In collaboration with Bentham Brooks Institute, we’re having a discussion about Covid-19's impacts on the use of surveillance technology. With the rise of the pandemic, every country has started their own technological race by developing new, efficient methods of tracking and tracing its respective citizens. This has brought up many issues of privacy and data protection, as well as the question of a state’s rights and responsibilities when using such technologies.

In this collaboration with UCL Diplomacy Society, we invited Mr Aristyo Darmawan and Dr Cheng-Chwee Kuik about the long-standing South China Sea conflict and the multi-faceted strategic and legal aspects of the dispute. We will also explore the impact of the South China Sea disputes on intra-ASEAN relations, regional security and maritime stability in the region.

As one of the world's political and economic giants, China has played a tremendous role in developing African economies. However, many are questioning China's political motives – believing China is conducting a form of neo-colonialism by deliberately indebting African countries. As part of our collaboration with UCL Africa Conference, we’re delighted to have Mr W. Gyude Moore and Ms Hangwei Li speak to us about whether the "Debt Trap Diplomacy" phenomenon is an accurate representation of current China-Africa relations and the effectiveness of Chinese investment and aid in the continent.

Join us for a casual discussion about the biggest headlines in November: Myanmar elections, upheaval in the Hong Kong legislative council, and the push for interfaith marriages in India. We also talked about a few international diplomatic developments, like the RCEP agreement and Korea’s “New Southern Policy+”.

With its roots from the Soviet era, the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan is one of the world’s oldest on-going disputes. Together with UCL International Relations Society, we’re honoured to have Mr Farid Shafiyev explore with us the conflict’s history and the prospects of future peace in the region. We’ll also discuss the international responses to the conflict from countries and institutions such as Turkey, Russia, the OCSE Minsk Group and the United Nations.

Join us in celebrating the launch of our first-ever society journal! In collaboration with Subtle Asian Society, the event consists of a series of presentations given by select journal contributors followed by a mass breakout session with all event attendees.

Join our first-ever discussion group, where we’ll have a friendly discussion of what’s happened in Asia over October: Thailand Protests against the monarchy; Indonesian workers’ anger towards the new Labour Laws; China’s race for a COVID-19 vaccine and why Brazil is protesting against it.

Home to some of the world’s largest economies and international financial hubs, East and Southeast Asia play a significant role in the wider global economy. During our first speaker event of the year, we invited Dr Yougesh Khatri, Mr Russell Pell and Mr Euben Paracuelles to discuss COVID-19’s initial economic impacts, as well as national responses and recovery across the region. We will also explore the current positions of specific industries, geopolitical implications and other macroeconomic issues.