Geopolitics and Security Landscape in the Indo-Pacific: Military Perspectives on Emerging Challenges and Regional Resilience
Military Perspectives on Strategic Competition and Regional Stability in the Indo-Pacific
Great-power rivalry, particularly between the United States and China, is reshaping the Indo-Pacific and placing greater pressure on regional security frameworks. China’s military modernisation and use of grey-zone tactics have heightened maritime tensions, while emerging domains such as cyber operations, information warfare, and advanced technologies are redefining defence planning. These dynamics challenge ASEAN’s capacity to deliver practical security outcomes, yet also underscore its role as a key platform for dialogue. For Thailand, this presents both risks and strategic opportunities. Adaptable defence priorities, stronger crisis-management mechanisms, and deeper cooperation with regional partners will be essential for maintaining resilience and navigating intensifying geopolitical competition.
Promoting Citizenship and Participation in Local Governance in Thailand (Workshop 6)
Workshop on Local Administration and Decentralisation
To appropriately promote democracy, citizens must first understand their rights and duties as citizens. This understanding is crucial for stable and sustainable democratic learning. Local governance plays a key role in this learning process due to its proximity and accessibility, making it easier for citizens to engage and follow developments compared to the national governance, which is still complex and distant.
Multipolarity and the Rise of a Geopolitical Europe: ASEAN’s Strategic Choices and Thailand’s Path Forward
EU–ASEAN relations in a multipolar Indo-Pacific: implications for Thailand’s strategic positioning, economic resilience, and regulatory alignment.
The Indo-Pacific’s shift toward multipolar competition has increased ASEAN’s strategic relevance and encouraged the EU to act more geopolitically in the region. Thailand sees the EU as a partner that can help balance major-power rivalry while offering opportunities in trade, supply-chain resilience, digital and green transition, and regulatory cooperation. At the same time, the EU’s strong normative and regulatory approach creates both benefits and tensions for ASEAN’s consensus-based model. Thailand must therefore leverage EU engagement for economic and institutional gains while maintaining strategic flexibility and preserving ASEAN centrality.
Geopolitics in the Cyber Frontier: Building Digital Resilience in A Fragmented World
Geopolitical Challenges and Actionable Policy Recommendations to Strengthen Thailand’s Digital Sovereignty, Supply Chains, Cybersecurity, and Good Governance Frameworks
Technology, data, and innovation have emerged as powerful instruments of strategic competition among major powers. Thailand’s ambitions under the Digital Economy and Society Development Plan and the Thailand 4.0 agenda require deeper integration into global innovation networks. Yet this integration, on the one hand, exposes the country to new geopolitical vulnerabilities from dependence on imported chips and critical network infrastructure to heightened exposure to international cybersecurity threats. On the other hand, deeper integration strengthens the country’s obligation to protect citizens’ rights, particularly the right to privacy, as Thailand must increasingly comply with international data-governance standards.
AI and the Future of Digital Governance: Advancing Public Service Transformation
Policy Recommendations to promote digital governance and increase the quality and efficiency of public service delivery
Thailand’s National AI Strategy and Action Plan (2022–2027) aims to improve quality of life and strengthen economic growth through responsible and inclusive AI adoption. Despite progress, challenges remain. Experience-sharing and dialogue, leading to concrete policy recommendations on policy formulation, budget allocation, and the design of AI-integrated pilot projects, are essential to advancing Thailand’s digital governance transformation.
