Welcome to our Asia Watch: Beyond the Headlines series, where we take a deeper dive into current developments in Asia of interest and impact for Canadians.

Welcome to our Asia Watch: Beyond the Headlines series, where we take a deeper dive into current developments in Asia of interest and impact for Canadians.

This podcast series from the Toronto branch of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada's Asia Pacific Youth Council presents perspectives and experiences of youth and young professionals who have had the opportunity to live or work between Canada and Asia.

In the Asia Pacific Youth Council's second podcast episode of Have Your Say they present perspectives and experiences of youth and young professionals who have had the opportunity to live or work between Canada and Asia.

In this special episode of The Youth Element, join Justin Kwan and special guest host Erin Williams as they dig deeper into the thoughts of Canadian millennials, our country's role on the world stage, and how this might influence our relations with Asia.

This is it – the series finale of The Youth Element. In this episode, join co-hosts Justin and Linda as they break down, one last time, what their peers abroad think of when it comes to “adulting.” More specifically, tune in to hear about millennial concerns over growing into adulthood in Taipei, Shanghai, Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Seoul – from incredibly intensive job application systems, to long-term, but just-as-real, worries over pensions!

While youth around the world are going through a lot of the same struggles, in this episode of The Youth Element, join co-hosts Linda and Justin as they explore every day activities, youth spaces, and even trendy #hashtags to better understand how youth across East Asia are responding to similar socioeconomic pressures in the context of their respective cities – be it through retail therapy, overt political activism, or sharing a collective rant with pals over cake.

Welcome to the final instalment of The Youth Element’s 3-part break-out series on political engagement. After exploring activism and social consciousness among millennials in Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, co-hosts Linda, Justin, and a special guest, turn their microphones on South Korea. Join our hosts as they unravel the catalytic role South Korean youth played in the President Park scandal, and why youth continue to be at the centre of the controversy long after Park’s bitter end, and the election of President Moon Jae-in.

In episode four of The Youth Element we examine why political activism among youth in Taiwan and Hong Kong is growing, and how young people are making their voices heard through these new channels of political engagement. First, we discuss how young activists in both places have moved off the streets and into the formal political process. We also dig deeper into how some of the leading activists became engaged in mainstream politics through the creation of new political parties and by participating in local elections. Then, we discuss the gap in political attitudes between youth and their parents, as well as the crossover between pop culture and activism.

In this episode of The Youth Element, join us as we investigate how a prominent group of students in Japan called SEALDs (Students Emergency Action for Liberal Democracy), tried to reinvigorate the idea of political participation amongst the younger demographic. We’ll not only examine the group's brief success in shaking up the status quo and dispelling the image of the apolitical generation, but also the idea behind this so-called “political allergy” towards politics and civic engagement.