<\/a><\/p>\n It is with great pleasure that I pen my first note as president of CCSEAS. Let me first start off by thanking Abidin Kusno for his excellent leadership of CCSEAS in the past two years. Under his leadership CCSEAS has now established a permanent secretariat at the York Centre for Asian Research at York University, and has also developed a more extensive website. Abidin has also strengthened links between CCSEAS and Global Affairs Canada, ensuring that our organization will have continuous intellectual and policy dialogue with Ottawa.<\/p>\n As president of CCSEAS, I am especially eager to advance three goals. First, I would like to encourage more graduate students to join CCSEAS. With the demise of CASA (Canadian Area Studies Association), CCSEAS represents the only major organization in Canada focused on Southeast Asian Studies, as well as Asian Studies. It is therefore an excellent organization for graduate students in Canada to engage with. In particular, CCSEAS\u2019s biennial conference provides an ideal venue for students to present their research in a welcoming and supportive environment. The biennial conference also facilitates significant opportunity to meet other students and scholars with common interests. Second, I believe it is important for CCSEAS to continue to engage with the policy realm through further dialogue with Global Affairs, NGOs, and other government and civil society institutions. As the premier organization on Southeast Asian Studies in Canada, CCSEAS should have wide reach beyond the academy and should speak to the current issues that Southeast Asia faces, including the plight of the Rohingya, rising illiberalism, and military dictatorship. Third, given the fact that CCSEAS is now the only Asian Studies organization in Canada, it would be important for CCSEAS to extend dialogue toward other Asian regions, such as Northeast Asia and South Asia. At our biennial conference, panels that address Northeast Asia and South Asia should also be encouraged \u2013 especially when placed in comparative perspective with Southeast Asia.<\/p>\n Finally, I close by encouraging everyone to submit papers and panels for the 24-26 October 2019 CCSEAS Conference in Montreal. The theme for the conference is \u201cPower in Southeast Asia.\u201d The conference will be jointly held in Montreal at the University of Sherbrooke (Longueuil campus) and McGill University. Please see the call for papers in this newsletter for the details. I look forward to seeing you in Montreal in October 2019!<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n L\u2019urbanisation \u00e0 Hanoi transforme la forme de la ville. Des villages mill\u00e9naires \u00e0 la p\u00e9riph\u00e9rie de la capitale vietnamienne, autrefois entour\u00e9s de rizi\u00e8res, c\u00f4toient d\u00e9sormais des gratte-ciels jonch\u00e9s de grues, des centres commerciaux dynamiques et des boulevards embouteill\u00e9s. De grands ensembles immobiliers int\u00e9gr\u00e9s \u2013 \u00ab nouvelles zones urbaines \u00bb ou khu do thi moi<\/em> en vietnamien (ci-apr\u00e8s KDTM) \u2013 voient le jour \u00e0 la porte de ces multiples villages, changeant profond\u00e9ment les modes de vie ancestraux. Ce mod\u00e8le de d\u00e9veloppement urbain, datant des ann\u00e9es 1990, vise \u00e0 fournir des logements de bonne qualit\u00e9 \u00e0 la population urbaine en forte croissance dans l\u2019ensemble du pays, et ce, dans des environnements modernes. Au tournant du nouveau mill\u00e9naire, les KDTM sont devenus le mod\u00e8le dominant de la production planifi\u00e9e du logement dans la marge des villes vietnamiennes. Or, ces nouvelles constructions ont des impacts majeurs dans leur milieu d\u2019insertion, elles d\u00e9stabilisent le territoire p\u00e9riurbain et les milieux villageois pr\u00e9existants ainsi que leurs populations. Notamment, leur construction entra\u00eene l\u2019acquisition de terres agricoles en p\u00e9riph\u00e9rie de la capitale et la perte cons\u00e9quente des moyens de subsistance pour les fermiers pr\u00e9alablement \u00e9tablis. \u00c0 Hanoi, ce sont g\u00e9n\u00e9ralement les terres agricoles qui sont investies, gardant les villages compacts aux marges de la ville en place intouch\u00e9s. L\u2019urbanisation se t\u00e2che d\u2019investir chacune des interstices vides en p\u00e9riph\u00e9rie de la capitale, gobant les espaces non b\u00e2tis et encerclant les villages et leurs populations qui y vivent parfois depuis des g\u00e9n\u00e9rations.<\/p>\n Membre du projet de recherche \u00ab Bridging the Gap: New Towns and Village-Based Urbanization in Hanoi (Vietnam) \u00bb, j\u2019ai eu la chance au cours de l\u2019\u00e9t\u00e9 2017 d\u2019effectuer un s\u00e9jour de recherche de trois mois \u00e0 Hanoi pour faire ma collecte de donn\u00e9es pour mon travail dirig\u00e9 de ma\u00eetrise. Dans ce travail, je m\u2019int\u00e9resse aux r\u00e9percussions vari\u00e9es qu\u2019ont les khu do thi moi<\/em> sur leur environnement \u00e0 la suite de leur \u00e9tablissement, que ce soit au travers des liens qui se sont tiss\u00e9s avec les milieux villageois voisins ou les opportunit\u00e9s multiples qui ont \u00e9merg\u00e9 pour les populations limitrophes. En fait, de nombreuses recherches ant\u00e9rieures entreprises sur le sujet ont davantage mis l\u2019accent sur les perturbations que ces zones cr\u00e9ent dans leur environnement imm\u00e9diat et sur leur difficile int\u00e9gration avec les milieux villageois adjacents, mettant de c\u00f4t\u00e9 leurs effets b\u00e9n\u00e9fiques potentiels. C\u2019est pourquoi, dans ce travail de recherche, on tente de cerner les retomb\u00e9es vari\u00e9es qu\u2019ont \u00e0 long terme ces nouvelles zones urbaines afin de mieux comprendre ces espaces et faciliter leur int\u00e9gration dans leur environnement.<\/p>\n Cette recherche se penche sur un KDTM de la p\u00e9riph\u00e9rie de Hanoi nomm\u00e9 Van Quan et sur trois villages adjacents \u00e0 celui-ci. Gr\u00e2ce \u00e0 des partenaires \u00e9tudiants vietnamiens qui ont \u00e9t\u00e9 mes interpr\u00e8tes et mes guides tout au long de l\u2019\u00e9t\u00e9, une soixantaine d\u2019entrevues ont \u00e9t\u00e9 r\u00e9alis\u00e9es de juin \u00e0 ao\u00fbt 2017 avec des r\u00e9sidents de cette nouvelle zone urbaine ainsi qu\u2019avec des r\u00e9sidents et travailleurs des villages voisins. De nombreux \u00e9l\u00e9ments sont ressortis de ces entretiens. D\u2019abord, et \u00e9tonnamment, une majorit\u00e9 de villageois interview\u00e9s ont un sentiment de satisfaction face \u00e0 leur vie depuis la construction du KDTM. Les changements b\u00e9n\u00e9fiques mentionn\u00e9s par les informateurs sont nombreux et touchent \u00e0 de multiples facettes de leur quotidien : augmentation des clients potentiels et des opportunit\u00e9s commerciales; hausse de l\u2019offre locale en mati\u00e8re de divertissement, de l\u2019offre de services, du nombre de magasins; meilleures infrastructures urbaines.<\/p>\n En outre, une grande part des villageois qui ont perdu leurs terres agricoles, et donc leur principal moyen de subsistance, ont d\u00e9clar\u00e9 \u00eatre tout de m\u00eame satisfaits de leur nouvelle vie. Ces individus ont expliqu\u00e9 que l’arriv\u00e9e du KDTM entra\u00eenait la fin des travaux agricoles, jug\u00e9s \u00e9puisants, et leur donnait acc\u00e8s \u00e0 une compensation mon\u00e9taire qu’ils pourraient judicieusement investir. De plus, pour certains m\u00e9nages, l\u2019attribution de \u00ab terres de service \u00bb dans le cadre de programmes d’indemnisation des pertes, souvent utilis\u00e9es pour construire un nouveau b\u00e2timent \u00e0 louer, a \u00e9t\u00e9 un \u00e9l\u00e9ment positif additionnel mentionn\u00e9. Les compensations mon\u00e9taires re\u00e7ues \u00e9tant minimes au regard du prix de ces terres sur le march\u00e9 libre, l\u2019attribution additionnelle de terres de service s\u2019est r\u00e9v\u00e9l\u00e9e \u00eatre capitale pour une vie post-agraire satisfaisante et afin de se b\u00e2tir un nouveau moyen de subsistance.