It’s been a few years since Taiwan announced the plans for promoting the Taiwanese universities into the top of university world rankings. The Australians have recently published an in-depth analysis of the program with details I wasn’t able to find anywhere else on the English web. I strongly recommend that you read through the Australian Government’s “Taiwan’s Aim for the Top University Program - Innovation, internationalisation and opportunity”. This can also provide you with an overall image of Taiwanese academics : The Taiwanese Ministry of Education (MOE) has invested NT$50 billion over five years in twelve universities (the ‘T12’ universities) to boost their international competitiveness. […] …

What do you know about the environment in Taiwan? What do you really know about the environment elsewhere, maybe back in your home country? How good or bad are things here in Taiwan? Since arriving in Taiwan I’ve become alot more environmental aware. This has a lot to do with the type of conversations that I have with my foreigner friends here. There are some things I think I feel myself, like my eyes becoming more sensitive and red, which I instinctively attribute to pollution, but then again - …

The professor of my Government and Politics in South East Asia course came up to me a few weeks back and told me it was her impression that I’ve very opinionated regarding the issue of democratization in East-Asia, especially that of Taiwan’s, and asked me whether I would be willing to review and critic a recent paper published in Foreign Affairs with the title “The Democratic Rollback - The Resurgence of the Predatory State” by Larry Diamond. First, it should be said that I usually am one of the few to speak out in class and …

What are the best research institutes in Asia and how do those compare to other universities around the world? Is Asian academic research different than that of the "west"? Where is Asian research going?
Being interested in Asian academics this past year, I’ve noticed major differences in the way research is perceived in Asia as opposed to the west. Looking at publishing lists for Chinese and Taiwanese professors it was quite remarkable to see that most of them publish more papers in Chinese then they do in English. My Israeli university training has brought me up to believe that a decent paper should always be published in American and European leading research journals in English, and no one in Israel really …

Most of the courses that I took in the last semester were brilliant. Sagiv’s Cultures and Organizations was an in depth analysis into the complications of cross-cultural psychology, Kogan’s Urban Society in Contemporary China - Changes was a unique journey through modern China, Pinnes’ China 1917-1978 was an extraordinary overview of the most amazing political happenings of the 20th century China, and Mandarin Chinese, well, you know - it still is a frustrating fun challenge.
As the new semester at the Hebrew University is starting on the 25th, I’ve browsed through the selection of courses available for this semester to pick some what might be interesting for me to attend. I’m currently registered as …

Israel might seem at first as a strange place to consider conducting East Asian research in, but this year a new East-Asian Louis Frieberg Center is being setup at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem-Israel and the new center is offering fellowships.
About the new Louis Frieberg Center for East Asian Studies -

The Center has set to itself the ambitious goal of establishing the Hebrew University as a national and a world-renowned hub of East Asian Studies. The Center, through its activities, will aim to pool together scholars from different departments and faculties within the Hebrew University, from the Israeli scholarly community, and from abroad and will catalyze …