| Just prior to the CSAA Conference in Bendigo this year a lively and entertaining gathering took place in Melbourne with some of Australia's brightest and promising young Chinese studies postgraduate students. The students were in good company with many of Australia's leading Sinologists also present, including, Professor Geremie Barme, Dr Antonia Finnane, Dr Gloria Davies, Professor David Holm and Dr Luigi Tomba. All of these people were gathered at the inaugural pre-CSAA Chinese Studies Postgraduate Forum that was held over two days in late June at the University of Melbourne. As a promising sign for the future of Chinese Studies in Australia nearly 60 people attended the forum from all around Melbourne and interstate, as well as several international participants. The forum was enriched by the participation of many Sinophiles from Australia and abroad. These included Dr Luigi Tomba of the ANU, who hosted the final discussion of the forum; Professor Ellen Widmer of Wesleyan University (USA); and Fr Yves Camus S.J. of the Macau Ricci Institute. The forum revolved around four research themes: 'Expressions of Trans-cultural Borders'; 'Language, Text, and Ontology'; 'Interpreting Space and Place'; and, 'Orthodoxy'. Each panel included three postgraduate presentations followed by feedback from an academic discussant, some questions and discussions. The forum attempted to bridge some of the difficulties of approaching Chinese Studies from numerous disciplinary backgrounds and across cultural and linguistic borders. Therefore, the forum emphasised inter-connections, boundaries and junctions within Chinese Studies; reflecting the zones where disciplines, topics and languages overlap or appear fractured. The forum successfully encouraged vibrant academic and social interaction amongst postgraduate researchers working in the area of Chinese Studies. Moreover, the involvement of several leading academics offered the postgraduates important support and inspiration through direct feedback and the communication of research theories. There were two key prompts for organising the conference. The initial idea arose from previous CSAA conferences where despite the best efforts of the organisers to encourage postgraduate inclusion, still witnessed a large number of students on the periphery and outside of the familiar academic circles. The second trigger was an attempt to follow up on the contacts and ideas initiated by the excellent annual Chinese Studies Graduate Summer School at the Australian National University. It is hoped that the success of the inaugural Chinese Studies Research Forum in Melbourne will encourage CSAA and the host of the 2007 CSAA Conference, Griffith University, to continue organising such an event. The forum not only provided a valuable contribution to promoting the next generation of Chinese Studies researchers in Australia, but also reinvigorated the presence of an intellectual community for many postgraduates. The forum was initiated and organised by Melbourne University's Chinese Studies Research Group (CSRG). The CSRG is run by a group of postgraduates from around the university with the support of the East Asian Library. The key to the success of this event rested upon the time, energy, organisation, inspiration and creativity of several members of the CSRG and especially Melbourne University's East Asian librarian, Bick-har Yeung. However, the forum would not have been possible without the financial support of the University of Melbourne's: International Office; Art's Faculty; and, the Melbourne Institute for Asian Languages and Society (MIALS). CSAA provided support for the initiation of the forum as well as ongoing publicity. Thank you all so very much! For more details about the CSRG please visit our web site: http://www.lib.unimelb.edu.au/collections/asian/CSRG/CSRG.html |