<\/p>\n Pour leur part, les villageois insatisfaits de leur vie depuis la construction du KDTM ont g\u00e9n\u00e9ralement d\u00e9clar\u00e9 qu’ils acceptaient, malgr\u00e9 tout, les changements dans leur environnement et la d\u00e9cision du gouvernement de permettre la construction du KDTM. Insatisfaction semble rimer avec acceptation dans notre \u00e9tude de cas. \u00c0 titre d\u2019exemple, un individu vivant des difficult\u00e9s depuis la construction du KDTM de Van Quan nous a dit accepter les d\u00e9cisions gouvernementales, d\u00e9clarant qu\u2018en tant que citoyen, il n\u2019avait pas de pouvoir et ses opinions n\u2019avaient pas de valeur aux yeux de l\u2019\u00c9tat \u2013 \u00c9tat qui est propri\u00e9taire de la terre au Vietnam et qui octroie des droits d\u2019usage \u00e0 ses citoyens.<\/p>\n Enfin, il faut souligner que la zone d\u2019interface entre le KDTM de Van Quan et les villages p\u00e9riph\u00e9riques est primordiale. Autour de ces fronti\u00e8res, davantage d\u2019activit\u00e9s \u00e9conomiques prennent forme, parfois des relations amicales naissent, cr\u00e9ant des liens de communaut\u00e9 entre les deux groupes voisins. Or, le KDTM de Van Quan ne repr\u00e9sente pas l\u2019ensemble des multiples KDTM de la capitale, et encore moins du pays. Il n\u2019est ni emmur\u00e9, ni enclav\u00e9, tout en \u00e9tant relativement proche du centre de la ville. L\u2019important r\u00f4le que joue la zone frontali\u00e8re dans la nouvelle zone urbaine de Van Quan, o\u00f9 se c\u00f4toient relativement harmonieusement les habitants du KDTM et les villageois pr\u00e9\u00e9tablis, pourrait servir d\u2019exemple pour la construction de futurs KDTM \u00e0 Hanoi, et m\u00eame au Vietnam. En effet, pourquoi ne pas positionner les espaces r\u00e9sidentiels au centre des projets et les espaces publics \u2013 parcs, zones d\u2019exercice, march\u00e9s publics, caf\u00e9s, etc. \u2013 \u00e0 la fronti\u00e8re avec les villages. Ce nouveau type d\u2019am\u00e9nagement pourrait favoriser les \u00e9changes \u00e9conomiques et sociaux, tout en \u00e9vitant une coupure entre les deux secteurs et entre les communaut\u00e9s qui y vivent.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n Cambodia has met with a stable economic recovery in recent years. Its GDP reached 7 % in 2016 and it was given the symbolic recognition of Asia\u2019s New Tiger Economy<\/em> (ADB, 2016). The growth lies in various factors, one of which is labor migration. From 2000 to 2015, the number of Cambodian emigrants increased from 3.7 % out of a total population of 12 million to 7.6 % out of a total population of 15.5 million (OECD\/CDRI, 2010). Migration studies have traditionally focused on the push-pull factors of migration. Push factors include poverty, lack of employment and alternative sources of income, debt, natural disasters, and landlessness, whereas pull factors have to do with wage differentials and uneven economies in the region. A distinctive aspect of pull factors relates to social networks in the sense that Cambodian migrants receive help from relatives, friends, villagers, and brokers for their migration journey. Pioneer migrants who have good connections with employers are key players in bringing new migrants to work in host countries. Approximately, half of Cambodian migrants go to work in Thailand with the help of a broker, 29% with the help of relatives, 4% via friends, and 3% via recruitment agencies (OECD\/CDRI, 2010). However, there is a gap of knowledge in this report\u2019s analysis, because social networks have not been examined as a \u201cpush factor\u201d. We know how migrants get access to jobs in a destination country through social networks, but we know almost nothing about how social networks in their home village, surprisingly, push them to emigrate in search of economic relief. According to empirical data from interviews and observations in Kandal village, Preah Netre Preah commune, and Banteay Meanchey village, Cambodia, this study attempts to point out the relationship between social networks and push-factor of migration to Thailand in particular.<\/p>\n While scholars, as Mark S. Granovetter (1973), highlight the relevance of social networks and ties in upgrading economic outcomes for individuals, empirical data collected from small business owners in Kandal shows that the strong demands of social networks and friends might be detrimental for the economic conditions of individuals. This impediment is related to \u201cunpaid debt\u201d accumulated in the local businesses, when friends or neighbors consume goods and services without paying right away, on the basis that they know each other well. The business owners, not wanting to damage their social relations, agree on providing friends and neighbors with the opportunity to pay in a later date. Over time, the debt increases. Moreover, \u201cconsecutive\u201d demands from the owner to get paid would be considered as a non-saving-face behavior. Hence, some business owners tend to wait to be paid rather than asking their friends to pay. Subconsciously, the debt is left unpaid, leaving the business owners unable to sustain their business any longer. The following cases illustrate this:<\/p>\n Case 1:<\/strong> Sitha was a lottery retailer, selling various kind of lottery to villagers in Kandal and others. The majority of his customers were his neighbors. The relationship between his customers and him was getting stronger as they sold and bought lottery every day. However, the business became financially difficult because his khnea-aeng <\/em>– a Khmer term for peers and networks – owed him money with a broken promise to pay. Sitha found it uneasy to ask them to pay the debt because of his concern of damaging his relationships. Within that context, the individual debtors would have thought that it was \u201cnot a big deal\u201d as each of their share seemed just a little (i.e. about 2000 KHR or 20 THB). However, Sitha accumulated unpaid debts of over 1 million KHR, causing his lottery business to go bankrupt. His family\u2019s livelihood worsened as the business was ruined and his children grew older. His wife, then, decided to migrate to Thailand to seek supplementary income for the household. His three children followed suit to work in Thailand with their mom, who returned later. Today, Sitha and his wife survive mainly on money remitted from their children in Thailand whilst lottery is now just a hobby, not a business. Not only did Sitha\u2019s family suffer from the \u201cweakness of strong ties\u201d but during my research, I met other young couples who started a small business and reached the same dilemma.<\/p>\n Case 2:<\/strong> Chanty has two daughters. The oldest already got married and settled down with her husband who owns a small motorbike garage in Kandal village. The business got unprofitable because the amount of unpaid debt amounted to 2 million KHR. The debt was owed by villagers and neighbors the young couple knew both in Kandal and in neighboring villages. They tried to ask for the payment, but the debtors gave them false promises that they would pay later. Eventually, the debt became forgotten, while some of the neighbors had gone to Thailand. Such unpaid debts pushed their motorbike garage into bankruptcy. The young couple decided to migrate to Thailand after seeing that Chanty\u2019s youngest daughter had earned a lot of money there. Today, the couple is saving money to open a new motorbike garage once they return to Cambodia. But this time, they will plan to relocate their business in a different area.<\/p>\n In sum, based on the findings in a migrant-sending village, I propose a wider discussion about the roles of social networks in capitalizing and de-capitalizing economic outcomes of individuals. On the one hand, social networks, such as friends and neighbors, can support migrants in getting access to jobs and other economic opportunities. On the other hand, social networks, mainly neighbors and close friends, also can harm individuals in economic terms and lead them to migrate in search of economic relief.