Last month, Assistant Professor of Historic Preservation Jeremy Wells launched a new collaborative endeavor with colleagues at National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan that will further research and practice of environmental planning and conservation. Dr. Wells presented his existing body of knowledge on the subject to faculty and students, where he discussed the importance of social-science based evidence in heritage conversation activities—from cultural resource management and preservation to interpretation and advocacy—using the fields of behavior research and social sciences as benchmarks. Wells also led a workshop for graduate students looking to navigate the world of scholarly publishing, specifically on the international stage. In addition to a general overview of scholarly writing, Wells offered a number of tips—from understanding the writing process to working with journal editors and peer reviewers—capping off the talk with individual reviews with students.
During the visit, Dr. Wells served as a reviewer for Prof. Gigi (Angie) Tzuhui Tseng’s students who are creating a landscape design plan to rehabilitate a train station and square created by the Japanese in the early part of the 20th century. A major focus on this work was interpreting the heritage of the Taiwanese Hakka people and the industrial heritage of a cement plant, including its negative effects on the natural environment.
The trip was part of what hopes to be a continuing research collaboration with Tsing Hua colleague, Prof. Tseng, as well as possible student/faculty exchanges.