Global Transitions and Asia 2060: Climate, Political-Economy, and Identity

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Introduction Excerpt

The conference “Global Transitions and Asia 2060: Climate, Political-Economy, and Identity” was jointly sponsored by three institutions from three nations: Tamkang University, Taipei, Taiwan; Foundation For the Future, Bellevue, Washington USA; and Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea. Organizers were Dr. Sohail Inayatullah, Professor in the Graduate Institute of Futures Studies at Tamkang University; Sesh Velamoor, Trustee and Director of Programs for Foundation For the Future; and Dr. Jae-ryong Song, Professor in the Department of Sociology at Kyung Hee University.

The event was hosted by Tamkang University, beginning with a reception and roundtable discussion on November 3, 2010, and continuing with two full days of meetings on the Tamsui campus on November 4 and 5. On November 6, all conference participants were invited to join in Tamkang’s Diamond Jubilee celebration of its 60th anniversary. Scholars from India, China, Korea, Malaysia, Iran, Oman, Bangladesh, Australia, Taiwan, and Pakistan convened for face-to-face discussions on the 50-year future of Asia.

The purpose of the conference was to embed a long-term futures-thinking approach in current policy discussions on the future of Asia in academic, governmental, and business arenas. The objective was to explore the future of Asia given current conditions on the planet, expressed in three subthemes: 1) Asia at the carbon and energy crossroads, 2) Asia and new models of economy and governance – toward an Asian Union, and 3) Asian identity in transition and transformation.