Our Story
In the Spring of 2008, students at Yonsei Graduate School of International Studies (GSIS), a leader of international higher education in South Korea, published the first edition of NOVAsia. Initiated by graduate students and under the guidance of the former dean, Professor Lee Chung-min, NOVAsia was born from a desire to translate the work and expertise of GSIS students and professors into a public product.
Our content has covered every continent and spanned from unsettled historical issues to predicting the effects of AI and weapons systems into the future. While NOVAsia covers current crises and developments across the globe, our focus remains close to home in East Asia.
After thirty-one issues, the print magazine went online in order to reach a wider audience and to encourage deeper and more diverse engagement and dialogue.
NOVAsia now aims to be a platform for student voices in the conversation on global affairs.
Meet the Team
Co-Editor-in-Chief & Editor-at-Large
Inna Christine Cabel has been writing and telling stories her whole life. After graduating with a degree in journalism, she now understands how stories can change the world. To further develop her journalistic skills and intuition, she is now pursuing a master’s degree in Global Studies at the Yonsei Graduate School of International Studies. Her interests include women’s rights, music and pop culture. She wishes she could eat the Filipino dish kare-kare every single day.
Co-Editor-in-Chief & Media Director
Erin is a graduate student at Yonsei GSIS currently pursuing her Masters in Global Affairs and Policy. Originally from New York, USA, her time spent studying and working in Hong Kong, China, and South Korea inspired her to pursue international relations as well as cultural exchange and understanding. She has experience working in the realms of media and education and recently interned at UN APCICT/ESCAP, and her background in humanities gives her an appreciation for understanding peoples’ lived experiences. Her areas of interest include international development and cooperation, particularly pertaining to gender and migration policy.
Editor
Michael is a graduate student at Yonsei GSIS specialising in Global Affairs & Policy. Born in Australia, he has studied and worked across the U.S., Africa, and Asia. Michael studied journalism in his undergraduate degree and has accumulated professional experience across media, non-government sector, and academia. His areas of interest include International Security & Foreign Policy as well as East Asia Studies.
Junior Editor
Born in the Netherlands, Bastiaan has been living back and forth between Korea and the Netherlands. He is currently pursuing a MA degree in Korean Studies after finishing his BA in History and Korean Studies at Erasmus University and Leiden University respectively. Truly in-between and culturally fluent, Bastiaan has been working on bridging the gap between East and West by writing and talking about complex social issues in various contexts, such as the Korean Embassy in the Netherlands and the Korean Truth and Reconciliation Commission. His current areas of interest are the intersection of nationalism and citizenship in the Korean context but with a broad interdisciplinary background and a comparative mindset, he hopes to inspire critical thinking about all that feels too comfortable.
Editor Intern
Bunly Ek is currently pursuing a Master in International Cooperation and East Asia at Yonsei University as a 2022 Global Korea Scholarship (GKS) recipient from Cambodia. Currently, he is a Research Fellow at the Cambodian Institute for Cooperation and Peace (CICP) in Cambodia. Prior to arriving in Korea, he served as a personal assistant to the former Executive Director of CICP, who had previously been Cambodia’s Ambassador to Japan. His publication and research focus on East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the US–China relations which can be found in the Korea Times, the Phnom Penh Post, Cambodianess, Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, Stratsea, and CICP.
Media Producer
Born and raised near Montreal Canada, Beckie is a graduate student pursuing Korean Studies at Yonsei GSIS. Passionate about culture and cinema, she participated to various video documentary projects and had the chance to attend workshops in France and the Philippines. After a one-year exchange at Seoul National University in 2018-2019, Beckie came back to Korea under the Global Korea Scholarship in 2021 to continue deepen her knowledge in history, international relations and artistic productions. Adept of a multidisciplinary approach, she intends to use her human sciences and arts background to explore new subjects in a unique way.
Media Intern
Born in China, Xinpei is a graduate student at Yonsei GSIS currently pursuing a master’s degree in global studies. Her interest in independent media has motivated her to become an influencer on Chinese media platforms. After coming to Yonsei, Xinpei is determined to learn more about journalism and international communication, trying to figure out the essence of issues by hearing different voices. Also, she really hopes to become an outstanding hip-hop dancer one day.
Disclaimer: NOVAsia is funded through scholarship grants from the Graduate School of International Studies (GSIS) at Yonsei University. Beyond financial support, GSIS does not have any editorial influence over the content of this website. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, any opinions expressed on this website belong solely to the authors and do not represent the official position of GSIS, Yonsei University, or its affiliated institutions.