Category: International Economic Development

International Migration and Economic Development

Today I want to focus on an issue that is very dear to me: international migration.  I am currently residing in a foreign country, finishing up school and looking for work, and so naturally I have quite a vested interest in international immigration regulations and restrictions.  I don’t want to focus on my own story, …

Continue reading

Share

Responsible Tourism in Madagascar

I’m sure most of you have heard of the island of Madagascar, particularly since the release of the Madagascar animated films, and know that the country is home to numerous animal species that cannot be found anywhere else on earth.  10,000 of the islands 12,000 plant species, for example, are endemic, as are half of the …

Continue reading

Share

Transition Towns

I spent the last month studying abroad, I have realized how differently Western Cultures actually think from each other. I’ve spent the last month traveling around Denmark and England, and have really come to realize how different the countries are from the United States. My class in Denmark focused on sustainable food efforts. This means …

Continue reading

Share

Looking Back on China (7): Defense for One Child Policy

Americans always ask me questions about China to which they have already have answered in their mind. Among them, “do you have siblings” is the most popular one, and maybe the most unnecessary one. Exactly as same as their expectation, my answer is “no.” After that, without any exception, long conversations about China’s One-Child Policy …

Continue reading

Share

Singapore: Corrupt or Not?

Singapore is one of the leading economies in the world with finance being the top markets. According to the 2012 corruption perception index by Transparency International, Singapore is the 5th least corrupt country in the world, making it the least corrupt in Asia. Although it is a small country, its GDP is ranked 35th in …

Continue reading

Share

Looking Back on China (6): People’s Republic of Copying

I miss home so desperately, every time I cannot download songs or movies free of charge in America. Infringements on intellectual property rights in China are so common that even no one perceives them as illegal. Of course, as a law student, I know what the law is. But I still enjoyed our “privilege” carelessly, …

Continue reading

Share

“Failed” States?

Foreign Policy’s  annual Failed State Issue came out today, along with their 2013 Failed State Index, uses twelve social, economic, and political indicators to analyze nations and then ranks them accordingly, with 120 being the worst possible score a state can receive.  The states are then separated into five categories: critical, in danger, borderline, stable, and most stable. …

Continue reading

Share

Are ASEAN’s Goals Achievable?

When I think of current events in Southeast Asia, the things that pop into my head are authoritarian regimes, ethnic tensions, border clashes, and so on. There is an entire list of current conflicts going on in this region. An example of a border dispute would be Thailand conflicting with neighboring Myanmar, Malaysia, Laos and …

Continue reading

Share

Extreme Poverty in Lao PDR

Lao PDR has one of the highest growth rates in Southeast Asia with 6% increase every year in the last decade. Even the level of poverty has been declining. However, the country is still one of the least developed in Southeast Asia and the level of poverty is still largely apparent in this economy. Laos …

Continue reading

Share

The Politics of Pistachios

Sometimes, the strangest things can cause a rift, or continue to push apart, two countries.  It comes as no surprise that the United State and Iran are not ideologically on the same page.  The two nations have been at odds with one another over the development of nuclear energy, and over the years Iran has …

Continue reading

Share