1. Establish a transnational humanities perspective
So-called globalization, as the forces of social, cultural, political and economic change on a global scale have become labeled, compels us to rethink the conceptual priority and practical efficacy of the nation-state. Responses to the challenges of globalization are bound to prove inadequate as long as these responses, whether local, national or global, are framed within nation-bound thinking. In seeking to establish a transnational humanities perspective that will enable us to re-think and re-imagine globalization, RICH engages itself actively with various constructivist approaches, such as the postmodern and postcolonial, which problematize the binaries of the modern/pre-modern and the West/non-West as well as the essentialized categories of nation, state, class, race, and gender.
2. Conduct project-based research
RICH conducts original research in history and the humanities more broadly that interrogates, and ultimately transcends, national, institutional and disciplinary boundaries. Building on the experience of the “East Asia History Forum,” RICH has networked scholars and institutions from around the world in initiating a series of transnational projects including “Mass Dictatorship,” “War Commemoration,” “Comparative Studies of Collaboration,” “History of Everyday Life,” “Comparative Culture Studies” and “Frontier Studies.” Supported and funded by both domestic and international foundations, RICH strives to be independent and self-sustaining in its work
3. Build a global network for research and education
One of RICH’s strengths is collaborative research conducted through international academic networks of influential research institutions. Also, by fully utilizing its global and domestic networks, RICH will offer a Graduate Program for Transnational Humanities at Hanyang University and, beginning in 2010, the Flying University of Transnational Humanities, a transnational graduate summer school.
4. Develop post-disciplinary research methodology
RICH offers a critique of the Eurocentric research methodology, which sees Europe as the universal model, and Asia and other “peripheries” as the particular. In the same way, RICH challenges the disciplinarity of modern academia as a product of, and a contributor to, the formation of the nation-state and its solidification. RICH seeks to develop a post-disciplinary transnational paradigm as its methodological foundation, focusing on the reciprocal interaction among regions and transcending the narrow and limiting perspective of national history.
5. Socialize research achievements
In seeking to overcome the isolation of the self-sufficient academic community, RICH trains and supports young researchers by establishing a relationship with the education sector. Furthermore, RICH actively pursues exchange and solidarity with civil society. Through such efforts, RICH encourages new practices of humanities beyond its interpretive conventions, ultimately resulting in the socialization of research achievements.