<\/p>\n References:<\/strong><\/p>\n ADB. (2016, May 10). Asian Development Bank<\/em>. Retrieved from https:\/\/www.adb.org\/news\/features\/here-comes-cambodia-asia-s-new-tiger-economy<\/a><\/p>\n OECD\/CDRI. (2010). Interrelations between Public Policies, Migration and Development in Cambodia, OECD Development Pathways.<\/em> Paris: OECD Publishing.<\/p>\n Granovetter, M. S. (1973). The Strength of Weak Ties. American Journal of Sociology, 78<\/em>(6), 1360-1380.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n En 2011, le Myanmar a amorc\u00e9 une transition d\u00e9mocratique qui l\u2019a \u00e9ventuellement men\u00e9 aux \u00e9lections libres de 2015, remport\u00e9es par la Ligue nationale pour la d\u00e9mocratie, parti d\u2019Aung San Suu Kyi. L\u2019ouverture politique a marqu\u00e9 une rupture nette dans les strat\u00e9gies de d\u00e9veloppement urbain \u00e0 Yangon, m\u00e9tropole du pays. Dans un contexte de forte croissance d\u00e9mographique, le gouvernement de transition (2011-2015) a voulu s\u2019attaquer aux probl\u00e8mes de d\u00e9veloppement de Yangon en adoptant des politiques de planification urbaine strat\u00e9gique. Ce type de planification applique des principes \u00e9conomiques n\u00e9olib\u00e9raux en visant \u00e0 int\u00e9grer la ville dans les r\u00e9seaux d’\u00e9changes mondiaux et en mettant en place des mesures favorisant l\u2019attraction d\u2019investissements telles que la cr\u00e9ation de zones \u00e9conomiques sp\u00e9ciales, l\u2019am\u00e9lioration des infrastructures de transport et la priorisation des partenariats-publics priv\u00e9s dans le d\u00e9veloppement urbain.<\/p>\n Dans le cadre de mon terrain de recherche exploratoire de ma\u00eetrise, qui porte sur le r\u00f4le des nouvelles formes de planification urbaine dans les dynamiques d\u2019exclusion sociospatiale, je me suis pench\u00e9 sur la gestion de la crise du logement \u00e0 Yangon, qui se caract\u00e9rise autant par un manque de logements abordables que par leur pr\u00e9carit\u00e9 g\u00e9n\u00e9ralis\u00e9e. Mes r\u00e9sultats pr\u00e9liminaires s\u2019appuient sur des entretiens r\u00e9alis\u00e9s avec des chercheurs, acteurs du d\u00e9veloppement urbain (c\u2019est-\u00e0-dire des entrepreneurs, ONG, agents de coop\u00e9ration internationale) et citoyens.<\/p>\n Si l\u2019intensification de la crise est assez r\u00e9cente, le ph\u00e9nom\u00e8ne comme tel ne date pas d\u2019hier. En effet, les origines de cette situation peuvent remonter aux politiques de logement presque inexistantes des gouvernements militaires s\u2019\u00e9tant succ\u00e9d\u00e9 des ann\u00e9es 1960 jusqu\u2019\u00e0 la transition d\u00e9mocratique en 2011. Sa r\u00e9cente aggravation d\u00e9coule toutefois davantage de l\u2019explosion d\u00e9mographique qui est elle-m\u00eame due \u00e0 plusieurs facteurs. Tout d\u2019abord, l\u2019exode rural joue un grand r\u00f4le dans l\u2019augmentation de la population \u00e0 Yangon \u00e9tant donn\u00e9 que le Myanmar est en rapide transition urbaine. Cette situation, jumel\u00e9e aux nombreuses catastrophes naturelles touchant le pays, alimente les flux migratoires vers la m\u00e9tropole birmane. En 2008, le cyclone Nargis a frapp\u00e9 le delta de l\u2019Irrawaddy et a tu\u00e9 environ 140\u00a0000 personnes. Cette catastrophe a aussi pouss\u00e9 des centaines de milliers de Birmans \u00e0 fuir cette zone et \u00e0 s\u2019installer en p\u00e9riph\u00e9rie de Yangon. Les al\u00e9as naturels jouent donc un fort r\u00f4le dans la crise du logement, puisque ces nouveaux citoyens urbains sont g\u00e9n\u00e9ralement pauvres et ils ne peuvent souvent que se permettre des habitations pr\u00e9caires.<\/p>\n Au-del\u00e0 de la dimension d\u00e9mographique, la forte sp\u00e9culation immobili\u00e8re et fonci\u00e8re explique aussi en grande partie la crise du logement \u00e0 Yangon puisque la bulle sp\u00e9culative s\u2019y est grandement aggrav\u00e9e depuis l\u2019ouverture politique en 2011. Deux facteurs contribuent \u00e0 l\u2019augmentation de la valeur de la ressource fonci\u00e8re\u00a0: 1) l\u2019arriv\u00e9e massive d\u2019investissements \u00e9trangers dans la ville, aliment\u00e9e par les occasions offertes par les nouvelles m\u00e9thodes de planification urbaine mettant l\u2019accent sur l\u2019attraction de capitaux \u00e9trangers ; 2) la popularisation de l\u2019accumulation de capitaux par la sp\u00e9culation fonci\u00e8re, tant chez les investisseurs majeurs que chez les petits propri\u00e9taires. Les prix devenus trop \u00e9lev\u00e9s, les habitants les plus pauvres peinent \u00e0 se procurer un domicile de qualit\u00e9 et situ\u00e9 dans un espace central de la ville. Dans le contexte de transition politique ayant men\u00e9 \u00e0 l\u2019\u00e9lection d\u2019un gouvernement civil, que font donc les autorit\u00e9s pour pallier le manque de logement \u00e0 Yangon?<\/p>\n Pour r\u00e9pondre \u00e0 la crise, les autorit\u00e9s nationales, r\u00e9gionales et locales misent beaucoup sur une planification urbaine reposant sur l\u2019am\u00e9nagement de villes nouvelles et la construction de grands immeubles d\u2019habitations abordables en p\u00e9riph\u00e9rie de Yangon. Ces derniers offriraient des logements \u00e0 faibles co\u00fbts aux habitants n\u2019ayant pas les moyens de vivre dans les espaces centraux. Ces projets r\u00e9sidentiels se retrouvent dans des zones en friche en p\u00e9riph\u00e9rie puisque le prix de la terre est trop \u00e9lev\u00e9 en ville. Excentr\u00e9s, ils n\u2019offrent que tr\u00e8s peu d\u2019occasions commerciales ou d\u2019emplois int\u00e9ressants.<\/p>\n De plus, ces projets de grande ampleur sont op\u00e9r\u00e9s par des partenariats publics-priv\u00e9s. Le gouvernement prend en charge environ 20\u00a0% des co\u00fbts et le reste provient de l’acteur priv\u00e9. Le Minist\u00e8re du d\u00e9veloppement de l\u2019habitat a opt\u00e9 pour cette formule puisqu\u2019il manque lui-m\u00eame de fonds pour entreprendre seul la r\u00e9alisation de ces projets tr\u00e8s co\u00fbteux. Plusieurs entreprises priv\u00e9es mandat\u00e9es pour la construction des tours profitent des largesses de l\u2019\u00c9tat pour imposer des hausses de tarifs. Ceci a eu pour effet de faire gonfler les prix de ces logements, les rendant ainsi inabordables pour le public initialement vis\u00e9 par ces projets r\u00e9sidentiels. \u00c9tant donn\u00e9 que la plupart de ceux-ci se trouvent dans des emplacements p\u00e9riurbains encore fortement agricoles, peu de locataires potentiels sont attir\u00e9s. Les tours et les b\u00e2timents r\u00e9sidentiels d\u00e9j\u00e0 construits montrent donc des taux d\u2019occupation tr\u00e8s bas.<\/p>\n Lors de mes entretiens pr\u00e9liminaires, j\u2019ai pu comprendre que peu d\u2019acteurs du d\u00e9veloppement urbain de Yangon semblent optimistes quant au succ\u00e8s des efforts en mati\u00e8re d\u2019habitation du gouvernement en place. La crise du logement a de fortes chances de devenir l\u2019enjeu-cl\u00e9 du d\u00e9veloppement de Yangon dans les prochaines d\u00e9cennies. Plus qu\u2019un enjeu du quotidien, la question du logement \u00e0 Yangon interroge directement le r\u00f4le de l\u2019acteur priv\u00e9 dans le d\u00e9veloppement urbain d\u2019une m\u00e9tropole asiatique.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n Navigating Identity<\/strong><\/p>\n This summer, I lived in Hanoi for one month and got the opportunity to meet with Vietnamese researchers, scholars, and academics in the humanities and social sciences field. My purpose was to visit the region before defining my research questions, so I went as a graduate student\/traveler. While my excursion to Vietnam was short, the trip served as a taster to how I would culturally navigate my researcher positionality as a hybrid Vietnamese-Chinese Canadian identity (my great grandparents had emigrated from China to Vietnam, where my parents were born and raised).