What does this moment mean to you? When is it our moment, the Asian Pacific American Community's moment, to act? Inspired by the groundswell of collective empowerment stemming from the 2008 Presidential Campaign, the 2009 National APA Conference on Law and Policy aims to help people answer for themselves these fundamental questions. These are questions, the answers of which are key to increasing political leverage, civic participation, and unity of the APA Community.

We will explore these questions by presenting and debating some of the most pressing social, legal, and public policy issues of our time and pinpointing its affects on the APA Community and the nation at large. In particular, what are the real issues, what are our stakes in these issues, and how can we raise the consciousness of our community and mobilize members to shape solutions the nation and world needs? We live in a period of tremendous uncertainty, facing some great challenges – from Global climate change to costly natural disasters on both sides of the Pacific to the global financial crisis that has slowed growth in most nations around the world and to the nativist and isolationist sentiment within America's heartland that has shifted public opinion against immigration. How will APAs respond?

The goals of this Conference are to raise awareness, to call for action, and for attendees of the Conference to become engaged in addressing the most pressing challenges of our time – whether their role is to learn, to teach, or to act. In each panel, we will end with a question on what Conference attendees can do to create solutions, and in the literature, we will provide contact information for organizations and individuals who are leading the movements to solve these critical issues. We each hold the pieces to build the bigger picture, to create for ourselves a time we can proudly call Our Moment. Our moment is here, and Our moment is now.