While the rest of the world still struggles with a deadly pandemic, Beijing has suppressed the spread of COVID-19 and is executing an exit plan to make the most of its opportunities in a changing world, where "the east is rising while the west is declining".

A live recording of the Asia Rising podcast.

Guest: 
Chris Buckley (Chief China correspondent for The New York Times).

Recorded with a live zoom audience on 30th March 2021.

Asia Rising

China's COVID-19 Exit Plan

The catastrophic attacks of 9/11 led to successful US-led military effort to overthrow the Taliban regime and dismantle al-Qaeda’s terrorism training camps in Afghanistan. Britain took the lead in creating the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) to stabilise the country and support the new government. Why did the ISAF mission fail, and what are the wider lessons from the Afghanistan war for security in the Asia-Pacific.
 
Guest: Professor Theo Farrell (Vice-Chancellor, La Trobe University)
Author of Unwinnable: Britain’s War in Afghanistan published by Penguin Books.

Recorded 22nd July, 2024.

The British in Afghanistan

After more than 70 years of Chinese rule, much has changed in Tibet, and one notable decline is that of language diversity. There are currently around sixty minority languages spoken in Tibet, in some cases by just a few thousand people, but that number is collapsing under assimilatory state policies. 

Book: The Politics of Language Oppression in Tibet by Gerald Roche, published by Cornell University Press.

Guest: Assoc. Professor Gerald Roche (Politics, La Trobe University)

Recorded on 17th October, 2024.

The Politics of Language Oppression in Tibet

Its been more than 70 years since China annexed Tibet, and in that time there has been a noticeable decrease in political representation. There has been an increasing centralisation of power by Han Chinese officials, undercutting Tibetan representation in key political and administrative roles, and it’s a trend that has only accelerated under the leadership of Xi Jinping.

Guests:
Professor James Leibold (Politics at La Trobe University)
Dr Devendra Kumar (Associate Fellow, Centre of Excellence for Himalayan Studies, Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence)

Recorded 27th November, 2024.


Political Respresentation in Tibet

It’s been four years since the Myanmar government was overthrown in a military coup, with the promise of a swift election never eventuating. Since that time the public sentiment has soured and resistance has grown, and a long civil war is being fought within its borders.

Guest: Hunter Marston (PhD candidate, Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs, Australian National University and an Adjunct Research Fellow at La Trobe Asia)

Recorded on Friday 24th January, 2025.



Myanmar's Civil War Continues

In his first month as the newly sworn in President of the United States Donald Trump signed a raft of executive orders, one of which was the near total freeze of all foreign aid, and the drastic reduction of the United States Agency for International Development. This move will have lasting repurcussions for the welfare of many of the world's poorest populations, not to mention the international reputation of the United States.

Guest:
Associate Professor Lisa Denney (Director, Centre for Human Security and Social Change, La Trobe University)

Recorded on the 18th February, 2025.


What Does Asia Look Like Without USAID?

The global south is struggling with extreme weather patterns and how to respond, with the Philippines being no exception. Since the devastation of the  2013 Haiyan typhoon, more than 15 thousand households have been relocated from the coast to Tacloban North, and this climate gentrfication has caused inequalities amongst the residents.

Guests:
Associate Professor Brooke Wilmsen (Social Enquiry, La Trobe University)
Dr Justin See (Development Studies, University of Melbourne)

Recorded on 21st February, 2025.


Climate Gentrification in the Philippines

Australian headlines in late February were dominated by the activities of the Chinese navy’s Task Group 107 as it progressed south along the Australian coast and conducted a series of live-fire exercises.

To the media and a segment of politicians this is a big deal, and at the very least it signals a message that China is trying to send to Australia.

Guest: Professor Bec Strating (Director, La Trobe Asia)

Recorded on 3rd March, 2025.

Why is the Chinese Navy Close to Australia?

Asia Rising, the podcast of La Trobe Asia which takes a critical look at the key issues facing Asia's states and societies.

China's COVID-19 Exit Plan

Asia Rising

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