University of Ottawa and Ministry of Education Renew MOA for the Research Chair in Taiwan Studies
The University of Ottawa has been running its Taiwan Studies Chair Program for over a decade now since 2012, a significant achievement for this collaboration with Taiwan’s Ministry of Education. The memorandum of agreement (MOA) that funds the program was renewed at a signing ceremony held on September 20, 2024. Taiwan’s Representative in Canada, Dr. Harry Ho-jen Tseng, from the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Canada, and Ms. Tracy Lang, Director of the Education Division representing the Ministry of Education, and Dr. Sylvain Charbonneau, Vice-President of Research and Innovation at the University of Ottawa, and Dr. Victoria Barham, Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, were the signatories for the university.
Professor Scott Simon and Professor André Laliberté, co-hosts of the Taiwan Studies Chair Program, Professor Martine Lagacé, Assistant Vice-President for Research Promotion and Development, and François Carrier, Director of International Cooperation in the Office of the Vice-President for Research, also attended the signing ceremony.
Dr. Charbonneau began his remarks at the ceremony by expressing gratitude to the representatives of the MOE and the University of Ottawa for their efforts for this program. He mentioned that he would soon assume the role of president and CEO of the Canada Foundation for Innovation, on October 1st, so the signing of this memorandum of agreement was the last he would sign before his departure, making it particularly meaningful, especially since he has visited Taiwan several times in the past. Dr. Charbonneau expressed his heartfelt appreciation to the MOE for its full support of this program, which has enabled the University of Ottawa to connect with Taiwan across diverse fields, such as politics, economics, sociology, and anthropology. For example, in April 2023, the University of Ottawa invited Professor Jolan Hsieh (Bavaragh Dagalomai) from National Dong Hwa University to give two lectures over two weeks and to engage in a traditional Algonquin roundtable discussion with elders at the Kitigan Zibi Cultural Centre, promoting educational and cultural exchanges between Taiwan and Canada’s Indigenous peoples. She is a Taiwanese indigenous scholar from the Siraya Nation. In addition, funding was provided for PhD student Richard Atimniraye Nyelade to conduct research at National Chengchi University in Taiwan on Taiwan's relations with Somaliland.
Dr. Charbonneau finished up by expressing sincere gratitude to the Ministry of Education and the TECO office for their continued support of the University of Ottawa and this program. He conveyed optimism for the ongoing growth of exchange programs and collaborative research between the University of Ottawa and research institutions in Taiwan.
