This publication showcases 27 examples of policy and practice drawing from the experiences of over 40 cities in Asia and Europe to highlight the contributions of culture and the creative economy in shaping contemporary cities.

This publication was prepared in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Korea and Gwangju Metropolitan City, among others and is an input to the 7th ASEM Culture Ministers’ Meeting (ASEM CMM7), June 2016, Gwangju, Korea).

“Creative Responses to Sustainability” is part of a new series of guides mapping responses to environment and sustainability issues in different countries in Asia. Commissioned by ASEF, this guide features a directory of the 20 most pioneering and significant cultural organisations in Singapore contributing to social and environmental change through their artistic practice. The guide was launched at ArtCop21, held alongside the UN climate talks (December 2015, Paris)

The “Mobility Funding Guides for International Cultural Exchange” for 51 countries of Asia and Europe provide a comprehensive list of resources on cultural mobility in both regions. 2 new Guides for Croatia and Kazakhstan were launched in 2015.

This paper explores the challenges facing the newspaper industry in Asia and Europe, and is based on the 7^th ASEF Editors’ Roundtable organised by ASEF and Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS), and held in conjunction with the 10^th Asia-Europe Meeting Summit (ASEM10) in October 2014, in Milan, Italy.

Addressing the complex relationship between businesses and human rights protection, “Human Rights and Businesses” is based on the recommendations and discussions from the 14^th Informal ASEM Seminar on Human Rights on the same theme, which took place in November 2014 in Hanoi, Viet Nam. Topics cover the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and their applications to ASEM partners, particularly on a state’s duty to protect human rights against violations by businesses; corporate responsibility and its contribution to human rights implementation; monitoring, reporting and access to remedies; and multi-stakeholder cooperation.

This report elaborates on 3 presentations of real-life public health emergencies in recent years: the Christchurch earthquake in 2011; SARS (2000), H5N1 and H1N1 (2009) in Singapore; and the Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014. The report also documents main points from working group discussions and the mock press conference statements from a simulation exercise.

This report features some highly publicised emergencies in 2015 such as the Ebola epidemic in West Africa, the Nepal Earthquake, and the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) including their post-emergency evaluations.

The publication “Coal and Climate Change: ’The Chinese Way’?” sheds light on the area of energy and is based on the outcomes of a roundtable of large energy actors, including governments, corporates, experts and NGOs, that was jointly organised by ASEF and the Asia Centre. Participants of the roundtable discussed China’s use of coal within its primary energy mix and the way forward for sustainable development in China.

This study focuses on the national-level challenges relating to SDG implementation based on 3 themes selected as relevant for Viet Nam: poverty, agriculture, and energy and climate change. This publication aims to support ASEM countries in implementing and monitoring SDGs by offering a selection of case studies based on practical experience.

This publication provides an overview of the post-2015 development financing landscape and ideas for reforms to national tax systems and for improving domestic development financing. This publication aims to support ASEM countries in implementing SDGs by offering an overview of existing options for financing development that could be tailored to specific national contexts.