Southeast Asia's coastlines are among the most biologically and culturally rich in the world. However, they face numerous challenges due to climate change, mangrove deforestation, and other obstacles. We have seen firsthand that interdisciplinary collaborations and community-engaged fieldwork are essential to charting research directions that address urgent and sometimes fraught issues of survival and sustainability—alongside those most deeply informed and impacted by their effects.
With the objective of empowering a new generation of scholars of and from Southeast Asia, the Center for Southeast Asian Coastal Interactions (SEACoast) was established in October 2019 through a generous, one-time gift from the Henry Luce Foundation. Since then, SEACoast has been an incubation space for innovative research that bridges regional and disciplinary boundaries—developing social and ecological insights beyond traditional definitions of coastlines and Southeast Asia.
Our ongoing success depends on your contribution towards essential research infrastructure, including graduate student fellowships, fieldwork, language training, interdisciplinary seminars, and postdoctoral fellowships, as well as widely accessible programs that are central to junior scholar training and networking. We believe that every contribution, regardless of its size, has the power to make waves for sustainable coastal futures.
Little ripples can make big waves
Together, we can make a real impact. We have created the following fundraising goals. Every donation towards the amounts below, no matter how big or small, can make a difference:
- $1000: Graduate School Application Subsidy
This amount will subsidize the cost of graduate school applications for 2-5 prospective scholars from Southeast Asia. Currently, the cost of application can run up to USD$600, a high barrier to entry for many scholars in Southeast Asia. - $3,000: Junior Scholar Research Funds
This amount will allow us to fund a junior faculty or graduate student undertaking research related to coastal interactions in Southeast Asia and its diaspora. This support will cover travel costs, archival fees, language training, and other expenses incurred by key research activities. - $5,000 Muse Mentor workshop with junior scholars
With this total donation, SEACoast can host an eminent scholar of Southeast Asia to facilitate a workshop for graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and junior faculty working towards specific goals, including research design, dissertation completion, and publishing. - $50,000 All of the above AND fellowship for Southeast Asian Doctoral Student
In addition to supporting current Junior Scholar Research and various programs, the Center will be able to support a Southeast Asian doctoral student in pursuing their academic goals, helping to build a more diverse and inclusive academic community at UCSC.
With your generous contributions, we can make these goals a reality and help students and scholars from Southeast Asia and the Southeast Asian diaspora to create a more sustainable future for our communities.
