International Studies 650 - Pacific Affairs
A detailed study of contemporary issues in the relations between Asia-Pacific nations, including an assessment of regional and sub-regional institutions.
This was a course in which I learned a great deal. The material presented was good, though the text book tried to cram an awful lot into one book. What was most rewarding, however, was the knack the professor had of pushing me to explore on my own. He has a tremendous capacity for constructive critique, cares deeply for his subject matter, but cares even more about his students and their unique learning needs. He is also a very patient man. If I ever find myself in a teaching position, I would do well to take a page or two out of this gentleman's book. Once again, there were some able minds in the class, but I did not find the same connection with my classmates here that I did in the theory course. This may be because I was the only graduate student, or it may just be a matter of chemistry.
What did I learn? Well, a great deal about the Asian Pacific, especially about how much more there is to learn! I also see China in a whole new light. What was most rewarding, and for this I again give cudo's to the professor, was the encouragement to modify the study to feed in to my masters subject, strategic culture, and explore it in the context of China and Japan. This was most helpful in improving my understanding for and appreciation of the direction I must take in my research. A delightful bonus also slipped out of this course. I learned that you can use powerpoint to create wonderful academic posters! When we were assigned a poster I felt like I was back in high school, but after looking at a few university level academic posters I decided to find out how they were done. Power Point! Wonderful!
When Dragons Speak: Paper
Feeding the Dragon: A Proposed Seminar and Briefing Report
Strategic Culture and Energy Acquisition in China
Feeding the Dragon: Brief
This Briefing Report on China was to determine if China, on the basis of its strategic culture,
will focus on the development of domestic energy resources or look to external sources.
What are the implications of
either choice?
What
are the implications/opportunities for Canada?
Reference to the Strategic Culture of China will be drawn from the 2002 paper by Dr Andrew Scobell
“The Strategic Culture of China"
Reference will also be made to “China’s Global Hunt for Energy” 2005 by David Zweig and Bi Jianhai
The relevance to Canada will be drawn from
“Fueling the Dragon: China’s Quest for Energy Security and Canada’s Opportunities.” 2005
by Wenran Jiang, Director, China Institute, University of Alberta.