Theory, practice and ethics of statecraft have been central in my research and publications.
In 'Post-Colonial Statecraft in South East Asia: Sovereignty, State-building and the Chinese in the Philippines' (I. B. Tauris, 2013), I argued for the creative strategies, resilience and enduring strengths of the seemingly 'weak' Philippine state in successfully keeping itself intact. The completion of this project was only possible with the generous help of the Filipino people, the Philippine government and the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines.
Through a series of dialogues within an international networks of theologians and scholars, 'Discerning the Powers in Post-Colonial Africa and Asia: A Treatise of Christian Statecraft' (Springer Nature 2016) was an intended contribution to the inter-connected fields of political sociology/science, political theology and post-colonial studies. The book also depicts the larger intellectual context and project of 'Bandung: Journal of the Global South', which I founded with a group of distinguished scholars, senior policy-makers and forefront practitioners since 2013. Having published by Springer Nature from 2015 to 2018, 'Bandung: Journal of the Global South' has been published by Brill Publishers (Leiden & Boston) since 2019.
Through the researh and writing of the book 'Destined Statecraft: Eurasian Small Power Politics and Strategic Cultures in Geopolitical Shifts' (Springer Nature 2018), I was privileged to have participated in and contributed to the research projects of not just in the academia, but also to the policy-making discussions and processes in a number of think-tanks, NGOs, governments, foreign service/affairs ministries and the Church, especially in the Global South.
In 'Logics of the Powers: Towards an Impact-driven Practice of Futurist Statecraft' (Routledge 2022) and 'Techno-Geopolitics: U.S.-China Tech War and the Practice of Digital Statecraft' (Routledge 2022), apart from outlining a new research strategy which aims to shape and co-create the global future with policy-makers and practitioners across the world, I devised new concepts including the 'non-human agency', which captures the agency of such non-human entities as artificial intelligence and robotics for preparing for a more sustainable and interstellar future of human mankind.
My hearts and thoughts are often with the weak, the small and the inarticulated. Tears and sorrows can be sacred.
