Asian/Pacific/American Institute at NYU

Asian/Pacific/American Institute at NYU
Name	Asian/Pacific/American Institute at NYU
Established	1988
Type	Research institute
Location	New York City, New York, United States
Affiliations	New York University

Asian/Pacific/American Institute at NYU is an academic center based in New York City dedicated to the study of Asian and Pacific American histories, cultures, and communities through interdisciplinary research, teaching, and public programming. The institute connects scholarship on China, Japan, Korea, India, Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Mongolia, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Brunei, Tibet, Southeast Asian Studies, East Asian Studies, South Asian Studies, Diaspora studies and engages with institutions such as Columbia University, Harvard University, University of California, Berkeley, Yale University, Princeton University, University of Pennsylvania, Brown University, Cornell University, Stanford University, University of Chicago, Rutgers University, University of Michigan, UCLA, UC San Diego, UC Irvine, University of Washington, Ohio State University, Indiana University Bloomington, Duke University, University of California, Los Angeles, City University of New York.

History

The institute was founded in 1988 amid broader developments in ethnic studies that included efforts at San Francisco State University, University of California, Berkeley and advocacy connected to organizations like the Asian American Political Alliance and events such as the Third World Liberation Front strikes. Early collaborations involved scholars from Columbia University, Princeton University, Harvard University, Yale University, University of Pennsylvania, Cornell University, SUNY Stony Brook, CUNY Graduate Center, Rutgers University, UC Berkeley and community groups in Chinatown, Manhattan, Flushing, Queens, Jackson Heights, Queens, Edison, New Jersey, Evanston, Illinois and San Francisco, California. Over decades the institute hosted visiting fellows from institutions such as SOAS University of London, National University of Singapore, University of Tokyo, Seoul National University, Peking University, Tsinghua University, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Australian National University and coordinated conferences addressing topics linked to events like the Vietnam War, Partition of India, Chinese Exclusion Act, Japanese American internment, Korean War, Philippine-American War and movements such as the Civil Rights Movement and Labor Movement.

Mission and Programs

The institute's mission emphasizes interdisciplinary inquiry spanning History of East Asia, History of South Asia, Southeast Asian history, Asian American history, Pacific history, Transnational studies, Migration studies, Gender studies, Queer studies, Performance studies and Media studies. Core programs include undergraduate minors and graduate certificates linked to departments and programs at New York University, collaborations with the NYU Tisch School of the Arts, NYU Gallatin School of Individualized Study, NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, NYU School of Law, NYU Global Programs, and partnerships with cultural institutions such as the Museum of Chinese in America, Asian Art Museum, Museum of Modern Art, Whitney Museum of American Art, Queens Museum, Brooklyn Museum, Asia Society, Japan Society, Chinese Historical Society of America.

Academic and Research Initiatives

Research initiatives have addressed topics including transnational migration, diasporic literature, visual culture, religious practice, labor history, and public policy. Projects have involved archives and collections like the Nichols House Museum, Tamiment Library, Library of Congress, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, New-York Historical Society, National Archives and Records Administration, Smithsonian Institution, and collaborative grants with funders such as the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Ford Foundation, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Endowment for the Arts, Social Science Research Council, Japan Foundation, Korea Foundation, Asia Foundation, Fulbright Program, MacArthur Foundation. Faculty-led centers and labs have convened scholars studying figures and works including Maxine Hong Kingston, Frank Chin, Edmond Yun, Ralph Ellison, Amy Tan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Ocean Vuong, Pico Iyer, Liu Cixin, Haruki Murakami, Kazuo Ishiguro, Leila Aboulela, Arundhati Roy, Salman Rushdie and historical actors like Sun Yat-sen, Mahatma Gandhi, Mao Zedong, Ho Chi Minh, Aung San Suu Kyi, Sukarno, Benigno Aquino Jr..

Public Events and Community Engagement

The institute organizes lectures, film screenings, festivals, workshops, and symposia featuring collaborators from Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Asia Society, Japan Foundation, Korean Cultural Center New York, Taipei Cultural Center, Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Consulate General of India in New York, Consulate General of the Philippines in New York, Consulate General of Japan in New York, Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in New York, and community partners in neighborhoods such as Chinatown, Manhattan, Flushing, Queens, Sunset Park, Brooklyn, Elmhurst, Queens and Westchester County. Past public programs have intersected with commemorations of events like Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, observances connected to Lunar New Year, retrospectives on films by Ang Lee, Bong Joon-ho, Hayao Miyazaki, Akira Kurosawa, Satyajit Ray, and panels on legal and civic milestones including debates around the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, the Chinese Exclusion Act, and advocacy linked to organizations such as Asian Americans Advancing Justice and National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum.

Publications and Media

The institute supports scholarly publishing, edited volumes, and multimedia projects in collaboration with presses and outlets like Columbia University Press, Duke University Press, Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Routledge, Fordham University Press, Journal of Asian Studies, Positions: Asia Critique, Amerasia Journal, Diaspora: A Journal of Transnational Studies, Modern Asian Studies, Public Culture, Film Quarterly, Critical Ethnic Studies Journal, The New York Times, The Guardian, The Nation, The New Yorker, NPR, BBC, Al Jazeera, and independent documentary producers profiling subjects such as Asian American playwrights, Asian diasporic artists, Pacific Islander leaders, and archival projects on events like 1965 Immigration Act and Japanese American redress.

Governance and Funding

Governance includes faculty directors, advisory boards composed of scholars and community leaders from institutions like New York University, Columbia University, CUNY Graduate Center, Princeton University, Rutgers University, and representatives from cultural organizations such as Asia Society, Japan Society, Korean Cultural Center, Taipei Cultural Center and philanthropic partners including the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Ford Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, MacArthur Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and municipal grantmakers in New York City and state agencies in New York (state). Funding sources combine university allocations, competitive grants from National Endowment for the Humanities, private foundation awards, and donations from alumni and civic donors associated with networks in Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, New Jersey, Connecticut and national diasporic organizations.

Notable Faculty, Fellows, and Alumni

Affiliates have included prominent scholars, artists, and public intellectuals drawn from universities and cultural institutions such as Harvard University, Yale University, Columbia University, Stanford University, Princeton University, University of California, Berkeley, UCLA, University of Michigan, Rutgers University, University of Washington, SOAS University of London, National University of Singapore, and creative figures linked to Tisch School of the Arts and media such as Ang Lee, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Jhumpa Lahiri, Maxine Hong Kingston, Edwidge Danticat, Frank Chin, Philip Kan Gotanda, Ravinder Rena, David Henry Hwang, Tan Dun, Yo-Yo Ma, Margaret Cho, John Cho, Constance Wu, Awkwafina, Sandra Oh, Maya Lin, Isabel Allende and policy figures connected to U.S. Department of State, United Nations, Asian Development Bank, World Bank who have participated as fellows, lecturers, or alumni of the institute's programs.

Category:New York University