Taiwan Studies in Europe has seen strong growth over the past fifteen years and one of the pioneers of that growth has been the ERCCT at Tübingen. It was an honor to interview Stefan Braig and discover some of the key drivers behind that growth as well as what makes this particular hub of Taiwan Studies unique.
1. Can you explain to us the history of ERCCT? Whose idea was it and why was there a sense that it was necessary?
The ERCCT was founded in 2008, an idea that emerged from joint discussions between the Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation and Prof. Schubert. The core idea was to provide a shared platform for researchers interested in Taiwan, because in Germany at least, such scholars were often relatively isolated in their interest within Sinology departments. Since the inception of the ERCCT, it has become something of a hub for scholars across Germany and other parts of Europe to connect and collaborate when researching and disseminating research on Taiwan.
2. The name includes the words “Contemporary Taiwan.” Why was the decision made to focus on researching contemporary Taiwan in particular?
The ERCCT’s focus on contemporary social science research on Taiwan was partly to fill a gap in that regard, because there had already been the Taiwan Research Unit at the University of Bochum, which focused more on literature and history. Also, the contemporary social science focus conformed to what Prof. Gunter Schubert himself was doing, so this profile came about quite naturally. The contemporary social science angle also allows for interdisciplinarity while maintaining a certain degree of disciplinary coherence, a balance that helps ensure fruitful dialogue among researchers by preventing an overly wide divergence in approaches. Nevertheless, we have on occasion hosted scholars who presented on historical topics, and we found each of those contributions to be a very enriching experience.
3. People to people exchanges and particularly the “Taiwan Colloquium” seem to be an important part of what ERCCT does. Do you have any stories or examples of ways in which you’ve seen these exchanges leading to some particularly groundbreaking research and/or long-term European-Taiwan partnerships?
I think the ERCCT’s participation in the Taiwan As a Pioneer (TAP) research group is a great example. TAP is an interdisciplinary and supra-regional postdoctoral joint project involving Tübingen, Trier, and Bochum, funded by the German Research Foundation. It aims to promote the structural strengthening and networking of Taiwan research within Sinology, and it emerged when Dr. Beatrice Zani was at the ERCCT as a “Teach at Tübingen” fellow.
Another example is Prof. Lee Po-Han’s stay at the ERCCT as a Visiting Scholar, which was instrumental in the founding of the Intimacy–Mobility–State Nexus project. Funding for this project was successfully secured by Junior Professor Dr. Tseng Yu-chin through the Excellence Strategy of the German Federal and State Governments. The project examines the intricate dynamics of the intimacy–mobility–state nexus in East Asia—a set of issues that has thus far received insufficient academic and public attention.
4. What is the total number of students/scholars who have visited as part of the ERCCT’s long or short-term programs?
Over the years, we have welcomed many wonderful and very interesting people to Tübingen, some of whom have become good friends. In our core programs alone—excluding workshop participants, delegation visits, and occasional visits from Associate Fellows—we have hosted 163 academics: 16 Resident Fellows, 79 in the Visiting Scholar Program, 51 Visiting Fellows, and 17 fellows in the Short-Term Resident Fellow Program.
5. Besides the Center holding events all throughout the year, your annual Taiwan Documentary Festival also seems to be quite unique. Can you explain where the inspiration for this idea came from, and how many years you have run it? What kind of attendance do you get?
The idea of organizing a documentary film festival originally came from Prof. Schubert, and the tradition of this festival is actually a bit older than the ERCCT itself. The first two editions were held as the Greater China Film Festival. Including those, the festival has now been running for 19 years.
6. Do you feel it is important for Taiwan Studies centers and programs to interact with the wider community outside of the University? Was that part of the reason for holding the documentary festival, to interact more with the local community in Tubingen?
Insofar as it is important—and indeed necessary—for academia in general to communicate its work to the broader public, Taiwan studies centers and programs should certainly do the same. In fact, the ERCCT’s Taiwan Documentary Film Festival is one step in this direction. It is also about introducing Taiwan to audiences beyond the university as an engaging place whose diverse society offers many fascinating perspectives beyond the major political headlines, and one that is well worth exploring. At the same time, our documentary film festival is aimed at our younger students, with the goal of sparking or deepening their interest in engaging more fully with Taiwan in their studies.
7. As one of the leading European institutions on Taiwan, are there some unique angles that your own German scholars may bring to Taiwan Studies, different perhaps from those in the UK, US, or Asia?
It is theoretically possible that, from a German perspective, there might be a stronger interest in questions of transitional justice or a greater willingness to employ Marxist-critical approaches (compared to the United States). However, I believe that researchers’ specific perspectives and approaches stem more from individual inclinations and experiences than from their national background. Not least because many scholars have already followed transnational academic trajectories before they come to the ERCCT.
8. Looking ahead, does ERCCT have any special plans for future development? Do you have any advice for other scholars around the world who may be hoping to start their own Taiwan Studies center or program?
Yes, absolutely. We are currently in the process of recruiting a new Junior Professor for Modern Taiwan Studies who will conduct research at the ERCCT as well as at the Department of Chinese Studies. We also intend to further institutionalize Taiwan-related teaching within the Department of Sinology in Tübingen.
The most important advice is perhaps to ensure that you have the support of your university’s leadership when founding such an initiative.