KAREN KNUDSEN’S REFLECTIONS AND THANKS TO ALUMNI ON HER 30 YEARS AT THE EAST-WEST CENTER

When you’re a member of the EWC “family” the world opens up and you have friends throughout the region — whether in capital cities or in remote villages. Wherever I traveled, EWC alumni extended generous hospitality and provided much appreciated guidance. When I sprained my ankle on one trip alumni showed up at my hotel with walking sticks and canes. I still have them. They’re a reminder of the bond of friendship we share. I’m very grateful to the alumni for their kindness and for their commitment to continuing the East-West Center’s mission. Being involved with EWC/EWCA International Conferences was always a rewarding highlight. I’ve worked on ten international alumni conferences and each of them hold a special memory for me. Joining hands and singing Aloha Oe at the close of each conference ends with the phrase, “until we meet again” . . . I look forward to “meeting again” with each of you in the future.

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Working with alumni across the region and U.S. was one of the most rewarding and important highlights of my long career at the East-West Center. Our alumni are the Center’s most valuable and important legacy.

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Quarterly Reports from EWCA Alumni Chapters (1st Quarter 2020)

East-West Center Association
Chapter Development Committee, Quarterly Reports
2020 1st Quarter Chapter Reports (January to March)
Editor: Dr. Jessica A. Sheetz-Nguyen
Vice President for Chapter Development

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EWCA Chapters During the Coronavirus Pandemic

The Alumni Office has reached out to EWCA Chapter Leaders throughout the Asia Pacific region to see how their members and communities are faring during the coronavirus pandemic. We have compiled the responses here that we have received thus far and will continue to update and add to the responses as we continue to hear from Chapters.

ASIA PACIFIC LEADERSHIP PROGRAM (APLP) CHAPTER
President: Blaine Baldwin
The APLP Chapter is fortunate to have active board members that represent nearly all 19 APLP generations. Participation at Board meetings in January and March increased significantly compared to previous meetings. Topics discussed at these meetings included the APLP website, planning for the next Global Pau Hana (this time to be held in a virtual online setting in May), and discussion of the COVID-19 impact on members as well as surrounding communities. A special Q1 2020 edition of The Navigator was published with a focus on the COVID-19 Pandemic, including various perspectives on COVID-19 written by APLP alumni from several generations.

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Quarterly Reports from EWCA Alumni Chapters (3rd Quarter 2019)

East-West Center Association
Chapter Development Committee, Quarterly Reports
2019 3rd Quarter Chapter Reports (July to September)
Editor: Dr. Jessica A. Sheetz-Nguyen
Vice President for Chapter Development

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EWC Innovation Laboratories Receive Grants to Collaborate with EWCA Alumni Chapters

Congratulations to the founders of East-West Center Innovation Laboratories (EWC Labs) who applied for and received grants from the Professional Development Program (PDP). One of the requirements of the grants is that the EWC Labs must collaborate with their corresponding alumni chapters. Several incredible experiments have been initiated within their organizations – scaling-up recycling in the rural areas of Myanmar, using nanotechnology to investigate cures to bone diseases in Nepal, and running a theater program for environmental awareness in East Timor. The EWC Lab grantees are building prototype websites to share their work and are seeking input from alumni – find information about the chapter members and videos about the work of each Innovation Lab. View the stories of EWC Lab founders on the new YouTube channel.

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2019 APLP Launch and Chennai Leadership Symposium

A big shout-out to a core group of APLP alumni based in Tamil Nadu—Shreya Nagarajan Singh (2010-2011), Phanikumar Kadambari Nageshwara Rao (2016-2017), Sharanya Dilip (2014-2015), and Ramnath Chandrasekhar Krishnamoorthy (2017-2018)—who worked closely with EWC staff to plan an engaging and educational program in Chennai that introduced the Gen 19 APLP Fellows to the EWC ‘Ohana in India and to key issues in the region, as well as prepare them for their leadership learning journey. The did a fabulous job!

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EWCA Chennai Chapter Hosts 2019 APLP Launch and Symposium for EWC Alumni & New Fellows

The EWCA Chennai Chapter hosted the launch of the 2019 Asia Pacific Leadership Program (APLP) and sponsored the Symposium for EWC Alumni & New Fellows in Chennai during August 2019 in co-operation with EWCA, Hawaii and other organizations. U.S. Consulate General Mr. Robert Burgess inaugurated the APLP G19 Leadership Program and EWCA Alumni Symposium at the Rain Tree Hotel, Chennai.

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2019 Summer Travel Grant Series: Research on Colonization, Dispossession, Narrative, and Settler-Native Relationality in the Northeastern United States

Summer Travel Grant 2019 Recipient
Emily Ricker
Student Affiliate
MA in American Studies

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This summer, I traveled to New England to conduct preliminary fieldwork that will lead directly into my MA thesis. Primarily I was (and remain) interested in the ways that narratives regarding the early colonization of the Northeast circulate today to condition contemporary social and political dynamics in the region. I spent the month of July visiting museums, speaking with local stakeholders, and laying the groundwork for further collaborations. My approach was informed by my grounding in anthropological/ethnographic methodologies as well as theoretical frameworks from Museum Studies and Settler Colonial Studies.

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