Coronavirus: A Message From Asia Society

At Asia Society, the health and safety of our staff, visitors, volunteers, members, and communities is our first priority. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we have made the difficult decision to close our New York headquarters beginning March 16. Many of our locations and offices worldwide are taking similar measures — please read the following information from our colleagues at Asia Society Hong Kong and Asia Society Texas.

Commonly referred to as the coronavirus, COVID-19’s impact is felt around the world and the virus does not discriminate based on race, class, or national origin. Asia Society remains committed to our founding principles of promoting mutual understanding and strengthening links between the people, leaders, and institutions of Asia and the world.

At this important time, Asia Society vows to continue our critical work, and we will use our digital tools to continue programming via webcasts, podcasts, social media, our website, and other channels.

Please see our coronavirus page for complete coverage of the outbreak.

Image: In this photo taken on March 12, 2020, medical workers wearing protective clothing against the Covid-19 novel coronavirus walk to a decontamination area at the Keimyung University hospital in Daegu, South Korea. (Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images)

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PODCAST

Coronavirus: The Global Economic Impact

The economic news in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak could hardly be grimmer: In the United States, the S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average, and NASDAQ stock exchanges had their worst day of trading in 32 years on Monday, before rebounding slightly on Tuesday. Cities and states across the country have closed schools and businesses in an effort to enforce greater social distancing; an Italy-style full lockdown could be next.

In China, where life has slowly begun returning to normal, a sharp reduction in economic activity during the height of the coronavirus outbreak in January and February could cause China’s economy to shrink by six percent in the first quarter of 2020, according to one estimate. This would mark the first such contraction since 1976, the year Mao Zedong died. And even as China’s quarantined citizens return to work, the spread of the virus across Europe and North America would prevent China’s economy from quickly roaring back to full strength.

In the latest episode of Asia In-Depth, Asia Society Policy Institute President Kevin Rudd and Rhodium Group Founding Partner Daniel Rosen discuss how the coronavirus outbreak will shape the global economy in the months ahead.

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CURRENT AFFAIRS

The Myth of Chinese Capitalism

The story of China’s economic transformation is, by now, well-known: The Chinese Communist Party introduced market reforms and established an export-driven economy in certain coastal cities, eventually transforming the whole country into a global powerhouse. Except, Dexter Roberts says, the story isn’t that simple.

In his new book The Myth of Chinese Capitalism, Roberts, a Bloomberg journalist who spent 23 years in China, argues that the predominant economic paradigm largely does not apply to hundreds of millions of rural Chinese, for whom the living standards evident in cities have failed to materialize.

Roberts discussed his book with Asia Society Executive Vice President Tom Nagorski last week at Asia Society New York and offered his thoughts of China’s management of the coronavirus outbreak.

Image: Noel Celis/AFP/Getty Images

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ARTS

Stuck at Home? Take a Virtual Tour of Asia Society Museum

The coronavirus outbreak has forced museums and cultural institutions throughout New York City to shut their doors — and we at Asia Society are no exception. Fortunately, culture-starved aficionados stuck at home across the world can access hundreds of items from our collection of art through visiting our site. Be sure to take a look — and to come see the real thing as soon as we're back open.

See Our Collection

UPCOMING EVENTS

With the suspension and cancellation of in-person programming due to the outbreak of Covid-19, Asia Society is planning to hold virtual programs on the virus as well as other subjects — please follow us on Facebook and Twitter for updates.

Mar. 19: The first of Asia Society Policy Institute's web-only series of programs Coronavirus: Asia in the World will feature a conversation between Kevin Rudd and Tom Nagorski about how the outbreak will affect China's politics, economy, and relations with the United States.
Mar. 19: Dr. Wilson Lam, a specialist in infectious disease and physician of infectious diseases at Gleneagles Hong Kong, provides an update on the coronavirus in a conversation with Asia Society Hong Kong Executive Director S. Alice Mong.
Mar. 26: Dr. Marc Lipsitch, professor of epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, offers a similar update in a conversation with Mong.

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