Academic Background

MA Social Sciences, University of Chicago

BA Communication Studies, Beijing Normal University

Thesis Title

Upland Gatherers in Western China and the Natural Medicinal Products Trade, 1920s - 1960s

Summary of Thesis Project

My dissertation is a study of medicine gatherers and the circulation of raw medicinal ingredients in China from the 1920s to the 1960s. Focusing on Western Sichuan — one of the largest sourcing areas for such raw medicinal herbs, roots, animal parts, and minerals — as a case, my project examines what the profound social, cultural, political, and economic transformations of the twentieth century meant for the gatherers, raw material and local environments at the origin of the natural medicinal products trade.