Hosted by Asia Programs of the Ash Institute, The Honorable Tung Chee Hwa will share insights into the current global financial crisis and argue for strengthened U.S.-China relations to shore up both countries’ economies. Tung Chee Hwa served as Hong Kong’s first chief executive from 1997 through 2005. In this position, he oversaw and managed Hong Kong through the Asia financial crisis of the late 90s. He currently serves as the founding chairman of the China-United States Exchange Foundation, a non-government, non-profit organization established to improve communication and enhance understanding between the peoples of China and the United States.

The event takes place on Wednesday, December 10 from 4-5:30 p.m. at Starr Auditorium, Belfer Hall, 2nd Floor. For more information, please contact Kate Hoagland.

At this JFK Forum event, Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell will address innovative practices in national security in the nation’s post September 11th climate. McConnell’s Office of the Director of National Intelligence recently was honored as a 2008 Innovations in American Government Award winner for its Intelligence Community Civilian Joint Duty Program. The Program instills a new model of collaboration within the intelligence community by requiring personnel to serve a period of duty outside of their parent agency as a prerequisite for senior level promotion. All 16 agencies, including those within the six cabinet departments that make up the intelligence community, participate in the program. For more information, please visit the JFK Forum's site.

Sponsored by Harvard Kennedy School of Government China Caucus China Salon Speaker Series, this seminar features Jianguo Liu, visiting scholar in the Sustainability Science Program at Harvard Kennedy School. Professor Liu is a guest professor at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Rachel Carson Chair in Sustainability, and a Michigan State University Distinguished Professor in the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife. The event will take place from 6-7:30 p.m. ET in Taubman Building, Room 401. For more information, please contact Carol Yu.

Members of the Kansai Keizai Doyukai, a delegation of prominent Japanese business executives from major corporations across the Osaka-Kyoto region, will convene for the 16th Annual U.S. – Japan Symposium. Sponsored by the Institute’s Asia Programs, the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, and the Japan Society of Boston, the event will examine the changing roles of Japan and the United States under the next president.

Hosted by the Ash Institute’s Vietnam Program, this first annual dialogue initiative with senior Vietnamese government policymakers will be attended by a delegation of Vietnamese officials led by Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai. The forum features research-based discussion with Harvard faculty and senior executives from leading multinational firms. Organized by Harvard Kennedy School and Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the event will address key policy challenges confronting Vietnam in the context of current trends in the world economy.

In this interactive seminar, Duan Peijun of China's Central Party School offers insights into China's strategy for innovation. Duan Peijun is the dean of the teaching research section of strategy study and serves as the executive director of the Research Center for Social Development as well as the deputy director of the Academic Committee of the Philosophy Department. He has lectured and trained numerous government officials in China. The session will take place in Littauer Room 130 at 6 p.m.