Christina Maags
External Collaborator / Former Research Fellow at the Professorship for Political Science with the Focus on Area Studies China/East Asia
Empirical Study: Cultural Heritage
| Contact:
Email: cmaags(at)hotmail.de Mailing address: Christina Maags |
RESEARCH | VITA | TEACHING | PUBLICATIONS | TALKS |
last updated March 2016
Project related research
Researching cultural heritage politics means to examine a vast number of aspects of political, economic and socio-cultural relevance. It includes looking at different forms of cultural heritage as we may either encounter it as a material object in form of buildings and monuments or in its more immaterial form through traditions or practices of our everyday life. Since cultural heritage is an expression of a society’s history, tradition and associated values it is imperative to study ways of preserving and simultaneously promoting it. Here the nation-state is an important actor who as a “protector of culture” may help society to preserve this heritage. On the contrary, actors inside the nation-state, the private sector (such as the tourism industry) or among various other societal groups may also use this fragile remain of history in order to advance their own political or economic interests. The question of how to protect cultural heritage – a cultural expression which cannot make use of its own rights or stand up for itself – for future generations, is thus a very not only an important question for the society it originated in and for human kind in general but also for me as a researcher.
Other research interests
In addition to cultural heritage politics, my research interests focus on the area of domestic and foreign cultural policy of the People’s Republic of China. Referring to Chinese domestic cultural policy I am particularly concerned with the cultural policies of the Chinese party state in the cultural sectors of music and tourism as well as the promotion of socialist forms of these policies in contemporary China. Here I am especially interested in the historical development of these respective policies and their imminent political objectives. Referring to Chinese foreign cultural policy I have focused on the marketing of Chinese culture abroad (esp. Western Europe) for the generation of cultural soft power. In this context I have studied the role of Chinese cultural festivals abroad and their programs in order to identify strategic images which are promoted by the party state in order to improve its reputation in the international community.
Employment history
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Feb 2016 - |
Visiting Fellowship: China in the World Center, Australian National University |
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Apr 2013 - |
Research Fellow at the Professorship for Political Science with the Focus on Area Studies China/East Asia, Faculty of Social Siences (Institute for Political Science), Goethe-University Frankfurt am Main |
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Feb 2012 - |
Internship in the area of International Corporate Public Relations at the Volkswagen Group China, Beijing |
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Dec 2011 - |
Freelance writer at the Asia Foundation, Cologne; Project „Voices of China“ |
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Mar 2011 - |
Student Research Assistant at the Professorship for Political Science with the Focus on Area Studies China/East Asia |
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Mar 2011 - |
Student Research Assistant at the Professorship for Japanese Economy; Prof. Dr. Storz |
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Feb 2010 - |
Internship in the area of Project Management at the China Business House GmbH, Düsseldorf |
Academic background
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Oct 2010 – |
Study of M.A. „Modern East Asian Studies“, Goethe-University Frankfurt am Main |
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Sep 2008 – |
Year abroad at the Zhejiang University in Hangzhou |
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Oct 2006 – |
Study of B.A. „Asian Studies“, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms University Bonn |
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Aug 2006 – |
Chinese Culture and Language Program at the Fudan University, Shanghai |
Scholarships
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Mar 2013 |
Scholarship of the Association of Friends and Patrons of the Goethe University Frankfurt am Main for the Participation at the academic conferences „12th East-West Graduate Student Conference“, „USC Graduate Research Conference (PSGSO)“ and „13th Graduate Conference for East Asian Studies at the University of Toronto“ |
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Sep 2012 |
Scholarship of the Association of Friends and Patrons of the Goethe University Frankfurt am Main for the Participation at the academic conference „New York Conference on Asian Studies“ |
