The Selection Panel
In order to encourage original academic research on Macao’s culture and the exchanges between Macao, Mainland China and other countries, the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) has set up the Academic Research Grant programme. After an evaluation process, six research projects from local and overseas scholars received the 2019 Academic Research Grant.
In order to ensure the integrity and impartiality of the selection process and in accordance with the Academic Research Grant Regulations, IC has commissioned the Institute for Social and Cultural Research of the Macau University of Science and Technology to organize a panel of experts in order to carry out an anonymous review of the applications and to provide academic comments to the Selection Panel. The Selection Panel was composed by Leong Wai Man, Vice-President of IC; Lee Kam Keung, Professor of Faculty of Social Sciences of the Hong Kong Baptist University; Hong Hsu, Professor of Faculty of History of the Nankai University, Tianjin; Li Qingxin, Director of the Institute of History of the Guangdong Academy of Social Science, and Tang Yuk Ling, Acting Head of the Division of Research and Publications of IC. After seeking advice from professionals and in-depth discussion, the Panel selected six research projects out of the 31 applications for this year’s Grant, namely:
I. “Research on French Hand-painted Ancient Maps of Macao from the 17th to the 19th Century” by researcher Wang Lan, who obtained his PhD from the China Academy of Art and currently works as an Associate Professor at the Macau University of Science and Technology. This research project reveals the urban history of Macao during the Age of Discovery and the city’s significant position and role amidst the exchange between east and west by studying a group of hand-painted maps collected in the Archives Nationales France, Bibliothèque nationale de France and the Navy Historical Documentation Centre.
II. “Procurators of Guangzhou and Macau: A social history of Modern Chinese Christianity” by researcher Liu Qinghua, who obtained a PhD in history from the Université de Recherche Paris Sciences et Lettres-Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes and now works as a lecturer at Central China Normal University. This project aims to study how the Catholic “procurators” exercised the important role of the Catholic Church in China, which will be of special significance to research on the social history of the Catholic Church in China during the Ming and Qing dynasties.
III. “Manuel de Agote y Bonechea (1755-1803): Um basco do Iluminisno em Macau nos finais do século XVIII” (translated as “Manuel de Agote y Bonechea (1755-1803): An Enlightened Basque Figure in Macao in the Late 18th Century”) by researcher Ivo Manuel Veiga Carneiro de Sousa, who obtained a PhD in Portuguese culture (history) from the Universidade do Porto and was a former professor of the City University of Macau and the University of Saint Joseph. This project is a study on a diary manuscript written by a Spanish citizen, providing valuable historical information for research on how Spanish people saw Macao in the 18th century.
IV. “Dharma Master Guanben and Studies of Macao” by researcher Ieong Hoi Keng, who obtained a PhD in library science (specialized in information management) from the Peking University and currently works in Macao Foundation. Revolving around Wizard Guanben from Macao Kong Tac Lam Temple, this research explores the relationship between the contemporary cultural history and the history of Buddhism of Macao. By studying the contributions made by Wizard Guanben to the contemporary development of Buddhism and culture in Macao, the research reveals the context of social and cultural changes in Macao and Lingnan, the relationship between pure land and meditation in Macao Buddhism, and female education in Macao Buddhism.
V. “Macau na instituição parlamentar portuguesa: 1821-1999” (translated as “Macao's Parliamentary Institutions in Portugal: 1821-1999”) by researcher Célia Maria Ferreira Reis, who obtained a PhD in history (contemporary history) from the Universidade Nova de Lisboa and currently works as a instructor of the Agrupamento de Escolas Henriques Nogueira in Portugal. This research reviews the “parliamentarism” in Macao from 1821 to 1999. There is few research on “parliamentary history” in the field of Macao studies, so the research is expected to help fill the gaps in history.
VI. “Research Plan for Oral History and Archives of the Chinese-speaking Muslim Groups in Macao (1930-2000)” by researcher Hung Tak Wai, who obtained a PhD in philosophy (Chinese studies) from the Chinese University of Hong Kong and currently works as a researcher of the Centre for the Study of Islamic Culture of the University. This research focuses on the history of the Chinese-speaking Muslim community in Macao from 1930 to 2000, bringing new elements to the history of non-mainstream religions in Macao.
For details about the Academic Research Grant Regulations and the list of grantees, please visit IC’s website at www.icm.gov.mo. For inquiries, please contact IC at 28366866 during office hours, or email to bolsa.depub@icm.gov.mo.