We hope the New Year of the Snake finds you well. Here are the latest news in Taiwan Studies:
1) The 2025 International Journal of Taiwan Studies (IJTS) Research Article Competition has begun! We welcome submission of original research articles relevant to the broadly defined field of Taiwan studies. There are two categories for entry: Art & Humanities; and Social Sciences. The article should be between 6,000 and 12,000 English words in length. The deadline for submission is 30 April 2025. Please see our competition webpage for details: https://eats-taiwan.eu/international-journal-of-taiwan-studies/ijts-research-article-competition-2025/
2) The International Journal of Taiwan Studies 8(1) has been published online: https://brill.com/view/journals/ijts/8/1/ijts.8.issue-1.xml
In this new issue, there are articles on identity, religion, food culture, Taiwan’s health & welfare systems. Plus a brilliant set of book reviews. Several of the research articles are open access.
* Editorial (Ming-yeh Rawnsley)
Research Articles:
* Is Taiwan a Small Island? Relational and Representational Perceptions (Ari-Joonas Pitkänen)
* The Openness of Death: (Re)constructing Indigenous Identity in Post-Martial Law Taiwan (Billy Beswick) (open access: https://brill.com/view/journals/ijts/8/1/article-p34_003.xml)
* Food Culture in Precolonial Taiwan (Christopher Joby) (open access: https://brill.com/view/journals/ijts/8/1/article-p61_004.xml)
* The Ordinary Virtue and Moral Significance of Health Systems: The Case of Taiwan (Ming-Jui Yeh)
* Religions and the Development of Taiwan’s Welfare Regime (Andre Laliberte) (open access: https://brill.com/view/journals/ijts/8/1/article-p118_006.xml)
* Taiwan’s Regional Identity under the New Southbound Policy: Integrating Personal-Role Identity and Domestic-Regional Dimension (Tonny Dian Effendi)
* Taiwanese public opinion on inviting the Dalai Lama to Taiwan: Political or religious motives? (Mei-Lin Pan and Kristina Kironska)
Report:
* Bridging Cultures, Building Relationships: the Fulbright Program’s Legacy in Taiwan (Molly Bettie)
Book Reviews:
* Taiwan during the First Administration of Tsai Ing-wen: Navigating in Stormy Waters and Taiwan in the Era of Tsai Ing-wen: Changes and Challenges (reviewed by Jasper Roctus)
* Time and Migration: How Long-Term Taiwanese Migrants Negotiate Later Life (reviewed by Joan Dew)
* Encounters between Formosa and Japan: The Interaction and Transformation of Literature and Theater during the Japanese Colonial Period (reviewed by Yu-yin Hsu)
* Taiwan and Southeast Asia: Soft Power and Hard Truths Facing China’s Ascendancy (reviewed by Xu Peng)
3) Another episode of Taiwan on Air is out and you can find the link here: https://newbooksnetwork.com/refugees-and-asylum-seekers-in-east-asia
The Life Story of Father Nguyễn, a Vietnamese Refugee Who Migrated to Taiwan, with Lin Shu-fen
A Discussion with Lin Shu-fen
In this podcast, the host, Lara Momesso, introduces a book she co-edited with Dr Polina Ivanova (University of Bremen) titled Refugees and Asylum Seekers in East Asia: Perspective from Japan and Taiwan (Palgrave MacMillan, 2024), and she interviews one of the authors of the book, Dr Shu-fen Lin, at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University. In this chat, Shu-fen Lin explores the life story of a Vietnamese refugee, Father Nguyễn Văn Hùng, who escaped Vietnam via boat in the late 1970s and arrived in Japan, and then went to Australia and, eventually, Taiwan. The story of Father Nguyễn Văn Hùng intersects with the immigration and refugee policies of Japan, Australia and Taiwan, his fight for justice in Taiwan as well as Vietnam, and his future ambitions and goals.
For those who are interested to know more about this conversation, here you can find the link of the book and here the link of the specific chapter. The book is available open access, so feel free to share it with your network!
Best wishes,
EATS Board