About the Evolving Idea of the Indo-Pacific Region Conference

The Indo-Pacific has emerged as arguably the most important region in contemporary geopolitics owing not just to the concentration of trade and interconnected economies but also the many political and security challenges that plague it. Several of the world’s most volatile flashpoints exist within the Indo-Pacific, whether it be the growing confrontational relationship between China and the USA, concerns over rogue states or the many volatile border disputes in the region. There are also several prominent issues facing the region, ranging from the continuing activities of transnational terrorist groups to the growing use of cyber and critical technology by multiple rival actors to human security problems such as endemic disease and climate change. Further complicating matters are the fact that there are a multitude of non-state stakeholders and extra-regional actors engaged in the region. Naturally, the states of the Indo-Pacific have not been idle, with many multilateral, bilateral and unilateral responses being formed to address the problems within the region. 
The Indo-Pacific region is defined here in broad terms, loosely bounded by Japan in the north, Australia and New Zealand in the south, the Arabian Sea in the west and the Polynesian islands in the east. It is recognized that the region is tied together through the consistent political, economic, cultural and/or military interactions between actors within this geographically contiguous space.
Given the pace and scope of the developments on the ground, many of these topics have remained under-researched within the existing scholarship and require further examination. Hence the Department of Geopolitics and International Relations at MAHE as decided to invite academics from within and outside of India to join our faculty and research scholars to discuss key issues within the Indo-Pacific region in interest of advancing knowledge on this vital region.