In mid-2023, Cornell University Press launched its open-access Environments of East Asia series, supported by the Henry Luce Foundation, with the publication of Forces of Nature: New Perspectives on Korean Environments. Edited by David Fedman, Eleana J. Kim, and Albert L. Park, this volume brings together ten chapters on various facets of Korean environmental studies, […] The post Forces of Nature: New Perspectives on Korean Environments — An Interview with the Volume Editors appeared first on Association for Asian Studies ..read more

For more than 80 years, the Association for Asian Studies has held an Annual Conference each spring in North America. Open to all individuals holding an interest in Asian Studies, this annual meeting brings over 3,300 Asianists to present and discuss the latest research in the field. Academics, university faculty, graduate students, and more attend […] The post Request for Proposals: AAS-in-Asia 2026 Co-Host appeared first on Association for Asian Studies ..read more

Worldwide, the confluence of aging populations and low birth rates is becoming one of the key social issues that many countries will face within the next few decades. Japan has already arrived at that turning point, with “the largest proportion of seniors in the world and among the lowest levels of fertility,” anthropologist Shawn Bender […] The post Excerpt: Feeling Machines appeared first on Association for Asian Studies ..read more

Below, we are pleased to share an excerpt from the newest Asia Shorts volume, Eco-Disasters in Japanese Cinema. Edited by Rachel DiNitto (University of Oregon), this collection includes 17 essays analyzing environmental themes in Japanese film from the 1950s through 2020. The films discussed range from documentaries about real-life environmental disasters to science fiction blockbusters. […] The post Excerpt: Eco-Disasters in Japanese Cinema appeared first on Association for Asian Studies ..read more

“Decolonization” is an academic, high-level word for a political process that has had consequences in the lives of millions of people. Decolonization in South and Southeast Asia following World War II involved the withdrawal of colonial administrations and the establishment of new nation-states in India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Malaya, and elsewhere. This, however, was not […] The post Boats in a Storm: Interview with Historian Kalyani Ramnath appeared first on Association for Asian Studies ..read more

The AAS Program Committee seeks session chairs for the 2025 Annual Conference. Please consider volunteering as a chair for an Individual Paper Session. Volunteer session opportunities are available for the in-person conference (only) in Columbus. Each year, the Annual Conference Program Committee organizes sessions from the individual paper submissions accepted to the conference program. One […] The post AAS 2025 — Call for Session Chairs appeared first on Association for Asian Studies ..read more

Lawrence Zhang is Associate Professor at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and author of Power for a Price: The Purchase of Official Appointments in Qing China, published by Harvard University Asia Center and recipient of the 2024 AAS Joseph Levenson Prize (pre-1900) honorable mention. To begin with, please tell us what your […] The post #AsiaNow Speaks with Lawrence Zhang appeared first on Association for Asian Studies ..read more

What happens when ordained Buddhist monks and nuns break the law? In her new book, Buddhism in Court: Religion, Law, and Jurisdiction in China (Oxford University Press, 2024), Cuilan Liu (University of Pittsburgh) traces the origins and transformations of a two-millennia-old Buddhist campaign for clerical legal privileges that would exempt ordained monks and nuns from […] The post Excerpt: Buddhism in Court appeared first on Association for Asian Studies ..read more

Ho-fung Hung is Wiesenfeld Professor in Political Economy at the Johns Hopkins University and author of City on the Edge: Hong Kong under Chinese Rule, published by Cambridge University Press and winner of the 2024 AAS Joseph Levenson Prize (Post-1900). To begin with, please tell us what your book is about. The unrest and crackdown […] The post #AsiaNow Speaks with Ho-fung Hung appeared first on Association for Asian Studies ..read more

We are now accepting submissions for the AAS 2025 Film Expo, which will be held in conjunction with the AAS Annual Conference in Columbus, Ohio, March 13-16, 2025. Through a partnership established with the AAS in 2011, the Annual Conference Film Expo is curated and organized by the Center for East Asian and Pacific Studies […] The post Call for Submissions: AAS 2025 Film Expo appeared first on Association for Asian Studies ..read more