Previous Vasey Fellows

2009

Ms. Young Jin Yang, the 2009 Vasey Fellow and the first Kelly Fellow, is from Seoul, Korea. She received her B.A. in international relations from Mount Holyoke College and her M.A. in international studies from the Graduate School of International Studies, Seoul National University. Ms. Yang has previously interned with the Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, South Korea. Her research interests include the U.S.-R.O.K.-Japan trilateral cooperation, South Korea-Japan relations, and Japanese politics.

Ms. Thuy Trang Pham, another 2009 Vasey Fellow, is Pacific Forum’s first Vasey Fellow from Vietnam. She received a Bachelor of Arts in International Economics at the Institute for International Relations in Hanoi, Vietnam in 2006. At present, Ms. Trang is working as an official at Americas Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hanoi, Vietnam. Her research interests include U.S. and Asia countries relations, especially U.S. - China - ASEAN trilateral cooperation.

2007-2008

Ms. Shiuan-ju Chen, was a 2008 Vasey Fellow, is from Taipei, Taiwan. She received her B.A. in Political Science from National Taiwan University in 2005 and her M.A. in International Affairs from the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University in 2007. Prior to joining Pacific Forum, Ms. Chen interned with CSIS in Washington D.C. and the Institute for National Policy Research in Taiwan. Her research interests include Taiwan domestic politics, China’s transition, and cross-Strait relations.

Ms. Tomoko Tsunoda, from Tokyo, Japan was a 2008 Vasey Fellow. She was an intern at CSIS in Washington D.C. researching space policy in Asia and assisted the Global Space Development Summit which was held in Beijing in April 2008. Previously, Tomoko worked as a research assistant for Mitsubishi UFJ Research and Consulting in Tokyo and coordinated a project with the United Cities and Local Governments in Barcelona. Tomoko received her Bachelor of Law from Nihon University in 2006 and obtained her Master’s degree from Boston University in 2008.

Ms. Shanshan Wang, from Beijing, China was another 2008 Vasey Fellow. She is currently pursuing her PhD degree at the School of International Service of American University in Washington DC. She gained both her bachelor’s degree in diplomacy and master’s degree in international relations from China Foreign Affairs University. She was also a student fellow of the Asia Pacific Leadership Program at the East-West Center in Hawaii from 2006-2007. Her research interest is in China’s domestic politics and foreign policy, security studies, and China-US-Japan relations.

Ms. Jiyon Shin, the 2007-2008 Vasey Fellow, is from Seoul, Korea. As an undergraduate at Ewha Women’s University, she specialized in International Studies, minored in Korean studies, and focusing on diplomacy and security in Northeast Asia. She worked extensively with the Korean University Students’ Politics & Diplomacy Research Association on issues pertaining to the ROK-U.S. alliance and anti-American sentiment among the ROK’s younger generation.

2006-2007

Mr. Junbeom Pyon, 2006-2007 Vasey Fellow, is from Seoul, Korea. He did graduate studies in international relations at Waseda University in Tokyo and received his M.A. in Government and a B.A. in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University. Mr. Pyon interned in the Office of the Under Secretary General at the United Nations Department for Disarmament Affairs, at the Brookings Institution, the Korean Embassy in Washington, D.C., and the Seoul-based Korea Institute for Defense Analyses.

Mr. Qinghong Wang, 2006-2007 Vasey Fellow from China, is a doctoral candidate in Political Science at the University of Hawaii-Manoa. He received his B.A. in Chinese Language and Literature from Beijing University in 1999 and an M.A. in Chinese Studies and an M.A. in Political Science both from the University of Hawaii in 2003. Mr. Wang previously worked as a language instructor at UH and the United States Air Force Academy’s Chinese Language Immersion Program at the Japan-American Institute of Management Science.

2005-2006

Ms. Peng Claire Bai from Beijing, China was the 2005-2006 Vasey Fellow. She focused on China’s rise and Northeast Asian security. She worked at the German Council on Foreign Relations in Berlin and The Carter Center in Atlanta. She received her BA in international relations and economics from Peking University, and has studied at Freie Universitaet Berlin. She recently completed postgraduate work and teaching at George Washington University.

Ms. Hyun Jung Jo Choi from Singapore and Korea was a Summer 2005 Vasey Fellow. Her work focused on nonproliferation issues, China-Southeast Asia relations, and terrorism in Southeast Asia. She received her M.A. at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and is working in Sovereign Risk Management at Lehman Brothers in New York.

2004-2005

Mrs. Lena Gan from Malaysia and Singapore was the 2004-2005 Vasey Fellow. She obtained a M.A. in international relations at the University of Hawaii and an M.B.A. from the Imperial College/University of London. She appears here with Adm. Vasey and Gen. Brent Scowcroft, who served as chairman of the Pacific Forum’s Board of Governors from 1992-2004. Her report on “Indonesian Perceptions of the U.S.” is available on the Forum’s website.

Mr. Ronald Rodriguez from the Philippines was a Vasey Fellow during the spring and summer of 2004. His work focused on maritime security in Southeast Asia. He was a British Council Chevening Scholar at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. He served as Officer-in-Charge at the Strategic and Security Studies program at the Foreign Service Institute in Manila, and received his B.A. in political science from Ateneo de Naga University and his M.A. in Asian Studies from the University of the Philippines.

2002-2003

Ms. Ah-Young Kim from Seoul, South Korea was the 2003 Vasey Fellow. Her work focused on U.S.-Korea-China relations, particularly North Korean refugees. She is currently Associate Expert at the Humanitarian Emergency Branch of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in New York. She received her M.A. in international and China studies from the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University in 2002.

Ms. Kazuko Hamada from Tokyo, Japan was a Vasey Fellow in 2003 as part of the International Professional Service Semester Program at the Monterey Institute of International Studies (MIIS). Her research focused on nonproliferation of WMD and Northeast Asian security relations. She received her MA from MIIS in 2004 and a BA from MIIS in 2001. She works for the Policy Research Office of Nuclear Non-proliferation Science & Technology Center (NPSTC) at the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA). Her current research projects include a “Nuclear Nonproliferation Study in Asia,” and “North Korean and Iranian nuclear issues.”

Ms. Yumiko Nakagawa was the inaugural 2002 Vasey Fellow, focusing on Japanese foreign policy. She later interned with the Japanese embassy in Kabul assisting in school reconstruction, and also worked in Cambodia with refugees. Ms. Nakagawa is a 1999 graduate of Doshisha University in Kyoto and was the Nijima Fellow at Amherst College during 2000-2001. She received her M.A. from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and currently works at the Highrock Evangelical Church as a director of hospitality.