Asia Insight

Zennon Wijlens is the co-owner and Head Chef at Paris Butter in Auckland. He was part of a delegation attending this years Ubud Festival in Bali, courtesy of the Asia New Zealand Foundation.  Founded in 2015, the Festival is cross-cultural culinary adventure, showcasing Indonesia's diverse cuisine and extraordinary local produce.  Zennon joined us to discuss the restaurant trade, his career i...

The Asia New Zealand Foundation's Head of Research & Engagement Julia MacDonald is joined by Dr Henry Wang and Dr Mabel Miao, from the Centre for China & Globalisation in Beijing, to discuss the economic relationship between China and New Zealand, and the growing importance of growing people-to-people links between the two countries.   Tweet us at @AsiaMediaCentre Website asiamediacen...

In this episode of Asia Unfiltered, our host Kii Small chats to Oliver Ibbetson about his experiences living in Taiwan for ten percent of his life. Digressions include the real pay-off that comes with putting up your hand for opportunities, what it was like to do a Masters degree in Asia during peak Covid, and the phenomenal effectiveness of the Taiwanese health and education system. Asia Unfilter...

The development and expansion of renewable energy alternatives was the subject of a recent NZTE study tour to South Korea and Japan for Māori representitives.   Many countries across Asia are searching to meet 2050 energy targets but don’t have the natural resources.  Iwi/Māori entities in Aotearoa have access to natural resources but need investment to transform those resources to be exportable. ...

The Asia Foundation is a US-based nonprofit international development organization committed to improving lives and expanding opportunities across Asia and the Pacific. The Foundation’s work focusses on governance, climate action, gender equality, education and leadership, inclusive growth, and international cooperation.  TAF works in more than 20 countries with funding from a diverse array of bil...

In this episode of Asia Unfiltered, our host Arina Aizal chats to Wei-Wei Ng about her experiences living in Shanghai and Hong Kong. Digressions include the unique experience of growing up as a Chinese-Kiwi who moved to China, the successes and challenges of finding a job in Asia, and why a law degree may not be right for everyone.  Asia Unfiltered is an exploration of the stories and experiences...

The Asia New Zealand Foundation's 'Perceptions of Asia'  survey was released earlier this month - it is a unique insight into how New Zealanders are feeling about Asia and its peoples, and a useful guide to future policy-making. Today we speak to Professor Natasha Hamilton-Hart from Auckland University's Dept of Management and International Business. Professor Hamilton-Hart is...

The Asia New Zealand Foundation's annual "'New Zealanders' Perceptions of Asia and Asian Peoples" survey is in its 27th year, detailing changing trends in the way New Zealanders regard Asian nations and the people who live there. The survey is out today, and for a quick run-through of some of the central themes in the report we're joined by Asia New Zealand Foundation...

This week we talk to Dilhan C. Fernando, CEO of Dilmah Tea, the family-owned Sri Lankan company that forged its own path in the marketing of tea in New Zealand, and around the globe.     Tweet us at @AsiaMediaCentre Website asiamediacentre.org.nz Email us at media@asianz.org.nz Whakawhetai mo te whakarongo .. thanks for listening !

In this episode of Asia Unfiltered, our host, Kii Small, chats to the Asia New Zealand Foundation’s very own Alex Smith, about her experiences living in Shanghai and Taiwan. Digressions include what it’s like to study Mandarin Chinese as a young woman living in East Asia, and how a guilty pleasure for East Asian trash television can catapult you on a profound, life and career changing journey. ---...

Aung Myo Min is Minister/Representative for Human Rights in Myanmar's National Unity Government, and continuing to fight for an end to the current military junta which has ruled the country since Feb 2021. Recent reports indicate the junta has lost control of areas it once held, and men eligible for conscription have been barred from leaving the country amid a reported collapse in army morale...

Dr Michael Green is the 2024 Kippenberger Chair at the Centre for Strategic Studies at Victoria University in Wellington.  He's held a string of high-profile US foreign policy positions over many years, including in the George W Bush White House and at the Centre for Strategic Studies, and he's also currently head of the United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney. Mike join...

This week we join University of Canterbury Professor Alex Tan to discuss a recent "Track II" delegation to Taiwan, to hold the 9th annual dialogue with the Asia New Zealand Foundation's dialogue partner, the Prospect Foundation, as well as catch up with leading think tanks, academics and journalists. Alex brings the delegates together one last time to look back on their key takeaway...

