AASYP on Air: Recent Episodes
AASYP Podcast
The podcast is centred on AASYP’s core values – building knowledge, inspiring engagement and creating connections. Based on its values, the aim is to foster an understanding of Southeast Asian nations and its individual and regional relationship with Australia. We intend to interview a range of individuals, who have opinions on the Australia and SEA’s relationship. Moreover, the podcast will provide a clearer understanding of the organisation, the people who volunteer on behalf of AASYP and the relationship we are trying to foster between Australia and ASEAN. Music by: Sandrina (Eva van Dijk)
In this episode, Yanitha Meena, joins us from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia as we explore how sports diplomacy strengthens relations between ASEAN and Australia. Meena completed an International Masters in European Regional Integration at the Asia-Europe Institute, University of Malaya. She completed a Bachelors of Science in Psychology at the University of Madras. She works on the Indo-Pacific with an emphasis on South Asia, ASEAN and the European Union.
In this episode, we will explore the rich tapestry of cultures and sounds that shape our world and how music can foster our human connections and understanding of one another.
Today, we're diving into a unique musical journey with Sirasar or Mae Boonma, co-founder of Hear & Found, an innovative project that provides a platform to preserve and showcase the unique sounds of Thailand's indigenous communities.
To find out more about Hear&Found kindly check this link: hearandfound.com
Sports as an International Actor
Whole-of-Nation approach
In this episode, Tom Barber joins us from Melbourne, Australia as we dive into how rugby and football aren't just about tries and goals; they're dynamic players on the global field of diplomacy. We will explore how and why countries need to huddle up and work together for success in today's complex global landscape.
To find out more about Tom, check out: asiapacific4d.com
In this episode, we speak to democracy activist Thinzar Shunlei Yi on her perspective on the Spring Revolution in Myanmar and the involvement of youths in the fight for democracy. Shunlei is a notable voice in Myanmar amd has expressed her opinion on Myanmar's discrimination and militaristic hegemonism.
Shunlei gave us an overview of Myanmar's political state. She indicated that political instability had been magnified due to the executive power of the military and the inability to amend the constitution to ensure democratic processes are genuinely followed. On a positive note, she also mentioned that people are changing ideologically to support the shift to democracy in Myanmar. We discussed the Sisters2Sisters Movement and the "sarong strike" in Myanmar serving as a symbol to challenge military institutions primarily run by misogynistic men.
The bold activist did not shy away from talking about her past of growing up in a military unit during her childhood and shared her experiences of not being able to critically think or even make friends outside of her community. When she was able to break through the confines of her past life, she began to realise Myanmar's reality and has since devoted her life towards activism.
Shunlei is an active voice on Twitter and can be found @thinzashunleiyi
AASYP on Air empathises and are in solidarity with the citizens of Myanmar.
In this final episode of the series, we speak to Jonald Bagasina about the Trilateral Cooperative Agreement (TCA). The TCA is a security framework that was developed in 2016 to minimise the escalation of armed conflict, terrorism and transnational crime in the Sulu-Celebes Sea. Jonald provides an in-depth overview of how the agreement has been interpreted by each country and the crimes that have happened prior and after the formation of the agreement. We also discuss the respective interests of each country and issues, such as territorial claims that have played a part in creating issues for them to collaborate with one another.
In today's episode, we speak to Isadora Vadasz and Mia Dunphy on combating gender issues through the current climate crisis. Both authors had an interesting take on the topic and framed their argument on how Australia can learn from the efforts of Southeast Asian nations. Women are seen to be the agents of change in this circumstance, as they appear to be the most disadvantaged from the effects of climate change. As a result, women in countries that are more susceptible to the effects of climate change, have been able to develop initiatives not only to reduce their vulnerability to the disadvantage but also provide viable solutions to other countries that experience similar issues. We speak about multiple grassroots groups that have been making tremendous effort on the issue at hand and also initiatives that need to be done at the top down level to make these efforts concrete.
We speak to Queenie Tomaro on this episode to delve deep into women's empowerment from the Southeast Asian lens, disconnected from western ideas of the concept. Queenie indicates that we need a different set of criteria to what is used in west to assess levels of empowerment in Southeast Asia. This criteria stretches across culture, religion, state power and family relations – which are typically not used in Western nations, but are certainly important in Southeast Asia. We also discuss examples of this in the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam more specifically.
In this episode, Min Punia discusses the importance of the role of youth stakeholders in Southeast Asia in contributing to the advancement of respective societies through policy change. He details both passive and active stakeholder engagement and provides examples of the Red Rose Campaign and “sating pusa” in Myanmar. We broaden the conversation to include existing youth engagement in other parts of Southeast Asia and barriers that may be in the way for youth groups to mobilise their respective movements.
In today's episode, we chat with Claire Woodwell on non-conventional threats, namely climate change. She argues that climate change poses a security threat to Australia and the Indo-Pacific region as a whole. We discussed why it is imminent that countries try to develop policies to combat the effects of climate change and to invest in assets that have a dual use purpose, such as surveillance in the Indo-Pacific region. Additionally, Claire spoke about her own personal experience as being part of the Royal Australian airforce, where she was able to see Australia's national security strategies and policies in practice. From this, Claire was able to develop a piece from both her working experience and research background on the topic.
Join us on today’s episode where we talk to Muhammad Ichsan and IIlyas Taufiqurrohman on how the ASEAN-Australia grid connection affects the energy trilemma. The energy trilemma refers to energy security, energy poverty and climate change mitigation. The ASEAN-ASEAN-Australia grid connection was an initiative that began in the 2010s and aims to to utilise untapped renewable energy resources in Western and Northern Australia by exporting the produced electricity to the ASEAN region. We discuss Indonesia as a case study in the podcast and furthered the conversation on the energy trilemma in notable countries, such as the Nordic countries.
In this episode we chat with Hilda Jong on how the bilateral relationship between Indonesia and Australia can contribute to the enhancement of educational opportunities and labour skills. We speak in detail on this relationship through the initiatives of the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) sector and the Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IA-CEPA).
In this episode, we speak to Suthida Chang who wrote a piece on investing in smart cities as a solution to post-COVID recovery. Her piece centres on Singapore, Thailand and Australia's current investment in smart cities and the overall future of ASEAN smart cities. The discussion goes into depth in each of the case studies, but also extends to other countries in the region.
In this episode, we speak to Christopher Khatouki who wrote a piece reflecting on the Sydney Declaration. The declaration was pivotal in cementing the relationship between Australia and ASEAN nations on three main areas: a multilateral commitment to counter-terrorism, improving economic engagement and addressing China's behaviour in the South China Sea. The discussion centres on these three factors and addresses areas that require improvement in the approach by Australia and ASEAN.
In this episode you will get to know the hosts of the podcast, Daweena and Claudine. Additionally, you will find out more about the ASEAN-Australia Youth Strategic Partnership organisation as well as a teaser for the special edition episodes on the AASYP Review 2020.