Weatherhead East Asian Institute Columbia University International Affairs Building 9th Floor, MC 3333 420 West 118th Street New York, NY 10027 Tel: 212-854-2592 Fax: 212-749-1497 WEATHERHEAD EAST ASIAN INSTITUTE ANNUAL REPORT 2019–2020 COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY COLUMBIA 2019–2020 REPORT INSTITUTE ANNUAL ASIAN EAST WEATHERHEAD weai.columbia.edu ANNUAL REPORT 2019-2020 Table of Contents 1 Letter from the Director 2 2 Weatherhead East Asian Institute 4 3 Research Community 6 4 Publications 21 5 Research Programs of the Weatherhead East Asian Institute and Affiliated Columbia Centers 28 6 Public Programming 32 7 Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies 40 8 Students 42 9 Asia for Educators Program 45 10 Staff of the Weatherhead East Asian Institute 47 11 Funding Sources 48 12 Columbia University Map: Morningside Campus and Environs 49 1 LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR At the time of writing this letter, the Chinese ephemera items from the C.V. have been conceivable. We therefore Guo to the Institute as a writer-in- world appears to be at a delicate Starr East Asian Library collection. A plan to continue offering webinars even residence. We were also pleased to work turning point. The global series of special events was also held in after in-person events have resumed. alongside postdoctoral research scholars COVID-19 pandemic; collaboration with the Modern Tibetan Recordings from these events are James Gerien-Chen, a historian of modern the proliferation of Studies Program, whose 20th anniversary available on the COVID-19 page on Japan and Japanese imperialism, and misinformation; coincided with WEAI’s 70th. our website. The page features remote Ronan Tse-min Fu, a scholar of East Asian increasingly strained teaching and research resources—with security and China’s politics and foreign relations between the The first months of the spring 2020 term updated and improved remote learning policy. US and East Asia; were exceptionally lively for the Institute. materials, courtesy of Asia for Educators. the protests against Daniel Weiss, CEO and president of the It also features commentary from our It has been a pleasure serving as acting anti-Black racism, Metropolitan Museum of Art, visited experts on the outbreak, which began in director during Professor Eugenia Lean’s police brutality, Columbia to discuss his new book, In Asia and continues to affect the region, leave. When I stepped into this position and racial injustice That Time: Michael O’Donnell and the and which has resulted in discrimination at the end of the fall term, I could not more broadly; and Tragic Era of Vietnam, at a lecture and against Asian communities abroad. I am have imagined the course of events that the development reception hosted as part of the Institute’s also pleased to share that after a yearlong would soon unfold. I thank our faculty of controversial new burgeoning Vietnamese Studies initiative. hiatus, we have relaunched the Institute’s members, for their hard work and technologies have Novelist and filmmaker Xiaolu Guo, alumni newsletter, The Reed. In its new flexibility during these difficult times, forced all of us at the writer-in-residence at WEAI, discussed format, each issue of the newsletter and especially the staff of the Institute, Weatherhead East Asian her work and the “hybrid” voice she uses will center around an important topic who worked tirelessly to adapt and Institute to think critically as an author who writes in both Chinese affecting East, Inner, and Southeast respond to the needs of a changing world. about how we arrived here and and English. Other events included a Asia. I encourage you to read the Spring Finally, I extend my thanks to the WEAI where we are headed next. While we two-part panel discussion on the rise of 2020 issue, which features insight from community for continuing to support us are still processing and working through nationalism and populism, with a focus students, faculty, and alumni on the as we pave new directions in the study of the challenges before us, this moment on the case of Japan; a book talk with COVID-19 pandemic and is available on East Asia. has been an opportunity to reflect on Tibetan-American memoirist Ann Tashi our website. traditions and seek out new approaches Slater; and a discussion with entrepreneur in our study of East, Inner, and Southeast Yan Lan, whose family were diplomats in We also continued to strengthen Sincerely, Asia. I am pleased to share some of the China before the Cultural Revolution. our community in 2019–2020 as we work we have accomplished thus far and welcomed four outstanding scholars to hope you will join us as we continue to The normal spring calendar of events the Institute. Nicola Di Cosmo, a historian test new tools and endeavor to highlight was abruptly cut short with the arrival of China–Inner Asia relations from diverse perspectives and topics. of COVID-19 in New York. In March, prehistory