Wherever I am, the world comes after me.
It offers me its busyness. It does not believe that I do not want it.
Now I understand why the old poets of China went so far
and high into the mountains, then crept into the pale mist.
"The Old Poets of China" by Mary Oliver

Making Waves: AC Korea Majors Participate in Conferences on Korean Studies in Seoul

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Three Korea majors from the Asian Center recently participated in two major conferences on Korea Studies in Seoul, South Korea in May and July 2025.

Together with Marvin Tenecio, Rochelle Leonor, and Raniel Billones, more than four thousand delegates from 95 countries attended the 28th IPSA World Congress of Political Science on 12 to 16 July 2025 at the COEX Convention Center in Seoul. The conference featured 3000 papers organized in 776 panels, four plenary sessions, and six award sessions, covering the entire spectrum of political science.

Awarded with a travel grant for research including a one-year IPSA membership and a complimentary Congress registration, Tenecio presented his paper “Shared Appeal Across Borders?: Exploration of the Relatability of Mental Health-Themed Korean Drama Series in the Philippines and South Korea,” co-authored with Shane Yumikura. In the same panel, Billones discussed “Breaking The Silence: The Hakpok Metoo Movement and the Quest for Justice in South Korea.” Both participants were part of the “Emerging Issues in Asia” panel. Meanwhile, Leonor was part of the panel on “Visual Politics and Power in Non- or Weak- Democratic and Autocratic Regimes” with the paper "Through the Looking Glass: North Korea from the Lens of North Korean Vloggers."

Leonor and Billones received a full grant from the UP Office of International Linkages (OIL) System to participate in the conference.

The World Congress of Political Science is a biennial conference, organized by the International Political Science Association (IPSA). This year, the congress was organized in collaboration with the Korean Political Association and the broader Asian social science community, highlighting IPSA’s mission to foster inclusive and global scholarly engagement.

In the first half of the year, AC Korea Major Raniel Billones participated in the 12th Annual Korea University Graduate Student Conference on 30 May 2025, also in Seoul, South Korea with the theme “Heritage Meets Hallyu: The Past, Present, and Future of Korean Culture.” He presented his paper, "From Screen to Streets: How K-Dramas Influence Tourism of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in South Korea."

Now in its 12th installment, the Annual Korea University Graduate Student Conference is an annual forum for graduate students providing a platform for exchange ideas and discuss current research on Asian studies. The conference is an opportunity for young scholars to present their research to both their peers and eminent scholars. The conference will also enable participants to meet others in their field conducting similar research, and to gain experience in presenting their work for discussion. KUGS aims to provide a space for young researchers studying Korean history with creative and innovative ideas to investigate diverse perspectives.

Tenecio currently works at the Asian Center under the Assistant to the Dean for Curriculum and Quality Assurance. Billones is a SPED teacher under DepEd, and Leonor is a digital and marketing communications practitioner.

The participation of these Korean majors in these conferences highlight the growing impact of the Asian Center in helping advance Asian and Korean studies on the international stage.

For inquiries, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The Asian Center, University of the Philippines Diliman offers M.A. degrees in Asian Studies with four fields of specialization: Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, and West Asia. The UP Asian Center also has an M.A. program in Philippine Studies that allows students to major in Philippine society and culture, Philippine foreign relations, or Philippine development studies. It also offers a Ph.D. program in Philippine Studies in conjunction with the College of Arts and Letters and the College of Social Sciences and Philosophy. For an overview of these graduate programs, click here. As an area studies institution, the Asian Center also publishes Asian Studies: Journal of Critical Perspectives on Asia, the latest issue of which can be downloaded at the journal's website. For other news and upcoming events at the Asian Center, click here.