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SSEAC Stories

by Sydney Southeast Asia Centre

SSEAC Stories is a podcast series produced by the Sydney Southeast Asia Centre at the University of Sydney. Experts join us in every episode to explore the latest research and share their insights on a wide range of topics pertaining to Southeast Asia.Visit our website for more information or to browse additional resources: sydney.edu.au/sseac.

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Episodes

  1. Childhood malnutrition and pneumonia in Timor-Leste

    Dr Nick Fancourt is a Horizon Fellow and Senior Lecturer in the Sydney Medical School. He also works as a paediatrician at the Children’s Hospital at Westmead. Nick researches childhood pneumonia, particularly in low and middle income countries. He lived in Timor-Leste from 2018-2020, working…

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  2. Marine Environment Assessment in Palawan, Philippines

    Dr Billy Haworth is a geographer interested in human-environment interactions, with expertise positioned at the intersection of human geography, critical GIS (geographic information systems), and international disaster studies. Billy’s work tries to better-understand experiences of, and…

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  3. Insects as a Natural and Cultural Resource across Southeast Asia

    Every year, World Wildlife Conservation Day is observed on 4 December. It reminds us of the importance of protecting our biodiversity, a message that is all the more urgent in the face of polycrises intensifying across the globe. At the foundational level of our ecosystems lie insects, which...

  4. Sustainable Teamwork and Team Leadership in Southeast Asia

    The workplace is forever facing new challenges. These challenges are also unique in the context of Southeast Asia. Effective team work and leadership are at the core of organisational success. Yet much remains under investigated in how we can best help organisations and their teams and leaders in...

  5. Agricultural and Resource Economics in Vietnam

    Agriculture remains a key sector of the economies of most Southeast Asian countries. It is supposed to provide nutritious, affordable, accessible and safe food to the people of SE Asia, and livelihood to more than 400 million farmers across the region. How is agriculture affected by climate…

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  6. Investing in Southeast Asia: Key insights for Australian Researchers

    Southeast Asia is of vital importance to Australia. As a nation, Australia’s prosperity, security and economic future are intimately connected to the region. According to the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs, Southeast Asia is expected to be the fourth largest economy in the world by…

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  7. "The Languages of Indonesian Politics" Revisited

    In 1966 Benedict Anderson published 'The Languages of Indonesian Politics', a seminal paper exploring the development of Indonesian as a new language for talking about national politics. In that paper Anderson underlined the contrast between the formal/official style of Indonesian news reports…

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  8. Lesbian Poetry in the Philippines

    Lesbian poetry as a form of socio-political praxis in the Philippine context. This episode’s guest argues that lesbian writing – by lesbians and about lesbians – is a form of activism and decolonial praxis, as well as an important form of political identity. Dr Naomi Cammayo’s academic/literary...

  9. Politics in Action 2024: Myanmar Update

    Politics in Action is an annual forum in which invited experts provided an analysis of the current political situation in Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Vietnam, and discussed the broader implications of events in these countries for the region. After the event, each of the six...

  10. Politics in Action 2024: Malaysia Update

    Politics in Action is an annual forum in which invited experts provided an analysis of the current political situation in Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Vietnam, and discussed the broader implications of events in these countries for the region. After the event, each of the six...

  11. Politics in Action 2024: Singapore Update

    Politics in Action is an annual forum in which invited experts provided an analysis of the current political situation in Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Vietnam, and discussed the broader implications of events in these countries for the region. After the event, each of the six...

  12. Politics in Action 2024: Laos Update

    Politics in Action is an annual forum in which invited experts provided an analysis of the current political situation in Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Vietnam, and discussed the broader implications of events in these countries for the region. After the event, each of the six...

  13. Politics in Action 2024: Vietnam Update

    Politics in Action is an annual forum in which invited experts provided an analysis of the current political situation in Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Vietnam, and discussed the broader implications of events in these countries for the region. After the event, each of the six...

  14. Politics in Action 2024: Indonesia Update

    Politics in Action is an annual forum in which invited experts provided an analysis of the current political situation in Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Vietnam, and discussed the broader implications of events in these countries for the region. After the event, each of the six...