Today we're joined by Dr Reuben Abraham. Reuben’s the CEO of Artha Global, a policy and research organization based in Mumbai and London. He’s a noted expert on India’s economic development, and is currently a Senior Fellow at New York University’s Marron Institute, an Asia Fellow at the Milken Institute in Singapore, and an Honorary Advisor to the Asia New Zealand Foundation.  He was also aw...

The AIIB is a multilateral development bank based in Beijing. It now has 109 members, including New Zealand. Its mission: to finance " infrastructure with sustainability at its core." Bank President Jin Liqun has been on a quick visit to NZ, and discusses the bank's goals and aspirations, as it continues to develop links to the Pacific.  Tweet us at @AsiaMediaCentre Website asiamedi...

This week’s guest is Thomas Parks, the Asia Foundation’s country representative in Thailand, where he manages programme addressing inequality, education, digital tech, and international relations. He also oversees the Foundation’s regional cooperation programs in Southeast Asia, with a strong focus on ASEAN. He’s been based in Thailand since 2008, and has spent time  in the Philippines, Myanmar, I...

In late 2022 Japan released its new security and defence policy. It swept away much of the self-restraint that had characterised Tokyo's attitude to security since 1945, and saw the Kishida Administration bringing defence and security issues to the fore. Today on the podcast we speak with Japanese foreign policy experts Professor Akiko Fukushima and Professor Ken Jimbo, on Japan's new na...

Cris D. Tran is a  Vietnam-based digital strategist working with the Frontier Leader Institute,  and a whole lot more besides. He's at the cutting edge of tech development across Asia, be it blockchain, AI , Web 2.0, or the vast array of tech advancements now  impacting on business and consumers. Cris is  in New Zealand to attend the Canterbury Tech Summit in Christchurch, and speaking on the...

Ramesh Thakur is Emeritus Professor in the Crawford School of Public Policy at the ANU in Canberra. In NZ recently, he discusses Indian geo-politics in 2023, the Nuclear Suppliers Group, and Delhi's mercurial External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar.  Tweet us at @AsiaMediaCentre Website asiamediacentre.org.nz Email us at media@asianz.org.nz Whakawhetai mo te whakarongo .. thanks for listening...

Singapore-based Andrew Tan has spent 28 years in the public sector where he's held key positions across various Singapore government agencies, from the Ministry of Information and the Arts, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and in the Prime Minister’s Office as the Private Secretary to Lee Kuan Yew.  He is also a former CEO at Singapore’s National Environment Agency, and Chief...

Myanmar's civil strife continues with opposition forces refusing to buckle amid a struggle that shows no immediate sign of ending. Meanwhile the junta insists nationwide elections can and will be held eventually. Dr Tun Aung Shwe is the NUG's representative in Canberra, and joins us to discuss the way forward in bringing democracy back to Myanmar.  Tweet us at @AsiaMediaCentre Website as...

Journalist Sam Sachdeva discusses his new book "The China Tightrope", a detailed look at the China-New Zealand relationship:  the good, the difficult, and the way ahead. How did we get here? And how can NZ best negotiate the minefield of trade pragmatism and principled foreign policy?    Tweet us at @AsiaMediaCentre Website asiamediacentre.org.nz Email us at media@asianz.org.nz Whakawhet...

After a Asia New Zealand Foundation trip to Indonesia in 2017, Northland teacher Brent Strathdee-Pehi had his eyes and ears opened to possibilities in and outside the classroom. He's now teaching at an International School in Timor Leste, and discovering more about the ties between Aotearoa and Asia, in language, music , and much more.    Tweet us at @AsiaMediaCentre Website asiamediacentre.o...

Professor Nick Bisley is an international relations professor and the Dean of Humanities at Melbourne’s La Trobe University. He’s researched and written extensively on political economy and globalisation in Asia. Nick was in NZ recently for a series of lectures looking at the post-Covid economic reformation underway in Asia, he joins us to discuss what he describes as the “scrambled -re-globalisat...

Brunei's 2nd Foreign Minister Dato Erywan Yusof was in New Zealand recently, and sat down for a brief chat on the current relationship between the two countries, the new upgrade to the ASEAN-Australia-NZ FTA, and the on-going challenge ASEAN is facing in de-fusing the Myanmar conflict.  Tweet us at @AsiaMediaCentre Website asiamediacentre.org.nz Email us at media@asianz.org.nz Whakawhetai mo...