Members of ACUNS Tokyo Liaison Office, namely Sukehiro Hasegawa, Director, Ai Kihara-Hunt, Deputy Director, Herman Salmon, Deputy Director, Dahlia Simangan, Arbenita Sopaj, and Elizabeth Gamarra discussed how to reach out to the actual and potential members first in the Southeast Asia region and to hold its first online ACUNS Tokyo Forum on November 7.
Aim and Direction
ACUNS Tokyo Liaison Office aims to assist ACUNS in reaching out to the actual and potential members in the Asian region, and to bring in discussions on the themes and regions that warrant more attention in the ACUNS forum.
Strategy
Our strategy is two-fold.
Firstly, in line with ACUNS’ attempt to build a network involving the ‘Global South’, which is also the backbone of ACUNS headquarters’ ‘UN75 Research Network’, the Office reaches out to and engages with actual and potential members of ACUNS in the area. The primary target of this consideration is scholars and practitioners located in East Asia and South East Asia.
Secondly, in order to make discussions at ACUNS for more full-fledged and comprehensive, the Office aims to facilitate research and discussion on the region, in particular on East and Southeast Asia. The Office will proactively engage in related discussions, facilitate and organize events, and create a space for discussions and debates.
Action Plan
1. Periodic seminars, possibly once or twice a year, will be organized by the ACUNS Liaison Office in consultation and partnership with ACUNS headquarters. A theme will be chosen that is focused on the region in relation to the UN system or global governance, and careful balance will be sought to engage diverse opinions. For the year 2020, due to the COVID-19 situation, the event will be organized on-line towards the end of 2020.
2. Periodic ‘Global South Chat’ events (working title) will be organized to engage early career/student researchers, particularly from the Global South, possibly every other month. Themes are selected within the overall theme of ACUNS, with each event addressing a different aspect of it, or discussing from a different angle.
3. Conduct ACUNS promotion activities at suitable occasions, such as academic gatherings, university events, seminars and other events on related topics.
