KOREA FOUNDATION

Paruedee Nguitragool, an associate professor at Chiang Mai University in Thailand, has a broad range of research interests. Her current research focuses on ASEAN cooperation, environmental politics, and Indonesian foreign policy, but in the future, she would like to extend her research to include the ASEAN Plus Three countries—South Korea, Japan, and China.

To start research on a new topic, scholars need to reach a certain threshold of knowledge on the subject, in addition to networking with the related academic community. On top of that, the new and fast-changing academic landscape places increasing demands on scholars. While most scholars develop their academic networks and obtain up-to-date information by attending international seminars, the Korea Foundation (KF) is working to help even more experts achieve these goals more easily. In 2015, the KF launched the Next Generation Policy Experts Network for scholars new to the field of Korea-related issues.

Dr. Nguitragool is one of the participants of the program’s 2022 edition. She attended a virtual workshop that covered geopolitics in the Indo-Pacific region before and after the pandemic. She also made use of networking opportunities to meet other ASEAN scholars with similar interests as her, and received an offer to write an opinion piece in cooperation with a senior expert in Southeast and Northeast Asian international relations and politics.

We interviewed two researchers to hear about their participation in the program and what they gained from the experience.

Prof. Paruedee Nguitragool, Associate Professor, Chiang Mai University

Mr. Mico A. Galang, Defense Research Officer at the National Defense College of the Philippines (NDCP)

“I would highly recommend this program to other young scholars.”

Q1. Please briefly introduce yourself.

I am a defense research officer at the National Defense College of the Philippines (NDCP), and a lecturer at the Department of Political Science of the University of Santo Tomas (UST). I obtained my Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from UST, and graduated from the University of the Philippines Diliman with a Master in International Studies.

Q2. What is your main research area? Please elaborate if you have current or future plans to conduct research on Korea-related issues.

My research interests include the international relations of the Asia-Pacific, territorial and maritime disputes, and foreign and security policies of the Philippines.

Q3. What did you gain most from this program? Would you recommend it to other scholars, and if so, why?

The program allowed me to interact with fellow young scholars in Southeast Asia. This activity provided me with the opportunity to not only expand my network, but more importantly, to listen to and understand the diverse perspectives of my counterparts in the region. In this way, the program is an avenue aimed at promoting better understanding and dialogue among young professionals. I would highly recommend it to other young scholars, so that they too can expand their horizons by engaging with their counterparts in Southeast Asia.

Dr. Francesca Frassineti, Associate Research Fellow at the Asia Centre of the Italian Institute for International Political Studies (ISPI)

“A truly fascinating experience.”

Q1. Please briefly introduce yourself.

I am Dr. Francesca Frassineti, an associate research fellow at the Asia Centre of the Italian Institute for International Political Studies (ISPI). I hold a B.A. and an M.A. with honors in International Relations and Diplomatic Affairs from the University of Bologna. In 2020, I received my Ph.D. in Global and International Studies from the University of Bologna with a thesis on the domestic and international constraints to South Korea’s post-democratization foreign policy in the context of the country’s rising middle power activism, particularly in the fields of overseas development assistance, peacekeeping operations, and regional cooperation.

Q2. What is your main research area? Please elaborate if you have current or future plans to conduct research on Korea-related issues.

My research interests lie at the nexus between International Relations and Critical Area Studies, focusing on South and North Korean domestic and foreign policy, inter-Korean relations, EU-East Asia relations, and public diplomacy. I am currently working on three projects that are related to the Korean peninsula. First of all, I am co-editing a book to be published by Routledge by the end of 2022 on public diplomacy between the MENA region and East Asian countries. I am also conducting research on moral performance in the context of China and South Korea’s fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, recent developments in South Korea's security and defense policies, and the role and prospects of chaebol in South Korea’s foreign relations.

Q3. What did you gain most from this program? Would you recommend it to other scholars, and if so, why?

Listening to each other’s questions and engaging in the small group discussions during the breakout sessions was a truly fascinating experience, providing much food for thought for my personal research agenda. I would definitely recommend the program to early career professionals, from academia, think tanks, and public policy institutions, since it allows participants to strengthen their policy-oriented research skills thanks to the guidance of Chatham House’s outstanding team of senior experts. Therefore, the program better equips young scholars and early career researchers to provide meaningful contributions to the policy discussions on the Korean peninsula and the wider Indo-Pacific region in many critical areas and from various perspectives.