In January 2017, a record number of women will be part of the 115th United States Congress, the legislature of arguably the world’s most powerful country in economic and cultural influence. Approximately one in four Representatives and Senators will be female, including a previously unachieved tally in minority representation. Asia has its own women in power, namely President Tsai Ing-wen in Taiwan, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in Bangladesh, and Indian National Congress President Sonia Gandhi. Although the history of Asian female government leaders is short, they have made a lasting impression on their generation and inspired many others to follow in their paths. Join Asia Society for a discussion on the globe’s most prominent female leaders and the future of women in politics.

For related programming at Asia Society Texas Center, please learn about our Women’s Leadership Series. A January event will feature Linking the World CEO Mina Chang discussing social innovation, and another upcoming program in March will feature former First Lady of United Kingdom Cherie Blair discussing education reform.

Schedule

6:30 pm | Reception with Light Bites
7:00 pm | Program

About the Panelists

Dr. Elora Shehabuddin is Associate Professor of Humanities and Political Science at Rice University. She received her A.B. in Social Studies from Harvard University and Ph.D. in Politics from Princeton University. Her doctoral dissertation was awarded the American Political Science Association's Aaron Wildavsky Dissertation Award for best dissertation in Religion and Politics.

Professor Shehabuddin is the author of two books, Reshaping the Holy: Democracy, Development, and Muslim Women in Bangladesh (Columbia University Press, 2008) and Empowering Rural Women: The Impact of Grameen Bank in Bangladesh (Grameen Bank, 1992). She has published articles in Modern Asian Studies, Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, Journal of Women's History, Südasien-Chronik [South Asia Chronicle], Journal of Bangladesh Studies, and Asian Survey, as well as chapters in numerous edited volumes. She is an Associate Editor of the Encyclopedia of Women and Islamic Cultures (Brill) and a guest co-editor of a special issue of Feminist Economics on Gender and Economics in Muslim Communities. Her current book project is tentatively titled Visions of Progress: Feminism, Empire, and Muslim Women. Professor Shehabuddin has received numerous fellowships and has been selected as a Research Associate in the Women's Studies in Religion Program at the Divinity School at Harvard University and as a Carnegie Scholar. Professor Shehabuddin currently serves on the Advisory Committee of the Women's Studies in Religion Program at Harvard Divinity School.

Dr. Elizabeth Simas is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Houston. She received her B.S. from Santa Clara University (summa cum laude) and her Ph.D. from the University of California, Davis, where her research earned her the Dean's Doctoral Fellowship for Excellence.

Professor Simas researches both voter and candidate behavior in U.S. elections. One of her current areas of focus is the potential roles of stereotyping and modern sexism in recent presidential elections. She is in the midst of a large-scale project examining both male and female opposition to Hillary Clinton. Combining survey and experimental data, this project aims to better isolate the effects of gender bias, and to test whether these sentiments are exclusive to Clinton's background, or whether they extend to all female candidates. Her other researches have been published in outlets such as the American Journal of Political Science, The Journal of Politics, Political Behavior, and Public Opinion Quarterly.

Dr. Hans Stockton is Associate Dean of the School of Arts & Sciences and Director of the Center for International Studies at the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from Texas A&M University. His areas of academic specialization are democratization, elections, and security in contemporary Asia Pacific. He has published articles in journals of political science, economics, public administration, and Asian Studies; authored multiple chapters in edited volumes on military affairs in the Asia Pacific and Taiwan’s political development; and authored two books on development and democratization in East Asia. Dr. Stockton is a Center Associate of the Election Studies Center at National Chengchi University in Taipei. He has served as president of the American Association of Chinese Studies (2015, 2016) and as coordinator of the Conference Group on Taiwan Studies (2012 – 2014). He has also served multiple terms as president of the Southwest Conference on Asian Studies. Professor Stockton has also been the Principle Investigator for multiple, successful grant awards from the US Department of Education, Japan Foundation, and Ministry of Education (Taipei). He has been interviewed by and/or published editorials on matters related to US-China-Taiwan relations and Chinese and Taiwan political affairs in the Washington Observer Weekly, Taipei Times, Taiwan Journal, Southern Daily News, World Journal, Voice of America, e-International Relations, and Houston Chronicle. He has provided political commentary for ABC News Houston, Fox News Houston, the Foreign Policy Research Institute, Radio Taiwan International, NTD TV, Southern Daily, World Journal, and Channel 55.5 international news.

About the Moderator

The Honorable Sean Hassan was elected to the Austin Community College Board of Trustees in 2016, receiving more than 132,000 votes. He is the first Muslim American elected to public office in Austin and across Central Texas, and the first South Asian American elected across Austin and Travis County. The Austin Community College Board oversees 11 campuses, serving approximately 55,000 students, and oversees a 315 million dollar annual budget. Sean is a graduate of Stanford Law School, where he had the honor of delivering the Student Commencement address. He also earned a master's degree in Non-profit Management from the London School of Economics, and received his bachelor's degree in International Relations from Tufts University. Sean has spent most of his professional career in the non-profit and education sector. His most recent position as Vice-President for the Boys & Girls Clubs has allowed him to oversee the Early Literacy programs for English Language Learners with the goal of maximizing the number of students reading at grade level by the 3rd grade, and develop Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math programs for low-income Middle School Students. In his volunteer time, Sean currently serves as Chairperson of the Aga Khan Youth & Sports Board for the United States of America.

Chevron, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, United Airlines, and Vinson & Elkins LLP are presenting sponsors of Business & Policy programs. Generous funding also provided by the Friends of Business & Policy at Asia Society Texas Center, a premier group of individuals and organizations committed to bringing the best in public programming.
 

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