"Asia Insight" from the Asia Media Centre

"Asia Insight" from the Asia Media Centre is our podcast focusing on Asia-related issues and perspectives. 

The podcast will feature Asia experts from across the region, along with staff from the Asia New Zealand Foundation.

 New Zealanders' Perceptions of Asia 

The Asia New Zealand Foundation's annual "Perceptions of Asia" survey asks New Zealanders for their views on Asia and its peoples, and supports an informed public conversation regarding New Zealand's engagement with the region. Now in its 25th year, the survey is a unique insight on the growing connections between New Zealand and Asia. In this Asia Insight we speak to Suz Jessep, Director of Research and Engagement, about the survey, and about the Asia New Zealand Foundations' "Seriously Asia Revisited" project, which is currently underway.   

Asia Right Now: Shangri-La Dialogue 2022

In the second instalment of Asia Right Now, we talk about the Shangri-La Dialogue, a gathering of politicians, analysts, diplomats and business leaders from around the world who come together to debate issues. Graeme Acton chatted with attendees Professor David Capie from Victoria University in Wellington, and Newsroom correspondent Sam Sachdeva, to hear their impressions of the summit held earlier this month. 

Asia Right Now: China in the Pacific

The first in an occasional series looking behind the headlines at issues making news in the Asia-Pacific region. Asia Media Centre manager Graeme Acton talks with Professor Bates Gill - author and China analyst from Macquarie University in Sydney - on the new moves by China in the Pacific Islands. 

Asia Insight Series Two: Starting Up With Asia

In the second series, we take a look at the work being done by the Asia New Zealand Foundation to promote and foster young business talent in New Zealand and Asia. 

Episode 1 profiles two talented and inspiring wāhine, who are weaving indigenous connections through fashion. In the first part of a two-part discussion we talk to Reese Fernandez-Ruiz, of fashion and design house Rags2Riches (R2R), which works with community artisans in the Philippines, and Māori fashion designer, weaver and artist Kiri Nathan, about their remarkable collaboration. 

Episode 2 continues Adam McConnochie's discussion with Kiri Nathan and Reese Fernandez-Ruiz on doing business in Asian fashion markets and the best way for Kiwi companies to be engaging with Asia  

Episode 3 In this episode, Adam McConnochie speaks with Thai coffee entrepreneur Fuadi Pitsuwan, co-founder of specialty coffee company Beanspire, and Tesh Randall, founder of Raglan Food Co, currently supplying coconut yogurt into over 750 outlets across Asia. It's a breakfast match made in heaven! Both are hugely successful business owners, with high-quality products, and a strong commitment to sustainability.  

Episode 4: Adam McConnochie talks Asia and tech with two experts in the field: Bradley Scott and Cris Tran. Both are serial entrepreneurs with huge experience across a range of tech businesses in the region. Brad's in Auckland, and Chris is in Vietnam. How do you succeed in Asia in the tech world, and where are the new challenges coming from?  

Episode 5: In this episode, the Asia New Zealand Foundation's Alexis Allen speaks with Indonesian entrepreneur Adi Reza of Mycotech, and New Zealand entrepreneur Veronica Harwood-Stevenson of Humble Bee Bio, who are both creating innovative solutions in sustainability. Leather from mushrooms, and bioplastics from bees, it's all part of a sustainable future being built right now.

Asia Insight Series One: Asia-The Big Picture

Series one discusses some of the major developments in regional politics in the last year, as well as the trans-national political architecture of the region.

Episode 1: Asia - The Big Picture: AUKUS

The AUKUS agreement between the US, UK, and Australia took many by surprise when it was announced late last year. In this episode of Asia Insight, we're joined by international relations experts Professor Rob Ayson from Victoria University of Wellington and Professor Joanne Wallis from the University of Adelaide to look at the formation of AUKUS, and what it means for Australia, Asia, and New Zealand. 

Episode 2: Asia - The Big Picture : APEC & ASEAN 

They are acronyms well-known to many New Zealanders, but what exactly do APEC (The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum) and ASEAN ( The Association of South East Asian Nations mean to this country, and how well are they tracking during the pandemic? In this episode of Asia Insight, we speak to Alison Mann, NZ's former Senior Official to APEC and ASEAN, and to Mitchell Pham, Vietnamese-kiwi tech entrepreneur, for their perspectives on APEC, and ASEAN, as we head into 2022. 

Episode 3: Asia - NZ, Australia and China

In this edition of "Asia Insight" we take a look at the complex and important relationships between NZ, Australia and China. Tensions have escalated in the last 18 months between China and Australia, while NZ has remained a cautious observer, willing to speak its mind, but wary of any potential souring in the trade relationship. In a post-Covid recovery, the three nations will need each other more than ever. We're joined in the studio this week by Dr Bec Strating from La Trobe University in Melbourne, and Dr Jason Young, Director of the Contemporary China Research Centre at Victoria University in Wellington.

Episode 4: Asia - The Big Picture: The QUAD

It's called "The QUAD", the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue involving the USA, Australia, India and Japan. The diplomatic arrangement is widely seen as a counter to China in the Indo-Pacific, and brings together nations sharing much in common, but also with significant differences in their strategic outlook. In this episode, we discuss the QUAD with Professor Robert Patman, International Relations expert at Otago University, and with Suz Jessep, former Deputy High Commissioner to India, now head of Research and Engagement at the Asia New Zealand Foundation in Wellington.