Professor Michael Yahuda, Emeritus Professor of the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) spoke at a high-level seminar on Southeast Asia in an Era of International Uncertainty organized by Asia Pacific Pathways to Progress Foundation Inc. and Asian Politics & Policy Journal on May 2, 2017 at Astoria Greenbelt, Makati City.
From L to R: APPFI President, Dr. Aileen Baviera, Prof. Aaron Rabena, graduate student Wang Xutong and Professors Chen Hanxi and Zhou Fangyin. Photo courtesy of UP Asian Center.
Two Chinese scholars from the Guangdong Institute for International Strategies of the Guangdong University of Foreign Studies presented contradicting opinions on the significance of the South China Sea territorial claims to China, during a public lecture last May 4 at the University of the Philippines’ Asian Center.
The public lecture entitled "Between Assertiveness and Self-Restraint: Understanding China's South China Sea Policy” featured Dr. Zhou Fangyin, the Director of the Center for China’s Regional Strategies of the Guangdong University, and Dr. Chen Hanxi, an International Relations professor from the same university.
The Asia Pacific Pathways to Progress Foundation, Inc. invited selected analysts and experts to the launch of its newest project, the Track Two Observer (TTO). The meeting was held at Sangkalan Restaurant last March 20, 2017.
The idea of TTO draws from the concept of “Track Two Diplomacy”, which refers to "non-governmental, informal and unofficial contacts and activities between private citizens or groups of individuals, sometimes called 'non-state actors' acting outside the official state-led negotiation and mediation processes for purposes of helping manage intra-state or inter-state conflicts. When the term “Track Two diplomacy” was first published in the early 1980s, its underlying assumption “is that actual or potential conflict can be resolved or eased by appealing to common human capabilities to respond to good will and reasonableness.”
(From left) Dr. Francisco A. Magno, President, Philippine Political Science Association; Dr. Charmaine Misalucha-Willoughby, Associate Professor, DLSU; Dr. Wilfrido V. Villacorta; Dr. Aileen S.P. Baviera, President and CEO, Asia-Pacific Pathways to Progress Foundation, Inc.; and Dr. Julio C. Teehankee, Dean of Liberal Arts, De La Salle University. Dr. Misalucha-Willoughby, one of the the top students of Dr. Villacorta, and his admired younger colleague, Dr. Baviera, were the discussants for his lecture. Photo courtesy of Dr. Francisco Magno
In recognition of his contributions to Philippine Political Science and his accomplishments in public service and international relations, APPFI Board Member, Dr. Wilfrido Villacorta, was conferred the Distinguished Leadership Award by the Philippine Political Science Association (PPSA) last March 1, 2017.
His award was, in part, a tribute to his thirty years of innovative, interdisciplinary and experiential approach to teaching, employing simulation, dramatization, decision-making games, field trips and class debates, in addition to traditional lectures, research papers and examinations. He has internationally and locally published books, articles in scholarly journals and chapters in edited books. He was Dean (1983-1986) and Senior Vice-President (1987-1993) at De La Salle University, and was Visiting Professor in the US, most ASEAN countries, Japan, China, South Korea, Canada and Australia. From 1994 until 2003, he was President of the Yuchengco Center, a research center based at DLSU and devoted to studies on Northeast and Southeast Asia.