The Association for Asian Studies (AAS) CCKF-CIAC Small Grants Program and Annual Conference Graduate Student Paper Prize

Since 1991, the Foundation has maintained a special relationship with the Association for Asian Studies (AAS), especially in terms of helping to support its China and Inner Asia Council (CIAC) Small Grants program as well as its Annual Conference Graduate Student Paper Prize. Well over 200 scholars (including many of Asian ancestry) have benefited from these grants, which support research, conferences, translations, and other activities. While interest in scholarly work on China continues to grow both in the West and in Asia, the global economic crisis has dramatically decreased resources to support research and related work. As a result, the number of applicants for the Small Grants program has more than doubled during the past few years. Although each individual grant is relatively small, their impact has been much greater than the dollar amounts would suggest.