grapeharvest2.jpgDr. Aaron Kingsbury, assistant professor of geography and political science at Mayville State University, has been selected to receive the Taiwan Research Fellowship. During the summer of 2015, he will be fully funded to travel to Taiwan and then conduct an extensive cross-cultural comparative study of the last few centuries of Taiwanese and Japanese viticulture and winemaking. Dr. Kingsbury’s doctoral dissertation focused on viticulture and winemaking in Japan, and comparisons of this sort comprise a logical extension. While in Taiwan, he will be hosted by National Taiwan University.

The Taiwan Research Fellowship is the main foreign research fellowship of the national government of the Republic of China (Taiwan), and is awarded by their Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Each year, fellowships are awarded to foreign experts and scholars interested in research related to Taiwan, cross-strait relations, mainland China, Asia-Pacific region, and Chinese studies. The purpose of the fellowship is to conduct advanced research at universities or academic institutions in Taiwan. 

Photo: Aaron Kingsbury conducted the research for his doctoral dissertation in Japan. He is photographed here while harvesting grapes in Japan.