January 2014 Public Lecture Series at AUPP
Date: 2013-12-02T11:38:00

The American University of Phnom Penh (AUPP) is pleased to announce three upcoming public lectures that will take place at the University on January 9th, 13th, and 17th 2014 at 2:30 pm. The first presentation will be by Dr. Okyu Kwon, former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economy of the Republic of Korea, will speak on January 9th; the title of his presentation is Korean Economic Development in Historical Perspectives. Ambassador Sichan Siv, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, will speak on January 13th about The American Dream in First Person. The third presentation in the series will be by Dr. Benny Widyono, author and former Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary General; he will discuss Economic Globalization and what it means for Cambodia.

Okyu Kwon, PhD, is Former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economy of the Republic of Korea from July 2006 until February 2008. Dr. Okyu Kwon had served the Korean Government for more than 33 years, mostly in finance and economic policy areas. He is currently a Visiting Professor at the Graduate School of Finance, KAIST, Seoul, Korea. Previously, Dr. Kwon was appointed as Chief of Staff for National Policy at the Office of President in 2006. He worked at the Office of President for three different Presidents, including President YS Kim, President DJ Kim, and President Roh. From July 2004 and April 2006, he served as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, and Permanent Representative to OECD in Paris, France. Dr. Okyu Kwon has held the positions of Deputy Minister of Finance and Economy, Administrator of the Public Procurement Service, and Director General of the Bureau of Economic Policy. He was Alternate Executive Director to the Board of the International Monetary Fund during Korea’s financial crisis from 1997 to 1999, and worked at the World Bank from 1985 to 1987.

Dr. Okyu Kwon earned a Ph.D. in Economics from Chung-Ang University, Korea, in 1998; a Master of Arts in Economics from the University of Minnesota, U.S.A., in 1991; and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Seoul National University, Korea, in 1975.

Ambassador Sichan Siv holds a Master of International Affairs degree from Columbia University, generally recognized as one of the best universities in the world. Ambassador Siv is the international bestselling author of the memoir Golden Bones: An extraordinary journey from hell in Cambodia to a new life in the United States, published by HarperCollins. During President George W. Bush’s administration, he was appointed as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, a top position he held from 2001 to 2006. From 1989 to 1993, Ambassador Siv served at the White House as deputy assistant to President George H. W. Bush and at the State Department as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State. In the private sector, he has held positions in social services, educational exchange, financial management, and investment banking. He provides global strategic advice and has given motivational speeches around the United States and the world, including presentations at the Nixon, Ford, Reagan, Bush Presidential Libraries, Columbia University, Harvard, U.S. Air Force Academy, American Library in Paris, and University of Texas. Ambassador Siv is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the George H. W. Bush Award for Outstanding Public Service, U.S. Army Commander’s Award, and Brazilian Academy of Art, Culture, and History Honors. He has been a volunteer in the U.S. Air Force Auxiliary Civil Air Patrol and honorary commander of USAF 433rd Airlift Wing. He was also honorary commander of USAF 12th and 902nd Mission Support Groups. Ambassador Siv was born in Cambodia, escaping the country’s killing fields in 1976 and arrived in New England with his mother’s scarf, an empty rice bag, and two dollars.

Benny Widyono, Ph.D, is former Personal Representative of the United Nations Secretary General, a position he held from 1994 – 1997. He is currently Professor in Economics at the University of Connecticut in the US; he previously served as Visiting Fellow at the Kahin Center for Advanced Research on Southeast Asia at Cornell University in New York State. He is author of the 2008 book Dancing in Shadows: Sihanouk, the Khmer Rouge, and the United Nations in Cambodia. He served as special adviser to the Permanent Representative of Cambodia to the United Nations (2002-2003,) special Adviser to the Permanent Representative of Indonesia to the United Nations, and Adviser to the Chairman of the Group of 77 to the United Nations, the largest coalition of developing countries in the UN (1997-2001). Professor Widyono served the UN in New York in various capacities and has organized and taught at workshops in many developing countries all over the world including Suriname, Curacao, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Thailand, Philippines, and Singapore. He has given public lectures and presentations in many international workshops, and published books and articles in scholarly academic journals.