UNESCO Bangkok hosts upcoming workshop and conference on reimagining ‘development’ models in Asia-Pacific

From 22 through 23 June, social and human sciences experts from across South-East Asia will gather in Bangkok for a two-day consultation workshop and public conference, Reimagining ‘Development’ Models in Asia-Pacific – Making the Social and Human Sciences Count.

Organised by the Social and Human Sciences (SHS) Unit of the UNESCO Multisectoral Regional Office in Bangkok (UNESCO Bangkok), in collaboration with the UNESCO regional offices of Almaty (Kazakhstan), Jakarta (Indonesia), Kathmandu (Nepal), and New Delhi (India), this event will engage intellectuals, scholars, policy-makers and practitioners from the region on one key question: Are the ‘development’ models that have been used for the last few decades sustainable and conducive to inclusion, justice, and protection of the common good? Have these models led to tangible improvement of people’s quality of life in their respective communities?

UNESCO aims at working with the national and regional stakeholders in repositioning the social and human sciences disciplines and their approaches for unpacking and understanding the challenges facing the diverse communities of Asia and the Pacific. This goal requires collective and interdisciplinary attempts to reimagine new paradigms of truly sustainable development, ones that take stock of the current evolution of the technology, human-environment interaction, and global aspirations for inclusion and justice. Notably, this workshop will help build new partnerships for moving forward and ensuring the most favourable research-policy linkages.

This workshop and its related conference is a first step under the framework of the UNESCO Management of Social Transformation (MOST) Programme, which aims to build a network of social and human sciences thinkers and practitioners willing to join UNESCO’s ongoing reflection on how the sciences are able to address the most pressing social transformation issues facing the region.

Objectives

1. Discuss the UNESCO SHS 2023 Position Paper with social and human sciences intellectuals and practitioners, in order to fine-tune UNESCO’s MOST Programme in response to the key challenges the various regions of Asia and the Pacific are facing.            

2. Explore how UNESCO can improve and foster the research-policy nexus in support of South-East Asian governments, academia and CSOs in their shaping of policies that are more people-centred, inclusive and sustainable.              

Target Audience

By invitation only; the workshop will host intellectuals, scholars, policy-makers, practitioners and key stakeholders from across Asia-Pacific.               

Working Language

English

Dates/Format

The workshop will be organized over two days, in full-day sessions, on 22 and 23 June 2023, and will be in-person, with no remote conferencing. Advance registration is required for invited participants.

Provisional Agenda

For reference purposes, please see the Concept Note and the Provisional Agenda.

Resources

Concept Note and Provisional Agenda                   

For more Information

Mr Phinith Chanthalangsy, Regional Advisor for the Social and Human Sciences (p.chanthalangsy(at)unesco.org); and Mr Antoine Blot, Intern (a.blot(at)unesco.org); Social and Human Sciences (SHS) Unit; UNESCO Multisectoral Regional Office in Bangkok.