Workshop on Inclusive Sustainable Development in Asia
～Economy, Society, Human Development and Environment～

Aim of the workshop

In the workshop, we will discuss Sustainable Development issues related to environment, resource, ecology and biodiversity, education and poverty reduction, and national and international institution from inclusive perspectives. We will invite researchers and policy makers from both developing and developed countries; Cambodia, Thailand, Singapore and Japan, to be lecturers and speakers. Finally, we aim to understand Sustainability of Asian development and discuss the approaches to realize Sustainable Development together with academic researchers and policymakers.

Date

December 16-17, 2015

Venue

Kobe University Centennial Hall, Rokko Hall

Fee

Free

Organizer

Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University

Sponsor

Academic Weeks 2015

Registration

Registration form

E-mail: sdworkshop2015 [at] h [dot] kobe-u [dot] ac [dot] jp

* Personal information is used for the management of the workshop, and is preserved based on the privacy protection rule of Kobe University.

Program

December 16, 2015

December 17, 2015

Contact Information

SATO Masayuki, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University
Email:msat [at] port [dot] kobe-u [dot] ac [dot] jp

General Affairs Section, Faculty of Human Development, Kobe University
TEL: +81-78-803-7905

Speakers

Prof. Youngho Chang

Nanyang Technological University

Dr. Chang is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the Division of Economics, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Apart from the academic affiliation, he is a member of Technical Committee for Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) Designated National Authority (DNA), National Environment Agency, Singapore. He specializes in the economics of climate change, energy and security, oil and macroeconomy, and the economics of electricity market deregulation. His current research interests are oil price fluctuations and macroeconomic performance, the economics of energy security, energy use and climate change, human capital and economic growth, and education for sustainability (EfS). He has published his research output in internationally refereed academic journals such as Energy Economics, Energy Policy, Econometric Theory and Economics Letters among others. He was a degree fellow at the East-West Center, Hawaii and received his Ph.D. in Economics (Environmental and Resource Economics) from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, U.S.A.

Back to the program

Prof. Shandre Thangavelu

University of Adelaide and Ministry of Manpower, Singapore

Associate Professor Shandre Thangavelu is an active researcher on human capital development, technology transfer, foreign direct investment, trade, government infrastructure investment, productivity and economic growth. He has written extensively in technology transfer and economic growth and has published his research in major international journals. His recent publications are in Journal of Economic Development, Empirical Economics, Applied Economics, World Economy, and Journal of Economic Studies. Recently, he was attached as the Head of the Economics Unit, Ministry of Manpower, under the Economist Service to Ministry of Trade and Industry and Ministry of Manpower. He has also worked on several international projects commissioned by Asian Productivity Organization (APO) on the measurement of aggregate productivity for the Singapore economy and the World Bank project on structural changes and skill-mismatch. He was engaged as a country expert on the Expert Group EFTA Study Phase II that comprises experts from ASEAN, China, Korea and Japan. He is also assisting as a Senior Consultant to the Ministry of Manpower.
Associate Professor Shandre M. Thangavelu is currently the Regional Director (Southeast Asia) at Centre for Economic Studies, Institute of International Trade, University of Adelaide, Australia. He was the Director of SCAPE (Singapore Centre for Applied and Policy Economics) at the Department of Economics, National University of Singapore. He was also the Assistant Dean at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences from January 2004 to May 2006. Recently, he was appointed as the Managing Editor for Asian Economic Journal (AEJ). He is also a Senior Research Fellow at Leverhulme Centre for Research on Globalisation and Economic Policy (GEP), University of Nottingham; and Faculty (Research) Associate at Institute of Policy Studies at LKY School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore. Professor Thangavelu obtained his graduate degrees from Queen’s University, Canada

Back to the program

Prof. Worawet Suwanrada

Chulalongkorn University, Thailand

Dr. Worawet Suwanrada is currently Associate Professor at the Faculty of Economics and Dean of College of Population Studies, Chulalongkorn University. His teaching subjects at the Faculty of Economics lie mainly in public economics at both undergraduate and graduate levels. His research interests are mainly public finance, government spending, tax policy, social security system, especially financing pension and long term care schemes. He conducts both empirical and policy researches. From January-September 2015, he was a member of Committee of System Reform towards Ageing Society in Thailand, National Reform Assembly. Currently, he is a committee member of National Elderly Committee chaired by prime minister.

