Ear to Asia

Fresh after winning his second term as Indonesia’s president, Joko Widodo faces stagnant economic growth, high youth unemployment, greater financial dependence on China, and a still powerful oligarchy. What reforms will Jokowi pursue, and what will be his political legacy? Indonesia watchers Professor Vedi Hadiz and Dr. Ariane Utomo join presenter Ali Moore to discuss Jokowi 2.0. An Asia Institute...

While both China and Japan run museums dedicated to the horrors of WWII, how well are the facts allowed to speak for themselves? And how are memories of war used to shape domestic and foreign-relations agendas of today? East Asia political scientists Dr Sow Keat Tok and Dr Delia Lin join presenter Ali Moore to discuss their impressions from field research of war museums in China and Japan. An Asia...

Southeast Asia historian Dr Matthew Galway discusses Cambodia’s politics, culture and history through the lens of Hun Sen, the nation’s strongman prime minister since 1985. Presented by Ali Moore. An Asia Institute podcast Produced and edited by Profactual - the Podcasting Specialists Music by audionautix.com

How does Pakistan fit into Xi Jinping’s geopolitical ambitions for China? And how do the deepening military and economic ties between China and Pakistan impact on that other vital player in the region: India? Political scientists Dr Pradeep Taneja and Dr Zahid Ahmed discuss the intertwined fates of these three nations with presenter Ali Moore. An Asia Institute podcast Produced and edited by Profa...

Social anthropologist Prof. Kaori Okano talks to presenter Ali Moore about the life transitions of a group of Japanese women whom she has interviewed regularly over the past 30 years. Sociolinguist Dr. Ikuko Nakane joins the discussion to examine how their spoken language has reflected their life changes. An Asia Institute podcast Produced and edited by Profactual - the Podcasting Specialists Musi...

China's citizens are now demanding more from the nation’s healthcare system, with its tangle of institutions, insurance plans and bureaucratic rules. So how do ordinary Chinese seek medical help? And how does rising marketization fit with the socialist aims of the Chinese Communist Party? Asia historian Dr Lewis Mayo and medical sociologist Dr Jane Brophy peel back the layers of healthcare in Chin...

While Chinese notions of an ideal society can be traced back more than two millennia to Confucius, it’s the Chinese Communist Party that claims it’s taking China on the path to a utopia. China historians Dr Craig Smith and Dr Matt Galway discuss the rhetoric and reality behind the CCP’s quest for the perfect society. Presented by Ali Moore. An Asia Institute podcast Produced by profactual.com Musi...

Japan's population is shrinking at the alarming 1000 people per day, with ominous implications for the nation’s economy and society. Can solutions be found in more family-friendly corporate culture, attracting migrants or even robotics? Migration and diversity expert Assoc Prof Nana Oishi unpacks Japan’s depopulation phenomenon on Ear to Asia. Presented by Peter Clarke. An Asia Institute podcast P...

Caught between China’s geopolitical ambitions and the United States’ questionable commitment to the region, can Indonesia stick to its long held position of not forming alliances with major powers? Political scientists and Indonesia watchers Dr Dave McRae and Dr Evi Fitriani unpack Indonesia’s foreign policy, and explore the options and challenges ahead. Presented by Ali Moore. An Asia Institute p...

Diasporas, once viewed by their homelands as merely remittance cash cows, are increasingly being seen by labor-exporting governments as a broader resource for domestic development programs and capacity building. Political economist Prof Andrew Rosser and demographer Assoc Prof Yan Tan unpack the contemporary relationships between diasporas and their motherlands. Presented by Peter Clarke. An Asia...

Can India’s current prime minister, Narendra Modi, lead his party, the BJP, to another victory in the world’s biggest election in 2019? India watchers Professor Robin Jeffrey and Dr Pradeep Taneja discuss Modi, his record as India’s leader, and the prospects of the opposition, led by the Congress party’s Rahul Gandhi. Presented by Ali Moore. An Asia Institute podcast . Produced by profactual.com ....

How do the people of Taiwan identify themselves and their society? Most have ancestry that can be traced to the Chinese mainland and now speak Mandarin, but does a uniquely layered history set them apart? Asia-Pacific historian Dr Lewis Mayo and political scientist Dr Sow Keat Tok, both of Asia Institute, examine the notions of ethnic and national identity on the island and discuss the implication...

