On September 13, 2021, a memorandum of understanding on academic collaboration was signed between the Hoover Institution Library & Archives and the Academia Historica of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Founded in 1947 in Nanjing, China, and reopened in Taipei in 1957, the Academia Historica is home to presidential and vice presidential records and artifacts of the Republic of China before and after 1949. With its long history and solid foundation, it is one of the most prestigious archival repositories and research institutes on modern China and Taiwan in the world.
Dr. Yi-sheng Chen, president of the Academia Historica (left), and Dr. Eric Wakin (right) signed the memorandum of understanding virtually.
Mr. Scott Lai, director-general of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in San Francisco (bottom left), attended and witnessed the signing ceremony.
In his remarks delivered over the virtual signing ceremony, Dr. Eric Wakin, deputy director of the Hoover Institution and director of the Hoover Institution Library & Archives, noted, “The aim of both the Hoover Institution Library & Archives and the Academia Historica is to serve as a platform for a vibrant community of scholars and a broad public interested in the meaning and role of history.” Wakin noted that, in February 2020, after joint efforts made by the Academia Historica and the family of Chiang Kai-shek, the Hoover Archives is making available for scholars copies of the personal diaries of Chiang Ching-kuo, the son of Chiang Kai-shek and president of Taiwan between 1978 and 1988. “The collection shines a light on a critically important period in the history of the Republic of China, offering a rare glimpse into the inner world of a man who, as leader of Taiwan since the 1970s, oversaw the island’s transition to democracy and navigated it through an exceptionally challenging period of the Cold War,” said Wakin.
Dr. Yi-sheng Chen, president of the Academia Historica, expressed his appreciation to Hoover Institution director Condoleezza Rice and Wakin for their support of closer scholarly ties between the two parties, noting that the Hoover Institution Library & Archives and the Academia Historica share many common interests in the research of modern history. He hopes multiple innovative viewpoints can be generated through future exchange programs, contributing to both archival research and the study of public policy of Taiwan and the United States. Mr. Scott Lai, director-general of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in San Francisco, also attended the signing ceremony. He gave his best wishes for the success of the partnership and looked forward to ongoing academic cooperation between the two countries.
A recap of the event can be found in below video:
