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On 15 November 2025, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and Chulalongkorn University co-hosted a roundtable titled “Climate Change in Southeast Asia and Social Work and Social Development Practices” at Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Political Science in Bangkok, Thailand. The roundtable aims to deepen understanding, foster academic exchange between scholars and experts from the two institutions, and generate valuable insights to guide future research.

The discussion began with opening remarks by Dean, Assoc. Prof. Dr Prakorn SIRIPRAKOB and Assoc. Prof. Dr Carl MIDDLETON offered a political ecology perspective on climate mobilities, followed by Prof. Emeritus Surichai WUNGAEO, who reflected on how climate change has reshaped social work in Thailand and the region. Dr Jun ICHIHARA shared insights on ASEAN climate cooperation and lessons from Indonesia, complemented by reflections from Prof. Dr YONARIZA. Prof. Ben KU addressed social work responses to environmental crises in the Anthropocene, while Prof. Yang ZHAN explored rural tourism and development in China from a temporal perspective.

Moderated by Dr Kan YIP from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the roundtable concluded with lively exchanges among participants. Twenty-three participants, including scholars and staff from the research institute and NGOs in Southeast Asia, attended the roundtable.