  15. Building a More Inclusive Society: Disability and Work in Timor-Leste

    What does an inclusive society look like? And what are the challenges and opportunities when the society in question, Timor-Leste, is one of the most resource-constrained in Southeast Asia? My guest today is interested in these questions of inclusion and participation, and argues that people with…

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  16. Women’s Experiences of Workplace Gender-based Violence and Harassment in Cambodia’s Construction Industry

    In Cambodia, the government and civil society organisations have paid significant attention to Gender-based Violence and Harassment, within both the domestic sphere and, increasingly, in the workplace context. A major driver behind this increased scrutiny of GBVH issues is the presence of...

  17. Financial Access and Socio-Economic Development in Indonesia

    Globally, 1.4 billion people are considered to be “financially excluded,” meaning they cannot safely access appropriate and affordable financial services. Muslim communities have particularly high levels of financial exclusion – for example, Muslim-majority countries have 24% lower participation...

  18. Use of Bacteriophages as Natural Antimicrobials to Manage Bacterial Pathogens in Aquaculture in Vietnam and Australia

    Aquaculture is the fastest-growing protein production industry globally, with Vietnam one of the top producers and exporters of seafood products. In Vietnam, aquaculture is seen as a means of protecting rural livelihoods threatened by the consequences of climate change on agriculture. But climate...

  19. Kawi Culture: Exploring Indonesia’s Classical Civilisation

    Have you ever heard of Kawi? Much of what is considered “classical” in Indonesian history, such as the Borobudur temple complex or the kingdom of Majapahit, is a product of Kawi Culture. In fact, Indonesian society emerged from the ancient traditions of Kawi Culture, which stretch back over a...

  20. SSEAC Cambodia Field School: Anti-Microbial Resistance in Cambodia

    In the last of our five special podcasts about from the recent SSEAC field schools to Southeast Asia, we will be hearing from students and staff from the field school to Cambodia, which looked anti-microbial resistance (AMR). This field school was offered to students from medical sciences,...

  21. SSEAC Timor Leste Field School: Disability and Work

    In the fourth of five special podcasts about from the recent SSEAC field schools to Southeast Asia, we will be hearing from students and staff from the field school to Timor Leste, which looked at disability and work. This field school was offered to students from health sciences, psychology, and...

  22. SSEAC Philippines Field School: Disaster Risk and Resilience

    In the third of five special podcasts about from the recent SSEAC field schools to Southeast Asia, we will be hearing from students and staff from the field school to the Philippines, which looked at disaster risk and resilience. This field school was offered to students from Engineering,...

  23. SSEAC Indonesia Field School: Social Justice

    In the second of five special podcasts about from the recent SSEAC field schools to Southeast Asia, we will be hearing from students and staff from the field school to Indonesia, which looked at social justice. This field school was offered to students from law, political economy, geography…

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  24. SSEAC Singapore Field School: COVID Vaccination Rollout

    In the first of five special podcasts hearing from the recent SSEAC field schools to Southeast Asia, we will be talking with students and staff from the field school to Singapore, which was looking at the COVID Vaccination Rollout in Singapore. This field school was offered to students from...

  25. Working Children: The Luxury and Complexity of Childhood in Lombok, Indonesia

    The International Labour Organization estimates that in Southeast Asia there are 30 million children engaged in paid work, 17 million in engaged in unpaid work and 50 million who don’t attend school. These figures can be a shock to people living in countries like Australia where childhood is...

  26. Inequality as a Leading Cross-Cutting Development Issue: Indonesia and Beyond

    Inequality has always been key to understanding Indonesia’s development. But this is a multidimensional issue, and one that has manifested in vastly different ways in Indonesia over the years: from low and stable inequality, to the aspiration to inequality, to the relationship between inequality...

