Nordic Asia Podcast

Nordic Asia Podcast

episodes

The Nordic Asia Podcast is a collaboration sharing expertise on Asia across the Nordic region, brought to you by the following academic partners:

-Asia Centre, University of Tartu (Estonia)

-Asian studies, University of Helsinki (Finland)

-Centre for Asian Studies, Vytautas Magnus University (Lithuania)

-Centre for East and South-East Asian Studies, Lund University (Sweden)

-Centre for East Asian Studies, University of Turku (Finland)

-Norwegian Network for Asian Studies

Drama of Democracy: Political Representation in Mumbai

March 6, 2026

Drama of Democracy

Lisa Björkman

How do the inhabitants of the Indian city of Mumbai navigate political signs and representations? What is the significance of crowds and mass mobiliza…

Good and Bad Palm Oil: Food Security, Paradigm Shift and Stakeholder Negotiations in Indonesia and the EU

February 20, 2026

Good and Bad Palm Oil

Ayu Pratiwi

Entangled in a nexus of commerce, industry, food security, and environmental concerns, palm oil has become a prominent topic of controversy and debate…

Competing Visions for International Order

February 13, 2026

Competing Visions for International Order

Ville Sinkkonen and Veera Laine

Are we living in an era of competing international orders? A new book, entitled Competing Visions for International Order: Challenges for a Shared Dir…

China’s Climate and Air Quality Governance and EU-China Cooperation

February 6, 2026

China’s Climate and Air Quality Governance and EU-China Cooperation

Hermann Aubié

When it comes to the global challenges posed by climate change and environmental issues, China has been presented both as a source of problems and a p…

Cross-Border Intimacies: Affect and Emotions in Marriage Migration Between China and Taiwan

January 23, 2026

Cross-Border Intimacies

Lara Momesso

Transnational marriage migration is among the many features of cross-border mobility that characterise the globalised world. This is also the case in …

Re-examining the Women’s Movement in Cold War South Korea and Beyond

January 9, 2026

Re-examining the Women’s Movement in Cold War South Korea and Beyond

Katri Kauhanen

In the past decade, feminism has become one of the heated topics in public debate in South Korea. Feminism is embraced by activists, attacked in elect…

Tourism and a Kyoto in Flux: A Conversation with Dr. Chiara Rita Napolitano

December 22, 2025

Tourism and a Kyoto in Flux

Chiara Rita Napolitano
Hosted by Julia Olsson

In today’s episode Julia Olsson continues her talk with Dr. Chiara Rita Napolitano from last episode, and they discuss the issue of overtourism and it…

Machiya, Seikatsu Bunka, and Changing Domestic Culture in the Japanese Urban Environment

December 15, 2025

Machiya, Seikatsu Bunka, and Changing Domestic Culture in the Japanese Urban Environment

Chiara Rita Napolitano
Hosted by Julia Olsson

Kyoto is known as a pinnacle of Japanese history and culture, drawing visitors of more than double its resident population many times over every year.…

Strings of Identity: The Horse-Head Fiddle and Mongolian Identity in China (with Ying Song)

November 5, 2025

Strings of Identity: The Horse-Head Fiddle and Mongolian Identity in China

Ying Song
Hosted by Ning Ao

In this episode, we trace how the horse-head fiddle has evolved in the People’s Republic of China — from a traditional steppe instrument to a cultural…

AI, News, and the State: Reinstitutionalising Journalism in Global China’s Algorithmic Age: A conversation with Dr. Joanne Kuai

November 3, 2025

AI, News, and the State: Reinstitutionalising Journalism in Global China’s Algorithmic Age

Joanne Kuai

How is artificial intelligence transforming journalism as both a profession and an institution? In this episode, Ning Ao speaks to Dr. Joanne Kuai, ex…

Hindutva and Anti-Christian Violence in Contemporary India

October 24, 2025

Hindutva and Anti-Christian Violence in Contemporary India

M. Sudhir Selvaraj and Kenneth Bo Nielsen

Kenneth Bo Nielsen is Associate Professor of Social Anthropology at the University of Oslo and leader of the Centre for South Asian Democracy. M. Sud…

Future of the Forest: Struggles over Land and Law in India

October 13, 2025

Future of the Forest

Anand P. Vaidya

How did India’s landmark Forest Rights Act come into being? And what difference has it made to the lives of historically marginalized forest-dwelling …

Digital Expressions of the Self(ie): The Social Life of Selfies in India

October 6, 2025

Digital Expressions of the Self(ie)

Avishek Ray

Selfies are more than fleeting images—across India, they shape how people imagine themselves, connect with others, and inhabit spaces. In this episo…

Rivals in a Tight Embrace Russia, China, and the Central Asian Chessboard

September 28, 2025

Rivals in a Tight Embrace Russia, China, and the Central Asian Chessboard

This podcast episode by Alevtina Solovyeva traces Central Asia as the enduring crossroads “between empires,” where caravan routes outlast the borders …

Gen Z Uprising: Youth, Protest and Political Change in Nepal

September 26, 2025

Gen Z Uprising

Jeevan Baniya

In early September 2025, Nepal witnessed an extraordinary week of upheaval that many now refer to as the ‘five-day revolution’. Within the span of a s…

Localisation of Islamic Arts in Malaysia

September 8, 2025

Localisation of Islamic Arts in Malaysia

Dzul Afiq bin Zakaria and Wahyuni Masyidah Binti Md Isa

The Malay world boasts a wealth of diverse cultures. The arrival of Islam in the Malay world during the 12th to 13th centuries permanently transformed…

Chile’s Growing Interests in China

August 19, 2025

Chile’s Growing Interests in China

Maria Montt Strabucchi

Chile holds the distinction of being the first South American nation to forge diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China, as well as the firs…

Iban Heritage and Culture in Malaysia

August 12, 2025

Iban Heritage and Culture in Malaysia

Gregory anak Kiyai

Every June, there is a significant cultural event in Malaysia, which is called the Gawai Dayak Festival, highly celebrated to mark the end of the harv…

Preserving Traditional Rice and Rice Culture in the Philippines

August 5, 2025

Preserving Traditional Rice and Rice Culture in the Philippines

Floper Gershwin Manuel

In the Philippines, rice serves as a fundamental component of the diet, typically accompanying most meals as either white or brown rice. It is also a …

Kampung Activism in Indonesia

July 14, 2025

Kampung Activism in Indonesia

Melani Budianta

My village, my kampung. The term kampung is a Malay word, referring to a "village hamlet" or "urban informal settlement." As rapid urbanization takes …