NEXT-GEN

Araudra Singh is a Research Associate at the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA), New Delhi. At the Council, he works on India-ASEAN ties and shifts in the domestic and foreign policies of ASEAN states. His primary research interests revolve around India's maritime power and maritime security strategy with a focus on South China Sea, Underwater Domain Awareness, Autonomous systems, Anti-Submarine Warfare, and Shipbuilding. He has contributed to several national and international publications. He holds masters in International Relations from O.P Jindal Global University.

Donggak Heo is a Nonresident Kelly Fellow at Pacific Forum, where his research focuses on security dynamics on the Korean Peninsula and Russia’s growing role in Northeast Asia. He holds an MA in International Relations with Distinction from Durham University and a BA in Philosophy from Korea University.His research interests include Korean Peninsula security, U.S.–ROK alliance relations, Indo-Pacific geopolitics, economic security, and emerging technology competition. His master’s dissertation examined the evolution of South Korea and Taiwan from developmental states toward economic security states, with particular attention to semiconductor industrial policy and state–business relations.He previously worked as a policy aide at the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea and currently serves in the Ministry of National Defense’s Youth Advisory Group. His analysis has appeared in Foreign Policy, 38 North, The Diplomat, and East Asia Forum, covering North Korea, regional alliances, economic security, and South Korean foreign policy.

Glenn Santos is the Communications Manager of the SeaLight Foundation - a non profit organization monitoring gray zone activities in the South China Sea. Glenn's main responsibilities are to create, publish, and manage content for the organization across all of its social media platforms. Additionally, he serves as the primary in-country liaison and Executive Assistant during the Executive Director's visit to the Philippines, coordinating complex itineraries and ensuring seamless communication with our local partners. Glenn's topics of interest are maritime security and Philippine foreign policy,

Huy Anh Nguyen (HAN) is a Jurist and Foreign Affairs Manager at the Hanoi Bar Association, where he specializes in technology and media policy across Southeast Asia. He collaborates with international think tanks and research institutions on AI ethics, safety, governance, and IP rights in cyberspace. His expert input helped shape Vietnam’s new Data Law and AI Law, the latter being the first comprehensive AI legislation in the region. He also serves as a lecturer at the Vietnam University of Commerce. A long-time advocate for media and information literacy to safeguard human rights in cyberspace, Huy Anh has developed trainer-of-trainer curricula and contributed to white papers and policy amendments at regional and international seminars and conferences. His research, “Policy-as-Code: A Framework for Digital Content Regulation,” funded by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations, and the Swiss government, was presented at the AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva in July 2026. His paper, “Legal Framework for Intellectual Property of Chip Designs in Vietnam’s Collaborative AI and Semiconductor Industry,” funded by the U.S. Department of State, was published by Pacific Forum in September 2026. Previously, as Digital Project Manager for Vietnam’s National Broadcaster, he led the production of English and Vietnamese content for audiences in over 100 countries and territories. His expertise encompasses digitalization, data journalism, and digital copyright. Huy Anh holds a dual Bachelor’s in Communications from Sorbonne University (Paris, France) and Monash University (Melbourne, Australia), and a Master of Laws from Bristol, UK.

Inès Carlier is a French PhD Candidate at La Trobe University (Australia). Her research focuses on maritime domain awareness (MDA) policies in the Indo-Pacific region. As a Research Assistant at the La Trobe Global Security Centre, she contributes to analyses on maritime security, ocean governance, and maritime/underwater critical infrastructure protection.

Jefson Romeo B. Felix is the youngest City Councilor of Naga City, Philippines, and President of its Sangguniang Kabataan Federation, championing evidence-based governance, institutional reform, public health, and youth empowerment. He authored the proposed *WPS 101: What Every Nagueño Should Know* Civic Education Ordinance, an initiative to institutionalize maritime literacy, counter disinformation, and bring public understanding of the West Philippine Sea, international law, and the 2016 Arbitral Award into inland communities. With an academic background in Medical Technology from the University of Santo Tomas, he is a fellow of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung’s Adenauer Young Leaders Program and an alumnus of the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI), bringing a grassroots legislative perspective to regional peace and security cooperation.

is a defense, security, & political analyst and a university lecturer in the Philippines. He worked in the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Office of Civil Defense, National Security Council-Office of the President, and currently in the Department of the National Defense. He is currently teaching in De La Salle University Philippines while in the government and formerly taught at Lyceum of the Philippines as part-time lecturer. He is the co-author of the books titled: Disruptive Innovations, Transnational Organized Crime and Terrorism: A Philippine Terrorism Handbook, and Global Security Studies Journal (Springer Link, United States). He is an alumnus of National Defense College of the Philippines (NDCP), ASEAN Law Academy Advanced Program in Center for International Law, National University Singapore and Geneva Centre for Security Policy, Switzerland. He is also a Juris Doctor student and specializing in geopolitics, SCS/WPS disputes, international law, strategic intelligence, public policy, and AI impacts.

