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2022 ASAH Emerging Scholar Winner Announced

2022 ASAH Emerging Scholar Winner Announced

The Australian Society for Asian Humanities is pleased to announce the winner of the inaugural ASAH Emerging Scholar Award, Soo Choi (University of Sydney). Impressed with the quality of the submissions, the judging panel also awarded an honourable mention to Estelle Rust (Keio University).

Winner: Soo Choi (University of Sydney)

“Found” in Translation: A Relational Approach to Deborah Smith’s Translation of Han Kang’s The Vegetarian 

Soo Choi is a Korean-New Zealander currently residing on the land of the Gadigal people. She completed a BA(Hons) in English in 2019 and is now completing a LLB, both at the University of Sydney. Her research areas of interest are translation, post-colonial literature and food literature.

“As a Korean-New Zealander who speaks English as her primary language, my article’s focus on the interpretations of English translations of Korean literature has huge personal significance. Given that my article centres around the act of creating transboundary relationships through translation, I am honoured to be the inaugural recipient of the ASAH Emerging Scholar Award which celebrates the strength and presence of Asian humanities scholarship within Australia.”

Honourable Mention: Estelle Rust (Keio University)

Contents Tourists and Content Production: The Negotiation of Site Narratives by Tōken Ranbu Fans in Japanese Domestic Tourism

Estelle Rust is a PhD Candidate at Keio University, Japan. After graduating from the University of Sydney with a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and History, I travelled to Japan under the MEXT (Monbukagakusho) Scholarship to undertake the Masters, and subsequently PhD program, at Keio University’s Graduate School of Media and Governance. I focus on anthropological research involving the intersection of grassroots communities and local cultural heritage in both Australia and Japan.

I am extremely honoured to have received the honourable mention for ASAH’s Emerging Scholars Award. While I wrote my paper from the lens of travel, at its core is the dedication of independent researchers and community members in promoting the often overlooked pasts and places they connect with. To have my paper so warmly received has given me new confidence in being able to convey the enthusiasm of my research participants as independent actors contributing to the sustainability of Japan’s cultural places. I am extremely grateful to ASAH for providing these opportunities to early career researchers, and for the support in further refining my research practice!

 

ASAH would like to thank the judging committee for the 2022 ASAH Emerging Scholar Award: Professor Louise Edwards (UNSW), Dr Shin Takahashi (Victoria University of Wellington), and Dr Jon Glade (University of Melbourne). Judges reviewed submissions through a blind review process. 

Find out more information about the next round of the ASAH Emerging Scholar Award here.