Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book provides an overall framework for examining the dynamics of the East Asian political economy and the new regional environments over the past three decades. It examines the changing contours of China–Southeast Asia interactions from the founding of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1949 to the present. The book is concerned with China’s engagement with diaspora in the context of the PRC’s increasing integration into the global economy as well as its expanding interests abroad. It suggests that future research directions with respect to talent management and higher education governance in the context of an intensified global ‘war for talent’. The book also examines Chinese leadership’s view of the Singapore model and its relevance to China’s national agendas in building a ‘learning nation’ and strengthening the CCP’s resilience through intraparty regeneration.