The Centre for Chinese Research at SPPGA has continued to be a key hub for Chinese studies at UBC since its foundation in 1992. As part of its commitment to further a deep and nuanced understanding of socio-political and economic affairs in China, CCR organized the China Logics Series in 2023-24. This interdisciplinary series examines the future of global sustainability, economy, and security through the many images and understandings of China—a compelling and sometimes puzzling place. Describing the concepts informing this series the organizers said: “If understanding China constitutes a rational, emotional or symbolic anchor from which one’s ideas, actions and strategies are derived, then there is a need to capitalize on the rich amount of evidence that allows us to examine “China Logics” across time, space and interactions.”
The series was convened by Timothy Cheek (SPPGA;History), Qiang Fu (IAR; Sociology), Juliet Lu (Forest Resources Management; SPPGA), Julia Harten (Community and Regional Planning), and Renren Yang (Asian Studies). It was also co-hosted with Green College, a graduate residential college at UBC which places particular emphasis on providing a rich community environment for academic engagement. Owing to the wide range of collaborators involved in the planning process, the China Logics series was imbued with a uniquely interdisciplinary outlook. The six talks spanned a broad range of intellectual subjects and fields ranging from film studies and philosophy to global policy.
A highlight of China Logics 2023-24 was a thought-provoking lecture titled “Doing Global Urban Comparisons: Making a Case for China” by Professor. Xuefei Ren (Sociology, Michigan State University). The talk presented a compelling case for urban China studies to adopt the comparative method that has found growing resonance in urban studies. Dr. Ren highlighted how most research in the sub-field still confines itself to single-case methods involving only China—in part due to claims of China exceptionalism. Embedding this discussion in the ongoing context of strained relations between the US and China that have made research collaboration more difficult, she argued that comparative research can be a powerful heuristic device to better understand urban conditions in China and elsewhere. This argument was further bolstered by examples from her own comparative projects on urban governance (China and India) and municipal responses to the Covid-19 pandemic (Shanghai, Chicago, Toronto and Johannesburg).
Dr. Haiyan Lee presenting at Green College, Fall 2023
In addition to lectures on urban studies and foreign policy, the scope of this series also extended to the humanities. One session which strikingly showcased the versatility of China Logics was a lecture featuring Professor. Haiyan Lee, (Comparative Literature, Stanford University). Titled “Heaven Has Eyes: Judicial Populism in the Chinese Legal Imagination,” this talk drew on comparative literature, film studies, and philosophy to explore two contradictory Chinese expressions about justice: 相 (mutual shielding among kin) and 大 (placing justice above family loyalty). The lecture unpacked these principles to ask if one should shield one’s kin from the law, or turn them in if justice demands it. This question was then further explored through an in-depth engagement with the 2014 film《黄克功案件》(The Case of Huang Kegong). Tying together this illuminating exploration, Haiyan Lee argued that judicial populism—privileging substantive goals over procedural fairness—is built into the Chinese justice tradition in which high justice always trumps low justice.
Alongside this on-going series, the Centre for Chinese Research also explored new forms of programming this past year and continued robust discussions on recent publications in Chinese studies.
In March 2024, CCR held an Online Forum Series titled “Am I Chinese? Postcolonial Chinese Identity between Cultural Heritage and Liberal Activism”. The forums explored the dynamic shifts in “pan-Chinese” identities against the backdrop of localist activism and the growing demand for “decolonizing Chinese history.” These discussions were led by three ethnic Chinese descendants from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Malaysia, who delved into their personal struggles to reveal how they confront Chinese identity and face the threats posed by China and existing domestically on the societal level. Joining these intimate stories, attendees were able to engage deeply with the ways in which the younger generation of Chinese descendants in the East Asian region revisits the idea of “China”, “Chineseness”, and local student activism.
Poster for one of three sessions of CCR’s interactive online forum
In October 2023, the Centre held a panel talk to examine key themes in Stevan Harrell’s new book “An Ecological History of Modern China”. In addition to an introduction and overview by the author, Michael Hathaway (SFU), Jack Hayes (KPU), Juliet Lu (UBC) and Guldana Salimjan (SFU) discussed some of the many important and timely themes discussed by Harrell. In a general question-answer format with the author and panelists, the audience had the opportunity to dig into modern China’s ecological history, policy frameworks, and the interesting and important ways one of the world’s key political, economic and environmental systems have developed since the early 20th century.
The Centre for Chinese Research continues to support events, talks, and conferences, as well as student training and active collaborative research grants at UBC, with a strong interdisciplinary focus and collaboration with policymakers, businesses, and communities both in Canada and Asia. We are excited to see the new explorations and opportunities CCR brings to our school and UBC at large in the upcoming year.
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