Introduction
"With the world becoming a global village, and with national destinies more closely intertwined, a better understanding of each other's different perspectives will be crucial. For much will depend on what you and your generation do as you take your positions in society in later years. I am hopeful that many of you will attain high positions in society as each one of you has been endowed with gifts of intellectual or personal leadership."
The Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations is student-run organization of the Harvard University Faculty of Arts and Sciences. HPAIR's goal is to offer a rigorous academic program and continuous forum of exchange to facilitate discussion about the most important issues relevant to the Asia-Pacific region.
HPAIR's flagship project is its international student academic conference, held in Asia each summer. The conference is centered around six stimulating workshops that bring together undergraduate students, graduate students, and a distinguished group of speakers who are current leaders in academia, culture, business, and politics. Workshops include speeches and discussion, interactive projects and activities, and are framed by serious research. In addition to the workshops, plenary sessions, panels, workshops, and other events allow each conference to span a multitude of issues relevant to the Asia-Pacific region. By providing a platform for discussion, debate, and reflection between future and current leaders, HPAIR is a forum for building global understanding.
Since 2004, HPAIR has also organized a business conference. The event is a collaborative effort of undergraduate and graduate students of Harvard University to promote discourse on critical issues affecting Asia and its business environment. The HPAIR business conference brings together many prominent leaders from the world of business, government and law with more than 200 business students and young professionals to discuss their understanding of Asia and its place in the global economy.
In addition to its international conferences, HPAIR aims to promote understanding of the economic, political, social, and cultural issues facing the Asia-Pacific region within the Harvard community by organizing panels and other events on Harvard's campus.
Through all of its activities, HPAIR strives to maintain the vision of its mission statement: "to promote understanding of the economic, political, social, and cultural issues facing the Asia-Pacific region within the Harvard and international communities."