Emanuel Pastreich Pastreich founded The Asia Institute in 2007 while working in Daejeon, Korea.

His areas of expertise include human rights, trafficking in persons, Himalayan regional issues, climate change and international transboundary water issues.

Professor Honda Hirokuni is a member of the economics department of Dokkyo University in Tokyo, Japan, and a specialist on the United States economy and international economics.

Wang Xin has been a central figure in the planning for a new generation of think tanks in China. He has devoted his efforts to cooperation in East Asia with a focus on new approaches to security.

He has studied and conducted research on international relations, politics and culture at Harvard University, the University of Arizona, the University of Chicago and Sophia University in Tokyo.

Bregman also has a deep concern for female migrants from North and South Korean migrants, the decline in fertility in East Asia and the large number of young South Korean women who must leave the work force

Alexander Krabbe is a peace activist, a citizen journalist and medical doctor who engages with a broad range of citizens in Europe to discuss critical issues in international relations.

Malik Ayub Sumbal is a geopolitical analyst, television commentator, and award-winning journalist with more than 17 years of professional experience working with leading media outlets.

Yo Kawanaka is a peace activist and author in Japan who started her activities in the protests against the response to the disaster at the Fukushima nuclear power plant. She joined the Asia Institute in 2017 and works there on environmental issues, peace and security, and mental health issues.

Yuefeng has a wide range of interests including international relations, peace studies, Chinese politics, international organizations, and sustainable development. His current research focuses on the development of Chinese think tanks and case studies concerning sustainable development.

William Wolff has extensive experience in education in China, Japan, Korea and the United States and takes a deep interest in contemporary education practice and policy in East Asia and around the world.

Jung Yoojin serves as a translator in both English and Japanese, has translated several institute book chapters, and assists in editing across several disciplinary boundaries. Jung also conducts preliminary research on contemporary Korean science and developmental policies and assembles TAI seminars.

Dr. Deborah Havens has had a varied career in education as well as in television and in radio broadcasting, holding several certifications in education, management, leadership, and personal development training. She holds a doctorate degree in education at Eastern Michigan University.

Arthur E. Michalak oversees internal and external communications, media relations, and directs strategies to support growth for the institute’s knowledge operations. Michalak engages with technologists, policy makers, writers, and academicians on developing communications that broadly shape issues at the institute.

Mariesa Ricks is a senior manager at HealthConnected, a comprehensive web-based platform serving the families of chronically-ill children. Ricks earned a M.S. at the Harvard School of Public Health, where she was actively involved in student government and university-wide student initiatives.