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Jun 2012 |
Scholarship of the Association of Friends and Patrons of the Goethe University Frankfurt am Main for the Participation at the academic conference „Inaugural Conference of the Association of Cultural Heritage Studies“ |
Memberships
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Since 12/2014 |
European Association of Chinese Studies |
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Since Mar 2013 |
Association for Critical Heritage Studies |
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Since Mar 2012 |
American Association for Asian Studies (AAS) |
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Since Aug 2011 |
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Asienkunde (DGA) |
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WS 15/16 |
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WS 14/15 |
Kulturpolitik im gegenwärtigen China (Cultural Policy in Contemporary China) |
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WS 13/14 |
Chinas Kultuerbe-Politik: von globaler zu lokaler Ebene (China's cultural heritage politics: from global to local level) |
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SS 13 |
Kulturpolitik im gegenwärtigen China (Cultural Policy in Contemporary China) |
Articles in Refereed Journals
| Feb 2016 | (with Heike Holbig): "Replicating Elite-Dominance in Intangible Cultural Heritage Safeguarding: The Role of Local Government - Scholar Networks in China". In: International Journal of Cultural Property, 23: 71-97. doi:10.1017/S0940739116000035; http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=10215313&fulltextType=RA&fileId=S0940739116000035 |
| Jan 2014 | "Enhancing China’s national image through culture festivals: A case study of China Culture Years in Europe". In: Fudan Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 7 (1), 33-55, http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs40647-013-0003-x |
Non-academic online publications
| Aug 31, 2012 | „Regenfälle fluten die Vororte von Beijing – Die Kritik gegen die Stadtregierung wächst“, Stimmen aus China – A Blog of the Foundation Asienhaus; http://www.stimmen-aus-china.de/2012/08/31/regenfalle-fluten-die-vororte-von-beijing-die-kritik-gegen-die-stadtregierung-wachst/ |
| Aug 06, 2012 | „Wu Ying und der private Finanzsektor in China – Korruption oder fehlerhaftes Rechtssystem?", Stimmen aus China – A Blog of the Foundation Asienhaus; http://www.stimmen-aus-china.de/2012/08/06/wu-ying-und-der-private-finanzsektor-in-china-korruption-oder-fehlerhaftes-rechtssystem/ |
| Aug 05, 2012 | „Popularität von „Roten Liedern“ steigt rasant in chinesischer Gesellschaft“, Stimmen aus China– A Blog of the Foundation Asienhaus; http://www.stimmen-aus-china.de/2012/08/05/popularitat-von-roten-liedern-steigt-rasant-in-chinesischer-gesellschaft/ |
| Jun 18, 2012 | „Dämme in China – von Flutkontrolle zu Wegen aus der Wasserknappheit“, Stimmen aus China – A Blog of the Foundation Asienhaus; http://www.stimmen-aus-china.de/2012/06/18/damme-in-china-von-flutkontrolle-zu-wegen-aus-der-wasserknappheit/ |
| Mar 21, 2012 | „Selbstverbrennung in Tibet – Mönche zünden sich für religiöse Freiheit an“, Stimmen aus China – A Blog of the Foundation Asienhaus; http://www.stimmen-aus-china.de/2012/03/21/tibetische-moenche-setzen-sich-fuer-religioese-freiheit-in-brand/ |
| Dec 28, 2011 | „Parlamentswahlen provozieren Massenproteste in Russland – Reaktionen chinesischer Blogger“,28. Dezember 2011, Stimmen aus China – A Blog of the Foundation Asienhaus; http://www.stimmen-aus-china.de/2011/12/28/parlamentswahlen-provozieren-massenproteste-in-russland-reaktionen-chinesischer-blogger/ |
TALKS
Talks at academic Conferences, Seminars, Workshops
| July 5 - 7, 2017 |
Interpretative Public Policy Conference, De Montfort University Leicester, UK: “Can cultural policy enhance non-state actors’ agency in authoritarian China? The case of the ICH Inheritors Program” and organization of the pane (with Dr. Ioan Trifu and Dr. Gabriela Toleda Silva): “Implementing the UNESCO Living Human Treasure System in China: A Comparative Analysis Rethinking Cultural Policy: Power, Politics and Public Contestation” |
| June 28 - 30, 2017 |
International Public Policy Conference, Singapore: Facing the Ageing Crisis: A Comparison of Financing Systems for Long-term Care Provision in East Asia” and “Implementing the UNESCO Living Human Treasure System in China: A Comparative Analysis” |
| June 2, 2017 |
International Workshop „Calls for Protecting the Weak in East Asia: Empirical Findings and New Theoretical Insights“, Goethe-University, Frankfurt “Protecting the Weak through Narratives of Threat: The Case of Chinese Intangible Cultural Heritage” |
| May 12, 2017 |
„Pitt Rivers Museum Seminar Series“, University of Oxford, UK: “Analysing State Intervention in Transmission of Cultural Knowledge: The Case of the Chinese ICH Inheritors Program” |
