On the history study trip to Ayutthaya.

Students from all over Southeast Asia come to Thailand for a brainstorm on the future of the region - and find their differences are washed away

Imagination is more important than knowledge. The reason? Because it's the source of thoughts that knowledge alone could never reach. It also allows us to feel the emotions of others, so we don't take their existence for granted.

Imagination played a leading role last month when Chulalongkorn University's Faculty of Arts hosted a five-week symposium titled "Asian Emporiums: Southeast Asia's Past and Present". I joined the students from Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam who took part. The event aimed to give young people knowledge and understanding about others in the region so as to break down the barriers between them and promote feelings of fellowship.

Organised by the Southeast Asian Studies Regional Exchange Programme, lectures by famous scholars focused on the historical centres of culture and trade in Southeast Asia as well as subjects that ranged from arts and literature to politics and economics. Social and political conflicts were tackled through discussions on the meanings of "modern" and "traditional".

Many participants were eager to dig deeper into problem areas - such as the clash between national and local identities, the culturally connective world of mainland and maritime Asia, conflicts between majority and minority populations, and changing attitudes to Western

modernity.

On field trips to Sukhothai and Ayutthaya we found ourselves surprised more by our similarities than our differences.

A final brainstorming session concerned the Asean and recent crises. We concluded that to move towards freedom, equality and security in the region, Asean should pay greater attention to the region's diverse political ideals and colonial history. In these lies a strong regional standpoint that can be presented to the world.

This multidisciplinary course proved to us that Southeast Asia is now building its own foundation, with a deeper awareness of its own unique diversity and of Western influences.