  27. Why Consumers Choose Private Over Public Health Services in Vietnam

    Demographic changes, rise in disposable income, and steady economic growth has led to a growing demand for healthcare services in Vietnam. But the public healthcare system struggles to meet the diverse healthcare needs of the Vietnamese population. Within this context, the private sector in…

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  28. Is Laos a Criminal State?: Kearrin Sims on the Current Status of Laos

    There is a growing list of human rights abuses and acts of violence against those who have sought to promote political transparency and freedom in Laos. Laos has long been an authoritarian state with no tolerance for public criticism. Increasingly, however, it appears to be also becoming a…

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  29. Agricultural Shocks and Social Conflict in Southeast Asia

    In lower–income economies, a small change in people’s wellbeing may trigger a suite of behavioral responses, some of which may be unlawful as well as violent. Motives and modes of conflict vary. In regions with high agricultural dependence, conflict can be linked with harvest-time windfalls....

  30. Locating Human Dignity in Cambodia: Prospects for Human Rights Education

    The concept of human dignity is a foundational one within human rights discourses, and is commonly used in the context of human rights and sustainable development policies and programs. But the meaning of ‘human dignity’, and its role, have seldom been interrogated rigorously or systematically....

  31. The Politics of Ethnicity in the Malay World

    Malaysia is a classic example of a plural society, with a diverse population consisting of the indigenous peoples, collectively called bumiputera, and the descendants of immigrant populations from southern China, South Asia, the Middle East and Europe. In this multi-ethnic context, the question…

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  32. Social Media Influencers and Digital Media Regulation in Vietnam

    In 2021, a famous Vietnamese businesswoman hosted a three-hour long Facebook livestream, in which she named and shamed celebrities for their controversial public behaviours. This formed part of a regular pattern of personal attacks, in which she weaponised livestreaming to denounce media and...

  33. A New Hope? Japanese Retirement Migration to Malaysia

    In post-growth Japan, some people are looking to Southeast Asia, especially Malaysia, as a source of new hope. A notable change in the recent pattern of global migration is the movement of people within Asia. Previous studies on Asian migration have mostly considered the movement of people from...

  34. Shaping Civilisations: The Sea in Asian History

    The ocean is more connective device than barrier, bringing together diverse topics, time-periods and geographies. It has linked and connected the various littorals of Asia into a segmented, yet at the same time, a unitary circuit over roughly the past 500 years since the so-called age of contact...

  35. Making Sense of the 2022 General Elections in Malaysia

    On 9 November 2022, Malaysia held its 15th General Elections. These elections took place within an unprecedentedly open and fragmented political landscape. Instead of the usual two main coalitions contending as frontrunners, Malaysia now has three main coalitions: Barisan Nasional (BN), Pakatan...

  36. The ‘Domino Effect’: Global and Regional Climate Change Impacts on Food Supply Chains

    There is a complex relationship between climate change and food systems. Food supply chains – in particular food transportation – result in global greenhouse gas emissions, and these emissions are known to be a driving force underlying climate change. But it also works the other way. Joining Dr...

  37. Safe and Sound? On the Intersection of Child Protection and Child and Youth Residential Care in the Philippines

    In the Philippines, unknown numbers of children are in institutional care. Commonly known as residential care or orphanages, these institutions have been established to fill a social welfare gap, and to better support child welfare and protection efforts. But what are the implications for the...

  38. Public Participation and Contested Hydropower Development in the Mekong River Basin

    Regional demand for renewable hydropower from the Mekong River and its tributaries in Laos is on the rise. In June 2022, Laos exported one hundred megawatts of hydropower to Singapore via Thailand and Malaysia – a historic milestone that further establishes Laos as the battery of Asia. However,...

  39. Sustainable Peatland Management and Transboundary Haze in Southeast Asia

    Indonesian citizens, and those of neighbouring Southeast Asian countries, have long suffered recurring haze pollution caused by peatland fires in Indonesia. To avoid these forest fires, and reduce the environmental harm and negative health impacts that transboundary haze gives rise to, Indonesia...

