Spring 2013 Jefferson Fellowships | Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF)

Pakistan Press Foundation

Spring 2013 Jefferson Fellowships

The Jefferson Fellowships offer journalists in the United States and Asia Pacific a three-week dialogue and travel program to deepen their knowledge of regional issues and build international networks.

2013 Program Theme: New Leadership in Asia Pacific: Solving Old Problems, Managing New Realities

Dates: June 9-30, 2013

Destinations: Honolulu, Hawaii; Tokyo, Japan; Beijing, China; Yangon, Myanmar

Who Can Apply: Working print, broadcast, and on-line journalists in the United States, Asia and the Pacific Islands. Five years of experience preferred. English fluency required. 12-14 Fellowships will be awarded, 4-5 for American journalists, and 7-9 for journalists from Asia and the Pacific.

Funding: Airfare, lodging, modest per diem and most other program expenses are provided through a grant from The Freeman Foundation of Stowe, Vermont. Participants are responsible for a $500 program fee and all applicable visa fees and visa-related expenses. Additional funding is provided by the U.S. Embassy Islamabad for 2 Pakistani journalists. See website for details.

Application Deadline: Thursday, February 28, 2013

Information and applications: For more information about the program and how to apply, please visit our website: www.EastWestCenter.org/jefferson

Program Theme:

2012 brought new leadership to China and Japan and important bi-elections in Myanmar that signaled a new democratic openness in the country’s on-going transition from military to civilian rule. President Xi Jinping assumed leadership of the Chinese Communist Party after 10 years under Hu Jintao; former LDP Prime Minister Abe Shintaro returned to power in Japan; and President Thein Sein in Myanmar called for dramatic economic, social and political reform that has brought market opportunities and changed the country’s role in the region. Leadership in these three countries face complex, long-standing economic and social challenges as well as the reality of new power dynamics within the region, particularly China’s rise.

The 2013 Jefferson Fellowships program will focus on how much change and continuity may be expected from these new national leaders and others in business, government, and civil society who are in positions to influence economic, social and political developments. Participants will spend one week in Honolulu for sessions with regional experts to examine US perspectives on new leadership and power shifts and the second Obama administration’s plans for reinvigorated engagement with the Asia-Pacific region. A visit to Tokyo will explore new approaches to Japan’s entrenched economic and social difficulties—high budget deficits, deflation, an aging population and rigid labor structure—and reduced international standing. In Beijing, meetings will provide insight into President Xi Jinping’s vision for economic restructuring and China’s role as a regional and global power, and will examine other forces that are affecting change in China. The program will conclude with an on-the-ground look at the historic political, economic and media reforms taking place in Myanmar. Myanmar’s leadership faces an influx of foreign investment, which holds the promise of jumpstarting the economy amid immense challenges of managing political and social change.

In addition to domestic challenges, all three countries must grapple with the new realities of China’s rise. This power shift will require innovative thinking that is difficult in the face of domestic nationalism and established beliefs about the regional order. Territorial disputes between China and Japan have strained their bilateral relationship. Growing multinational interest in Myanmar, including improved relations with the United States, further shifts the status quo within the region. These regional challenges come as the Obama administration emphasizes its intention of “rebalancing” in the Asia Pacific region.

Spring 2013 Jefferson Fellows also will have the unique opportunity to engage with Yangon’s emerging media sector and provide professional training and regional perspectives to local journalists in this first ever visit to Myanmar in the 46 years of the Jefferson Fellowships program.

Program Contact: Ann Hartman, [email protected] or (808) 944-7619

Apply Now! Deadline: Thursday, February 28, 2013


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