<\/p>\n <\/p>\n My experience fits within a distinct context of national belonging that straddles notions of citizenship and ethnicity (Ong, 1999). Place-based notion of identity suggests historicizing identity and considers culture within spatial and temporal dimensions (Dirlik, 1999). During my time in Vietnam, I reflected, re-negotiated, and historicized my identity under political and cultural terms. I purposely chose to stay in the North, a region with more French influence, and a smaller Chinese population \u2013 everything that I thought would give me a different subjective experience in Vietnam.<\/p>\n People I encountered through everyday interactions were often curious about my identity as a person who looked ethnically Asian, but who dressed like a foreigner. I became extremely aware of the way I dressed, my form of speech, and the ways in which I carried myself. In the words of Bourdieu, I was extremely conscious of my habitus.<\/p>\n During a layover flight to Hanoi, I sat beside a young Vietnamese couple. They noticed I spoke English to the flight attendant and asked where I was from. This question reoccurred often during my stay in Vietnam, and I would say, \u201cI am born in Canada.\u201d My response was always followed by confused expressions, \u201cBut you look Asian. Are you Asian?\u201d<\/p>\n Being read as Asian, carrying a Canadian citizenship, and speaking fluent English, is perplexing to many outside the North-American bubble. It was not until I stop correcting people\u2019s definitions of my ethnic\/national background that I fully understood their confusion, due to the conscious efforts to fuse national citizenship and race.<\/p>\n In spite of my limited knowledge of the Vietnamese language, I took initiative to speak with those I interacted with, either with a waitress at a restaurant, a cashier at a caf\u00e9, or a nearby street vendor. A few taxi drivers had noted my foreignness, but quickly understood my background as ng\u01b0\u1eddi hoa<\/em> (Vietnamese-Chinese) without my explanation; others, meanwhile, identified me as Vietnamese. For example, in reference to my family background as vi\u1ec7t ki\u1ec1u<\/em> (overseas Vietnamese), someone sitting beside me on the plane had even said, \u201cWelcome home, you are back in the homeland!\u201d<\/p>\n But I didn\u2019t understand the national embrace. I expected a degree of hostility, rather than being welcomed back to the homeland. After the Vietnam War, Vietnam secluded itself from the world, and millions of Vietnamese-Chinese and Sino-Vietnamese were chased out of the country, especially in 1979 with the Third Indochina War war between China and Vietnam. A hotel staff had explained, \u201cAfter being in Vietnam for a long time, ng\u01b0\u1eddi hoa<\/em> consider themselves Vietnamese, and we see them as Vietnamese too.\u201d<\/p>\n Being Asian-Canadian in Vietnam<\/strong><\/p>\n Despite knowledge of my citizenship and birthplace, and my presence as a foreigner, very few people identified me as Canadian. In other words, I didn\u2019t fit the racial imaginary of White Canada. In Canada, those of us born in the country and who identify as Canadian, or with a hyphenated identity, have a mutual understanding of what being Canadian means, with or without a hyphenated qualifier.<\/p>\n My experience in Vietnam as a graduate student was revealing in many ways for a young social scientist, but there is a lack of conversation around hybrid subject positions unique to researchers, and how hybridity can affect subjectivity.<\/p>\n Having the chance to speak with other researchers and scholars in Vietnam, I was cognizant of my hybrid identity based on the intersections of race, culture, and age. The struggle to reconcile opposing narratives paints an authoritative portrait of what boundaries a transnational identity can and cannot skirt on foreign grounds.<\/p>\n My preliminary experience in the field allowed me to reflect on the identity of \u2018Asian Canadian\u2019, as well as the cultural attitudes surrounding the Vietnamese-Chinese identity within today\u2019s Vietnam. At the end of my trip, however, I understood that this experience was only a snippet to what it means to be Asian-Canadian with a transnational consciousness.<\/p>\n References:<\/strong><\/p>\n Ong, A. (1999).\u00a0 Flexible Citizenship: The Cultural Logics of Transnationality.<\/em> Durham, NC: Duke University Press.<\/p>\n Dirlik, A. (1999). Bringing history back in: of diasporas, hybridities, places, and histories. The Review of Education\/Pedagogy\/Cultural Studies,<\/em> 21(2), 95-131.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n Palm oil has become a major commodity in today\u2019s world markets and is found in a wide range of products ranging from prepared dishes, pastries, cosmetics and soaps to biofuels (Omont, 2010). In Indonesia, the world\u2019s most important palm oil producer, palm tree plantations expanded to over 9.3 million hectares in 2016 (Figure 1) (FAOSTAT, 2018). This production has been widely criticized for causing deforestation, biodiversity loss, greenhouse gas emissions (through deforestation), conflicts within local and indigenous communities, land grabbing, and so on.<\/p>\n In Indonesia, two major certification schemes aim to improve practices within the palm oil sector: the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), and the Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil (ISPO). The RSPO is an international multi-stakeholder non-profit organization created by third-party actors such as the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Unilever in 2004. The ISPO is a certification body created by the Indonesian government in 2011 through a ministerial regulation (Gillespie & Harjanthi, 2012). Both standards use a set of Principles and Criteria (P&C) to clarify what they define as \u2018sustainable\u2019 palm oil production. However, both certification bodies are contested, mainly because of their limited effectiveness, small market shares, and due to the contentious relations they maintain with small-scale actors and local communities (Gillespie & Harjanthi, 2012; Greenpeace International, 2013; Richardson, 2015).<\/p>\n Considering this challenging situation, I wanted to investigate the capacity of the RSPO and the ISPO to increase the sustainability of Indonesian palm groves. In order to do so, I compared the specifications and requirements of the two standards with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (Figure 2). I selected a maximum of four targets for each of the 17 goals from the SDGs and investigated whether or not these 46 targets were included in the P&C from both the RSPO and ISPO. For example, in order to achieve the first SDG \u2013 \u2018End poverty in all its forms everywhere\u2019 \u2013 I enquired whether the RSPO and ISPO ensure people live with more than US$ 1.90 a day, implement social protection systems and ensure access to land, other natural resources and basic services. For the fourteenth SDG \u2013 \u2018Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development\u2019 \u2013 I examined if the P&C of the RSPO and the ISPO require certified companies to reduce marine pollution, in particular from land-based activities.<\/p>\n Through undergoing a systematic analysis for each of the 17 SDGs, I demonstrate that the guidelines of the both the RSPO and the ISPO mention less than 50% of the SDGs targets introduced in the analytical grid. The RSPO and the ISPO seem therefore to promote a very narrow understanding of sustainability. The two certification bodies\u2019 regulations remain largely focused on agricultural practices and economic gains, and fail to thoroughly consider other sectors \u2013 such as health, education and energy efficiency \u2013 and more vulnerable groups \u2013 such as children, women, smallholders, indigenous people and local communities. Most significantly and surprisingly, none of the certification bodies recognizes the connection between environmental degradation and economic growth, or even mentions climate change and deforestation in its P&C, in spite of these aspects being key issues in the palm oil sector. The interpretation of the data also demonstrates that the RSPO and ISPO guidelines primarily require certified companies to only comply with national laws and regulations. This raises questions regarding the responsibility of certification bodies to monitor the application of national legal frameworks, which remains officially the role of the executive authority of the State. In addition, for certifications to truly contribute to the sustainability of the palm oil sector, they should ensure the implementation of standards and requirements that are stricter than those provided by national laws.