On January 15th, the ICLAC 2025 Seminar
was held, an event that brought together distinguished researchers, undergraduate and graduate students, and aimed to evaluate the nucleus's 2023-2024 management and explore new perspectives on the links between China and Latin America.
The day began with remarks from María Montt, UC History professor and ICLAC alternate director, who presented a general overview of the achievements reached by the nucleus in the last two years. Montt highlighted the importance of the project's interdisciplinary approach, which has allowed studying the complexities of the relationship between China and Latin America from diverse academic perspectives. She also announced the upcoming opening of a new version of the asynchronous course "Impacts of China in Latin America," highlighting ICLAC's commitment to democratizing the academic knowledge generated by its researchers.
The meeting continued with the presentation by Nicole Jenne, UC Political Science professor and ICLAC researcher, on the results of the Public Opinion Monitor: What do Chileans think about China? - a tool that offers key data on national perception regarding the Asian giant. Jenne emphasized the usefulness of this data for better understanding how China is perceived at the local level, highlighting its potential to feed research and academic debates.
For his part, Andrés Bórquez, professor at the Institute of International Studies of the University of Chile and ICLAC researcher, underscored the project's value as a platform for training young researchers, in addition to highlighting its impact on reducing knowledge gaps about China in the region.
Keynote conference
The event continued with the keynote talk by Monica DeHart, professor at the University of Puget Sound and Senior Advisor to ICLAC, titled "Who are the protagonists of transpacific trade? The role of Chinese entrepreneurs in Central America". Moderated by UDP Anthropology professor and ICLAC researcher Carol Chan, the conference delved into the role of Chinese businesspeople in Central America as intermediaries in commercial relations with China.
DeHart addressed the social and economic dynamics that influence the integration of these communities in national development projects, highlighting how racial and cultural perception conditions their role in transpacific trade. Her analysis opened a space for discussion about the implications of these relationships for Latin America, with special interest in the Chilean experience.
Methodology workshop
During the afternoon, the Seminar gave way to the “Methodology Workshop: Asian migrations and diasporas in Latin America“, directed at graduate students in disciplines such as anthropology, history and social sciences. This space, led by DeHart, Chan and Montt, allowed participants to share experiences and reflect on methodological challenges in the study of Asian diasporas and research in the field of humanities and social sciences.
Both events were part of activities organized by ICLAC, in collaboration with the UC Center for Asian Studies and the Chilean-Asian Project, during Monica DeHart's visit to Chile, reaffirming the nucleus's commitment to generating critical and collaborative knowledge about China and its impact in Latin America.