From May 21 – 23, Academia Sinica and National Taiwan Normal University held the Fifth World Congress of Taiwan Studies. The conference was by far the largest Taiwan Studies-focused event ever, consisting of 155 panels and over 400 paper presentations, plus book launches and significant keynote speeches. With well over 750 participants from 30 countries, the World Congress succeeded in bringing together many of the most eminent scholars researching Taiwan across all academic fields.
The opportunity for in-depth dialogue between scholars from across the globe not only strengthened the networks that already exist in the Taiwan Studies field, but also provided fertile soil for the seeds of new research. The sheer diversity of disciplines that were all part of the conversation at the conference clearly demonstrated the cross-disciplinary nature of Taiwan Studies and it is expected that dozens of new papers and book titles will spring from this flagship conference over the coming years.
Some highlights for us at NTNU included “Taiwan Studies: A Dynamic Field in a Changing World,” a series of plenary speeches from noted member scholars Professor Dafydd Fell of SOAS and Professor Scott Simon of the University of Ottawa, moderated by Professor Ian Rowen of Kyushu University. Professor Scott Simon discussed Indigenous studies, ontology, and the future of the human-nature relationship; Professor Dafydd Fell shared wisdom from his more than two decades at the world leading SOAS Centre of Taiwan Studies.
Particularly noteworthy was the roundtable discussion “The Global Development of Taiwan Studies: Future Prospects and Challenges,” where Distinguished Prof. Lin Ming-jen of NTU, Director General Huang Chun-ju of the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences at the National Science and Technology Council, Director General Lee Yu-jiuan of the Ministry of Education’s Department of International and Cross-strait Education, Prof. Lim Dae-geun of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, and Prof. Liu Chanyueh of INALCO engaged in a discussion of the current status of the field, the difficulties and success stories of Taiwan Studies centers around the world, strategies for future development, and more. This rarely-seen direct exchange and discussion between national government officials and academic experts drew an enthusiastic response from attendees.
On the state of the field, Michael Hsiao shared his view that there are a number of pillars of Taiwan Studies. These include the Taiwan Studies centers and programs that have sprung up at universities across the world, becoming hubs of research on Taiwan. At the next level, there are the regional organizations that link these centers together; for instance, EATS in Europe, NATSA in North America, JATS in Japan, and AATS in Australasia. The International Journal of Taiwan Studies works as a regular platform for the dissemination of research from around the world and the World Congress acts as a gathering point that can bring all of the above together.
As an extra pillar, an extremely ambitious project was showcased at the World Congress: The Encyclopedia of Taiwan Studies. Fifteen editors from across the field have each been given responsibility for a section of the encyclopedia, meaning that this will be the most comprehensive record of landmark works from this field, and a boon for new students entering the field. Currently, ten of the fifteen topic areas are now complete and available online, with the final five to follow towards the end of 2025. As the field of Taiwan Studies continues on its path to full maturity, this conference showed its value as a source of inspiration and integration, two key ingredients which will keep the field moving forward for many years to come.