Confucianism is experiencing a revival in China, with President Xi Jinping now publicly endorsing Confucius’ millennia-old principles of personal morality, social order and justice. So what’s behind the fresh embrace of a philosophy once shunned by Mao Zedong? China watchers Dr Delia Lin and Dr Craig Smith join Ali Moore to delve in to the past, present and future of Confucianism in China. An Asia...

The Indian Ocean, long assumed by India to be its own "backyard", is now host to growing economic and military inroads by China. Asia watchers and political analysts Prof. Derek McDougall and Dr. Pradeep Taneja discuss China’s possible designs in the region and the geopolitical risk its mounting presence there may bring. Presented by Ali Moore. An Asia Institute podcast Produced by profactual.com...

While poverty in Indonesia has declined significantly in the 20 years since the fall of Suharto, the gap between the rich and poor has only got worse. Political economists Prof Andrew Rosser and Dr Rachael Diprose discuss the troubling social, health and educational consequences of this rising inequality for ordinary Indonesians. Presented by Peter Clarke. An Asia Institute podcast produced by pro...

China’s South-North Water Transfer Project, the world’s largest-ever diversion scheme, is being rolled out to take water from the Yangtze River in the country’s south to quench the thirst of its parched and populous north. Geographers Dr Sarah Rogers and Dr Min Jiang discuss the social, environmental and governance implications of China’s most ambitious engineering megaproject to date. Presented b...

China’s social credit system is being rolled out and will by 2020 track the behavior of all of its 1.4 billion citizens, doling out rewards and punishments to individuals and communities. Asia Institute China analysts Dr Fengshi Wu and Dr Delia Lin ponder whether the system will succeed in bringing unprecedented security and stability to Chinese society or condemn it to a dystopian future. Present...

Given the notably mixed results of recent elections in the region, just how healthy is the practice of democracy in Southeast Asia? To distinguish the rhetoric from the political reality, we’re joined by keen Southeast Asia political observers Prof Garry Rodan, Director of the Asia Research Centre at Murdoch University, and by Dr Avery Poole, Assistant Director of the Melbourne School of Governmen...

Two decades after winning its independence from Indonesia, Timor-Leste is still grappling with delivering clean water and sanitation to its people, both in Dili and in rural areas. With first-hand accounts of the challenges as well as success stories, we’re joined by Melbourne School of Government development specialist Dr Kate Neely and public health expert Naomi Francis from the Nossal Institute...

Is rising nationalism among citizens of China a natural result of the country’s growing power, or is it being manufactured and stoked by a Chinese Communist Party only looking out for its own interests? In this episode of Ear to Asia, Asia Institute political scientists Dr Sow Keat Tok and Dr Delia Lin consider the origins and implications of a patriotism with Chinese characteristics. Presented by...

Two decades after the fall of the authoritarian Suharto regime, is Indonesia finally taking its human rights record seriously? Historian Dr Kate McGregor and socio-legal researcher Dr Ken Setiawan gauge how well Indonesia has come to terms with its violent past, and whether commitments to reform and justice made after the strongman’s exit are being met with real action. Presented by Peter Clarke....

China recently abolished term limits for its presidency, clearing the way for Xi Jinping to continue indefinitely — possibly for life — as boss of the People’s Republic. Asia Institute’s China watchers Dr Fengshi Wu and Dr Sow Keat Tok shed light on Xi Jinping’s possible motives and strategy, and their implications for China and the world. Presented by Ali Moore. An Asia Institute podcast, produce...

China, after decades of economic growth and a draconian policy limiting families to only one child, now faces a rapidly ageing population, together with a declining workforce and too many men. Sociologist Martin Whyte and development economist Lauren Johnston look at what this demographic trajectory will mean for China’s economy and the lives of the Chinese people. Presented by Peter Clarke. An As...

As Indonesia gears up for important elections in 2018 and 2019, we talk with political observers Prof Vedi Hadiz and Dr Dave McRae to untangle the many strands of the island nation’s political life and get a glimpse of how the tension between democracy and pluralism there may play out. Presented by Ali Moore. An Asia Institute podcast, produced by Profactual.com . More information about this and o...

Asia researchers Dr Jun Ohashi and Dr Jay Song consider the optics of Japan’s relations with it neighbours, the Koreas and China, where decades-old memories of Japanese invasion and subjugation remain front and centre. What will it take for Japan to overcome its wartime history and regain the trust of these nations? Presented by Ali Moore. An Asia Institute podcast, produced by Profactual.com . Mo...