BIOGRAPHY
Dr Hung Tak Wai is a young historian specialising in research on minorities in historical and contemporary Asia. He earned his PhD at the University of Hong Kong with his thesis titled “Redefining Heresy: Governance of Muslims and Christians in the Qing Empire, from the eighteenth century to the mid-nineteenth century.” His research concerns the transformation of culture in East Asia since the early era of globalization. He has particular research interests in minorities in the region, mainly on but not limited to Muslims and Christians, with a focus on faith and identity of them and their interaction with the majority of the society.
Dr Hung continues to engage in academic research and teach in universities after graduation. He is currently affiliated with The King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies and Centre for the Study of Islamic Culture of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, in which he conducts research on religions in late Imperial China and organising intellectual activities between Chinese speaking regions and the Gulf. One of the key research themes is the study of Muslim communities in the East Asia since the 17th century. With the vast field he strives to explore, Dr Hung was awarded fellowship from different institutes of Academia Sinica and Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies. Recently, his research project on Intangible Cultural Heritage and Oral History have been supported by different governments and NGOs. Dr Hung’s teaching work aligns with his research focus. He is organizing and teaching courses on Chinese history and religion to undergraduate students in English, Cantonese, and Chinese in different universities in Hong Kong.
As a fresh doctoral graduate, Dr Hung has a proven track record of publications and grants and has established a strong international academic network. He has already published a monograph and more than 10 academic articles in refereed academic journals. Since postgraduate study, he had participated in different academic conferences in Europe, the Gulf, and East Asia. Dr Hung extends his enthusiasm for the world from academia to society. Despite his young age, he has founded a charity organisation which has served more than a thousand underprivileged and underachieving students in the past eight years. Resourceful and well connected, he has also been appointed as researcher and board member in different research institutes and NGOs. Energetic, committed and innovative, he is always eager to take initiative to develop new programmes with different collaborators inside and outside of academia. His recent research projects have been supported by different organisations, including the Equal Opportunities Commission, UNESCO Hong Kong, Cultural Affairs Bureau of the MSAR Government, and many others. He is also a columnist and blogger for different local media outlets writing articles to inform the general public about various social issues.