China, ASEAN Sign Enhanced Free Trade Pact amid Trump Tariffs

In an article for Al Jazeera, Erin Hale gives an overview of the upgraded ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement, which will broaden collaboration on infrastructure, digital and green transitions, trade facilitation, and people to people exchanges, as trade between both parties grow under Trump's trade wars.

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Society, Read Me, Laos, Economics NYSEAN Society, Read Me, Laos, Economics NYSEAN

Laos’ Nurses as Vanguards of Public Health Care?

In an article for New Mandala, Amelie Katczynski reflects on Laos' internal public health developments, which pursues a vision of socialist health care that emerged during the Lao revolution. Yet, as challenges persist, Lao nursing students train to be vanguards of health development, training beyond nursing skills, playing the role of developing citizens and citizen-developers.

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What Counts as ‘Asian American Literature,’ Anyway?

In an article for UC Berkeley News, Lila Thulin discusses Long Le-Khac's 1,900-entry long database of Asian American literary canon. By gathering publications featuring the keyword “Asian American” or taking media from journals dedicated to Asian American studies, Le-Khac frames it as a chance for academics to audit what's considered the Asian American canon and see who might be missing or underrepresented.

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Showmanship or Statecraft: Trump Returns to ASEAN

In a brief by the Asia Society Policy Institute, Bryanna Entwistle and Shay Wester cover President Trump’s first stop on his Asia tour: the ASEAN Leaders' Summit in Kuala Lumpur. On the sidelines, he presided over the signing of a number of deals, including a ceasefire deal between Thailand and Cambodia, and “reciprocal trade” deals with Malaysia and Cambodia, respectively.

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Flood-Control Fiasco: A Policy Reckoning for Accountability in the Philippines’ Climate Risk Governance

In an article for the University of the Philippines, Weena Gera discusses the flood control controversies in the Philippines, where billions in infrastructure budget and government funds were plundered by public works contractors, leading to "ghost projects."

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Wave of Cambodian Casinos Suspended after Prince Sanctions

In an article for Mekong Independent, Ly Lin and Danielle Keeton-Olsen discuss the license suspensions of more than a dozen casinos in Cambodia, several of which are suspected of involvement in spiraling global scam operations, following international sanctions and mounting pressure. Some of the casinos on the list of 14 suspensions have links to the recently sanctioned entities, such as Cambodian Heng Xin Real Estate Investment Co. Ltd., and Jin Bei Group Co. Ltd.

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Sub-regional Coordination is the Cure for ASEAN’s Health Divide

In an article for East Asia Forum, Ronald Tundang discusses gaps in ASEAN's health systems, which leave millions without reliable access to essential medicines. Tundang proposes that, to bridge regional gaps, ASEAN's least developed countries could follow the "ASEAN Minus X" model to establish a sub-regional facility, combining a patent-licensing hub with pooled procurement, which would facilitate WTO-compliant licensing, aggregate demand, and uphold quality benchmarks.

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Filipino@Brown: A Conversation with Anna Zulueta and Alexa Theodoropoulos

In an article for the Association for Asian Studies, Anna Zulueta and Alexa Theodoropoulos enter into a dialogue about the legacies of colonization and authoritarian rule, and how in spaces like Brown University, where the absence of Filipino representation persists, linguistic representation and curricular reforms are the first steps in rectifying historical injustices.

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ISEAS Perspective: Challenges to Judicial Independence in Malaysia

In this paper published by NYSEAN Partner ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, Shad Saleem Faruqi asserts that Malaysia’s judiciary must be independent to carry out a range of vital duties, including: protecting the Constitution, keeping the government within the remit of its functions, and mediating disputes between the state and citizens, as well as between citizens.

Shad Saleem Faruqi is a Malaysian legal scholar and professor of law at the University of Malaya, currently holding the Tunku Abdul Rahman Chair as Professor of Constitutional Law. He is also the fourth holder of the Tun Hussein Onn Chair in International Studies at the Institute of Strategic and International Studies Malaysia effective July 2019 to June 2021.

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He Studied Elephant Behavior to Save Lives

In an article for the New York Times, Emily Anthes interviews Joshua Plotnik, who has been studying Asian elephant cognition for 20 years. In his research at Salakpra Wildlife Sanctuary Thailand, his team had created personality profiles to direct mitigation tactics toward each  particular elephant's personality.

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ASEAN Leads Response to the Threat of Global Economic Disorder

In an article for East Asia Forum, Shiro Armstrong discusses Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs and ASEAN’s response, where the latter avoided retaliation, which would worsen economic consequences, and instead communicated a coordinated, non-retaliatory response to the tariffs.

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This ‘Privacy Browser’ Has Dangerous Hidden Features

In an article for WIRED, Matt Burgess writes about the Universe Browser, which promises to be the “fastest browser” and can avoid privacy leaks. However, research shows hidden elements of this browser include features similar to malware, with links to Chinese online gambling websites and Southeast Asia’s sprawling, multibillion-dollar cybercrime ecosystem.

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Anguish for Residents as Thailand’s Most Polluting Coal Plant Gets New Lease of Life

In an article for Mekong Independent, Gerald Flynn discusses Thailand's decision to delay the decommissioning of several coal-fired units at the 2,400-megawatt Mao Moh power plant, which has sparked health related worries amongst the community, as the plant is Thailand's largest carbon dioxide pollution project.

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