The TOASEAN Summer School 2026 offers an intensive five-day program dedicated to exploring the development trajectories of Southeast Asia, one of the most dynamic and rapidly transforming regions in the world.
Since the 1990s, Southeast Asia has undergone profound economic and social transformations, emerging as the world’s fourth-largest economic area and a leading export hub, while significantly reducing poverty rates. This transformation has not followed a single path; rather, it reflects diverse national strategies, political models, sectoral specializations, and modes of integration into the global economy.
The TOASEAN Summer School addresses this complexity from an interdisciplinary perspective, combining political economy, economic geography, labour studies, and anthropology. It begins by mapping and comparing different development trajectories across the region, highlighting how countries have integrated into global markets through distinct institutional and policy frameworks.
The program examines how urbanization and infrastructure development have accelerated economic integration in Southeast Asia, particularly through the rise of metropolitan regions and connectivity corridors. These processes are closely linked to the expansion of regional production networks and global value chains. It also analyses state-led development models, focusing on public investment strategies and the evolving role of state-owned enterprises in countries such as Vietnam and Singapore.
Finally, the program emphasizes labour as a central but highly segmented factor, exploring labour market transformations, migration flows, and the social consequences of rapid industrialization.
In addition, the TOASEAN Summer School will include a dedicated day focused on the Asian Development Bank, which is headquartered in Manila. During this session, participants will be introduced to the Bank’s mission and core activities, including its role in promoting sustainable economic growth, reducing poverty, and supporting regional integration across Asia and the Pacific. Particular attention will be given to its priority sectors—such as infrastructure, energy transition, climate resilience, digital development, and social services—and to the financial instruments it employs. The session will also highlight the opportunities the Bank offers to international stakeholders, including Italian companies, in areas such as project financing, procurement, public–private partnerships, and technical cooperation initiatives.
The Summer School brings together scholars from leading European and international research institutions, offering participants the opportunity to engage with diverse methodological approaches — from quantitative economic analysis to ethnographic fieldwork — in a highly interactive academic environment.
The program is organized by the University of Torino and T.wai – Torino World Affairs Institute, in collaboration with Inalco – Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales in Paris.
The first edition of the TOASEAN Summer School will take place from Monday, 8 June to Friday, 12 June 2026. Activities — including lectures, seminars, round tables, and extended Q&A sessions — will run daily from 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (CET).
Hosted at the Campus Luigi Einaudi in Turin, the TOASEAN Summer School is designed for advanced undergraduate and graduate students, doctoral researchers, and professionals interested in Southeast Asia, particularly in the fields of international relations, development studies, political economy, and anthropology.
