From the Ground Up: East Asian Religions Through Multi-media Sources and Interdisciplinary Perspectives (2016-2023)
Principal Investigator: Dr. Jinhua Chen (Asian Studies)
Scholars attending a related PWIAS international roundtable program directed by Jinhua Chen
This SSHRC-sponsored project brings together 45 scholars from 25 institutions across the world. It will help develop the next generation of religious historians through field visits to religious sites and collections of religious material, in which texts, contexts, artifacts, and practices will be documented and analyzed. International teams will produce training guides and will lead groups of academics and graduate students to historical and current sites of religious practice in Asia. The data gleaned will include photographs, recordings, and 3-D imagery which will then be housed in a digital repository at UBC. This hands-on approach to the study of East Asian religions will help overcome disciplinary boundaries and place UBC at the forefront of scholarly exchange on religious history.
Beyond multiple benefits to academic research, the project will prove vital for educators, policy makers, and business interests who promote deeper and more sustained economic and cultural ties to East Asia within an increasingly Pacific-oriented Canada. Cutting edge, 21st century Asian studies research enhances the reputation Canada has already begun to establish as the premier North American gateway to Asia, not only for Canadians but also for international students from across the globe.
