Short Abstract

This Roundtable discusses what moves anthropological Southeast Asia Studies today and tomorrow. It points out new departures but also challenges in fostering collaborative research, teaching and sustaining long-term research partnerships in, with and about Southeast Asia.

Long Abstract

That Area Studies are not so much waxing but waning in Germany (and beyond) has been a common observation also shared among Southeast Asia-focussed scholars during the last GASCA Conferences. On the occasion of the GASCA Conference 2027 on the topic of “What Moves Us”, we would like to pick up this observation and re-phrase it as a question: what moves (anthropological) Southeast Asian Studies today? What moves us in conducting ethnographic research in Southeast Asia?

This roundtable will focus thereby especially on the institutional and larger challenges but also innovations and departures in fostering collaborative research with/in Southeast Asia, in teaching Southeast Asia-related knowledge, and establishing long-term research partnerships. Using the opportunity of this conference, we would like to enhance exchange on this among colleagues based at German institutions. In addition, we aim at stimulating conversations on (re)thinking anthropological Southeast Asia research today in more visionary terms by, indeed, asking what moves us today and what might move us tomorrow.