Global Asia - December 2019

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Despite the science, climate change remains for some a matter of faith; there are those who believe in it and those who do not. The same cannot be said about air pollution — especially in Asia. Of the world’s 100 most polluted cities, 99 are in Asia. The vast majority of those are in India and China, but even in Southeast Asia, the skies are annually choked by fires set to clear forests for oil-palm plantations and other commercial uses. Air pollution is a peril literally visible to Asians every day. Whether democratic or authoritarian, governments across the region are waking up to the challenge, if for no other reason than that their people are clamoring for solutions...

In our cover package this issue, we look at the myriad air pollution problems faced by the major economies in the region, and how governments are responding. Progress is indeed being made, but the magnitude of the issues is daunting. But one thing is sure: As an increasing number of Asians literally choke for breath, governments themselves have little room left for failure...

Global Asia Magazine Description:

Global Asia is a quarterly publication of the East Asia Foundation. The foundation, established in Seoul in January 2005, strives to promote peace, prosperity, security and sustainability in East Asia by creating an open and creative forum for the exchange of ideas on regional co-operation and integration, among other goals.
The mission we have set for ourselves with Global Asia is both bold and urgent: It is to provide a compelling, serious, and responsible forum for distinguished thinkers, policymakers, political leaders and business people to debate the most important issues in Asia today.
Global Asia is not a journal with a fixed point of view, or a particular agenda. Our aim is to give voice to the global dimension of what is happening in Asia. In our pages and on our web site, we aim for Asia to speak to the world, and the world to Asia. That is important at a time when this region is playing an ever greater role in world affairs.
There are other fine publications on international affairs. What sets us apart is our focus: Asia. We believe that the world is moving into “the Age of Asia,” to borrow a phrase from one of the articles in the inaugural issue of Global Asia in September 2006. This transformation is not going to occur overnight, but it has already begun.
The region’s dynamic economic growth, stable and accountable political systems, maturing democracies, and evolving sense of community are giving Asia greater weight in the world. These developments will have enormous implications for governments, businesses, societies and individuals across the globe. How that transformation is viewed, and shaped, from within Asia and how it is perceived outside Asia is an essential part of the story we have to tell.
The forces of globalization are having a profound impact throughout the world. And they are being influenced and channeled in different ways in different parts of the world. Ours is the story of Asia’s experience with globalization, and the ideas and debates influencing it. In pursuing our mission, we aim to play a part, however modest, in helping to shape the future of Asia.