The Center for Asian Studies is very pleased to welcome our new Asian Studies Program Director, Lauren Yapp.
Lauren is an anthropologist and archaeologist fascinated by the question of how present-day communities remember, preserve, and contest their past. Her research focuses on cultural heritage and urban development in Indonesia, where she has spent many years doing ethnographic fieldwork with local activists, architects, museum professionals, artists, and city residents. At CU Boulder, she oversees the curricular aspects of the Asian Studies major and minor, teaching both lecture courses that introduce students to this incredibly diverse region and in-depth seminars that explore topics such as urban life and memory politics in Asia. Lauren also enthusiastically advises students interested in conducting their own research on various aspects of culture, history, and politics in Asia and is happy to help Asian Studies majors/minors and others find relevant study abroad programs or overseas internships. Having lived in the Bay Area, Rhode Island, and coastal Java before moving to Boulder, Lauren misses the ocean but is quickly falling in love with the mountains of Colorado.
You can find an interview with Dr. Yapp below.