Back to the program

Prof. Vathana Thun

Prek Leap National College of Agriculture, Cambodia

Dr. Vathana Thun, a researcher and lecturer who joined Prek Leap National College of Agriculture (PNCA) as Executive Director in February 2014, specializes in agricultural economics. Before joining PNCA, he taught at the Royal University of Agriculture, where he graduated from his bachelor’s degree program in 1996. Apart from teaching, Dr Thun also engages in various research projects. From 1999 to 2005, he studied in Japan, receiving his master's degree from Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology and his doctoral degree from Nagoya University.

Back to the program

Mr. Sovannarith So

Mekong Institute

Mr. SO Sovannarith, MSc in Environment and Development from University of Reading UK in 2003, is affiliated Senior Research Fellow of Mekong Institute (MIC) established by a group of Cambodian Scholars in 2011. He has substantial and outstanding research experiences as a senior research fellow of Cambodia Development Resource Institute (CDRI), Cambodia’s leading independent development policy research institute for 19 years from June 1996 till October 2015. He has conducted a wide-range of policy-oriented research projects to promote agricultural and rural development, poverty reduction, natural resources (land, forestry and fisheries) management and government, impact of recent global financial crisis on the poor, vulnerable workers and social safety net in Cambodia. Since 2012, he has moved to engage in social development (health and education) research projects. He is now in the process of completing research reports of “Policies to Attract and Retain Health Workers in Rural Areas” and “Motivation of Health Workers in Rural Areas” in Post-Conflict Cambodia, and Article of Evolution of Policy for HRH in Post Conflict Country: learning from Cambodia as part of ReBUILD Project, 2012 - 2015 funded by DFID and managed by Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. In addition, he has evaluated around 90 development projects and/or programmes which have been implemented by the national and internal development partners for promote socio-economic and institutional development in Cambodia.

Back to the program

Prof. Keosothea Nou

Cambodia Development Resource Institute

Keosothea Nou is a lecturer and head of agronomy department working at Prek Leap National College of Agriculture (PNCA) since 1995. He also has over ten years research experience in rural, agricultural development and social development as a senior research fellow at Cambodia Development Resource Institute (CDRI). Mr Nou acted as a team leader on a number of projects conducting in depth agriculture analysis, resulting in lead author publications. Mr Nou holds two master degrees from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, a Master of Science in Agricultural Development and Master in Sustainable Land Use and Natural Resource Management. He is completing a PhD in education with the University of Canberra, Australia on an ACIAR John Allwright fellowship.

Back to the program

Dr. Michelle Y. Merrill

Nanyang Technological University

Dr. Michelle Y. Merrill is currently a Post-doctoral Research Fellow at Nanyang Technological University. Her research includes social learning, complex adaptive systems, and culture change. She recieved her Ph.D. in 2004 from Duke University (Biological Anthropology and Anatomy), based on field studies of orangutan cultural variation and social learning. Since 2004, she has focused on how humans can connect with, learn from and teach one another to co-create a resilient, sustainable future.
From 2006-2013, she was an instructor at a community college in California, where she won the 2013 John D. Hurd Award for Teaching Excellence for teaching introductory Biological Anthropology and Cultural Anthropology courses, developing sustainability-themed courses and instructor training workshops, advising student clubs, and supporting college efforts to enhance institutional and community sustainability and social justice. She previously conducted higher education accreditation research and created innovative faculty development workshops.
She currently works with a large international team of collaborators centered in Southeast Asia, documenting how universities are responding to the call for improved education for sustainable development. She is investigating student attitudes, responses and learning outcomes in the online Introduction to Sustainability: Multidisciplinary Approaches and Solutions core course at Nanyang Technological University.

Back to the program

Prof. Tomohiro Tabata

Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University

Prof. Atushi Ushimaru

Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University

Prof. Runsinarith Phim

Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University

Prof. Rintaro Yamaguchi

Graduate School of Economics, Kyoto University

Prof. Akihisa Mori

Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies, Kyoto University

Prof. Masayuki Sato

Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University

Back to top