Biography

I was born in Inner Mongolia and raised in the beautiful coastal city of Zhuhai in Southern China. During my high school and undergraduate education abroad, I encountered diverse forms of living and ways of knowing the world, which inspired my passion for anthropology. Upon graduating from Duke University with a degree in International Comparative Studies, I took an internship at the International Organisation for Migration in Geneva, Switzerland. This exposure to global governance taught me the significance of employing diversified value systems and metrics for progress. Through these experiences, I have become convinced of anthropology's important role in informing situated policy by sharing localised knowledge and worldviews. My PhD project will examine how citizens of diverse backgrounds engage with revived Daoist spiritual and bodily self-cultivation practices to respond to China’s shifting socio-political landscape. Insights into the motivations and objectives of the lay Daoist adherents’ nonmaterial pursuits can inform social policy making in China and potentially in other societies undergoing rapid transformations. I am honoured to be joining the Gates Cambridge community, and look forward to mutually strengthening and sharing aspirations.

Previous Education

Duke University
University of Cambridge