Destabilising Empires from the Margin: Report of the 25th North American Taiwan Studies Association Annual Conference, Seattle, 16–18 May 2019

Abstract

The 25th natsa post-conference report documents the initiation, organisation, and proceedings of the event, followed by some general reflections on what we can further investigate in the future. This year, we invited scholars worldwide to come together and rethink and offer critiques on the possibilities and challenges facing Taiwan studies by unpacking the idea of ‘empire’ and ‘marginality’. Given that agenda, we opened up discussions on some key topics around researching Taiwan and East Asia, such as political economy, democratisation, transitional justice, reconciliation, lgbtq, and culture studies. Attempting to reposition Taiwan studies in the broader intellectual terrain, a series of insightful dialogues thus emerged, pointing out alternatives of Taiwan studies in the face of empire(s) and marginality. In all, the natsa has formed one of the most widely known and vivid platforms for intellectual exchanges on Taiwan studies and further conversation shall continue alongside the growth of the scholarly community.