How successfully students of 6 Special High Schools and Meister High Schools get a job
Back in spring in 2009 I was still a journalist. I had a dinner with professionals from an IT solution firm which built online shopping malls for special high schools in Korea. Discussions and chats related to a special high school named 'Bubsung High School' were brought upon to these folks.
It is located in Yeonggwang-gun, Jeollanam-do where it boasts the largest production of dried yellow corvinas in Korea. Teachers and students of Bubsung High School, via online shopping mall called 'Bubsungmall', sold dried yellow corvinas and other local products nationwide.
How women in rural India turned courage into capital
1. Please share your thoughts on the talk. What are your ideas on key messages of the speaker about women in rural India?
2. How much are you familiar with inequality issues especially in less-developed areas in the world? Please share your opinions on discrimination and repression by gender, race, religion, social status and so on.
3. Can you imagine your (active) engagement with under privileged classes in less-developed regions? If chances are given, are you willing to involve yourself in to the lives of the poor such as women in rural India?
Are China and the US doomed to conflict?
1. Please share your thoughts on the talk. What are your ideas on key message of the speaker on the US-China relations?
2. The speaker asks whether the growing ambition of China will inevitably lead to conflict with other major powers spearheaded by the US. Are you for or against this question? And on what grounds?
3. The ongoing US-China trade war is a political and economical hot potato in the global community. How do you see the G2(Great2) conflict will be developed in the future?
How the iPhone reshaped Asian tech
1. Please share your thoughts on this week’s cover story.
2. What are the major performances Apple has shown ever since the launch of its first iPhone back in 2007?
3. How deep and wide Apple has changed the landscape of the Asian tech industry especially with its 10-year-run iconic smartphones?
4. Please summarize the diagram of Apple’s supply chain. What are the key features?
5. What worries and challenges are lying ahead of Apple and its suppliers now?
Emerging Asian economies race to build metros amid choking congestion
1. Please share your impression on this week’s cover story.
2. What has made the traffic condition in Southeast Asian megacities such as Manila and Jakarta so desperate?
3. According to the article, Ho Chi Minh City seems to try to benefit from the latecomer advantage. Please explain more in detail about latecomer advantage.
4. Which countries or which international bodies have been in the forefront of leading infrastructure investments in Southeast Asia?
5. If any, please let us know your own experience of being exposed to choking congestion in Southeast Asia.
Coffee’s rise has tea companies scrambling to rebrand the region’s favorite drink
1. Please share your impression on this week’s cover story.
2. Please name out the world’s top two tea producers. In addition, which countries are world’s three biggest tea drinkers in absolute terms?
3. What makes Pantjoran Tea House in Jakarta’s Chinatown differentiate itself from coffee shops in the city’s malls?
4. What are the key factors lying behind top tea companies’ recent efforts to rebrand Asia’s favorite drink?
5. If any, please let us know your own experience of enjoying teas in Asia.
The online generation ventures off the beaten path
1. Please share your impression on the hashtag travelers in this week’s article.
2. What are the key factors lying behind the booming of individual tourists in the Asian tourism filed?
3. Which Asian places or cities come to your mind first when it comes to destinations for free individual tours?
4. What Korean tourism industry confronting the new era of travel should learn from the Asian millennials?
5. If any, please let us know your own experience of hashtag traveling at home or abroad.
New Stars are bursting into Asia’s music market – and the world is listening
1. Please share your impression on the new stars appeared in this week's article.
2. What are the key factors lying behind the emergence of new stars in the Asia's music industry?
3. Which Asian stars come to your mind breaking national or regional barriers other than those in the entertainment field?
4. What Korean companies tapping into the Asian market should learn from Asian music sensations?
5. If any, please let us know your own experience with hallyu(Korean wave) at home or abroad.
The foundation of the AEC and its implication for South Korea
China has maintained robust retail and wholesale channels in most part of the ASEAN since around the 16~17th century when the Western forces first embarked on their rush to Southeast Asia. Unlike competitors heading forward, South Korea is often regarded encountered with shabby circumstance. Worries are prevailing that South Korea is way behind not only the running Japan but also the flying China.
Other major players including Australia, America and the North Europe don’t sit idle as well. Prediction is that the ASEAN may play a crucial role of the last resort to save South Korea suffering from chronic weak growth. Needless to say, systematic and long-term approach is desperately needed in the unprecedented era of the AEC.
The foundation of the AEC and its implication for South Korea
This will also gear up the possibility of the realization of the AEC overcoming the concern that the AEC blueprint 2025 may remain a mere declaratory gesture. As a matter of fact, a global war without guns has been underway to attract the ASEAN actively stretching itself to the world.
For instance, Japan has been striving to enhance its clout on the AEC by devoting itself to investment on the infrastructure and key industries. South Korean business people navigating new growth chances have unanimously pointed out that Japanese business presence is dominant in the region. Moreover, China is speeding up recently by utilizing its extensive networks across the region.
The foundation of the AEC and its implication for South Korea
A local expert in Indonesia pictures potential changes in the region that the AEC may bring in the upcoming days. "People in Vietnam will start to learn the Thai language to drive taxies in Bangkok. There will be Laotians who will pick up Javanese text books to become cab drivers in Jakarta."
Actually, Singapore has been importing housekeepers from its neighbors, Indonesia and the Philippines in particular. However, it will be highly likely that more human resources in various fields of the region will cross the borders of the ASEAN members with no limitation. In doing so, physical barriers will be torn down and regional exchanges and trades will be fairly accelerated.
The foundation of the AEC and its implication for South Korea
However, situation would be different if joint efforts of the 10 countries to cope with superpowers is designed and carried out. As the old saying goes, "United we stand, divided we fall", the countries will have their confidence built up step by step.
The economic clout will be further strengthened if the ASEAN succeeds in actualizing the AEC. Consequently, the influence of the AEC on the regional security issues will be also growing bigger. Against this background, hopes are high that the beginning of the AEC will serve an opportunity to create a new landscape for the 21st century.
The foundation of the AEC and its implication for South Korea
In addition, neither a single currency nor a central decision-making tower as those in the EU can't be found. There exists considerable economic gap in the region as well. For example, Singapore is acclaimed to be in the rich Northern Hemisphere while Cambodia only records per capita GDP of about 1,000 USD. In this sense, it is no wonder that a tough itinerary is anticipated on the way to the substantial integration of the AEC.
In spite of the skepticism raised, the importance of the birth of a sizable single economic community shouldn't be underestimated. Along with Africa and South America, the ASEAN has been called as the symbol of underdeveloped areas. Thus, major powers like America, the EU and China would remain invincible if the ASEAN members try to compete with them individually.