<\/p>\n These results bring us to question the ability of both certifications to truly foster sustainable practices in the Indonesian palm oil sector. In order to really improve practices within the palm oil sector, certifications should promote state-of-the-art practices, and aligning more closely to the SDGs should only be a first step in that regard. Reflecting on the case of palm oil certification in Indonesia raises questions in regards to certifications\u2019 ability to genuinely foster more sustainable practices, more especially in \u2018weak governance\u2019 contexts. Ultimately, the results of this research allow us to question how development and governance projects translate the level of trust and the consideration of the Global North towards the Global South.<\/p>\n References: <\/strong><\/p>\n FAOSTAT. (2018). Data Crops. Retrieved from http:\/\/www.fao.org\/faostat\/en\/#data\/QC<\/a><\/u><\/p>\n Gillespie, P., & Harjanthi, R. S. (2012). ISPO, RSPO: Two sides of the same coin? The Jakarta Post<\/em>. Retrieved from http:\/\/cbe.thejakartapost.com\/news\/2012\/11\/02\/ispo-rspo-two-sides-same-coin.html<\/a><\/u><\/p>\n Greenpeace International. (2013). Certifying Destruction<\/em>. Retrieved from http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/international\/Global\/international\/publications\/forests\/2013\/Indonesia\/RSPO-Certifying-Destruction.pdf<\/a><\/u><\/p>\n Omont, H. (2010). Contributions de la production d\u2019huile de palme au d\u00e9veloppement durable-Probl\u00e9matique g\u00e9n\u00e9rale, controverses. Ol\u00e9agineux, Corps Gras, Lipides<\/em>, 17<\/em>(6), 362\u2013367.<\/p>\n Richardson, B. (2015). Making a Market for Sustainability: The Commodification of Certified Palm Oil. New Political Economy<\/em>, 20<\/em>(4), 545\u2013568. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1080\/13563467.2014.923829<\/a><\/u><\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n I defended my research proposal in June 2017 and six weeks later gave birth to my son. There is a clich\u00e9 that doing a PhD is akin to having a child, in that the research becomes your \u201cbaby,\u201d so doing both simultaneously could create either great synergy or great conflict. I wasn\u2019t sure which. I received mixed reactions to the idea of taking an infant to Southeast Asia to do field work. While those close to me were supportive, I encountered other reactions ranging from condescension to horror from both Canadians and Cambodians. I was told flat out on more than one occasion: \u201cYou can\u2019t do field work with a baby\u201d.<\/p>\n But eight months in, our time as a family in Phnom Penh has been delightful. With apologies for the generalization: Cambodians love<\/em> babies; when we walk past construction sites men stop working to shout and wave at my son in his carrier, we have been chased by a police officer who wanted to touch his toes and pinch his cheeks, he has been picked up and cuddled by countless strangers\u2026 Although I struggled to learn the Khmer language, before I had even learned to ask for directions I had learned to answer two basic questions: \u201cboy or girl?\u201d And, \u201chow old?\u201d We arrived in Cambodia when my son was 10 weeks old and so, my fieldwork was also my maternity leave. I kept a relaxed pace, fitting in interviews around naps and playdates and learning to be a parent at the same time as learning to be a researcher.<\/p>\n My field work site is a small village in a peri-urban area not far from my apartment where the residents are mostly urban farmers. They grow aquatic vegetables in small plots on the surface of a lake and sell them in the local markets. Some families have been in the area since the fall of the Khmer Rouge in 1979, but for many it is a second attempt to make a living after their rural rice farms failed due to successive years of drought. In the city, their livelihoods are again threatened \u2013 both by environmental changes and the expansion of the city into their farmlands. All of the evidence collected so far indicates that it is only a matter of time before urban agriculture in this area is no longer viable; either the water will become too contaminated, the unpredictability of the weather will mean crop losses will become too high, or the area will simply be paved over and turned into condos. The question has really become\u00ad\u00ad which will happen first.<\/p>\n The farmers are well aware that time is running out. I have been asking people what they plan to do once they can no longer farm, in an effort to explore the slippery concept of \u201cresilience\u201d in the context of rapid urban development.\u00a0 I have found that rather than adapting to the changes in weather that are presently being experienced, families are looking to their children to secure a more resilient livelihood.\u00a0 Parents with young children, even those with strong and recent ties to the rural areas, are deeply committed to staying in the city to be near schools where their children can get a good education so that they find work \u201con the land\u201d as opposed to farming \u201con the water\u201d as their parents have done. The strategy for pursuing the resilience of the family unit stretches across generations, which is a dimension not often considered when we talk about building resilience.<\/p>\n This is a gamble that requires immense sacrifice from parents. Unfortunately, it is uncertain whether it will result in the next generation being any better equipped to deal with the situation than the present. In the face of an increasingly globalized city with rising land prices, deteriorating ecosystems and increasing inequality, families are struggling against systemic forces that are continuously reinforcing their marginalization, despite their efforts to resist.<\/p>\n I had expected motherhood to influence my positionality as a researcher. I had thought it would bring a sense of shared experience with my research participants who were also parents. Instead, it has reinforced the reality of my own privilege. My nationality and socio-economic status insulate me and my family from the immediate effects of climate change and globalization. My child will not carry the weight of responsibility for our future on his shoulders on his first day of school. I can, in fact, easily do fieldwork with a baby. Instead of bringing me closer to my respondents, I am acutely aware of the distance created by the chance of fate that made me a middle class Canadian. Raising a baby in Cambodia has been a beautiful experience, but the ease and comfort of my life is not a reality that is accessible to all of Phnom Penh\u2019s parents. I hope my research can illuminate the uncertain future of some of the city\u2019s marginalized families to ensure their struggle does not go unrecognized.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n What could possibly be more universal than maternal love? Even before the baby is born, the expectant mother has mixed feelings of hope and anxiety in each step of the fetal development. She is the source of warmth, nutrients, and safety. She cherishes the heartbeat inside her womb, the fluttering movement and quiet moments, every little kick and squirm. When she eats, she eats for her baby too. When she\u2019s happy or sad, her baby will sense the feeling too. When she\u2019s doing something for herself, she knows that she\u2019s no longer completely alone. She will try but it will be so hard not to think about her baby almost constantly. On the spur of the moment, she will silently communicate, sing, and shower her unborn with the language of affection. An intuitive and \u201cnatural\u201d bonding between mother and child is expected as a norm. The lyrics of an Indonesian pop song about a pregnant woman clearly substantiate that being an expectant mother means \u201cloving you [the baby] even before I can see you\u201d.