New role as Associate Editor of Human and Workforce Development at the Journal of Tropical Futures

22 January 2023

As many of you know, a lot of my academic work has focused on issues of human resource development in Southeast Asia. After living and working in Thailand for four years and working on organization development in Myanmar, I have been deeply curious about the power of learning and change in communities, organizations, and the region as a whole.

Now, I am excited to announce the launch of a new journal published by SAGE called the Journal of Tropical Futures: Sustainable Business, Governance & Development where I am serving as the Associate Editor of Human and Workforce Development.

The journal is administered by James Cook University, Singapore, so it’s also connected to the community of scholars in Southeast Asia. Given my expertise in the region and passion for sustainable development, I was approached by colleagues familiar with my work to serve in this role, and I am very happy to do so given the mission of the journal:

JTF seeks to represent and address the complex and heterogeneous nature of the challenges facing these regions by exploring the interrelationship between business, management, political economy, development and the environment. We are particularly interested in the many tensions that exist between demands for economic growth, social and material wellbeing of populations and corresponding environmental impacts. Can the developmental needs of peoples be met in equitable ways by the expansion of business, trade and innovation in the tropics? What forms of responsible stewardship, organisational practice, resource management and governance might help navigate the unique and precarious concerns of the tropics?

https://journals.sagepub.com/description/JTF

Initially my section was titled “Human Resource Development” but the leadership team of the journal worked with me to revise it to “Human and Workforce Development” to better suit the journal’s description vision . The Editor-in-Chief, Peter Case, along with Managing Editor, Jacob Wood, and Chair of the Editorial Board, Eddy Ng, wrote a fantastic inaugural editorial where they recognize that the “complex challenges faced in the tropics demand multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary perspectives” (p. 6). The mention of transdisciplinarity pleasantly reminds me of the 2019 AHRD conference Townhall forum on that topic.

As an early career scholar, we are often reminded not to become overburdened with service duties. This is certainly a warranted precaution. That said, I am confident in my teaching and research at this moment and want to expand my reach to elevate important scholarship around human and workforce development in the tropics. The vision of this unique journal excites me, and I’m looking forward to contributing to its success!

Onward.