Past programs

East Asian Visual Culture – NCTA Online Workshop Series

Program Start Date: May 21 2024

Location: Online program

  Teachers joined art historian Melanie King for a continuation of the introductory to East Asian visual culture workshops. These 90-minute, stand-alone sessions each had  a unique focus and are intended for people new to East Asian art history or people looking for a refresher course. During each session we spent time exploring artistic, historical,

Double Desire: Navigating Post-3/11 Relationships in Hamaguchi Ryūsuke’s “Asako I & II” (2018) – NCTA Online Film Club

Program Start Date: May 15 2024

Location: Online program

Director Hamaguchi Ryūsuke burst into the cinematic mainstream with his Best International Feature Film Oscar win for Drive My Car in 2022, but few are aware of his already prodigious filmography. Coming from a theatrical background and with a penchant for working with amateur actors, many of Hamaguchi’s films focus on the impact of the 3/11 Triple

Outer Space Policy in US-China Relations – NCTA Online Program

Program Start Date: Apr 25 2024

Location: Online Program

  Are you intrigued by the evolving public and private dimensions of outer space policy? Did you follow the Odysseus Moon lander, the first privately build spacecraft and first U.S. one to land on the moon in 50 years? Do you think about the potential for both cooperation and conflict among nations in outer space,

“Zodiac” by Ai Weiwei (2024) – NCTA Online Book Club (PROGRAM FULL)

Program Start Date: Apr 3 2024

Location: Online Program

Many know Ai Weiwei as China’s most controversial and perhaps most dangerous artist. Perhaps you have walked around or under or on one of his installations. Or maybe you have watched one or more of his documentaries. Perhaps you joined us two years ago when we gathered to discuss his first memoir, 1000 Years of

CTA Day 2024: Stories of Asian Art: In Consideration of a Decolonial Narrative

Program Start Date: Mar 14 2024

Location: Seattle, WA

Teachers joined the Committee for Teaching About Asia (CTA) for CTA Day 2024 –  Stories of Asian Art: In Consideration of a Decolonial Narrative. This year, we headed to the Seattle Asian Art Museum (SAAM) to hear the stories of the SAAM collection and the curatorial decisions behind the make-up of the collection through a

Japanese Baseball: When You Come to the Fork in the Road, Take It – NCTA online program

Program Start Date: Mar 12 2024

Location: Seattle, WA

Educators joined Paul Dunscomb, Professor of East Asian history at the University of Alaska Anchorage, for an online program about the fascinating history and impact of baseball in Heisei Japan. Participants received a free copy of Professor Dunscomb’s book on the subject after the program. The crisis in Japanese professional baseball of 2004 tells us much

Hey! We Gotta Talk about This! China Matters! – NCTA Online Seminar

Program Start Date: Mar 7 2024

Location: Online Program

  Understanding China in the headlines. Exploring China outside the headlines. Investigating China between the lines. This four-part NCTA seminar explored contemporary topics in detail: Xi Jinping as the President of Everything? China as a Model and Inspiration? How Do We Bridge the US-China Divide? How Do We Wade Through the Media to Teach China

Early Contacts Between East/Southeast Asia and the United States

Program Start Date: Feb 26 2024

Location: Online Program

Compared with ancient Asian states like China and Japan, the United States was the new kid on the block.  But as soon as the U.S. came into existence, its officials and entrepreneurs set their sights on engaging with East Asian civilizations.  This online 5-week seminar began with America’s first interactions with China and Japan, and

“On Translation” with Takami Nieda

Program Start Date: Jan 24 2024

Location: Seattle, WA

  Teachers joined EARC program leader Mary Roberts and translator Takami Nieda and dived into the fascinating translation world. This workshop focused on translation issues, emphasizing the Freeman Award-winning novels Go by Kazuki Kaneshiro (2018) and The Color of the Sky is the Shape of the Heart by Chesil (2022) and providing a sneak peek into Nieda’s newest

Celebrating Identity: Teaching Empathy and Understanding using Cultural Celebrations of the New Year (online NCTA program)

Program Start Date: Jan 16 2024

Location: Online Program

A grandmother teaches her grandchild how to create rice cakes filled with sweetened red beans, a young girl and her cousins watching YouTube videos together as they gather with their family for their yearly New Year’s feast, a mochi-making tradition is shared on Instagram to online followers–these time-honored rituals of celebrating the New Year have