EWCA Discussion Board

The EWCA Executive Board held their quarterly meeting on June 19, 2008. Among the first things to be discussed in the meeting was the recent election of the Board members.

We would like to welcome new members: Kaoru Matsuda (Japan) and Arfa Zehra (Pakistan) and welcome back the re-elected: Khaleda Rashid, Carl Hefner, Sarlito Sarwono, and Katerina Teaiwa.

We bid aloha to departing members: A. Seshan, Amanda Ellis, Seiko Furuhashi, and Shoji Nishimoto and thank them for all of their contribution during their time on the Board.

Check out the East-West Views site for the blog post on last month’s Ho’okupa Ceremony for students completing their East-West Center programs.

Nick Barker, head of the East-West Center’s Asia Pacific Leadership Program (APLP), attended a dinner with EWCA Shanghai Chapter members on June 6, 2008. EWCA President Larry Foster and his wife, Brenda Foster, the Director of American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, were the gracious hosts of the dinner.

The deadline for submitting abstracts for consideration for the 2008 EWCA International Conference is June 30, 2008!

All papers should be related to the conference theme “Building an Asia Pacific Community: Unity in Diversity” and one of the subthemes. For a complete list of subthemes and how to submit abstracts please click here.

You don’t have to present a paper to attend the conference, so for those who want to register click here for registration information. The last day for early registrations is also June 30, so don’t delay!

By Nirendra Maske (ISI ‘66-’68)
Kathmandu Chapter Liaison

Kathmandu Chapter members at East-West Center Day celebrations.

East-West Center Day was celebrated by the EWCA Kathmandu Chapter on 17 May, 2008, and the occasion marked the formal launching of the sister relationship between the EWCA Brisbane Chapter, Australia, and the EWCA Kathmandu, Nepal Chapter. The Brisbane Chapter celebrated the EWC Day on 18 May, 2008.

The occasion was used by the chapter to visit the “Balbhojan” with food for children, an education program, and to distribute educational kits to about 60 underprivileged and street children. We also visited and helped serve them lunch provided by “Balbhojan.” It was a memorable visit.

By P.M. Belliappa (RS ‘78)
Chennai Chapter President

Mr. P.M. Belliappa addresses the Chennai Chapter at East-West Center Day celebrations. To the right are Dr. Gopalji Malviya and Mr. Frederick J. Kaplan.

The East-West Center Alumni Association, Chennai Chapter celebrated its Annual Day on May 28, 2008 at the Strokeside Hall of the Madras Boat Club (founded in 1886).

The Chief guest, Mr. Frederick J. Kaplan, Consul, Public Affairs, American Consulate General in Chennai, delivered a talk on “Indo-US Relations: Past, Present and Future.” Professor Dr. Gopalji Malviya, Head of the Department Defence and Strategic Studies University, presided. Interestingly, Mr. Fred Kaplan was the Chief Guest last year at the same venue. It was sort of a review of Indo-US relations during the twelve-month period that had elapsed. Continue Reading »

By Peter Nunan (ISI ‘66-’68)

Brisbane Chapter members celebrating East-West Center Day at the Nepalese Pavilion in South Bank, Brisbane, Australia

On Sunday 18 May, the Brisbane chapter celebrated EWC Day with a picnic next to the Nepalese pavilion in South Bank, which was built for the EXPO 88. The place was chosen because we were inaugurating our sister chapter relationship with the Kathmandu Chapter in Nepal. We chose that chapter for this initiative because we have a local member who was born there, Bhishna Bajracharya.

At the picnic and chapter meeting were Bhishna Bajracharya and his wife Edilyn; Karen and Peter Nunan; Iraphne and Ralph Childs; and Pat Byrne, Aline and Jeremy Webb, chapter President.

We plan to exchange brief biographical details with the Nepalese (Kathmandu) chapter, to help us decide what we will do next in this relationship. A meeting in a Nepalese restaurant is planned for late June to discuss our options.

By Jeramy Webb (ISI ‘66-’68)
EWCA Brisbane Chapter

Petrol prices are reaching around $1.60 per litre in Australia and in New Zealand, when I was there, they had reached $2 a litre.

Now a lot of politicians around the world want to increase the production of ethanol to reduce dependence on oil and reduce the tax on petrol. But policies are badly misguided. The reasons are pretty clear. Firstly, given the world is inexorably running out of oil there is no better way to push people into substitutes than to let the price push them. Continue Reading »

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