<\/p>\n Yet, female anthropologists have contributed to our understanding of how a mother\u2019s love to her unborn or newborn is contingent upon social and political circumstances, despite the embodied experience of pregnancy which is \u201csupposed\u201d to condition her to feel an unbreakable connection. For instance, Nancy Scheper-Hughes has provided us with examples of mothers\u2019 indifference to the death of their infants in Northeast Brazil. Anna Lowenhaupt Tsing also has shared her disorienting experience of carrying and hugging a premature newborn to keep the baby alive in Meratus, Indonesia. The reluctant response of every woman in the room to do so, including the baby\u2019s own mother and grandmother, led her to interpret that perhaps the baby was unwanted in the first place, in which finally all of them let the baby \u201cgo\u201d (pass away) with relief.<\/p>\n I have also witnessed experiences of motherhood during my own research in Southeast Aceh, the Northern part of Sumatra, Indonesia. I simply cannot shake off the memory of my \u201csister\u201d, a 17-year-old mom-to-be, who asked her mother with a blank expression, \u201cplease cure me so I won\u2019t miss my baby.\u201d In other words, she had to stop loving her unborn \u2013 before she even saw the baby. I still remember that day. Her mom and I were preparing food in the soil-floored kitchen at the back of the house. My \u201csister\u201d was sweeping the floor and upon looking at her evident pregnant belly, I asked her where she planned to deliver the baby. She said she would do it with a nearby midwife. If she had to do it in the city center\u2019s hospital, she would be embarrassed if her friends found it out. \u201cThank goodness I had the insight to check on her for pregnancy before it was too late,\u201d her mother jumped in to explain. \u201cHer marriage ended after 4 months and a half and she was about to depart to Malaysia to look for a job. If we wouldn\u2019t have found out that she was pregnant before leaving Indonesia, her ex-husband and mother-in-law would have certainly refused and said it was not their baby but a Malaysian one. I brought the mother-in-law to the hospital so we all could get the results of the pregnancy test together,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Yet my sister still plans to migrate to Malaysia.<\/p>\n \u201cShe will deliver the baby and go to Malaysia two weeks afterwards,\u201d my sister\u2019s mom continued. \u201cHer ex-husbands\u2019 mother will take care of the baby. I cannot. Your dad [his husband, my surrogate dad] is sick. I have to take care of him. He can\u2019t work in the field. I am the sole breadwinner. I can\u2019t take care of a baby. It will also be difficult for me to do the daily prayer \u2013 [sholat<\/em>, Muslims\u2019 ritual of praying five times a day which starts with ablution] \u2013 when there\u2019s a baby I have to constantly clean.\u201d<\/p>\n But why did her marriage end? Why did she get married while she hadn\u2019t graduated from high school? It was clear that she was not pregnant before marriage.<\/p>\n As a quite independent first-time mother myself, it was a learning curve for me to understand that the extended family still has a lot to say in this marriage. My sister\u2019s mother or mother-in-law are the ones who had to bear the responsibility of the unborn child. And, although the marriage itself was based on mutual decision of the two individuals, according to them, it was the decision of the mother-in-law to get them divorced.<\/p>\n My sister\u2019s ex-husband was from a different tribe, but that was not exactly the problem. His parents\u2019 house is in the neighborhood and they own a small kiosk in front of it. My sister thought she would live there after marriage and watch after the kiosk; she thought she would still live near her own parents. Instead, her mother-in-law obliged them to move to a village almost two hours away to work on the extended family\u2019s land. She refused to live in that \u201cquiet village\u201d. Her mother-in-law demanded that as a wife she had to follow her husband. But she and her own mother said the mother-in-law was evil for forcing her to move away.<\/p>\n During my fieldwork in this predominantly agricultural society, marriage happens quite frequently among young people who are in their early twenties or even younger. I have found out that it is only after marriage that one is able to own land and acquire the harvest for oneself. Before marriage, one must work for the parents only \u201cto get lunch as salary\u201d, to use the words of some of the young people I have talked to. This happens in a context in which getting a job outside farming is almost like a miracle. Parents are often glad of their children\u2019s decision to marry, as it means a continuity of the family\u2019s lineage and a \u201cbetter\u201d use of the land \u2013 because otherwise, sometimes this land is \u201cborrowed\u201d by other people before being returned to the parents who then ask the newlyweds to work on it. After marriage, the primary responsibility is with the nuclear family. But the link with the extended family never lessens, as the new couple is basically still under the same unit of the extended family\u2019s agricultural production. To have a better chance of being a successful farmer, it\u2019s better to start your own farm at an early age. And that means starting a family.<\/p>\n But not everybody wants to farm. Some women want to trade in a small kiosk in front of the house, like my sister. Despite her tough-heartedness and solid decision to leave for Malaysia, while both of us were sitting outside and munching jambu fruit, my sister told me, \u201cIf only he remembered how much he said he loved me …\u201d<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n One of the things that people who have gone through fieldwork themselves tend to mention before you venture off to do it yourself is how things will often progress at a certain \u201corganic\u201d pace and that there will be challenges associated with waiting on things that you cannot control. That remained somewhat opaque and abstract to me\u2014that is, until I arrived in \u201cthe field\u201d. In my case, that happened to be Cambodia, affectionally called the \u201cKingdom of Wonder\u201d. So, this is the realization I found myself in during the first couple of weeks as I dealt with frustration that started to boil, because I was not getting traction on finding research assistant candidates, which proved to be particularly challenging.<\/p>\n After contacting the people and networks that I did know, I decided, for the sake of hedging my bets, to also find and contact the countless NGOs operating in Cambodia and elicit their help in either connecting me with people or forwarding my message along within their networks. In other words, I just \u201ccold emailed\u201d a slew of people whose contact information I found online. In the end, neither of these methods were effective, although a few were nice enough to forward my email. Another idea which turned out to be the most impactful (thanks goes to my friend Pelle who suggested this) was to advertise the position as job positing on the Cambodia Daily website<\/a> (the Daily is, now more correctly was<\/a>, one of a few English language national news outlets). At first, the person responsible for the classifieds at the Cambodia Daily thought I wanted a print ad and told me it would cost $120, but when I explained that I was a grad student on a budget and was only interested in having it posted online, they obliged.