Asia

“This ongoing “brain-drain” in Kazakhstan, which has led to an exodus of roughly 366,000 people in the last ten years, is a worrisome phenomenon and threat to our country’s future. How did we arrive at a point where we are losing the most valuable resource – our human capital? What can be done to reverse the trend and create a long-term “brain-gain” instead?”

Fifty years ago today, Saigon fell to the North Vietnamese, officially rendering the United States’ decades-long misadventure in Vietnam a failure.[i] The troubling reality of wartime decision-making is that it was not based primarily on whether the United States could feasibly win, or even whether Vietnam was strategically important. Rather, policymakers in Washington escalated the […]

Since President Trump returned to the Oval Office in January 2025, the relationship between the United States and Europe has been in free fall.

“The world today has no shortage of climate shocks, and its impacts continue to be dangerously and disproportionately felt by marginalized groups, perpetuating an enduring cycle of violence.”

“While the magnitude of Jakarta’s air pollution problem is well established, its sources are hard to measure, muddying the task of prioritizing interventions to target root causes.”

In the turbulent theater of global geopolitics, Kazakhstan – sandwiched between two major regional powers, Russia and China – occupies a unique yet precarious position.

“With President Trump in the Oval Office, Taiwan must justify continued American support by implementing large-scale and painstaking military reforms to show how seriously it takes its own defense,” writes Naveen Krishnan (HKS MPP 2026). “Large-scale reforms will align with Trump’s focus on allies becoming more self-reliant and deserving of US sacrifice.”

“Unlike political agreements often marked by contention and short-term interests, education and research transcend borders, driven by collaboration and a shared pursuit of progress. By viewing education exchanges as strategic platforms for cultivating long-term relationships and mutual respect, the U.S. and China can foster cooperation and build deeper, more enduring bonds of trust.”

“What troubles me most, as a citizen of Bangladesh, is that the current socio-political situation is partly fueled by how the country is being governed at present. After the ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on August 5, 2024, through a student-led mass movement that ended the Awami League’s 15 years of increasingly authoritarian rule, the situation in Bangladesh is characterized by mob justice.”

Harvard Medical and Business School student Azeb Yirga interviews Sumrana Yasmin, Deputy Director of Eye Health for Sightsavers, about advancing inclusive eye care policies in Pakistan.

On April 23, 2024, HKS Student Policy Review Senior Editor John McQuillan spoke with former Indonesian Minister of Trade Gita Wirjawan. The conversation focused on a range of topics related to the future of Indonesia and Southeast Asia.

The economic diversification goals of the Arab Gulf, combined with the high potential for renewable energy development in Central Asia, have led two regions that have been closely associated with fossil fuel extraction to collaborate on the advancement of renewable energy production.