Feature  

Rajawali Semester in Review

This past semester, the Rajawali Foundation Institute for Asia engaged in conversations and research on topics ranging from Indonesia’s election to US-Taiwan relations with the goal of continuing to develop policy solutions to the region’s most pressing concerns.

Collage of photos taken from various Rajawali events over the semester

Whether it’s commenting on the outcome of Indonesia’s momentous election or helping strengthen the US-Vietnam relationship through critical archival work, the Rajawali Foundation Institute for Asia is at the forefront of some of the region’s greatest challenges. Every semester, we continue to deepen our impact through our research, commentary, and events.  

As the semester wraps, we encourage you to explore the compilation of our most popular events and top insights below. Looking forward to the start of the next school year, we hope you’ll join us at one of our events, which can always be found online here.

Insights

Understanding Indonesia’s Recent Election 

Democracy and development were on the ballot during Indonesia’s national elections earlier in February according to experts at a Rajawali Foundation Institute for Asia event on what Prabowo Subianto’s victory now portends for the future of the country. 

Harvard research project aids return of wartime personal effects to Vietnamese veterans and families 

At a May event at the US Embassy in Hanoi, researchers from the Unseen Legacies team returned personal ephemera to families and veterans alongside research that helped answer decades-old questions about the fates of missing Vietnamese soldiers.  

Events

The Implications of Taiwan’s Presidential Election, 

January 29 

The Rajawali Foundation Institute for Asia and the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies co-hosted a webinar on Taiwan’s recent presidential election, which saw the Democratic Progressive Party’s Lai Ching-te capture the presidency. 

Implications of Indonesia’s Presidential Election: The Future of Democracy and National Development, 

February 23 

The Rajawali Foundation Institute for Asia hosted a Global Elections Webinar Series event to reflect on the implications of President Prabowo’s landslide victory for the state of democracy and prospects for national development in Indonesia. 

AI and Democracy – Threats, Promises, and Reality Checks, 

February 27 

This hybrid conversation tackled the pressing issue of artificial intelligence’s influence on democracy. The panel explored such dynamics in Taiwan’s recent election and the upcoming US election and offered ways of thinking about — and countering — such threats. 

Spillover Implications of a China Growing 0-2%, 

February 29 

This webinar delineated the consequences of China’s slowing economic growth and what kind of response is warranted from educators, policymakers, and business leaders.  

The Future of US-Taiwan Relations,

April 3 

During this event, Rajawali Foundation Institute for Asia Director Tony Saich spoke with Alexander Tah-ray Yui, Taiwan’s Representative to the United States, on the future of US-Taiwan relations.  

AAPI Solidarity in Action: AAPI Communities Shaping Democratic Futures, 

April 16 

Speakers Viet Thanh Nguyen and Shehab Chowdhury highlight the dynamic role of AAPI communities in advocacy, grassroots and liberation movements, and social activism. 

East Germany and China: A conversation with Axel Berkofsky, 

April 29 

The Rajawali Foundation Institute for Asia hosted a book talk with Axel Berkofsky, author of China-GDR Relations from 1949 to 1989: The (Bad) Company You Keep. 

News

The Real Roots of Xi Jinping Thought, Foreign Affairs, Rana Mitter 

The Great Creep Backward: Policy responses to China’s slowing economy, PolicyCast Rana Mitter 

Taiwan sees warning signs in weakening congressional support for Ukraine, Harvard Gazette, Tony Saich 

Biden Aims to Project United Front Against China at White House Summit, New York Times, Rana Mitter 

The U.S. vs China, The Face-Off, Rana Mitter 

What will a potential TikTok ban mean for Chinese tech in the U.S.?, CNN, Wenchi Yu 

Xi Jinping warns Putin to ‘hold back’ on using nuclear weapons, Times Radio, Rana Mitter 

Sharif’s Beijing trip: Can China-Pakistan Economic Corridor be revived?, Aljazeera, Stella (Hong) Zhang 

More from this Program

See All Programs

Fifty Years On: New Perspectives on the Vietnam Wars – Day Two
Hai Nguyen. Director of the Unseen Legacies of the Vietnam War Project and Global Vietnam Wars Studies Initiative standing at podium.

Feature

Fifty Years On: New Perspectives on the Vietnam Wars – Day Two

The second day of Fifty Years On: New Perspectives on the Vietnam Wars continued the conversations from Day One, exploring the wars’ lasting global and human impact. Building on the first day’s scholarship and personal reflections, Day Two featured three panels and a final roundtable. A first article covers Day One.

Fifty Years On: New Perspectives on the Vietnam Wars – Day One 
Attendants at day one of the Fifty Years On conference.

Feature

Fifty Years On: New Perspectives on the Vietnam Wars – Day One 

The first day of the Fifty Years On: New Perspectives on the Vietnam Wars conference presented new scholarship and firsthand reflections that expanded how the Vietnam Wars are remembered and studied. Scholars, veterans, and practitioners examined the conflict from multiple perspectives, centering Vietnamese and other international voices often missing from traditional narratives. A second article covers Day Two.

Vietnamese Diaspora: The Ongoing Journey of Conflict and Reconciliation
Rajawali Director Anthony Saich and panelists discuss.

Feature

Vietnamese Diaspora: The Ongoing Journey of Conflict and Reconciliation

Fifty years after the fall of Saigon, the panel “Vietnamese Diaspora: The Ongoing Journey of Conflict and Reconciliation,” highlighted personal and intergenerational experiences of loss, resilience, and renewal, offering insight into how the Vietnam Wars continue to shape Vietnamese communities today.

More on this Location

Fifty Years On: New Perspectives on the Vietnam Wars – Day Two
Hai Nguyen. Director of the Unseen Legacies of the Vietnam War Project and Global Vietnam Wars Studies Initiative standing at podium.

Feature

Fifty Years On: New Perspectives on the Vietnam Wars – Day Two

The second day of Fifty Years On: New Perspectives on the Vietnam Wars continued the conversations from Day One, exploring the wars’ lasting global and human impact. Building on the first day’s scholarship and personal reflections, Day Two featured three panels and a final roundtable. A first article covers Day One.

Fifty Years On: New Perspectives on the Vietnam Wars – Day One 
Attendants at day one of the Fifty Years On conference.

Feature

Fifty Years On: New Perspectives on the Vietnam Wars – Day One 

The first day of the Fifty Years On: New Perspectives on the Vietnam Wars conference presented new scholarship and firsthand reflections that expanded how the Vietnam Wars are remembered and studied. Scholars, veterans, and practitioners examined the conflict from multiple perspectives, centering Vietnamese and other international voices often missing from traditional narratives. A second article covers Day Two.

Vietnamese Diaspora: The Ongoing Journey of Conflict and Reconciliation
Rajawali Director Anthony Saich and panelists discuss.

Feature

Vietnamese Diaspora: The Ongoing Journey of Conflict and Reconciliation

Fifty years after the fall of Saigon, the panel “Vietnamese Diaspora: The Ongoing Journey of Conflict and Reconciliation,” highlighted personal and intergenerational experiences of loss, resilience, and renewal, offering insight into how the Vietnam Wars continue to shape Vietnamese communities today.