How can the U.S. help tackle critical environmental issues in Southeast Asia?
When discussing U.S.-Southeast Asia relations, cooperation on environmental issues could be an area to further strengthen relations. Courtney Weatherby discusses key environmental issues in the region. Later, she discusses ways the United States can play a role. The Center recorded this video at the Regional Policy dialogue program called A New Era of U.S.-Southeast Asia Relations, which took place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in March 2023. During the dialogue program, U.S.-Indonesia relations were a key focus.
Courtney Weatherby serves as a deputy director of the Stimson Center’s Southeast Asia Program and a research analyst with the Energy, Water, & Sustainability Program. Her research focuses on sustainable infrastructure and energy development challenges in Southeast Asia and the Indo-Pacific, particularly at the nexus of issues in food, water, and energy in the Greater Mekong Subregion. She was lead author on a range of technical and policy studies related to energy and resources in Southeast Asia, and supports development and management of online data platforms such as the Mekong Dam Monitor and Mekong Infrastructure Tracker to support informed policymaking and analysis on regional trends.
In 2019, she served as a US-Japan-Southeast Asia fellow at the East-West Center. Her research focused on US-Japan collaboration on energy infrastructure in Southeast Asia. Before joining Stimson in 2014, Weatherby worked with the U.S. State Department, Center for Strategic International Studies, and Human Rights Watch. She holds a MA in Asian studies from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University and a BA in East Asian studies with honors from Dickinson College.
