By being like Silicon Valley used to be, East Asia challenges it (April 3, 2025, Asia Times)
Silicon Valley is no longer a counter-cultural world of startups in garages, where small, disruptive organizations build world-changing products on a shoestring. It has morphed into a land of Goliaths, not Davids.
How will India navigate a world on the brink of a trade war? (April 3, 2025, BBC)
Donald Trump's blanket tariffs have put the world on the brink of a possible global trade war. The European Union has vowed a united response, and China has threatened countermeasures. How will India - Asia's third largest economy - navigate these global tremors?
The North Korea tourist trap (March 20, 2025, Lowy Institute - The Interpreter)
Having closed the country even more tightly during the Covid pandemic, last month North Korea put out the welcome sign for a small group of foreign tourists from Australia, the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Canada for the first time since 2020. Yet the gates slammed shut again last week when Pyongyang announced it would grant no new tourism visas.
Turkmenistan is trying to come out of its shell (March 5, 2025, Eurasianet)
Turkmenistan is trying to shed its long-standing image as a hermit kingdom, at least when it comes to natural gas exports. Over the past few months, Ashgabat has gone on a deal-making binge that, over the long term, could significantly alter the European Union’s energy-import pattern.
The Frontiers of Growth: Reaping Asia’s Silver Demographic Dividend (February 22, 2025, The Edge Malaysia)
Population aging is rapidly becoming one of Asia’s most daunting challenges. In 2023, 14% of the region's population was aged 60 or above, and that share is projected to swell to 25% by 2050. Though Asian countries have been graying for some time, even relatively younger ones across Asia are now experiencing sharp demographic shifts.
Only 1 in 10 Hong Kong non-government workers enjoys flexible schedules: survey (April 5, 2025, South China Morning Post) (Subscription required)
Only about 10 per cent of employees outside the government sector in Hong Kong have benefited from flexible work arrangements with some experts saying local companies have been slow to adopt policies over cost and productivity concerns.
Macao’s e-sports potential: A new era for tourism? (April 11, 2025, The Macao News)
Industry leaders say Macao has the potential to become an e-sports hub, but its growth remains slow due to funding and infrastructure challenges. Educational programs and reality TV documentaries are among the initiatives that could help Macao tap into the global e-sports boom.
How China Won (March 28, 2025, Council on Foreign Relations)
Whether or not the United States can compete with China on China’s terms, the fundamental truth remains: In the struggle over who gets to set the rules of international competition, this round is over. And China won.
China’s Latest Marketing Craze? Rent-a-Robot (March 20, 2025, Sixth Tone)
After a hit Spring Festival Gala show, Chinese merchants are renting out robots for thousands of yuan a day. Robots, many of them Unitree G1 models similar to those featured in the Gala, are being offered for rent on e-commerce platforms like the Alibaba-owned Xianyu.
Hong Kong’s tourism blueprint takes aim at Singapore’s market vulnerabilities (March 16, 2025, Dimsum Daily)
The tourism rivalry between Hong Kong and Singapore has entered a new phase, with Hong Kong’s Blueprint 2.0 strategically positioning the city to exploit gaps in Singapore’s post-pandemic recovery. While Singapore grapples with sluggish visitor numbers from Southeast Asia, Hong Kong is reporting remarkable growth in exactly these markets…
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Joann Pittman
Joann Pittman is Vice President of Partnership and China Engagement and editor of ZGBriefs. Prior to joining ChinaSource, Joann spent 28 years working in China, as an English teacher, language student, program director, and cross-cultural trainer for organizations and businesses engaged in China. She has also taught Chinese at the University …View Full Bio
Blessing Asia
In October-2022 more than 500 Christian leaders from across Asia gathered in Thailand for the Asia 2022 Congress, sponsored by the Lausanne Movement and various partnering organizations. I had the opportunity to participate in the Congress virtually and was mightily blessed. From Bible exposition to K-pop worship, and through seminars and workshops, the participants were encouraged by the stories of what God is doing in countries all over Asia. Clearly, God is on the move.
A beautiful vision was portrayed in a video of the popular worship song The Blessing, featuring singers from all over Asia. Here it is:
Many of the sessions have already been posted on their website and to their YouTube channel.
One that I found particularly helpful considering all that is going on in China was a presentation titled Church and State Relationship in Asia Today. You can see the video here.
I encourage you to spend some time on their website; there are fantastic resources for understanding God’s work in Asia today.
Original link: https://www.chinasource.org/resource-library/blog-entries/blessing-asia/
Image credit: Andrea Brucker, via Unsplash
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