by Editor | Aug 12, 2024 | News
After the conclusion of her North America trip, including a meeting with BGF leaders in Massachusetts, Amma, the World Peace and Security Award 2023 recipient, will now visit Japan. Below are details of her tour in the country:
“Amma will visit #Tokyo, #Japan from August 14 – 16. Everyone is welcome!
The programs will take place at:
Bellesalle Takadanobaba
1-36-4 Takadanobaba, Shinjuku, Tokyo
Sumitomo Realty & Development Takadanobaba Garden Tower B2 & 1F
Find out more – amrit.am/japan2024”
https://macenter.jp/ammajapantour/english-page
by Editor | Aug 12, 2024 | News
The Wilson Center’s Wahba Institute for Strategic Competition and the Boston Global Forum launch the Indo-Pacific Spark Club, a prestigious network of business leaders from across the Indo-Pacific region. This club is dedicated to fostering a peaceful, secure, and prosperous world in the AI Age. The Indo-Pacific Spark Club will facilitate strategic discussions and collaborations among its members, focusing on leveraging AI and technological innovation to promote economic growth, social harmony, and global security.
Members of the Indo-Pacific Spark Club will participate in roundtables, conferences, and discussions with leaders, policymakers, and distinguished thinkers to build a robust ecosystem of economy, culture, and politics. These efforts will be aimed at fostering peace, love, and innovation in the Age of AI.
Through regular meetings, roundtables, and collaborative projects, members will share insights and develop initiatives aimed at enhancing the region’s role in global affairs. The club will also serve as a platform for leaders to address pressing challenges and explore new opportunities for cooperation in the rapidly evolving AI landscape and in the rising tense geopolitical climate.
For more information or to join the Indo-Pacific Spark Club, please contact the Chief Staff of the BGF-Wilson Center joint team at [email protected].
by Editor | Aug 5, 2024 | News
In this week’s Four Pillars, we will look at the two fronts of concerns for the Four Pillars – Europe, particularly Ukraine, and the Indo-Pacific
Russia, Ukraine, and related updates:
Even though the frontlines have been relatively static, the war is still raging, in both Ukraine itself, and with Russian (and Chinese) information wars on the Four Pillars. The Pillars continue to back Ukraine in their struggle, with F-16s now active and more aid sent. Between the Pillars and Russia directly, it is good to see journalist Evan Gershkovich (and marine Paul Whelan) freed, but it does give one hesitation about the “we do(n’t) negotiate with terrorists” dilemma the Pillars will now face – hopefully no British or American citizen have the foolishness to voluntarily go to Russia after all the high-profile incidents in recent years. Furthermore, the Pillars will need to be wary of – surprise – Russian interference in elections. Although it is not THE cause for election outcomes being the ways they are, disinformation, as carried by unwitting civilians and voters, are designed to obfuscate and polarize societies. The enemies of the Pillars do not need to put their favored candidate or outcome in power, they just need to magnify the cleavages in public discourse and worsen mutual trust in society – in effect, get people to fight amongst themselves and have nations commit domestic suicide.
Indo-Pacific concerns:
India continues stepping up its role as a leader in maintaining peace and security in the Indo-Pacific, forming close relations with Vietnam due to shared concerns about China. The US and Japan, two Pillars, continue to explore collaboration for defense and security in the region. It is important that these three Pillars are taking seriously their roles to guarantee peace and security in the Indo-Pacific, and also around the world. But one also needs to be aware that more still have to be done vis-a-vis deterrence and preparation against an emboldened China.
Airmen assigned to the 34th Fighter Squadron and Fighter Generation Squadron perform pre-flight checks on F-35A Lightning IIs at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, March 28, 2024. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Keagan Lee)
Minh Nguyen is the Chief Editor of the Boston Global Forum and a Shinzo Abe Initiative Fellow. She writes the Four Pillars column in the BGF Weekly newsletter.
by Editor | Aug 5, 2024 | Event Updates, News
On August 2, 2024, the Wahba Institute for Strategic Competition and the Boston Global Forum hosted a roundtable at the Wilson Center, featuring Politburo member Professor Nguyen Xuan Thang and the Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Nguyen Quoc Dung. The event focused on AI development strategies, tech development policy, and industrial policy for Vietnam. Additionally, participants discussed American concerns in the Indo-Pacific region with regard to the Chinese tech ecosystem and development.
