Summer Travel Grant 2018 Recipient
Soksamphoas Im
Graduate Degree Fellow
PhD in Political Science

The EWCA generous award of five hundred dollars USD has enabled me to travel to Brisbane, Australia to attend and present my research paper on “NGOs and Civil Society’s Public Diplomacy in Contemporary Southeast Asia” at the International Political Science Association (IPSA) 25th World Congress. The knowledgeable audiences who attended my panel session provided me constructive feedback on my paper project and encouraged me to revise and get the paper published in the future, given my very pioneer topic of research within the study of international relations in Southeast Asia. I learned a lot and was very inspired by these significant scholars. The conference was a success as I had the opportunity to meet and network with friends and scholars of the same discipline from across the globe. I attended the whole five days of the conference, July 21st-25th, 2018. Besides presenting my paper, I also had a window to attend other scholars’ presentations as well. Overall, I really enjoyed my time in Brisbane attending IPSA 25th World Congress. I will continue to strive for more learning opportunities like this, which is a wonderful way that I believe helps enrich both my knowledge and skill.