feminism and queer feminism. She is currently a tutor at the University of Sydney’s School of Art, Communication and English and the School of Languages and Cultures.
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    19 mins
  • Politics in Action 2024: Myanmar Update

    Politics in Action 2024: Myanmar Update
    Aug 2 2024
    Politics in Action is an annual forum in which invited experts provided an analysis of the current political situation in Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Vietnam, and discussed the broader implications of events in these countries for the region. After the event, each of the six speakers sat for a podcast to chat with Dr Natali Pearson and delve further into the political situation of their respective countries. In this podcast the presenter of the Myanmar update, Dr Moe Thuzar, discusses the political situation in Myanmar. Moe Thuzar is a Senior Fellow at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, where she coordinates its Myanmar Studies Programme. From 2008 to 2019 she was the lead researcher in the ISEAS ASEAN Studies Centre. Prior to joining ISEAS, Dr Thuzar spent ten years at the ASEAN Secretariat, where she headed the Human Development Unit from 2004 to 2007. A former diplomat, she researched Burma’s foreign policy implementation (1948–88) for her PhD at the National University of Singapore. She was a Fox International Fellow (2019–2020) at Yale University’s MacMillan Center during her PhD candidacy. Her research interests include Myanmar’s foreign policy, ASEAN integration impacts and issues (socio-cultural areas) and ASEAN’s dialogue relations. Among many other publications, she has also contributed to several compendia and edited volumes on ASEAN and on Myanmar.
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    27 mins
  • Politics in Action 2024: Malaysia Update

    Politics in Action 2024: Malaysia Update
    Jul 26 2024
    Politics in Action is an annual forum in which invited experts provided an analysis of the current political situation in Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Vietnam, and discussed the broader implications of events in these countries for the region. After the event, each of the six speakers sat for a podcast to chat with Dr Natali Pearson and delve further into the political situation of their respective countries. In this podcast the presenter of the Malaysia update, Prof. Dr. Mohd Azizuddin Mohd Sani, discusses the political situation in Malaysia. Mohd Azizuddin Mohd Sani is a Professor of Politics and International Relations in the School of International Studies at Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM). He is currently Deputy Vice Chancellor for Academic and Internationalisation at UUM. Previously he was a Visiting Fellow for the Yusof Ishak Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS), Singapore, and Visiting Professor at the National Institute of Development and Administration (NIDA), Bangkok, Thailand. He has published widely on democratisation, political expression and Malaysian politics, and has conducted public advocacy through international and local Malaysian media. He is a columnist for Berita Harian (Malay newspaper) and Sin Chew Jit Poh (Mandarin newspaper).
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    29 mins
  • Politics in Action 2024: Singapore Update

    Politics in Action 2024: Singapore Update
    Jul 12 2024
    Politics in Action is an annual forum in which invited experts provided an analysis of the current political situation in Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Vietnam, and discussed the broader implications of events in these countries for the region. After the event, each of the six speakers sat for a podcast to chat with Dr Natali Pearson and delve further into the political situation of their respective countries. In this podcast the presenter of the Singapore update, Dr Kenneth Paul Tan, discusses the political situation in Singapore. Kenneth Paul Tan is a tenured Professor of Politics, Film and Cultural Studies at Hong Kong Baptist University. He teaches courses at the Academy of Film and Department of Government and International Studies, and conducts interdisciplinary research at the School of Communication, Global Communication and Power Research Cluster, and Smart Society Lab. His most recent books include Asia in the Old and New Cold Wars: Ideologies, Narratives, and Lived Experiences (Palgrave MacMillan, 2023), Movies to Save Our World: Imagining Poverty, Inequality and Environmental Destruction in the 21st Century (Penguin, 2022) and Singapore’s First Year of COVID-19: Public Health, Immigration, the Neoliberal State, and Authoritarian Populism (Palgrave Macmillan, 2022) He was the founding chair of the Asian Film Archive’s Board of Directors and the chair of the Board of Directors of theatre company, The Necessary Stage.
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    26 mins
  • Politics in Action 2024: Laos Update