<\/p>\n I ended up receiving the majority of the seven applicants mostly because of posting on the Daily and was more than pleased with the quality and potential of the candidates. So, in the end, my frustration in my second and third week in Cambodia melted away and I was faced with the opposite problem: the difficult choice of choosing the right person, who would be the best research assistant!?<\/p>\n So, by way of a suggestion to other grad students who may be reading this: if you are in the market for a translator, find out what English language news outlets are in the city\/community that you are in, reach out and try to advertise there. If there are no English language outlets, then perhaps try to find out what the more popular local\/national media players are and inquire about posting an ad (either in print or online). While I was able to (luckily) do it without cost, do not let that be a barrier should there be a reasonable fee because the returns from such an investment could be priceless! Outside of online or print, another idea to consider is putting an ad on the radio since, in some communities, many people get their information through this medium. That may seem daunting but if your local context makes it a compelling option, consider trying it.<\/p>\n An aspect related to finding a research assistant that I think receives less attention within discussions on doing fieldwork is the importance of the dynamics between the researcher and the research assistant and how the positionality of the assistant affects and makes a mark on the research. This is especially important in cases where the researcher has little to no knowledge of the language (not to mention cultural norms, etc.) and is relying on the assistant for translation\/interpretation. Professor Sarah Turner shines a light on this in a chapter (\u2018The Silenced Research Assistant Speaks Her Mind\u2019) within the book Red Stamps and Gold Stars: fieldwork dilemmas in upland socialist Asia<\/a><\/em> (2013). This chapter (and the book in general for those doing work in Laos\/Viet Nam) is a worthwhile read for any graduate student embarking on doing fieldwork and finding a research assistant (for instructors\/profs: an important addition to a readings list for a research methods course). As it happened with me, hopefully it leaves you reflecting on either your past or future experience of working with a research assistant.<\/p>\n Many of us know, or are currently experiencing, the vagaries and challenges associated with doing fieldwork. When it comes to finding a research assistant, whichever route (out of the above suggestions) you decide to go, ask nicely, stay persistent, and be honest\/genuine\u2014it goes a long way to things working out!<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16.3 engages United Nations (UN) Member States to \u201cpromote the rule of law at the national and international levels and ensure equal access to justice for all\u201d. Yet, in a world of sovereign states who rarely modify their behaviour voluntarily, how can the UN ensure progress toward this goal? Identifying both ASEAN and Singapore as particular examples in this regard, Ewing-Chow, James Losari, and Vilarasu Slade show how the rule of law provides smaller economies a comparative advantage for trade:<\/p>\n the rule of law has the potential to assist supply-side constrained countries by granting them a comparative advantage and a strong basis to attract investment in order to supplement areas in which they are, by reasons of geography or history, found to be lacking (2014: 134).<\/p>\n The rule of law is also an important means of promoting respect for human rights. Nonetheless, the UN Economic and Social Council records that<\/p>\n Rates of pretrial detention suggest that progress with respect to the rule of law and access to justice has been slow. Globally, the proportion of people held in detention without being sentenced for a crime has remained almost unchanged\u2026which indicates that substantive progress has not been achieved in the ability of judicial systems to process and try the accused in a fair and transparent manner (2017: 17).<\/p>\n Human-rights practitioners often feel that UN human rights treaties are often \u2018not enforced\u2019 (Koh, 1999: 1398). In contrast, the WTO credibly possesses \u201cthe most successful system of inter-state dispute resolution ever established\u201d (WTO, 2015). These two international rule-systems are not broadly coordinated. According to the UN International Law Commission, such potential instances of \u201cfragmentation\u2026result [in] conflicts between rules or rule-systems, deviating institutional practices and, possibly, the loss of an overall perspective on the law\u201d (International Law Commission, 2006: 11).<\/p>\n Mutual supportiveness, increasingly recognized as a general principle of international law, helps overcome fragmentation (Boisson de Chazournes & Mbengue, 2012: 1616). It shows that differing rule-systems share values in common, allowing them to work together. Former World Trade Organization (WTO) Director-General Pascal Lamy stated that \u201chuman rights and trade are mutually supportive. Human rights are essential to the good functioning of the multilateral trading system, and trade and WTO rules contribute to the realization of human rights\u201d (\u201cLamy\u201d, 2010).<\/p>\n Together with SDG 16.3, the doctrine of mutual supportiveness offers a perspective on a way forward. The WTO Agreement\u2019s Preamble commits that organization to \u201cthe objective of sustainable development\u201d (WTO, 1994). Protecting both trade interests and respect for human rights rely on a shared need for the rule of law: as Sustainable Development Goal 16.3 prescribes.<\/p>\n Rule of law, as part of the Sustainable Development Goals, benefits both the growth of regional economies like ASEAN, and civil society in its pursuit of respect for human rights. The economic power of the former can help to achieve the social goals of the latter, for a mutually shared benefit.<\/p>\n References\u00a0:<\/strong><\/p>\n Boisson de Chazournes, L. & Mbengue, M. M. (2012). A \u201cFootnote as a Principle\u201d. Mutual Supportiveness in an Era of Fragmentation. In Hestermeyer, H. P. and al. (Eds.), Coexistence, Cooperation and Solidarity<\/em> (pp. 1615-1638).<\/p>\n ECOSOC. (2017). Progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals: Report of the Secretary General<\/em> (Report No. E\/2017\/66). Retrieved from https:\/\/unstats.un.org\/sdgs\/files\/report\/2017\/secretary-general-sdg-report-2017–EN.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n Ewing-Chow, M. and al. The Facilitation of Trade by the Rule of Law: the Cases of Singapore and ASEAN. In M. Jansen and al. (Eds.), Connecting to global markets. Challenges and opportunities <\/em>(pp. 129-146). Geneva: WTO. Retrieved from https:\/\/www.wto.org\/english\/res_e\/booksp_e\/cmark_full_e.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n International Law Commission. (2006). Fragmentation of International Law: Difficulties Arising from the Diversification and Expansion of International Law<\/em>. http:\/\/legal.un.org\/ilc\/documentation\/english\/a_cn4_l682.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n Koh, H. H. (1999). How Is International Human Rights Law Enforced? Indiana Law Journal<\/em>, 74 (4), Article 9, 1397-1417.<\/p>\n WTO. (1979). Differential and More Favourable Treatment: Reciprocity and Fuller Participation of Developing Countries: Decision of 28 November 1979 <\/em>(L\/4903). Retrieved from https:\/\/www.wto.org\/english\/docs_e\/legal_e\/enabling1979_e.htm<\/a><\/p>\n WTO. (1994). Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization. Retrieved from https:\/\/www.wto.org\/english\/docs_e\/legal_e\/04-wto_e.htm<\/a><\/p>\n WTO. (2015). 8th<\/sup> Annual Update on WTO Dispute Settlement<\/em>. Retrieved from https:\/\/www.wto.org\/english\/tratop_e\/dispu_e\/fmateo_14_e.htm<\/a><\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n UBC\u2019s Institute of Asian Research launched the second year of its policy research capacity building program with the Yangon University of Economics (YUE) in Myanmar this summer. The program is part of a series of initiatives in Myanmar sponsored by Canada\u2019s International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Its primary aim is to support the policy research skills of YUE\u2019s teaching staff and senior graduate students, many of whom are mid-career professionals involved in the policy process.