through the modern period, Lien-Hang Nguyen our faculty, researchers, and staff rose joined the Institute as an affiliate faculty Acting Director (Spring 2020) Even before the dramatic turn of events admirably to the challenge of rapidly member, bringing invaluable expertise in early 2020, the 2019–2020 academic adopting new approaches, technology, on the region through the lens of year began at a historic juncture for and tools. We transitioned to online climatology and palaeosciences at a time WEAI. At the start of the fall semester, teaching and learning and continued when such knowledge is so important. we continued an excellent program other academic endeavors through Ramona Bajema joined the Institute as an of events and initiatives marking the remote work and virtual collaboration. associate research scholar. Her research Institute’s 70th anniversary. Notable on a variety of themes related to modern events organized as part of the Recognizing both the need to adapt to Japan, and art and political movements, anniversary series included a panel new realities and our special position as combined with her experience in discussion with Joshua Wong and Brian an institute with a global network, we volunteer and nonprofit work, brings a Leung, two student organizers of the launched a webinar series, “WEAI in a fresh perspective to the Institute. Joining Hong Kong anti-extradition protests; COVID-19 World.” Since launching the the Institute this year as a senior research a colloquium on the legacy of Hồ Chí series, WEAI has hosted four events scholar, Michael C. Davis has quickly Minh held on the 50th anniversary of the focusing on China, Taiwan, and Japan, become an active member of WEAI. With publication of his last will and testament; including a widely watched discussion his established background studying the sixth Urban China Forum; a lecture with Japanese Defense Minister Kono the politics of China and Hong Kong, he by Kanji Yamanouchi, ambassador and Taro, organized jointly with Asia Society. contributed timely and critical insight into consul general of Japan in New York; These webinars have been extremely the escalating pro-democracy protests and a workshop delving into the history successful and open new possibilities for in Hong Kong. Finally, we welcomed of science and technology through collaboration that might not otherwise acclaimed novelist and filmmaker Xiaolu 2 3 2 WEATHERHEAD EAST ASIAN INSTITUTE Since its establishment in 1949 as the East The importance of East Asian studies at Asian Institute, the Institute has been the Columbia is recognized by a wide variety center for modern and contemporary East of funding sources, including the US Asia research, studies, and publication Department of Education, which, since at Columbia, covering China, Japan, 1960, has designated Columbia as an Taiwan, Hong Kong, Korea, Mongolia, East Asia National Resource Center and Tibet, and, increasingly, the countries of provides 3 percent of the Center’s annual Southeast Asia. In 2003, the Institute was funding needs. renamed the Weatherhead East Asian Through its research projects, Institute to honor the generosity of the conferences, and seminars, the Institute Weatherhead Foundation. creates an international forum on The faculty members of the Institute economic, political, and security issues are members of Columbia’s Schools facing East Asia. of Business, Law, International and Public Affairs, Social Work, and Arts and Sciences; and of Barnard College. Annually, the Institute hosts a diverse group of visiting scholars, professionals, Directors of the Weatherhead and students from the United States East Asian Institute and abroad. The mission of the Institute is: Sir George Sansom 1949–1953 Hugh Borton 1953–1958 • To bring together faculty, research C. Martin Wilbur 1958–1964 scholars, and students in an integrated James W. Morley 1964–1967 program of teaching and research on John M. H. Lindbeck 1967–1970 East, Southeast, and Inner Asia; to train James W. Morley 1970–1973 students to understand the countries, Gerald L. Curtis 1973–1975 peoples, and cultures of East and Myron L. Cohen 1975–1976 Southeast Asia in order to enable them Gerald L. Curtis 1976–1984 to function with knowledge of East and James W. Morley 1984–1987 Southeast Asia in academic teaching Gerald L. Curtis 1987–1991 and research, in government service, in Andrew J. Nathan 1991–1992 business, in journalism, and in nonprofit Madeleine Zelin 1992–1993 and nongovernmental organizations. Andrew J. Nathan 1993–1995 • To advance the general understanding Madeleine Zelin 1995–2001 and knowledge of East and Southeast Xiaobo Lü 2001–2003 Asia, both inside and outside the Charles K. Armstrong 2003–2004 University, through meetings, conferences, Xiaobo Lü 2004–2006 publications, and otherwise. Myron L. Cohen 2006–2014 Faculty and scholars at the Institute are Eugenia Lean 2014–2017 distinguished by their interdisciplinary and Madeleine Zelin Fall 2017 multinational focus.