History of the Institute of Transnational Studies

In 1997, an interdisciplinary group of faculty at the University of Washington came together to respond to a call from the Ford Foundation for the Revitalizing Area Studies grant competition. Their proposal was funded in the first round. In 1998, the Institute was awarded a Tools for Transformation grant from the University of Washington. With the encouragement of Jere Barcharach, then director of the Jackson School, the George Taylor Institute of Transnational Studies was started. The Institute has since been renamed the Institute of Transnational Studies.

The Institute is a University-wide vehicle for stimulating innovative teaching and collaborative research in the social sciences. To that end, four faculty committees were formed with the goal of integrating area studies at the university and beyond. The committees focused on the following four distinct but related project themes:

1. Women and Democratization

2. Transnational and Transregional Migrations

3. Local Economies in an Era of Global Capitalism

4. Global Designs and Local Implementations: Law, State, and Society

Three projects initally funded by the Institute evolved into independent programs or centers and that continue to be active today:

The Center for Women & Democracy

With support from the Graduate School, the Dean's Office of the College of Arts and Sciences, the Jackson School for International Studies, the CLASS Center, the Center for Women and Democracy, and the International Studies Center, the Institute continues to provide seed grants to encourage the development of research collaborations.

The Institute continues to advance its mission of facilitating research exchange and collaboration across and beyond the social sciences and area studies programs at the University of Washington.