Asia 21 National Chapters play a crucial role in maintaining connections among Asia 21 Fellows, facilitating meaningful engagements and synergistic collaborations, and enabling year-round interactions among Asia 21 Alumni in cities or countries that host a significant number of Fellows across the Asia-Pacific region.

National Chapters should aim to achieve the following objectives:

• Support communication among Asia 21 alumni within the country and across the region.
• Hold regular meetings to foster networking, renew connections, and facilitate in-country collaborations on issues of mutual interest.
• Serve as hosts to Asia 21 alumni visiting their countries.
• Identify and recommend future nominees from their countries and assist with the selection process.

Roles and Responsibilities of Chapter Leaders:

Chapter leaders serve as the vital link between the Asia 21 Team in New York and Asia 21 Fellows based in their respective cities or countries. They volunteer their time to serve in this position for a minimum of two years, with the option to extend the term for an additional two years.

• Act as the contact point for the chapter, facilitating communication with Asia Society, national chapter members, and the Asia 21 Alumni Network.
• Hold quarterly chapter meetings to identify creative ways to elevate the fellowship in concrete ways, such as planning in-country activities, securing partnerships with peer organizations at local levels, contributing to the annual summit agenda, and identifying potential funding streams for national chapters.
• Organize at least two Asia 21 National Chapter Get-Togethers annually to keep chapter members connected, cultivate a sense of belonging, and activate them around potential collaborative partnerships.
• Coordinate within the chapter to nominate the most deserving candidates who embody the spirit of Asia 21 for consideration.
• Lead efforts to identify an organization, cause, or campaign for the chapter to focus its efforts and energies on, resulting in tangible change on the ground.
• Serve in this position for two years with the option to extend the term for an additional two years. Upon conclusion of the term, the leader will assist in finding a suitable replacement.
• Chapter Leaders will benefit from receiving a portion of the total travel expenses to attend the annual summit and will be featured on Asia Society’s website for successfully fulfilling their responsibilities.

Asia 21 National Chapters can take various forms with customized aspirations depending on the size of the alumni community, chapter leaders’ time commitment, and potential Asia Society Global Center engagement opportunities. Please feel free to discuss with the Asia 21 core team if you are interested in starting a national chapter or getting involved in national chapter activities.

For additional information or questions, please email the Asia 21 Team at [email protected].