APF Canada’s Indo-Pacific Visiting Scholars program supports eminent thought leaders from Asia to travel to Canada to share their insights and expertise on the Indo-Pacific region’s security, technological, and economic challenges and opportunities.
This program, supported by the Government of Canada, injects authoritative Asian perspectives directly into Canada’s public discourse and policy process while simultaneously exposing influential regional voices from the Indo-Pacific to Canadian priorities and capabilities. By inviting three high-profile analysts to Canada each year for a curated, multi-city tour, the program serves a dual purpose:
1. Informing Canadians – policy-makers, business leaders, think-tank experts, media, and the wider public – about emerging strategic, economic, and technological trends in Asia; and
2. Equipping the scholars to weave Canadian insights into their ongoing work once they return home, thereby amplifying Canada’s visibility in regional debates over the long term.
Scholars participate in a mix of public and private events, fostering the direct exchange of ideas on the forces shaping the Indo-Pacific and their implications for Canada’s engagement in the region. This program aims to build enduring relationships, enhance policy-relevant knowledge, and strengthen Canada’s ties with leading voices across the Indo-Pacific.
Current Indo-Pacific Visiting Scholars
Inaugural Indo-Pacific Visiting Scholar Dr. C. Raja Mohan is one of India’s foremost strategic thinkers. His week-long tour of Canada in March 2025 covered Montréal, Toronto, Waterloo, and Ottawa, and featured seven engagements tailored to federal officials, provincial agencies, industry executives, academics, students, and the general public.
The inaugural tour provided value to Canadian stakeholders seeking guidance on Canada-India relations, while giving Dr. Mohan first-hand exposure to Canadian perspectives that now inform his writing and advisory work in India.
Program highlights included:
- Event with CERIUM, Université de Montréal: Canada and India in a Shifting Global Order
- Event with Investissement Québec: India's Economic Future: Navigating Geopolitical Risks and Investment Opportunities
- Event with McGill University: The Indo-Pacific: Canadian and Indian Perspectives
- Luncheon Roundtable with business community in Toronto
- Roundtable with Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) & Balsillie School of International Affairs (BSIA): Canada’s AI and Emerging Tech Strategy
- Luncheon Roundtable at Bluesky Strategy Group Inc: India’s rising influence as a geopolitical and economic power
- Meeting with Global Affairs Canada
- Media interview with La Presse
- An APF Canada Asia Pacific Conversations podcast episode with Dr. Mohan
For information on this program email info@asiapacific.ca.
