In this episode of Southeast Asia Radio, produced by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Gregory B. Poling and Elina Noor are joined by Ken Mathis Lohatepanont to discuss the latest updates from Thailand, including the new Bhumjaithai-led government, the fate of the Shinawatras, and the snap elections scheduled in early 2026.

In an article for the Torino World Affairs Institute’s Indo-Pacific Outlooks, Pongphisoot Paul Busbarat and Thanawit Wangpuchakane argue that the EU can play an indispensable role in reinforcing the agency of Indo-Pacific secondary powers, such as Japan, South Korea, Australia, India, and ASEAN.  Through a series of cooperative, inclusive, multilateral frameworks, the EU can help maintain the liberal order, stabilizing the region at a time of a growing leadership vacuum in the Indo-Pacific.

In an article for East Asia Forum, Gerhard Hoffstaedter discusses China's rising influence over area studies, particularly in Southeast Asia. What was once an area dominated by Western scholars has shifted, in light of funding cuts and shifting government priorities by the US, UK, EU, and Australia. The shift towards Chinese advancements in this area constitutes a fundamental rebalancing of global knowledge production with profound geopolitical implications.

In an article by East Asia Forum, Mari Pangestu and Julia Tijaja discuss the need for ASEAN to strengthen regional resilience in light of geopolitical tensions and the negative effects of US tariffs on the region's economy. By deepening regional integration, fully implementing RCEP, coordinating and addressing reforms and priorities, ASEAN may turn these issues into an opportunity for growth and leadership.

Call for Applications: Youth Rising Creative Workshop for Academic Freedom 2025

The call for application for Youth Rising Creative Workshop 2025 - Southeast Asian Youth for Academic Freedom is now open.

Youth Rising is envisioned as a nexus of academic freedom and artistic freedom among young people — a creative workshop that brings together students, young scholars, and artists to explore how imagination and critical inquiry can confront repression and inspire collective action in academic spaces and in solidarity with academic communities and other stakeholders.

Through participatory dialogue, art-making, storytelling and content creation, the workshop seeks to reclaim campuses and classrooms as spaces of freedom, while amplifying youth voices in the broader struggle for rights, democracy, and social justice in Southeast Asia.

The camp program aims to support this ecosystem by empowering youth to participate in cross-cutting conversations and alliances for academic freedom — a form of engaged scholarship.

FULLY-FUNDED OPPORTUNITY

15 selected youth participants, aged 15-35 years old from across Southeast Asia

October 31 - November 1, 2025

Mahidol University, Salaya Campus, Thailand (about 25 km from central Bangkok)

Deadline of Application - September 26, 2025

The UC Berkeley Center for Southeast Asia Studies is seeking participation in the Southeast Asian Lives (SEALIVES) small grants program from students and faculty with long-term and emergent research and community engagements with Southeast Asians. Details below!

Deadline: Sep 30

https://www.nysean.org/blog/southeast-asian-lives-and-histories-small-grants-program

East-West Center invites proposals from all disciplinary and interdisciplinary perspectives for its 25th International Graduate Student Conference under the theme “Legacies Through Time: Rethinking the Past, Confronting the Present, Shaping the Future.” More details below.

Deadline: Sep 30

https://www.nysean.org/blog/call-for-abstracts-the-25th-east-west-center-international-graduate-student-conference