VISION
About TARN
TARN is a research network dedicated to examining the profound changes and critical challenges in the complex geopolitical landscape of Asia and the wider world, including conflict, inequity, and the enduring impacts of colonial power relations. Our focus is on understanding these dynamics in the global context and investigating their contemporary significance.
MISSION & BACKGROUND
Mission
The Transit Asia Research Network (TARN) has been established to confront emerging forms of conflict and social inequality in today. The network’s mission is to foster collaboration among local and translocal researchers, students, and artists to spearhead innovative intellectual, pedagogical, artistic, and social interventions; to cultivate new forms of knowledge production; and to advance the development of more equitable, peaceful, and sustainable societies. TARN foregrounds the following four themes:
1) Global Capitalism and Technologies of Governance
2) Migratory Labor, Unequal Citizens, and Critical Legal Studies
3) Environmental Crises and Multi-species Equality
4) Social Engagement and Art Intervention
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Background
The Transit Asia Research Network (TARN) was established in 2023 with a shared agenda focusing on the themes of Conflict, Justice, and Decolonization, aiming to unite scholars, students, and artists in collaborative efforts of transnational research. While TARN’s steering committee and primary activities are based in Asia, our agenda addresses a broad spectrum of conflict and social inequality issues that surpass regional limits and span continents.
Delving into the study of 21st-century transition in Asia, it is essential to contextualize research within a global framework. The network’s goal is to promote cross-regional exchange and foster a more comprehensive understanding of the challenges and dynamics that shape the contemporary world. This approach allows the incorporation of diverse perspectives, disciplines, experiences, and knowledge from different continents, thereby enriching research and fostering global dialogue.
The Transit Asia Research Network (TARN) is part of CHCI Member Networks funded by the Membership Activity Award (2023-2025). Current partnerships stem from the collaborative network established through the Global Humanities Institute, supported by the Consortium of Humanities Centers and Institutes (CHCI) and the Mellon Foundation (2019-2022), under the initiative ‘Migration, Global Logistics, and Unequal Citizens in Contemporary Global Context.’
Previous Activities
TARN Development Timeline
Milestones
Key stages in the development of TARN, from its predecessor initiative to an expanding research network and publishing platform.
Predecessor
Migration, Logistics and Unequal Citizens in Contemporary Global Context
- CHCI–Mellon Global Humanities Institute involving six partner institutes
Launch
- TARN launched at the ACS Institute , with ten founding institutes
- CHCI Membership Activity Fund awarded for 2023–2026
Networking
- 2024 TARN Meeting in Bangkok
- Network expanded to fourteen participating institutions
Deepening
- Critical Concepts Workshop in Singapore
- Chip Era Workshop at ICCS–NYCU in Hsinchu, Taiwan
- Network expanded to nineteen participating institutions
- Decolonization in the 21st Century published
Consolidation
- Critical Concepts volume published
- Transit Asia Dossiers in the Current Conjuncture launched as an online journal
- 2026 TARN Meeting at Kyung Hee University, South Korea
Developing
- Two-volume Chip Era publication
- Completion of the Smart Cities & Submarine Communication Cables online curation
- TARN Meeting with ICS–WSU in Surabaya, Indonesia
OUR OBJECTIVES
COLLABORATION & PARTNERSHIP
- Establish long-term collaborative research clusters, exchange visits, periodically share research results.
- Apply for additional funding to various foundations.
ONLINE PLATFORM & LIVING ARRCHIVE
- Build up a TARN website as an online platform and a living archive to share information effectively and publish podcast series and electronic pamphlets as the output of the events of our collaboration for a speedy exchange of information and research ideas.
EDUCATION
- Develop a pattern of co-teaching courses and co-supervising theses among the TARN partner institutions.
- Encourage students from the TARN partner institutes to carry on cross-local collaborations on online publications.
CROSS-LOCAL EVENTS
- Collaborate on the annual summer schools to encourage young scholars and graduate students to share their research projects and extend their learning environments.
PUBLICATIONS
- Aim at co-edited publication projects in various forms, including book series, journal special issues, and online pamphlets.
NETWORK IN ASIA AND BEYOND
- Foster collaboration among local and trans-local scholars, students, and artists in the complex geopolitical landscape of Asia and the wider world.
- Develop a more comprehensive understanding of the challenges and dynamics that shape the modern world.
TARN Members