| Oct 7 - 8, 2016 |
International Conference “Protecting the Weak – Concepts and East Asian Evidence”, Lingnan University, Hong Kong: (with Ioan Trifu) “Local Appropriation of International Norms in East Asia: The Case of Cultural Heritage” |
| July 5 - 7, 2016 |
11th Interpretative Policy Analysis Conference, Hull University, United Kingdom: “Disseminating the Policy Narrative of ‘Heritage under Threat’ in China” |
| June 2 - 8, 2016 |
Conference of the “Association of Critical Heritage Studies”, Montreal, Canada: (with Ioan Trifu): “Where East Meets West: Comparing UNESCO’s Impact on Domestic Cultural Governance Systems” |
| June 2 - 8, 2016 |
Conference of the “Association of Critical Heritage Studies”, Montreal, Canada: (with Zhu, Yujie): “Conceptualizing Living Heritage in China: The Contested Chinese ICH Discourse” |
| Oct 30 - 31, 2015 |
Young Scholars Forum, co-organized by the Goethe University Frankfurt, Fudan University and Confucius Institute Frankfurt, Frankfurt, Germany: “Retracing International Policy Transfers: The Implementation of a Chinese “Living Human Treasures System” |
| July 8 - 10, 2015 |
10th International Conference on Interpretative Policy Analysis (IPA), Lille, France: “Becoming a gatekeeper of the past: Analyzing the role of policy networks in Chinese cultural heritage politics” AND Chair of Panel 52 “Mobilising expertise in the policy process” |
| June 17 - 18, 2015 |
Conference Cultural Heritage in China: Contested Understandings, Images and Practices, Lund University, Sweden: "China's Living Human Treasures Policy: A success story in ICH protection?" |
| May 12, 2015 |
Public Lecture Series on Cultural Policy in East Asia, East Asia Department, Cologne University, Germany: “Policy diffusion in East Asia – The case of the Chinese “Living Human Treasures” System |
| Jan 16 - 18, 2015 |
Conference of the German Association of Asian Studies Junior Research Group” (DGA Nachwuchsgruppe), Burg Rothenfels, Germany: “Chinas ‘Living Human Treasures‘: Eine vergleichende Untersuchung von immateriellem Kulturerbe-Schutz auf Lokaler Ebene” |
| Dec. 2 - 4, 2014 |
International Conference of the “Critical Cultural Heritage Association” in Canberra, Australia “Rethinking ‘Living Culture’: A Comparative Analysis of Framing Intangible Cultural Heritage in China and Japan”, with Ioan Trifu |
| July 13 - 19, 2014 |
World Congress of Sociology, Yokohama, Japan,“Promoting intangible cultural heritage protection through research: An analysis of the impact of academic discourse on local protection and tourism practices in China” with Heike Holbig |
| Mar 2, 2013 | Graduate Conference for East Asian Studies, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada; “Inventing a socialist tradition – Promoting socialist traditions for political instrumentalization” |
| Feb 23, 2013 | USC Graduate Research Conference (PSGSO), University of S.C., Columbia, USA; American Political Science Association, “Inventing a socialist tradition – Promoting socialist traditions for political instrumentalization |
| Feb 14-16, 2013 | 12th East-West Graduate Student Conference, East West Centre at University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, Honolulu, USA; “Inventing a socialist tradition – Promoting socialist traditions for political instrumentalization” |
| Sep 18-29, 2012 | New York Conference on Asian Studies, SUNY University, New Paltz, USA; American Association for Asian Studies; “Inventing a socialist tradition – Promoting socialist traditions for political instrumentalization” |
| Jun 5-8, 2012 | Inaugural Conference of the Association of Cultural Heritage Studies, University of Gothenburg, Gotheburg, Sweden; Association for Critical Heritage Studies; “Framing Intangible Cultural Heritage in China”, Co-Author: Prof. Dr. Heike Holbig |
Guest Lectures / Invited Talks
| Mar 18, 2016 |
Round Table Discussion, China in the World Center and Center for Heritage and Museum Studies, ANU, Member of the round table discussion “Heritage and China” |
| Mar 16, 2016 |
Bachelor seminar “Music and Politics”, Conservatorium of Music, Sydney, Presentation: “Safeguarding Traditional Music through State Programs in East Asia: the Case of the Living Human Treasures System” |
| Mar 4, 2016 |
Lecture Series, Centre for Heritage and Museum Studies, ANU, Presentation: “From cultural practitioner to ICH inheritor: Competition and Hierarchies in the Chinese Living Human Treasures System” |
| May 12, 2015 |
Public Lecture Series on Cultural Policy in East Asia, East Asia Department, Cologne University, Germany, Presentation: “Policy diffusion in East Asia – The case of the Chinese “Living Human Treasures” System |
| Feb 18, 2014 |
Anthropology in China Lecture, Dr. Tami Blumenfield, Furman University, South Carolina, United States, Presentation: “Conducting Research on China’s Cultural Heritage Politics” |