Jun Kyu Baek is an analyst at Doublethink Lab, where he employs open-source techniques to uncover influence operations in the information environments of Western Pacific countries. He obtained his master’s degree from the Yonsei University Graduate School of International Studies with a concentration in International Security and Foreign Policy. His work and research interests pertain to topics such as information warfare and hybrid threats.

Lachlan Forster is a young professional, writer and emerging academic from Melbourne, Australia. Lachlan is currently a member of the APS, and has previous experience working with the Honorary Consulate of Canada in Melbourne, Global Victoria and the Malaysia Australia Business Council. A 2023 New Colombo Plan Scholar, Mr. Forster has worked, studied and contributed to forums on international relations across Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Japan. Lachlan holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Melbourne and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from La Trobe University, where his thesis on the Commonwealth of Nations earned First Class Honours. Lachlan has had his essays and commentaries published across a range of online outlets, including the State Parliament of Victoria’s website, International Affairs Forum and the Diplomatist, while also having been a contributing writer with the Young Diplomats Society and a Europe and Eurasia fellow with Young Australians in International Affairs. Mr. Forster is currently a delegate on the Melbourne Youth Council of the US Consulate-General in Victoria and a member of the Westminster Bridge Network. Lachlan is passionate about Indo-Pacific cooperation and building lasting connections to strengthen the relationship between Australia and the countries of ASEAN.

Ngoc Mai is a researcher at the South China Sea Institute, Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam, under the Vietnam Ministry of Foreign Affairs.She holds an MSc in International Security from the University of Bristol, United Kingdom, with the support of the Chevening Scholarship (2025–2026). Her master’s dissertation examines the security implications of deep-sea mining and its securitisation in the US-China competition.She earned her bachelor’s degree in International Relations from the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam. Her research on China’s grey-zone tactics towards Taiwan was recognised as the programme’s second-best graduation thesis.Her research focuses on maritime security and strategic competition in the Asia-Pacific, particularly the South China Sea, US-China relations, grey-zone tactics, and emerging issues such as critical minerals, maritime cybersecurity, and seabed warfare. She has published research and policy analysis in Modern Diplomacy, South China Sea Studies, the Vietnam Journal of Northeast Asian Studies, and the World and Vietnam Report. She has also contributed to ministerial-level research projects, policy recommendations, and international dialogues on maritime security.

Dr. Mateusz Chatys is a research associate at the Centre for Asian Affairs, University of Lodz, specializing in Sino–American strategic competition in Southeast Asia, with particular expertise on the South China Sea. His doctoral research examined the patron–client dynamics of China’s peripheral diplomacy through comparative case studies of Vietnam, Malaysia, and the Philippines. Building on this foundation, his current research analyzes China’s gray-zone operations and the strategic responses of Southeast Asian claimant states, contributing to contemporary debates on regional security and maritime governance. Dr. Chatys combines academic research with active engagement in international policy dialogues. He was selected for the 2025 MERICS European China Talent Program, and has presented his research at the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ 15th Annual South China Sea Conference. Through his research and participation in leading regional and international forums, he seeks to advance evidence-based analysis of evolving security dynamics in the South China Sea while fostering dialogue among scholars and policy practitioners.

Niha Pandey is an Assistant Lecturer in Politics and International Relations at Monash University, Australia. Her work focuses on feminist foreign policy, gender and security, and the Indo-Pacific region. Her doctoral research examines the political, institutional, and normative conditions shaping the possibility of feminist foreign policy. She has experience across academia, policy, and practice, including teaching International Relations and Geopolitical Security in the Indo-Pacific at Monash University and contributing to policy and legislative work in Nepal. Niha has published on feminist foreign policy and is actively engaged in regional conversations on Women, Peace and Security, gender-responsive foreign policy, and security governance in South Asia and the wider Indo-Pacific.