    Politics in Action 2024: Laos Update
    Jul 5 2024
    Politics in Action is an annual forum in which invited experts provided an analysis of the current political situation in Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Vietnam, and discussed the broader implications of events in these countries for the region. After the event, each of the six speakers sat for a podcast to chat with Dr Natali Pearson and delve further into the political situation of their respective countries. In this podcast the presenter of the Vietnam update, Dr Kesone Kanhalikham, discusses the political situation in Laos. Dr Kesone Kanhalikham is the Deputy Head of Division of the National University of Laos Council, Office of Post- graduate Studies, National University of Laos. She is also a lecturer in the International Development Studies Master program. Her primary areas of interest are development studies in urbanisation in Laos, urban-geography, livelihood adaptation, resilience and urban-environment, and the regionalisation of development in the Mekong sub-region. She has researched on urbanisation, foreign direct investment and the Laos-China Railway, and has promoted the intersection between social science and development. She earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree in civil engineering from the National University of Laos, and a doctorate in social science from Chiang Mai University.
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    25 mins
  • Politics in Action 2024: Vietnam Update

    Politics in Action 2024: Vietnam Update
    Jun 28 2024
    Politics in Action is an annual forum in which invited experts provided an analysis of the current political situation in Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Vietnam, and discussed the broader implications of events in these countries for the region. After the event, each of the six speakers sat for a podcast to chat with Dr Natali Pearson and delve further into the political situation of their respective countries. In this podcast the presenter of the Vietnam update, Mr Layton Pike, who spoke on behalf of the Australia Vietnam Policy Institute at Politics in Action, discusses the political situation in Vietnam. Layton Pike has been Executive Director, International at RMIT University since December 2022, overseeing the university’s global strategy and partnerships in the Asia Pacific region. Previously he was the Chief Global Adviser and Director Global Strategy at RMIT where he played a key role in enhancing the institution’s international engagement. Mr Pike co-founded the Australia Vietnam Policy Institute in 2022, a pioneering public policy hub fostering collaboration and impact in the Australia-Vietnam relationship. His expertise spans policy, development cooperation and legal affairs, supported by his legal qualifications and memberships in advisory boards. He also contributes to the University of Melbourne and the Australia Vietnam Young Leadership Dialogue.
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    22 mins
  • Politics in Action 2024: Indonesia Update

    Politics in Action 2024: Indonesia Update
    Jun 20 2024
    Politics in Action is an annual forum in which invited experts provided an analysis of the current political situation in Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Vietnam, and discussed the broader implications of events in these countries for the region. After the event, each of the six speakers sat for a podcast to chat with Dr Natali Pearson and delve further into the political situation of their respective countries. In this podcast the presenter of the Indonesia update, Ms Navhat Nuraniyah, discusses the political situation in Indonesia. Navhat (Nava) Nuraniyah is a PhD scholar at the Department of Political and Social Change, Australian National University. Her doctoral research focuses on how Islamist opposition groups in Indonesia respond to political repression and its broader implications for democratic decline. She was previously an analyst at the Jakarta-based Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC), where she researched extensively on violent extremism, communal conflict and Islamist activism in Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. Prior to that, she was a researcher at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. She has been published in academic journals and media such as Terrorism and Political Violence, Studies in Conflict and Terrorism, The New York Times, and Sydney Morning Herald.
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    26 mins
  • Building a More Inclusive Society: Disability and Work in Timor-Leste

    Building a More Inclusive Society: Disability and Work in Timor-Leste
    May 25 2024
    What does an inclusive society look like? And what are the challenges and opportunities when the society in question, Timor-Leste, is one of the most resource-constrained in Southeast Asia? My guest today is interested in these questions of inclusion and participation, and argues that people with a disability are a key component of a truly inclusive society – and that employment can be a key policy lever for inclusion. With Timor-Leste recently ratifying the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), now is the time, she says, for building an evidence base for employment as a foundational right that has transformational potential not only for people with disability but for the broader community. Dr Kim Bulkeley from the Faculty of Medicine and Health joins Dr Natali Pearson to share the work she is doing ion disability and work in Timor-Leste. Dr Kim Bulkeley is a Co-head of the WHO Collaborating Centre for strengthening rehabilitation capacity in health systems, senior lecturer in the Sydney School of Health Sciences and a stream leader in the Centre for Disability Research and Policy.
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    24 mins