<\/p>\n Myanmar is widely known to be rich in human and natural resources. These have helped drive rapid development since the country began a complex transition in 2011. Yet while the World Bank projects growth rates of over 6% for the near future, more than half a century of relative isolation and ongoing conflict leave deep challenges, including the historical neglect of training for effective policy engagement in Myanmar universities.<\/p>\n This creates a unique opportunity for collaboration between Canadian and Myanmar universities. The UBC-YUE summer program is designed to disseminate various policy frameworks and research tools common in the North American context, including UBC\u2019s School of Public Policy and Global Affairs. Given the active role that many YUE graduates play in Myanmar\u2019s policy arena, this creates the potential to positively impact the development process.<\/p>\n The summer program is comprised of three courses that target policy-oriented research: Key Concepts and Methods for Policy Research<\/em> taught by Kai Ostwald from UBC; Policy Analysis <\/em>taught by Rick Barichello from UBC; and Survey Research, Interviews, and Data for Policy Research<\/em> taught by Paul Schuler from the University of Arizona. The courses were supported by UBC PhD students, including Isabel Chew and Nathan Peng from the department of Political Science.<\/p>\n Each course ran for five days. The daily three-hour sessions emphasized hands-on practice and mutual learning. Participants were encouraged to apply the concepts and tools to policy problems they encounter in their professional lives, as well as to the research projects several have to complete for their degree requirements.<\/p>\n Beyond the organized course content, much of the learning came through input from the remarkably diverse range of participants, many of whom are actively engaged in complex and occasionally contentious policy dialogues or decision-making processes in their professional capacities. This included parliamentarian, a section head from the Ministry of Industry, a director of planning and finance from the Ministry of Health and Sports, a director of research and innovation from the Ministry of Education, and several other participants with roles in the ongoing peace process.<\/p>\n Feedback from the courses was positive. Despite the important roles many of the executive students play in the public sector and NGOs, more than half indicated that they had no previous research training. Many of the participants highlighted the utility of the courses in equipping them with the tools and concepts that could be directly applied in the course of their work. The learning experience for the UBC participants was equally rich, as interactions with the participants allowed valuable insights into the complexities of the governance, peace, and economic transitions in Myanmar.<\/p>\n As importantly, the program builds new ties between Myanmar and Canada that will last beyond the scope of the current initiative. This includes several research projects to be jointly conducted by UBC faculty and PhD students together with counterparts from Myanmar. In an additional component of the program, two YUE students completed a full semester in UBC\u2019s Masters of Public Policy and Global Affairs program early this year. UBC plans to welcome two additional students in the 2018\/19 academic year, as well as a visiting professor from YUE. These channels enable further mutual learning and open the door to deeper collaboration in the future.<\/p>\n![\"Adobe_PDF_file_icon_32x32\"](\"https:\/\/ccseas-ccease.apps01.yorku.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/adobe_pdf_file_icon_32x32.png\"){kind=icon}
\u00a0<\/a>Click here to download the PDF version.<\/a><\/p>\nTable of Contents<\/h1>\n
Words of Welcome<\/h2>\n
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Field Reports<\/h2>\n
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Academic Collaboration<\/h2>\n
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Announcement<\/h2>\n
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Acknowledgments<\/a><\/h2>\n
\nPresident’s welcome: Our CCSEAS Conference<\/h3>\n
By Dr. Erik Martinez Kuhonta (CCSEAS President 2017-2019)<\/em><\/h4>\n
\nTransition urbaine \u00e0 Hanoi : relations entre communaut\u00e9s villageoises pr\u00e9\u00e9tablies et nouvelle zone urbaine<\/h3>\n
By Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Morin-Gagnon (Universit\u00e9 de Montr\u00e9al)<\/em><\/h4>\n
![\"Pagode](\"https:\/\/ccseas-ccease.apps01.yorku.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/frederic-pagode-villageoise-encerclc3a9e-par-des-gratte-ciel.jpg?w=600\")
\nWeakness of Strong Ties? A Debatable Logic Behind Emigration in Cambodia<\/h3>\n
By Veng Seang Hai (Chiang Mai University)<\/em><\/h4>\n
\nLa crise du logement \u00e0 Yangon : enjeu central de la planification urbaine<\/h3>\n
By Antoine Chamberland (Universit\u00e9 de Montr\u00e9al)<\/em><\/h4>\n
![\"antoine02\"](\"https:\/\/ccseas-ccease.apps01.yorku.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/antoine02.jpg\")
![\"antoine01\"](\"https:\/\/ccseas-ccease.apps01.yorku.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/antoine01.jpg?w=600\")
\nA Tale of Three Cultural Worlds: My Experience with Hybridity in Vietnam<\/h3>\n
By Connie Phung (Concordia University)<\/em><\/h4>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ccseas.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/connie01-150x150.png\")
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<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n
\nCertifying Sustainability: The Case of Palm Oil in Indonesia<\/h3>\n
By Manon Fleurus (University of Ottawa)<\/em><\/h4>\n
![\"manon01](\"https:\/\/ccseas-ccease.apps01.yorku.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/manon01-millions-of-hectares.png\")
![\"manon02](\"https:\/\/ccseas-ccease.apps01.yorku.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/manon02-sdgs.png\")
\nFieldwork and Family Life in Phnom Penh<\/h3>\n
By Laura Beckwith (University of Ottawa)*<\/em><\/h4>\n
![\"laura](\"https:\/\/ccseas-ccease.apps01.yorku.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/laura-beckwith.jpg?w=600\")
*Field work for this research was carried out with the aid of grants from the International Development Research Centre, Ottawa Canada, the Ontario Graduate Scholarship and the Urban Climate Resilience in Southeast Asia program.<\/h5>\n
\nUnloving You Even Before I See You<\/h3>\n
By Nadya Karimasari (Wageningen University)*<\/em><\/h4>\n
*Nadya is doing an ethnography of finance conservation and agrarian labour regime in an ecosystem restoration project in Gunung Leuser National Park, Northern Sumatra, Indonesia.<\/h5>\n
\nFinding a Research Assistant in the Kingdom of Wonder<\/h3>\n
By Furqan Asif (University of Ottawa)*<\/em><\/h4>\n
*Furqan\u2019s doctoral research looks at migration of people from coastal fishing households to cities in Cambodia (where he did his fieldwork over an 18-month period). It attempts to uncover why some leave while others stay and the implications this has on their social wellbeing and social resilience.<\/h5>\n
\nMutual Supportiveness of SDG 16.3 and the WTO Agreement: Rule of Law to Protect both Trade and Human Rights<\/h3>\n
By Lorenzo Fiorito (Pasumai Thaayagam Foundation)<\/em><\/h4>\n
\nEmerging Myanmar Initiative between the University of British Columbia (UBC) and the Yangon University of Economics (YUE), supported by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC)<\/h3>\n
By Isabel Chew (University of British Columbia) and Kai Ostwald (University of British Columbia)<\/em><\/h4>\n
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