NATSA Undergraduate Paper Competition (2025)
The North American Taiwan Studies Association (NATSA) has concluded its 2025 Undergraduate Research Paper Competition. The winner will receive a $250 cash award and be invited to present at NATSA’s 30th annual conference (June 30 - July 2, 2025) at Stanford University, with a reimbursement cap for travel and lodging expenses.
The annual competition is open to students in both humanities and social sciences. The papers were based on substantial and original research about Taiwan. We welcomed submissions that situate Taiwan in global contexts, comparative perspectives, and cross-disciplinary frameworks. Review criteria included the paper’s originality, the clarity of writing, and its contributions to our understanding of Taiwan.
2025 Awardees
Co-Winner:
Sophia Chang (Princeton University)
“Taiwanese American Foreign Policy Attitudes and Voting Considerations in the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election”
Acceptance Remarks: "The Israel-Palestine Conflict was a divisive and potentially decisive foreign policy issue in the 2024 U.S. Election, with the Arab American population in Dearborn, Michigan banding together to vote against Kamala Harris. For this reason, it is crucial to understand the policy attitudes of other minority groups, which may have similarly outsized effects on future U.S. elections and politics. One such group is Taiwanese Americans. As a third-generation Taiwanese American, I was curious to understand Taiwanese Americans' stance on cross-Strait geopolitics and voting patterns in the 2024 U.S. Election. With the help of my adviser Professor Rory Truex, I also capture how—for many—the value of democracy is inherent to Taiwanese American identity."
Co-Winner:
Camille Luong (Stanford University)
“City of Yearning: Space, Time, and Movement in Vive L’Amour’s Turn of the 21st Century Taipei”
Acceptance Remarks: "I first came to Taipei in summer 2022 to study Chinese and cities, and ended up falling in love with the metropolis when its colorful MRT lines, luscious forest parks, and charming alleyway cafes held me through the humidity and heat of the Taiwanese summer. Coming back to America, I couldn’t forget about Taipei — to yearn for the city, I consumed songs and movies about it, read academic literature on Taiwan, and embarked a year and a half long research project on Taipei’s urban history and story. This paper on Vive L’Amour (1992) (dir. Tsai Ming-liang) is an excerpt from my honors thesis on 1990s and 2000s Taipei films, and encompasses a small snippet of the art and history which shape this beautiful city. I want to thank my major advisor, Michael Kahan, who supported me through the beginning stages of this project; my thesis advisors, Ato Quayson and Ban Wang, who shaped my intellectual journey and always push me to ask deeper questions about the places around me; the Stanford University VPUE Major Grant, for funding my summer 2024 research trip back to Taipei; and of course, Taipei itself, one of the greatest cities in the world!"
Honorable Mention:
Andrew Chang (University of California, Berkeley)
“Food as Soft Power: Taiwanese Gastrodiplomacy on Social Media and Algorithmic Suppression”
Acceptance Remarks: “Having lived abroad in various countries, I’ve found that the one thing that instantly brings me back to Taiwan—and often serves as my new friends’ first introduction to it—is its iconic food. As a student of Political Science, I often wonder how others perceive Taiwanese cuisine and what role it plays in advancing Taiwan’s soft power. In a globalizing world where cultures intersect and spread, I wanted to explore more deeply how something so personal—what I use to remind me of home—can also shape global perceptions.”
