Global Asia

Global Asia is a quarterly publication of the East Asia Foundation. The Foundation, established in Seoul in January 2005, strives to promote peace, prosperity, security and sustainability in East Asia by creating an open and creative forum for the exchange of ideas on regional co-operation and integration, among other goals.

The mission we have set for ourselves with Global Asia is both bold and urgent: It is to provide a compelling, serious, and responsible forum for distinguished thinkers, policymakers, political leaders and business people to debate the most important issues in Asia today.

Global Asia is not a journal with a fixed point of view, or a particular agenda. Our aim is to give voice to the global dimension of what is happening in Asia. In our pages and on our web site, we aim for Asia to speak to the world, and the world to Asia. That is important at a time when this region is playing an ever greater role in world affairs.

There are other fine publications on international affairs. What sets us apart is our focus: Asia. We believe that the world is moving into "the Age of Asia," to borrow a phrase from one of the articles in the inaugural issue of Global Asia in September 2006. This transformation is not going to occur overnight, but it has already begun.

The region’s dynamic economic growth, stable and accountable political systems, maturing democracies, and evolving sense of community are giving Asia greater weight in the world. These developments will have enormous implications for governments, businesses, societies and individuals across the globe. How that transformation is viewed, and shaped, from within Asia and how it is perceived outside Asia is an essential part of the story we have to tell.

The forces of globalization are having a profound impact throughout the world. And they are being influenced and channeled in different ways in different parts of the world. Ours is the story of Asia’s experience with globalization, and the ideas and debates influencing it. In pursuing our mission, we aim to play a part, however modest, in helping to shape the future of Asia.

This web site aims to offer an online platform for readers to enjoy the full contents of each new issue of Global Asia as it is published, to have access to our rich archive of all stories published in the journal since, and to join the debate on pressing topics of significance in our live blog stream, Global Asia Forum.

We welcome you to our site and hope you profit from being part of the Global Asia community.

Chung-in Moon, Editor-in-Chief
David Plott, Managing Editor

WHAT’S IN GLOBAL ASIA?

Global Asia contains the following types of articles:

Short Features These are sharp, strongly argued pieces of 1,500-2,000 words that present a compelling perspective on a topic of regional or global significance. Policy issues arising out of recent, major news events that call for informed, intelligent analysis often drive these feature articles.

Long Features These are pieces of between 3,000 and 5,000 words that provide a broad, historically informed perspective on a key issue, surveying the topic from a multitude of angles and providing the reader with a comprehensive perspective on the topic. These articles provide in-depth background. For our regular In Focus section we typically group two or three essays exploring a theme of topical importance.

The Debate This section provides a vigorous debate over a burning, contemporary policy issue, with two writers facing off in pieces of 1,000 to 1,500 words each. Writers are welcome to propose debate topics.

Commissioned Papers These are pieces of 2,000 to 3,000 words that we commission, and are in-depth essays on a wide variety of regional topics. The articles that make up our cover topic are typically commissioned papers.

Book Reviews These include pieces of 1,000 to 3,000 words that review one or more books and use the review as the basis for a broader essay on the subject matter of the books. These are supplemented by a series of between six and ten capsule reviews of recent books. We also occasionally publish excerpts of forthcoming books. Letters to the Editor Readers’ letters are published on an occasional basis and are edited for length and clarity. Letters may appear in either the print or online editions of Global Asia, or both. Please limit letters to 500 words maximum length.

THE GLOBAL ASIA FORUM

The online edition of Global Asia also includes a blog by well-informed guest writers called the Global Asia Forum. This consists of crisp, lively pieces of typically about 1,000 words taking a strong stand on a particular issue of topical importance to Asia. Readers are invited to comment on the pieces and engage the writer in an online debate through postings.

Articles written for the Global Asia Forum should be topical and address an issue of contemporary debate in Asia or about Asia’s place in the world. Contributors of articles to the Global Asia Forum will be paid a modest honorarium upon publication of the articles online. Proposals for articles for the Global Asia Forum should be made to the Managing Editor of Global Asia at editorial@globalasia.org.