Advancing the Public Sector and Empowering Local Communities with Generative AI
Path to Effective Digital Local Governance with Knowledge, Skills, and Ethics
Over the past decade, the world has entered an era of rapid technological transformation, particularly with the development of Artificial Intelligence (AI), which has had a broad impact on daily life, the economy, and public administration. One of the technologies that has drawn significant attention is Generative AI. This creates opportunities for government agencies to apply it in enhancing the quality of public services across various dimensions, including prompt responsiveness, accuracy, accessibility, and transparency. However, despite Generative AI’s high potential in enhancing the efficiency of public administration, the adoption of such technology in the public sector still faces several challenges. These include digital inequality, users’ understanding and ability to utilise the technology, data security and safety, as well as issues of ethics and social responsibility. Without proper knowledge, understanding, and skills, the use of AI could lead to errors, misinformation, or even undermine public trust in government agencies. Therefore, it is critically important that public sector personnel and local community leaders receive appropriate training and capacity building on this significant issue.
Enhancing Knowledge and Experience on Politics and the Democratic Governance System
Workshop to Design Augmented Reality (AR) Guiding Tool for Parliament Visit and Studying
Open Government and Policy Innovation for Local Administration and Citizens
4th "OpenGov for Citizen": Participatory Marine Waste Management in the Estuarine Area
The Roadmap for Thai Bureaucratic Development (2023–2027) aims to transform Thailand’s public sector into a “Digital & Innovative Government” and an “Open Government.” The focus is on establishing a modern, trustworthy, and efficient administrative system that truly responds to the needs of the people. The Office of the Public Sector Development Commission (OPDC), as the main agency responsible for promoting open government and public participation, has studied and developed the model of an “Open Government and Meaningful Participation Ecosystem.” It is designed to enhance participation from all sectors in driving integrated and multidimensional public sector development. It comprises eight key components which are 1) Disclosure of government information 2) Policies and laws that support government openness 3) Partnership and collaboration networks 4) Incentive mechanisms 5) Knowledge and resource support 6) Development of technology, innovation, and infrastructure 7) Monitoring and evaluation and 8) Building an organizational culture
KASSID Annual Meeting 2025
Navigating Thailand’s Social Protection in Times of Economic Uncertainties
The year 2025 marks the fifth anniversary of the Konrad Adenauer Scholarship for Social and Innovative Development (KASSID), which has supported 30 scholars across four cohorts nationwide. In line with the objectives of the scholarship program, KAS Thailand will organise a full-day activity for both current KASSID scholars and alumni.
MY BETTER COUNTRY HACKATHON #14
Driving Open Government and Civic Engagement in National Policymaking Process
The 14th MY BETTER COUNTRY HACKATHON organised by the Office of the Public Sector Development Commission (OPDC) with the support of KAS will gather public opinions on approaches to national development, aiming to encourage the participation of citizens and relevant sectors in expressing their views on national-level issues related to public sector reform that are of social interest. This activity will promote a participatory public administration system involving the government, private sector, civil society, and other stakeholders, turning participation into tangible outcomes. Ultimately, this will lead to improved governance in accordance with the principles of good governance and foster greater public trust in the government.
Youth Deliberation Hackathon: Shaping Their Role in Social Protection Systems
Public Participation in Improving Thailand's Social Protection Policies
Inclusive and accountable social protection systems are a cornerstone of equal development and social justice. Welfare programs such as the state welfare card, the universal elderly allowance, child support grants, and unemployment protection mechanisms reflect the government’s recognition of the importance of reducing poverty and inequality. Yet, despite this growing investment, questions remain regarding the inclusivity, legitimacy, and responsiveness of social protection systems. In particular, policymaking and implementation processes tend to be dominated by technocrats, senior officials, and select interest groups, leaving important constituencies—especially youth—largely absent.
Citizen Access to Environmental Justice
Chiang Rai Case Study
Access to environmental justice remains a major challenge in Thailand. Despite the growing impacts of environmental degradation on public health, livelihoods, and the sustainability of local ecosystems, many people still face obstacles in exercising their rights and seeking redress through legal processes. Complex legal procedures, limited access to information, and the need for greater clarity regarding legal mechanisms continue to create a gap between “environmental harm” and “justice.” As a result, affected communities continue to struggle with pollution, deforestation, and unsustainable natural resource management, often without meaningful participation or effective legal protection mechanisms.
