News & Activities

Talent mobility, or the free movement of skilled labour across national borders, is a central tenet of ASEAN’s drive toward regional economic integration. The ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Vision 2025 includes facilitating the movement of investments, skilled labour, business professionals, and capital. To this end, the ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint 2025 outlines initiatives such as implementing mutual recognition agreements (MRAs) for skilled professionals, strengthening commitments under the ASEAN Agreement on the Movement of Natural Persons, and reducing regulatory barriers by standardising hiring requirements and documentation.Furthermore, the ongoing negotiations on the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA) include digital talent mobility as one of its nine key pillars.These commitments recognise the importance of developing, attracting, and retaining talent in accelerating ASEAN’s economic growth. As technology-driven digital transformation is reshaping the region, human expertise is more essential than ever. Skill gaps will limit the region’s ability to maximise digital opportunities. For instance, a shortage of skilled ICT professionals, including cybersecurity experts, hampers our ability to address increasingly complex cybersecurity threats.ASEAN Member States have negotiated past agreements to facilitate cross-border professional practice. Mutual recognition agreements were signed between 2005 and 2012 for sectors including engineering, nursing, architecture, medicine, dentistry, and tourism. In 2012, the Member States signed an agreement on the movement of natural persons, establishing a framework for the temporary cross-border movement of workers. ASEAN Member States also signed the ASEAN Comprehensive Investment Agreement (ACIA), which includes provisions to streamline business visa procedures for citizens within the ASEAN. These are important first steps to foster talent mobility.Read more at https://theaseanmagazine.asean.org/article/opportunities-for-talent-collaboration-in-asean-in-the-digital-ageThe ASEAN Secretariat70A Jalan Sisingamangaraja Jakarta 12110P: (+6221)7262991, 7243372F: (+6221)7398234, 7243504M: ASEAN-magazine@asean.org

SINGAPORE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY (SIT)Location: SingaporeClosing date: 24 Jan 2025As a University of Applied Learning, SIT works closely with industry in our research pursuits. Our research staff will have the opportunity to be equipped with applied research skill sets that are relevant to industry demands while working on research projects in SIT. The primary responsibility of this role is to deliver on an industry innovation research project where you will be part of the research team to develop future-ready display technologies and demo applications for virtual reality, augmented reality and mixed reality.Key ResponsibilitiesParticipate in the research project with Principal Investigator (PI), Co-PI and the research team members to ensure all project deliverables are met.Undertake these responsibilities in the project:Conduct in-depth AI research towards proof-of-concept (POC) prototypes for future-ready display technologies for VR/AR/MRDevelop demonstration applications for the POC prototypeCarry out Risk Assessment, and ensure compliance with Work, safety and health regulations.Coordinate procurement and liaison with vendors/suppliers.Work independently, as well as within a team, to ensure proper operation and maintenance of equipment.Job RequirementsA PhD degree in computer or related programmes and have relevant competence in the areas of VR/AR/MR and AI.Knowledge and experience in optics will be advantageous.Able to build and maintain strong working relationships with people within and external to the university.Self-directed learner who believes in continuous learning and developmentShow strong initiative and take ownership of work.>=3 years of research experience in VR/AR/MR/AI.Hands-on experience of developing POC systems to demonstrate research results.

Call for ProposalsClosing date: 31 March 2025, 17:00 (BKK time)Official website: https://www.the-easia.org/jrp/SupportThe total budget for the Thai researcher over a full 3-year period is up to 5,000,000 THB per project. The budget for a project may differ each year, depending on the content of activities and compliance with PMU-B financial guideline (please find details via PMU-B website: www.pmu-hr.or.th)Eligibility/Additional requirementsApplicants applying as a Lead PI in Thailand must be researchers who are either Thai citizens or non-Thai citizens affiliated with a Thai organization, such as a public or non-profit research institute or university in Thailand.The proposal must have the researchers from Thailand at least 2 institutes/universities to cooperate with.Proposal topics must align with and focus on “Health Research” : Health threats and emergencies related to climate change-induced diseases, or the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Personalized Medicine.A project leader is an individual with expertise who is affiliated with a government research unit or a higher education institution nationwide and has a research track record that demonstrates their practical knowledge and abilities.The project leader should have publications in international academic journals as a Corresponding or First Author, with at least 5 publications in the past 5 years or as specified by PMU-B.The budget should be within the specified limit.Thai applicants must submit their application and endorsement letters from all research partners to PMU-B through NRIIS: https://nriis.go.thThe Thai applicant’s institution must endorse the submission in the NRIIS system.Deadline of submission to NRIIS System by 17:00 (Indochina Time, UTC+7) on 31 March 2025The Lead PI must also submit the common application to the e-ASIA JRP Secretariat.The entire submission process must be completed before the closing date.Contact InformationDr.Sonthaya Chaiarwut (Mr.)DR. SONTHAYA CHAIARWUT (Mr.)Senior Project Analyst, Global Partnership for Sustainability & SocietyProgram Management Unit for Human Resources & Institutional Development,Research and Innovation (PMU-B), ThailandTel: +66 2109 5432E-mail: sonthaya.cha@nxpo.or.th

Japan Science and Technology Agency.Link: https://www.the-easia.org/jrp/collaborators.htmlIdentifying international partners can be challenging for researchers initiating collaborative activities. To assist prospective applicants in finding collaborators, forming international teams, and participating in the e-ASIA JRP Call for Proposals, the following hyperlinks lead to databases of researchers and research projects:AustraliaNHMRC-funded projectshttps://www.nhmrc.gov.au/funding/data-research/outcomes-funding-roundsFellows of the Australian Academy of Sciencehttps://www.science.org.au/fellowshipDatabase of scientists and innovators by the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Scienceshttps://aahms.org/fellowship/e-Library by the University of New South Waleshttps://www.unsworks.unsw.edu.au/primo-explore/search?vid=UNSWORKSSydney Digital Theses (Open Access) by the University of Sydneyhttps://ses.library.usyd.edu.au/handle/2123/345Open Access Theses by the Australian National Universityhttps://openresearch-repository.anu.edu.au/handle/1885/3

Registration at: TOMORROWTOURISM.COMThe Tomorrow Tourism Symposium, scheduled forSeptember 7th, 2024, represents a forward-thinkingconvergence of technology and tourism, embodyingthe next evolution in travel experiences. Set againstthe backdrop of the visionary Future Hub at KyotoUniversity of Foreign Studies, this event is designedto usher in a new era of sustainable and immersivetravel through the innovative use of AugmentedReality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), Mixed Reality(MR), and Artificial Intelligence (AI).