Taiwan studies have established themselves as a standalone field of scholarship. In recent decades, new initiatives and study centers on Taiwan have emerged across the United States. At Stanford University, the newly established Taiwan Program at the Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center serves as an interdisciplinary research and education hub on contemporary Taiwan. As the program aims to drive dialogue on Taiwan’s long-term development and future, how can we further facilitate and advance Taiwan scholarship in this new era? How can we collectively build networks and foster scholarly engagement transnationally? What challenges do we face, and what are some possible solutions and prospective directions? In this closing panel of our Taiwan Program's fall 2024 colloquium series, we are pleased to invite three scholars to share their approaches to promoting and conducting Taiwan studies in diverse academic settings, focusing on three main themes:

1. Mapping and Identity Building: Gain insights into the structures of Taiwan study centers in the U.S. and explore how they adapt to local environments, position their institutions, and foster scholarly connections.
2. Networking and Collaboration: Learn about the common challenges and strategies for launching and sustaining Taiwan studies programs.

3. Scholarly and Policy Contributions: Explore strategies for publishing, collaborating, and making Taiwan visible within U.S. academia.

    

The event will begin with the panelists, each delivering a 15-minute presentation on promoting transnational engagement between Taiwan and the United States. This will be followed by a moderated discussion among the panelists, highlighting the similarities and differences encountered by each center and reflections of exploring how they addressed challenges in unique ways. The event will conclude with an open Q&A session for the audience.

Speakers:

Bill Lavely is a social demographer who has written on Chinese fertility, marriage, mortality, sex ratios, and historical demography.  He did graduate work at UC-Berkeley and the University of Michigan, and has done field work in Taiwan, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Hainan.

Wei-hsin Yu is a sociologist and social demographer specializing in the areas of social stratification and gender inequality. Her research focuses on how macrolevel forces influence individuals, paying special attention to their labor market outcomes, family behaviors, and health and wellbeing. She has published two books and numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals, including American Sociological Review, American Journal of Sociology, Social Forces, and Demography. Her current projects address questions including how work conditions and demographic changes contribute to wage disparities; how family dynamics shape youth development; and how immigrants’ health and wellbeing evolve in the United States. She is also conducting multiple projects in East Asia (Japan, Taiwan, China), centering on the themes of marriage and relationship formation and educational inequality, respectively.

Howard Chiang is the author of two award-winning monographs: After Eunuchs: Science, Medicine, and the Transformation of Sex in Modern China (Columbia University Press, 2018) and Transtopia in the Sinophone Pacific (Columbia University Press, 2021). He has edited such collections as The Global Encyclopedia of LGBTQ History (Gale, 2019), The Making of the Human Sciences in China: Historical and Conceptual Foundations (Brill, 2019), Queer Taiwanese Literature: A Reader (Cambria, 2021), and Sinophone Studies Across Disciplines: A Reader (with Shu-mei Shih; Columbia University Press, 2024). He is currently completing two books: Trans Without Borders: Decolonial Histories and Mind Hunters: Psychoanalysis, Race, and the Politics of Transcultural Science in the Sinophone Pacific. He edits the “Critical Perspectives on Taiwan” series with Columbia University Press.

Moderator:

Gi-Wook Shin is William J. Perry Professor of Contemporary Korea in sociology and director of Shorenstein APARC and its Taiwan Program.