Forthcoming Events
The Center will also provide information related to Taiwan studies and events hosted by Taiwanese communities.
Documentary Premiere Screening
Time | 5:30 p.m., February 23, 2026
Venue | Gardner Room, School of Global Policy and Strategy, UC San Diego
Synopsis
Tiffany Liu is a Master of International Affairs student at the School of Global Policy and Strategy, studying the intersection of international politics and economics. Her recent documentary, Island of Change, weaves archival materials with in‑depth interviews to highlight Taiwan’s long struggle for freedom and equality. Through intimate storytelling grounded in research, Tiffany focuses on amplifying marginalized voices and preserving the histories of communities fighting for justice.
Film Screenings and Lectures
Venue: Taiwanese American Community Center, 7838 Wilkerson Court, San Diego
Admission: free
Presented by Center for Taiwan Studies, Taiwan Academy of Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Los Angeles and the Ministry of Culture of Taiwan, and Taiwanese American Community Center
WWII Representation in Film: From Island to Island
Synopsis
During World War II, Taiwan was part of the Japanese Empire. This documentary explores the experiences of Taiwanese soldiers, doctors, and overseas residents in Southeast Asia during that time. Using cross-generational memory dialogues, family letters, diaries, and videos, the film addresses the complexities of Taiwan's historical memory and diverse identities during that period.
Public screening
Part 1 2:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m., February 11, Wednesday
Part 2 2:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m., February 18, Wednesday
Director talk and Q&A
4:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m., February 18, Wednesday
Director
Lau, Kek-Huat Malaysia-born filmmaker based in Taiwan. His debut film Boluomi competed at the Busan International Film Festival, New Currents section and Golden Horse Best New Director nominated. The project won him the Tokyo Talent Award 2015, Best Script Award in 2013 Taiwan, and was selected for La Fabrique. Cinema du monde. His documentaries won Best Documentary in Golden Horse, Taipei Film Festival, and TIDF. His short film Nia’s Door won the Best Short Film Award, and Sonje Award at the Busan International Film Festival, selected for the 38th Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival.
Lecture by Dr. Ming-Yi Wu
Time: 1 p.m. - 3 p.m., March 12, Thursday
Topic
The Clouds Are Two Thousand Meters Up Translating Eco-Literature into Virtual Reality
Speaker
Dr. Ming-Yi Wu is a professor of Sinophone literature at National Dong Hwa University and an environmental activist. His works have garnered numerous international accolades and have been translated into over 20 languages. His novel The Man with the Compound Eyes won the Prix du livre insulaire for best fiction in French and was featured in the Berlin International Film Festival’s “Books at Berlinale”. The Magician on the Skywalk was shortlisted for the Prix Emile Guimet de Littérature Asiatique, and The Stolen Bicycle was longlisted for the Man Booker International Prize in 2018. Wu’s literature bridges environmental advocacy with deep historical reflection, offering a distinctive and powerful voice in global contemporary fiction.
A message from Professor Ping-Hui Liao
吳明益之地球智慧探尋歷程—廖炳惠
Founding Director and Supervisor at Center for Taiwan Studies; Professor of Department of Literature
吳明益這個名字，對許多聖地牙哥的鄉親來說，應已不再陌生。身爲臺灣最出色的一位生態、科幻作家， 他於去年（2025）四月底 曾到中心演講，在六月份的鄉訊，許瑞蘭女士即做了精闢、詳實的分享報導，析出其作品（如《單車失竊記》）裏有關生平、家國、世界的史觀， 從中華商場到太平洋戰爭、東華大學、英法書獎、全球譯註等文本內外的互動情景， 尤其圍繞在科技與想像、事實與虛構之間的商榷與平衡的議題上，格外深入討論。
不僅許女士注意到吳明益的作品，連舉世聞名的科幻小說家Ursula K. Le Guin也對吳氏的另一部傑作《複眼人》情有獨鍾， 她以難能可貴的書評去推崇有加：“We haven’t read anything like this novel. Ever. South America gave us magical realism—what is Taiwan giving us? A new way of telling our new reality, beautiful, entertaining, frightening, preposterous, true. . . . Wu Ming-Yi treats human vulnerability and the world’s vulnerability with fearless tenderness.”
