The Henry Luce Foundation has granted $250,000 for the implementation phase of Global Asias: Pathways & Opportunities in Scholarship, Museums, Libraries & Communities, a transformational initiative at the University of Washington. The project will begin its work on July 1, 2026 and will be developed over three years.
The initiative, led by Rick Bonus (American Ethnic Studies) and Ted Mack (Asian Languages & Literature), will focus on communities in Seattle and across the Pacific Northwest that originated in Asia, with the primary objective of creating lasting institutional and community connections, which will allow scholars to strengthen their research, teaching, and community engagement.
UW Global Asias is a collective effort, with close partners at the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, UW Libraries, and UW Press. The initiative will involve students and faculty from across UW's three campuses and partnerships with community-based groups such as the Wing Luke Museum, Filipino Community of Seattle, Cambodian American Community Council, and Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Washington.
A prior grant from the Henry Luce Foundation supported a planning phase, when the team mapped out the current landscape of Asia-related research and community-engaged scholarship within and outside the University of Washington. On the basis of those findings, they developed a proposal for robust programming on campus and beyond, such as the development of a graduate certificate program, professionalization workshops, visiting lectureships, research expeditions, manuscript development funds, and community events. Taken together, these activities will foster a dynamic intellectual environment and advance cutting-edge scholarship concerning the variety of ways that “Asia” is expressed, organized, and experienced in the world.
The Simpson Center for the Humanities, as a research unit within the Humanities Division of the College of Arts & Sciences, will host Global Asias at UW. The initiative embodies the kind of vital research that the Simpson Center seeks to support through its mission of advancing scholarship and promoting intellectual exchange on questions of broad and pressing concern across the humanities and humanistic social sciences.
The Henry Luce Foundation seeks to deepen knowledge and understanding in pursuit of a more democratic and just world. Established in 1936 by Henry R. Luce, the co-founder and editor-in-chief of Time, Inc., the Luce Foundation advances its mission by nurturing knowledge communities and institutions, fostering dialogue across divides, enriching public discourse, amplifying diverse voices, and investing in leadership development.