One Miguel B. Policarpio is a Bachelor of Arts in Southeast Asian Studies student at De La Salle University–Manila whose research focuses on international relations, political science, diplomacy, security studies, and Southeast Asian affairs. His scholarship examines digital disinformation, political communication, narrative warfare, foreign influence operations, governance, and the implications of great-power competition for the Indo-Pacific. He has presented research at the University of the Philippines' 7th Katipunan Conference and Ateneo de Manila University's Patok na Patok! A Conference on Popular Culture and Media Studies. He has also been invited to present at the Philippine Political Science Association (PPSA) International Conference and the 6th SEASIA Biennial Conference 2026, Forging Southeast Asia's Futures, hosted by Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. His broader academic interests include foreign policy analysis, ASEAN regionalism, maritime security, hybrid warfare, state capacity, and the relationship between emerging technologies, information ecosystems, and democratic governance. He aspires to contribute to evidence-based policymaking and scholarship on Southeast Asian politics and international security.

Philipp Buschmann is a research fellow at the Japan Institute of International Affairs (JIIA), where his research focuses on Indo-Pacific security and the U.S.-Japan alliance. Before joining JIIA in July 2026, he worked for Member of the House of RepresentativesMinoru Kiuchi, then Chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, supporting his work on Japanese foreign and security policy. He later worked at NIKKEI’s Washington Bureau, providing analysis of U.S. politics and foreign policy for Japanese audiences.Buschmann holds degrees from the University of Tokyo and the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). He is originally from Vienna, Austria.

Sam Baron is a Ph.D. candidate in East Asian Studies at the University of Cambridge and a Research Fellow at the Yokosuka Council on Asia-Pacific Studies (YCAPS). His research and commentary on political and economic developments in Japan and across the ASEAN region have appeared in academic and policy outlets, including the Journal of East Asian Studies, Foreign Policy, The South China Morning Post, and Nikkei Asia, among others. Prior to commencing his doctoral studies, he held policy-focused roles working on trade, human rights, and geopolitics at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and The Asia Group.

Serena Nardi Ford is a PhD Candidate at the Global Peace and Security Centre and the Herb Feith Indonesia Engagement Centre at Monash University. She is also an affiliate at the Centre of Excellence for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (CEVAW) and was a Euan Crone Scholar with the AIIA in 2024.

Sergei Kolomiets is a researcher at the Institute of Economics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, where he has been working since September 2026, focusing on the economies of Southeast Asia, particularly Malaysia and Indonesia, with a specialization in crisis analysis and country-specific economic assessments. He completed his Bachelor's degree at the Institute of Asian and African Studies of Lomonosov Moscow State University and is currently pursuing a Master's degree at the same institution. Prior to his current position, Sergei worked from January to August 2026 as a researcher at the Institute of China and Contemporary Asia of the Russian Academy of Sciences, contributing to projects on regional economic dynamics and bilateral trade relations. His academic research includes papers on Malaysia's economic development, comparative studies of Malaysia and Indonesia, and crisis analysis frameworks. Sergei has presented his work at several academic conferences, including the IV Annual Scientific Forum "Youth in Science" (2024), the III International Scientific Conference (2022), and the "Analytics 2024" forum, and has also gained practical analytical experience through internships at the Expert and Analytical Center and PT Rusindo International Global, as well as through his work as an analyst for the Telegram-channel "Analytics and Policy."

Tran Thi Mong Tuyen is a Fellow at Pacific Forum and a PhD Candidate at National Chengchi University, specializing in geopolitics, high technology in Indo-Pacific. She previously served as a Visiting Scholar at National Taiwan University, and a Non-Resident Handa Fellow at Pacific Forum. Earlier in her career, she was a Fellow of the European Union in Luxembourg. She has participated in Pacific Forum’s Young Leaders Program since 2012.Ms. Tran has been invited to Track 1.5 and Track 2 diplomacy conferences and policy dialogues across the Indo-Pacific, including those organized by the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific (CSCAP) and the Yushan Forum. She has also served as a panelist at institutions including Perry World House in the United States, IISS Asia in Singapore, and government-affiliated think tanks. Her academic research has been presented at international academic workshops in Indo-Pacific and Europe. She has published in English, French in prominent magazines and academic journals. She also regularly provides expert commentary to major international media outlets, including Nikkei Asia, The Diplomat, South China Morning Post, BBC, Mainichi, RTI, and Taipei Times, among others. She has appeared in television interviews with outlets including Al-Qahera, TaiwanPlus, and Vietnam Today (VTV). Her expertise has been featured in international media across six languages: Vietnamese, French, English, Chinese, Japanese, and Arabic. She has also served as a peer reviewer for East Asia Forum and academic journals affiliated with universities.Ms. Tran holds a Master’s degree in International Relations from the UK.