HEAS hosts successful online Conference

March 3, 2021
HEAS Committee 2021

Congratulations to the student organizing committee for a very successful HEAS Conference!

The 24th annual Harvard East Asia Society Conference was held online for the very first time, opening up new possibilities and enabling over 100 scholars to take part in the two-day event held February 27-28.

In his opening remarks RSEA Chair Professor James Robson commented on the value of interdisciplinary and interpersonal connections in scholarship. He noted that since 1997 the HEAS conferences have enabled young scholars to engage with renowned scholars across many fields in East Asian studies, forging new ideas and new connections.

In two Keynote Dialogues, professors from Harvard and other universities shared insights on the theme of Mobility and Control Across East Asia, resulting in rich conversations to kick off and wrap up the conference. Over the course of the two days, HEAS members moderated eight panel sessions, in which graduate students from many universities presented their research and received encouraging feedback from faculty discussants.

At the close of the event, RSEA Director of Graduate Studies Professor Alex Zahlten thanked and congratulated the first-year RSEA students who organized the conference, including HEAS Co-Chairs Sophie Lei and Ziyi Lin, and all members of the 2021 HEAS Committee.