Representatives from the Wilson Center included Hon. Mark Kennedy, Director of the Wahba Institute for Strategic Competition, and Wilson Center scholars such as Kellee Wicker, Alex Botting, Prashanth Parameswaran, and Klaus Larres. The BGF was represented by Professor Thomas Patterson, Harvard University, BGF co-founder and CEO Nguyen Anh Tuan, and Minh Nguyen, Chief Editor.
This event kicked off the beginning of the Indo-Pacific Spark Initiative, a partnership between BGF and WISC aimed at exploring and enhancing strategic relations among the US, Japan, India, and Vietnam.
Professor Nguyen Xuan Thang shared his vision for Vietnam, emphasizing AI as a significant opportunity for the country. He expressed his goals for insights and a knowledge base from the Wilson Center and the BGF to help Vietnam walk alongside the global powers in AI, rather than just being a follower.
by Editor | Aug 5, 2024 | Global Alliance for Digital Governance
As the Artificial Intelligence Act came into force last week, EU Commissioner Ursula von der Leyen, recipient of the World Leader for Peace and Security Award 2020, wrote on August 1, 2024: “Today, the Artificial Intelligence Act comes into force. Europe’s pioneering framework for innovative and safe AI. It will drive AI development that Europeans can trust. And provide support to European SMEs and startups to bring cutting-edge AI solutions to market.”
At this point, the focus is on the dates: The new legislation will be fully applicable in 24 months, meaning that by August 2, 2026, all member countries will have to comply with the provisions, with some exceptions. For bans on prohibited practices, implementation will already be triggered after six months, for codes of conduct after nine, and for general AI rules (including governance) after 12. Obligations for high-risk systems will be delayed for another year, with implementation after 36 months. In the meantime, considering the timing of the entry into force of the new Regulation and the potential impact of new technologies that will continue to develop, the EU pact on artificial intelligence was launched in mid-November 2023 to voluntarily anticipate the AI requirements and facilitate the transition to the application of the new rules.
https://www.eunews.it/en/2024/08/01/artificial-intelligence-act-eu-law/
by Editor | Aug 5, 2024 | News
On August 1, 2024, Governor Michael Dukakis and leaders of the Boston Global Forum – CEO Nguyen Anh Tuan, Board Member Professor David Silbersweig, and Chief Editor Minh Nguyen met with Amma, the 2023 World Leader for Peace and Security Award recipient, in Marlborough, Massachusetts. As part of her US trip, Amma and BGF leaders engaged in an hour-long conversation on compassion, and the relationships between the spiritual and the material. Governor Dukakis and Nguyen Anh Tuan also discussed Amma’s role as the Spiritual Leader in the Indo-Pacific Spark Initiative, a partnership between BGF and the Wilson Center. Known for her humanitarian and spiritual leadership, Amma can inspire mutual understanding, love, and compassion among the people of the US, Japan, India, Vietnam, and the broader Indo-Pacific region. She can deliver messages of love and compassion at conferences, with a focus on fostering these values in the US, Japan, India, and Vietnam. The Boston Global Forum and Wilson Center will disseminate her talks and messages, highlighting her esteemed mission.
by Editor | Aug 5, 2024 | News
The Boston Global Forum’s Shinzo Abe Initiative for Peace and Security aims to foster connections among businesses and people in the US, Japan, India, and Taiwan. This initiative seeks to create an AI public for the people in these regions, supporting an innovative economy, the ecosystem of AI and tech economy, and promoting peace. It focuses on connecting distinguished individuals from these countries for this mission, with former State Minister Yasuhide Nakayama bridging Japan and Taiwan. Emphasizing that people are the masters in the AI Age, the Shinzo Abe Initiative calls on distinguished figures to contribute to this prestigious mission.
