Building Think Tank Influence and Effectiveness

The Think Tank Influence for Southeast Asia and the Pacific exchange brought together professionals from across Asia to explore the role of think tanks in the U.S., beginning with a U.S.-inbound exchange in September 2016 and followed by an outbound event, The Empowering Ideas Forum in Thailand in February 2017, in which participants examined communication strategies, inter-institution collaboration, and policy development. Through this reciprocal exchange, Panutat Satchachai gained a broader understanding of how think tanks function and cooperate with political circles and the public. By connecting with researchers and scholars from a wide range of countries and backgrounds, Panutat developed new ideas for activities to conduct within his department and opportunities to expand learning for his students, while in his role as Associate Dean of the Faculty of Economics at Chulalongkorn University, Thailand.

Panutat, in coordination with a fellow Empowering Ideas Forum speaker and professor, Haruko Satoh of Osaka University in Japan, organized a joint conference in 2019 between the students of their respective universities. Furthermore, Panutat continued the international exchange of ideas by arranging a joint faculty seminar with National University of Laos, which later led to an MOU between faculties.