YCAR’s China Insights Fund (CIF) is driving new approaches to China studies at York University. Since its launch in 2019, CIF has funded a wide range of projects, from research on AI governance and creative forms of dissent to Toronto’s Chinatown and the effects of geopolitical tensions on Chinese professors in Canada.
The CF is generously supported by the Asian Business and Management Program (ABMP).
In spring 2024, the CIF was relaunched with updated eligibility criteria and expanded opportunities, resulting in a fourfold increase in applications, according to Elena Caprioni, CIF Committee Chair and ABMP’s Program Director. Earlier this year, the committee awarded over $20,000 to two outstanding projects that embody CIF’s mission to reimagine China studies and strengthen global academic connections.
One of these projects, Vernacular Healing and World-Making in China, 19th to 21st Centuries, is led by Joan Judge, a professor in York’s Department of History. This groundbreaking initiative investigates an often-overlooked realm of Chinese medicine: vernacular medicine. Through an innovative approach blending historical research and digital humanities, the project uncovers untapped knowledge essential to understanding Chinese history. Supported by CIF, Judge has been able to travel to critical archival sites in mainland China, Taiwan and Germany—home to the Berlin State Library’s extensive holdings. Collaborating with leading scholars from institutions like the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, Academia Sinica and Hunan University, this project is reshaping conversations in Chinese medicine studies by developing databases that illuminate the links between vernacular, elite and folk medical practices. YAR Graduate Associate Yunshi Liang (History) is the project’s Research Assistant.
The second project, led by YCAR Research Associate Julia G. Bentley, is titled Engaging Young Canada in the Sinosphere. This initiative focuses on reimagining China studies by training future scholars and fostering knowledge-sharing and collaboration among Canadian academics in the field. It aims to establish a framework for academic exchanges and partnerships between institutions in Canada and Taiwan, while also compiling an inventory of resources to support the next generation of Canadians interested in the Sinosphere. CIF funding complements the support provided by the Taiwan Fellowship, enabling three months of fieldwork at National Taiwan University. YCAR Graduate Associate Su Huai (Science and Technology Studies ) is a project Research Assistant.
“These projects are not just advancing China studies but are also building global academic partnerships,” said Caprioni. “They exemplify CIF’s commitment to fostering meaningful research projects on reimagining China studies.”
The outcomes of these initiatives will be presented in Fall 2025.
The next round of applications opens on 24 February 2025, with proposals due by 12 May 2025. YCAR invites York University members to take advantage of the opportunities offered by CIF. For more details, visit the CIF website or contact ycar[at]yorku.ca.