International Area Studies Review

While South Korea has become an economic and pop-cultural powerhouse in recent decades, North Korea has remained continuously in the media due to its humanitarian issues and nuclear brinkmanship. Accordingly, academic research on the Korean peninsula might have noticeably increased during the same period. To this end, a quantitative content analysis of all Korea-related articles appearing in the influential Arts and Humanities Citation Index was conducted. From 1990 to 2015, a total of 2406 articles were published, representing a noticeable increase – from just 20 articles in 1990 to 233 works by 2015. Moreover, while most articles on Korea were written by non-Korean scholars initially, the situation reversed by 2001, and that gap has continued to widen. Expectedly, the vast majority of articles have been published in typical humanities subjects such as area studies, linguistics and history (over 50%). Unexpectedly, the number of articles on North Korea has remained low, peaking at 20 in 2013.

This study examined the impact of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)’s ecosystem vitality (EV) on its agricultural exports to the rest of the world. Using a sample of the six major ASEAN countries (ASEAN-6) (including Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam) and their 72 trading partners for the period 2007–2016, we found robust evidence of a positive relationship between the quality of EV and the volume of agricultural exports. At the sectoral level, the quality of EV had the most substantial effects on the ASEAN’s exports of SITC-0 (food and live animals) and exerted the least impact on the ASEAN’s exports of SITC-2 (crude materials, inedible, except fuels). This empirical evidence implies that natural resource-intensive products are more sensitive to the quality of EV. At the country level, EV has the most potent effect on the ASEAN’s agricultural exports to high-income countries and the least impact on the ASEAN’s agricultural exports to low-income countries. To promote agricultural exports, especially to high-income countries, our empirical results suggest that ASEAN countries need to build specific and effective plans for conservation of environment and management of sustainable ecosystems.

JEL Classification: C33, F14, and Q56

Economic integration is undoubtedly at the top of the agenda for the ASEAN Community. To pave the way for such integration, serious consideration should also be given to sociocultural aspects of the integration initiatives, especially education cooperation among member states, as such cooperation can act as a stepping stone to a heightened awareness of a regional integration and a growing sense of connectedness to the initiatives. The fact is, however, that ASEAN countries devote little attention to education cooperation compared with other aspects of cooperation. This paper critically examines the development of ASEAN integration by investigating the way in which ASEAN education cooperation arrangements are actualised for the benefit of regional integration. Through the examination, the paper discusses major theories of regional integration, using them to conceptualise ASEAN integration. It also discusses the concepts of government and governance vis-a-vis education, applying them to the ASEAN case.

Khadim Rizvi’s open manifestation of religion helped him become one of the most popular leaders of Barelvi-Sunni Muslims in Pakistani Punjab. He emerged as the leader of a moral community during a crisis. After a series of protests and negotiated agreements with the federal and provincial governments, he was able to translate his support into electoral power. In the 2018 election, his TLP bagged 1.8 million votes (National Assembly seats) from Punjab. It was the first instance in recent political history when a newcomer religious party finished third in the province. No religious party had been able, in the last three elections (2008, 2013, 2018), to impact elections in Punjab as the TLP did in 2018.