Young Australians in International Affairs
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Young Australians in International Affairs aims to connect, engage and empower the next generation of Australian leaders in international affairs.
Young Australians in International Affairs
6d ago
Yige Xu | East Asia Fellow
Image credit: Makoto Lin via Flickr.
In 2017, former South Korean president Moon Jae-in campaigned on a promise to ‘become a feminist president’. But not five years later, in 2022, President Yoon Suk-yeol ran on an anti-feminist campaign accusing feminists of reverse sexism and pledging to abolish the gender equality ministry — and won.
How did this regression transpire so quickly? And how does the role of feminism in South Korean politics compare to other East Asian democracies?
While South Korea, Japan and Taiwan share cultural roots of Confucian patriarchal hiera ..read more
Young Australians in International Affairs
1w ago
Fiona Hurrey
Image credit: Harley Kingston via Flickr.
Australia is the only ‘developed’ country with a trend of net deforestation. The impact visible on our already-declining biodiversity and ecosystems alone is reason enough to act. The threat deforestation poses to climate, resilience, and thus to human security is another. Now, as environmental priorities rise on the international agenda, this bygone practice threatens our international reputation and trade interests.
We have a deforestation problem. In 2021, Eastern Australia was identified as one of the world’s 24 hottest “defore ..read more
Young Australians in International Affairs
2w ago
Verena Youssef | Middle East Fellow
Image of Popular Mobilisation Forces- an Iraq sponsored organisation composed of Katai’b Hezbollah and other militia. Image credit: Mohammad Mehdi Dara via Wikimedia.
On the 28th of January 2024, a drone attack claimed the lives of three United States (US) service members, and injured approximately ,,,34 more at Tower 22, an American military base located near the demilitarised zone that borders Jordan and Syria. Shortly after, a U.S official announced that the,,, incident carried the "footprints" of Kataib Hezbollah (KH), a radical ,,Iraqi Shiite ..read more
Young Australians in International Affairs
2w ago
Isha Desai | Indo Pacific Fellow
2024 Indonesian Election candidates list in Banten. Image credit: VulcanSphere via Wikimedia Commons.
On 14 February 2024, Indonesia held the largest one-day election in the world to choose their new president. The election marked a turning point in Indonesian politics, signalling whether the country would move forward with newfound democratic ideals or step backwards towards an authoritarian style of leadership. Indonesia transitioned to a democracy in 1998, when the Asian financial crisis amassed public opposition towards authoritarian dictator Suh ..read more
Young Australians in International Affairs
2w ago
Hannah Hains | Latin America Fellow
Nayib Bukele and Gabriela Rodríguez de Bukele in the Legislate Assembly of El Salvador. Image credit: Casa Presidencial , El Salvador via Wikimedia Commons.
El Salvador, the Central American nation of 6.3 million people, recently re-elected president Nayib Bukele, the self-proclaimed “world’s coolest dictator”. Bukele leads his own political party, is incredibly active on social media, implemented bitcoin as a legal tender, and overturned the constitution to be re-elected for a second term. Most notably, throughout his time as president, one of the highest ..read more
Young Australians in International Affairs
2w ago
In this career spotlight we have the pleasure of speaking with recent bachelor's graduate and current Research Associate Ava Kalinauskas about her experience studying a dual degree in France and Australia, her journey from university to the professional world, and her work at the United States Studies Centre.
Ava Kalinauskas is a Research Associate at the United States Studies Centre.
She holds a Bachelor of Arts Dual Degree from Sciences Po Paris and the University of Sydney. Her capstone project analysed Australia’s modern slavery legislation and its implications for the Asia-Pacific region ..read more
Young Australians in International Affairs
2w ago
Martin Wirkus | Europe and Eurasia Fellow
Azerbaijan-Serbia document signing. Image credit: President of Azerbaijan via Wikimedia Commons.
In early 2024, Serbia curiously signed a bilateral security cooperation plan with Azerbaijan. This partnership with the majority Muslim country is unusual given Serbia’s historic dispute over Kosovo with the Muslim Albanians. Furthermore, Azerbaijan has recently engaged in armed conflict with Armenia over Nagorno Karabakh. Serbia and Armenia are both Orthodox Christian countries, hence explaining surprise over the partnership between Serbia and Azerba ..read more
Young Australians in International Affairs
2w ago
In celebration of International Women's Day, Young Australians in International Affairs is delighted to announce our list of Young Women to Watch in International Affairs for 2024.
Every year, the list recognises, celebrates and promotes the next generation of women achieving success and making an impact in international affairs - whether that be in government, academia, think tanks, the private sector or civil society.
Despite great strides in gender equality, the international affairs field remains male-dominated. In an increasingly complex and challenging world, YAIA seeks to represent and ..read more
Young Australians in International Affairs
3w ago
Katherine Flint | South Pacific Fellow
Image credit: United Nations via ,Flickr.
Since 2009, the Pacific Islands has been the only region without a dedicated human rights institution. This is perhaps unsurprising, given the prevailing regional sentiment that Pacific cultures and human rights conflict. Throughout Oceania, where family bonds run deep and collective wellbeing is paramount, notions of individual rights can feel like a foreign concept, a disruption to the harmony of Pacific notions of family. And for those who experienced colonialism under such slogans as ‘humanity’ and ‘civi ..read more
Young Australians in International Affairs
3w ago
Rosie Skull
Geert Wilders at 2023 Dutch Election. Image credit: Prachatai via Flickr.
The Dutch elections, held on the 22nd of November 2023, provide a sobering reminder of the power of modern-day populism and its growing dominance in Europe’s changing political climate. In the elections, the Dutch politician Geert Wilders, who is widely known for his anti-Islam rhetoric and election promise to “,,,close borders” against mass migration, secured ,,,37 seats in the 150-seat parliament. The closest of his political opponents, former EU commissioner Frans Timmermans’ left-wing alliance, mana ..read more