  40. Civil Society, Capitalism, and Political Regimes in Southeast Asia

    Working on Southeast Asia, one thing we tend to hear a lot of is the notion that civil society is shrinking, and that authoritarianism is on the rise. In fact the rise of anti-democratic and anti-liberal forces and ideas seems to be on the rise around the world, not just in the region. Joining Dr...

  41. Ethics, Utopia and Materiality: Glimpses of Everyday Creativity and Hope in Indonesian Papua

    The Asmat are an indigenous people of Indonesian Papua and are renowned for their artistic carving flair and complex life-cycle rituals. They also have big ambitions that reach as far as the Vatican. Over the past five decades, pressures from the state, religious authorities, and the global art...

  42. Social Media and Political Participation in the Philippines

    We are all familiar with the spread of disinformation on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. But just when we thought we’d seen the worst of it, along comes TikTok. What started out as an app for dance challenges and musical duets has, in recent times, emerged as one of...

  43. Material Matters: Reflections on the History of Settlement Development Across Mainland Southeast Asia

    Despite decades of research into the historic settlements of Mainland Southeast Asia, our understanding of the region’s long-term settlement history remains incomplete. We know, for example, that mainland Southeast Asia was home to the world’s most extensive pre-industrial low-density urban…

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  44. Vietnam and China: Strange Bedfellows in the Era of Strategic Competition

    As the Asia-Pacific becomes the central stage of the US-China rivalry, Vietnam has emerged as one of the key countries to watch. While Vietnam has positioned itself as a critical player in the United States’ Indo-Pacific strategy, and Hanoi’s distrust of China has grown in response to Beijing’s...

  45. Edging Towards New Politics? Reflections on Malaysia’s Democracy after GE14

    After decades of authoritarian rule by the Barisan Nasional coalition, a new alliance, Pakatan Harapan, was voted in in 2018, marking Malaysia’s first-ever transfer of federal power through elections in what was widely heralded as the start of a democratic transition. But that new government...

  46. East Timorese Politics: A New Dawn or Return to Business as Usual?

    As the newest nation in Southeast Asia, Timor-Leste has been independent for just over 20 years. Timor-Leste is regularly ranked the most democratic nation in the region, and since reclaiming independence in May 2002, the country’s political situation has grown increasingly complex, with the...

  47. Opposing Power: Building Opposition Alliances in Electoral Autocracies

    On 9 May 2018, an ideologically diverse opposition alliance called Pakatan Harapan (PH) defeated the long-ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition which had dominated politics in Malaysia since the 1980s. This was the first regime change in Malaysia’s history. This outstanding development was…

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  48. Reshaping the Politics of Science: Bioscience Governance in Indonesia

    The last few years have brought to the fore the brilliant work of scientists as they worked to find a vaccine for Covid-19. But have you ever stopped to think about the role of biological materials in this and other science- and health-related research? In this episode of SSEAC Stories, Dr Natali...

  49. HouseMate: Lessons from Singapore on How to Provide Universal Cheap Homeownership

    While Australia prides itself on being an egalitarian society, and owning a detached house on fenced block of land plays a much-revered role in the Great Australian Dream, in practice, home ownership remains a luxury afforded to the few. As skyrocketing house prices have gradually locked millions...

  50. All Industry is Creative Industry: New Creativity and Innovation Practices in Vietnam

    Recent economic development in Vietnam has seen a proliferation of manufacturing. At the same time, Vietnam has embraced creative innovation as part of its move towards the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Throughout the country, new creativity and innovation practices are emerging. These practices...

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ABOUT THIS SHOW

SSEAC Stories is a podcast series produced by the Sydney Southeast Asia Centre at the University of Sydney. Experts join us in every episode to explore the latest research and share their insights on a wide range of topics pertaining to Southeast Asia.Visit our website for more information or to browse additional resources: sydney.edu.au/sseac.

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Sydney Southeast Asia Centre

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SSEAC Stories is a podcast series produced by the Sydney Southeast Asia Centre at the University of Sydney. Experts join us in every episode to explore the latest research and share their insights on a wide range of topics pertaining to Southeast Asia.Visit our website for more information or to...

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