Redefining the Role of the Asia-Pacific in a Changing World Order
John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum,
Harvard Kennedy School
4 April, 2026
What is the APC?
The Asia Pacific Conference, presented by students at the Harvard Kennedy School, aims to promote cross-generational dialogue and understanding by bringing together today’s innovative thinkers and tomorrow’s decision-makers from Asia-Pacific and the United States.
The 2026 Asia Pacific Conference center on the theme “Redefining the Role of Asia-Pacific in Changing World Order.” Speakers and participants are invited to reflect on the role Asia-Pacific countries can play in the age of global uncertainty and examine the shifting roles of institutions and drivers across the region. The conference will examine this through five panels focusing on: geopolitics, trade and economic development, democracy, soft power, and Asia-Pacific leadership.
Our
Story
Building on the success and lessons learned from the first Asia Pacific Conference in Spring 2025, the 2026 conference will be held to recognize the growing geopolitical, economic, and technological importance of this region to policymakers in the United States and around the world. As the only student-led conference at Harvard Kennedy School that addresses the breadth of the Asia-Pacific region, this is an unparalleled opportunity to foster a community of bright, like-minded policy minds and future leaders interested in increasing awareness of emerging trends and challenges in the region.
Featuring
Presented by
Conference Agenda
8:00 - 9:00
Registration
9:00 - 9:15
Welcoming Remarks
9:15 - 9:45
Morning Keynote
H.E. Dionisio Da Costa Babo Soares
Vice President of 80th Session United Nations General Assembly (UNGA); Permanant Representative of Timor-Leste to the United Nations
9:45 - 10:45
Panel 1
Trade and Economy
The return of the Trump administration has injected profound uncertainty into the global trading system, and no region feels the stakes more acutely than the Asia-Pacific. Tariffs, supply chain realignment, and the fracturing of multilateral trade norms are forcing governments and businesses across the region to make consequential choices about where they stand and how they adapt.
Wendy Cutler
Senior Vice President at the Asia Society Policy Institute and former Acting Deputy U.S. Trade Representative
Chen-Tso (Wesley) Chu
Executive Advisor at the Stanford Taiwan Science and Technology Hub, a Research Fellow at the Ash Center, Harvard Kennedy School
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Chatib Basri
Former Minister of Finance of Indonesia, Former Chairman of the Indonesian Investment Coordinating Board
Elaine Teo
Senior Vice President & Head, Americas, Singapore Economic Development Board
Steve Son
Senior Vice President of SK Group for the NY Office
Moderated by
Professor Jay Rosengard (TBD)
10:45 - 11:15
Coffee Break
Winter Garden
11:15 - 12:15
Panel 2
"Geopolitics"
The Indo-Pacific has become the defining theater of twenty-first-century geopolitics, a region where great-power competition, territorial disputes, and shifting alliances are reshaping the international order in real time. From the South China Sea to the Indian Ocean, from Southeast Asia to the Pacific Islands, the choices governments in this region make will shape global stability for decades to come.
H.E. Dionisio Da Costa Babo Soares
Permanant Representative of Timor-Leste to the United Nations, Vice President of UNGA
Dr. Greg Brown
Senior Fellow and Director of Regional Cooperations and Coordination at Australia Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) USA
Dr. Sayuri Romei
Senior Fellow, Indo-Pacific Program at German Marshall Fund
12:15 - 13:15
Panel 3
Asian Leadership
Asia is no longer simply responding to the international order; it is actively contesting and reshaping it. From the Korean Peninsula to the South Pacific, from the halls of the United Nations to the streets of Dili, Asian leaders are navigating a moment of profound systemic disruption: the fracturing of post-Cold War multilateralism, the rise of digital public spheres that bypass state narratives, and the growing demand from citizens, including those who risk everything to speak, for a say in the region's future.
H.E. António de Sá Benevides
Ambassador of Timor-Leste to Republic of Korea
H.E. Oh Joon
Former Permanent Representative of the Republic of Korea to the United Nations
Cheol Ryu
North Korean Defector, Content Creator of YouTube Channel "Charles North Korea"
Catherine So
CEO of South China Morning Post, MIT Sloan Fellow
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Moderated by
ByeongKyu (Colin) Jun
Co-Chair of HKS Asia Pacific Conference 2026
11:15 - 12:15
Panel 2
Geopolitics
The Indo-Pacific has become the defining theater of twenty-first-century geopolitics, a region where great-power competition, territorial disputes, and shifting alliances are reshaping the international order in real time. From the South China Sea to the Indian Ocean, from Southeast Asia to the Pacific Islands, the choices governments in this region make will shape global stability for decades to come.
H.E. Dionisio Da Costa Babo Soares
Permanant Representative of Timor-Leste to the United Nations, Vice President of UNGA
Dr. Greg Brown
Senior Fellow and Director of Regional Cooperations and Coordination at Australia Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) USA
Dr. Sayuri Romei
Senior Fellow, Indo-Pacific Program at German Marshall Fund
14:30 - 15:30
Panel 4
Democracy
Across Asia, democracy is under pressure, not always through coups or chaos, but through quieter mechanisms such as constitutional manipulation, the criminalization of opposition, and the slow hollowing out of institutions that were built to protect the public from the unchecked accumulation of power. From Myanmar to Thailand, from Bangladesh to the Philippines, the question is no longer simply whether elections are held, but whether they mean anything at all.
Kamal Ahmad
Founder of Asian University for Women, Harvard Asia Center Fellow
Pita Limjanroemrat
2023 election-winning Thailand Prime Minister Candidate
Wai Wai Nu
Burmese human rights activist who spent seven years as a political prisoner in Myanmar
Moderated by
Novia Meizura
Co-Chair of HKS Asia Pacific Conference 2026
13:15 - 14:30
Lunch
15:30 - 16:30
Panel 5
Soft Power and Media
In a time when influence travels through culture and storytelling as much as diplomacy, soft power and presence in media has become a defining force shaping the Asia-Pacific’s global presence. This panel will explore how representation is evolving in the global media landscape. Drawing on their experiences shaping cultural conversation and reaching international audiences, our speakers will discuss the role of creators, journalists and storytellers in expanding visibility and reshaping how Asia and Asian communities are represented on the world stage.
Emily Kim (Maangchi)
Owner and Content Creator of YouTube Channel "Maangchi"
Jeff Yang
Writer, journalist, businessman, Columnist for the Wall Street Journal
Hudson Yang
Asian American Actor
Lead Actor in "Fresh of the Boat"
Moderated by
Kung Chen
Co-Chair of HKS Asia Pacific Conference 2026
16:30 - 17:00
Closing Remarks