To further this initiative, BGF will organize Shinzo Abe Roundtables for distinguished figures starting from September 2024. These roundtables will provide a platform for influential leaders to collaborate and share insights on leveraging AI for economic ecosystems and peace. The discussions will focus on developing strategies to enhance cooperation between the US, Japan, India, and Taiwan, and to build a robust ecosystem for innovation and security.
Participants will include top executives, policymakers, and thought leaders from various sectors, who will work together to create actionable plans and initiatives. The roundtables will also highlight the importance of ethical AI practices and the role of AI in addressing global challenges.
For more information and to participate in the Shinzo Abe Roundtables, please contact Minh Nguyen, Chief Editor, at [email protected]
by Editor | Jul 29, 2024 | News
This week has been a more mellow one, but that doesn’t mean that nothing happened. In fact, plenty happened in the Four Pillars space, but as these are small events or stories without an broad overarching theme like last week or the NATO summit. We have compiled them into a list for the audience to peruse, with notes and analysis to put it into the Four Pillars context.
Four Pillars, Ukraine, and Russia:
The Pillars continue to find some worrying issues with preparedness in the face of Russian aggression. Still, they were able to find money under the couch cushion to continue aiding Ukraine, the current shield of the continent against Russia. The longer-term view is that the Europe Pillar should be wary of Putin’s calculations – he is willing to take as long as he needs to achieve his revanchist ambition, and at any cost too – a mad ideologue is hard to reason with.
The Europe Pillar and the Hungary Problem:
Hungary, a member of the EU and NATO, continues to be a Fifth-Column in these organizations (that are vital to the Four Pillars), with quasi-dictator Viktor Orban making grand overtures to Putin and more recently, China, allowing the country to fester with Chinese police presence and be used as a launching pad for these adversaries of the Pillars. However, perhaps it would be best to still keep Hungary in these organizations instead of kicking them out, because that could allow Hungary to invite Chinese or Russian military presence in the heart of Europe. It would be best to keep them in, but at the furthest arm’s length possible. Similar to how Austria, whose intelligence structure had been thoroughly compromised by Russia, European countries should leave Hungary out of any information, technology, or intel sharing program. Furthermore, Brussels should reform the one–vote veto, as in its current state, Hungary has the power to exploit it to benefit Russia.
The Pillars and China in the Indo-Pacific:
A grouping of smaller news, but these should serve as a reminder of the main threat to the Pillars – the CCP and its quest for global hegemony. Soft influence by the CCP is already felt in the domestic scene of the Pillars, the brazen example being TikTok, and the Pillars would do well to guard against these potential vectors of demoralization and disinformation, in addition to the more militaristic and security-based build-ups that have been happening. Remember that each Pillar do not stand alone in this regional chess game against the PRC – the US, Japan, and India have great mutual interests here, and Europe has a stake too.
Minh Nguyen is the Chief Editor of the Boston Global Forum and a Shinzo Abe Initiative Fellow. She writes the Four Pillars column in the BGF Weekly newsletter.
by Editor | Jul 29, 2024 | Event Updates, News
Amma, renowned humanitarian and spiritual leader, continues her tour in North America with a visit to Massachusetts and New England. Governor Michael Dukakis, Chair of Boston Global Forum, and BGF Board Members – CEO Nguyen Anh Tuan, Professors Alex Pentland and Thomas Patterson – will meet and discuss with Amma on August 1, 2024 in Marlborough, Massachusetts. BGF will present Amma with a special edition.
Read more about Amma’s visit and event on her website: https://us.amma.org/meeting-amma/north-america/newengland
July 31 – August 2
Best Western Royal Plaza and Trade Center
181 Boston Post Rd W
Marlborough, MA 01752
United States
From July 25-29: “In #Washington, DC, Amma lead prayers for world #peace. Said Brahmachari Chidanandamrita in a spiritual talk, ‘When our heart gets overwhelmed with #love, logic fails. I have often felt that there is only one quality that distinguishes Amma from us. If we can assimilate that one quality, we can also become Amma. Yes. We can all become Amma. That one quality we need to develop is unconditional love.’”
Amma’s programs in Washington conclude on July 29.