三月十二日下午，大家又有機會再度體驗吳明益教授大無畏的柔情細語，聽他訴說臺灣及全球的脆弱生態，乃至其解救之道。而且，共襄此一盛舉，我們要辦新書發表會，吳明益將送幾本他的新著《三腳獸》，而UCSD的臺灣研究中心也會抽獎贈書，給有緣者一冊 Wu Ming-Yi Companion（吳明益著作導讀）。
《導讀》是Cambria出版社2026年初推出，由白睿文 (Michael Berry, UCLA) 、邱貴芬（中興大學）聯合主編，並得川流基金會贊助，其中有十六位教授及譯者分別針對不同的作品去提出獨特的見解，相當充實、易讀。貴芬的導言介紹了每篇文章的大要，而且給吳的著作新的定位，很是可觀。英、法文的譯者也提出文化翻譯的經驗省查，值得細心體會。書末有兩位編輯與作者的訪談及書房圖錄，很能進一步幫助讀者瞭解作家的構思與出版過程。
收入此一集子，我自己的文章主要是提出「地球智慧」(planetary intelligence) 的觀點，呼籲大家去認知、整理動物、植物、機械、人工的經驗、資訊， 以因應全球的氣候變遷及其衍生問題。 我拿吳的作品《苦雨之地》（2019）與西方的環保論述James Bridle的Ways of Being (2022)相互參照，認定兩位生態作家均超越人本主義，而是以動、植物爲師，並透過原住民與新進的機械、人工智慧，做多元匯通， 希望得以維繫地球的生機， 避免暖化、乾旱、海水上升、氣候變遷等大災害。
《苦雨之地》是短篇故事集，大致受了美國生態作家 Mary Austin（尤其The Land of Little Rain，1903）的啟發，但並不針對美西或臺灣東岸的沙漠地理、生物，反而是以病毒、殘缺、絕種、複製、再生等議題， 去展示人與動、植、機器的互應學習， 一位遭棄養的原住民女孩在德國長大，精心觀查蚯蚓對環境的調適過程，終於成了氣候生態專家，另一個失聰的男生則因禍得福，居然聽懂鳥語，而一向平順的工程師卻突然被電腦病毒入侵，整個世界崩解，但雲豹、藍鯨、原始雨林的繁衍或重逢，卻又顯現了柳暗花明的異常生機。
我以動、植物、原住民、人工學習所發展出的地球智慧爲準，去詮釋吳明益的新作， 藉此與英國的生態工作者進行聯結，倡導另闢徯徑， 不必全然依賴官、資方的低碳科技、永續經營、綠能政策， 一方面因爲它們常會被新政權取消， 而且往往淪爲新資本及殖民主義，由大污染國（如美、中、印等）出資、或生產更貴的設備， 那只會飲鴆止渴， 讓第三世界負更多債，離真正的平等環保越來越遠。
上回，吳教授告訴大家， 他很不習慣出國， 但透過TECO文化組的協助，他答應再來SD，在此我們要感謝元月底已返國述職的「貢丸」組長美成。
Lecture: Dramaturgical Exchange - Don't Cry, Dancing Girls
Time: 1 p.m. - 3 p.m., April 30, Thursday
Synopsis
After years away, three sisters return to their ancestral home in Huwei, Yunlin, where relatives seem unchanged while time has quietly passed. What begins as a scramble for the house deed turns into a trial tied to their dying great-uncle’s will: whoever inherits the Song family’s Qianwang ritual troupe wins a NT$5 million prize. Forced to learn the craft, the sisters rekindle memories of their absent parents and rediscover lost family bonds. Facing love, identity, and even ghosts, they dance with their youth to cross life’s trials. The Three Sisters Who Counsel the World is a musical love letter to the land and its people.
Director
A master's graduate in film from New York University, Director Hui-Cheng (Chris) Tseng is the co-founder of VMTheater, an established theater company aimed at showcasing local culture and music from Taiwan.
Utilizing the direction of American broadway and the roots of the stories of Taiwanese families, Director Hui-Cheng Tseng revolutionized a unique production that promotes the prestige and quality of a broadway show whilst highlighting the Taiwanese identity. "Don't Cry, Dancing Girl" recieved critical acclaim, with the show being propelled into the mainstream eyes of broadway.