Governance

Home Management Structure University Officers Professor Alan K.L. Chan
Prof. Alan K.L. Chan

Professor Alan K.L. Chan

Provost
J.S. Lee Professor of Chinese Culture

Curriculum Vitae

Education & CUHK Employment

Education

  • B.A., University of Winnipeg, Canada
  • M.A., University of Manitoba, Canada
  • Ph.D., University of Toronto, Canada

CUHK Employment

  • 2020-present, Provost
  • 2020-present, J.S. Lee Professor of Chinese Culture

Research Interests

  • Chinese Philosophy and Religion
  • Hermeneutics and Critical Theory
  • Comparative Philosophy and Religion

Selected Fellowships and Awards

  • ASEAN University Network Distinguished Visiting Professorship
  • Fulbright Visiting Fellowship
  • Komai Fellowship, Hitachi Foundation
  • Teaching Excellence Award, National University of Singapore
  • Canadian Research Fellowship
  • Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada Postdoctoral Fellowship
  • Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada Doctoral Fellowship
  • Connaught Scholarship, University of Toronto
  • Junior Fellowship, Massey College, University of Toronto
  • University Gold Medal, University of Winnipeg

Selected Publications

  • "Laozi," Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, edited by Edward Zalta, http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/laozi/, Revised edition, September 2018.
  • "From Uncrowned King to the Sage of Profound Greatness: Confucius and the Analects in Early Medieval China," in Companion to Confucius, edited by Paul Goldin. London: Wiley-Blackwell, 2017, 249–267.
  • "The Art of Hearing and the Promise of Harmony in Confucian Self-Cultivation," in New Directions in Chinese Philosophy, edited by Chung-yi Cheng. New Asia Academic Bulletin 21. Hong Kong: New Asia College, Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2014, 103–115.
  • "Embodying Nothingness and the Ideal of the Affectless Sage in Daoist Philosophy," in Nothingness in Asian Philosophy, edited by JeeLoo Liu and Douglas L. Berger. New York and London: Routledge, 2014, 213–229.
  • "Neo-Daoism," Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, edited by Edward Zalta, https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/neo-daoism/, Revised edition, 2013.
  • "Harmony as a Contested Metaphor and Conceptions of Rightness (Yi) in Early Confucian Ethics," in How Should One Live? Comparing Ethics in Ancient China and Greco-Roman Antiquity, edited by R.A.H. King and Dennis Schilling. Berlin: De Gruyter, 2011, 37–62.
  • "Interpretations of Virtue (De) in Early China," Journal of Chinese Philosophy 38.1 (2011): 158–174.
  • Philosophy and Religion in Early Medieval China (Lead editor; with Y.K. Lo). Albany: State University of New York Press, 2010. 375 pp.
  • Interpretation and Literature in Early Medieval China (Lead editor; with Y.K. Lo). Albany: State University of New York Press, 2010. 288 pp.
  • "Affectivity and the Nature of the Sage: Gleanings from a Tang Daoist Master," Journal of Daoist Studies 3, (2010) 1–27.
  • "Wuqing yu changkuang: lun Zhuangzi zhong 'qing' de liangzhong quanshi" 無情與猖狂──論《莊子》中「情」的兩種詮釋, Zhongguo zhexue yu wenhua 中國哲學與文化 6 (2010): 243–258 (in Chinese).
  • "Zhong Hui Laozi zhu yu Wei chu caixing zhi bian" 鍾會《老子注》與魏初才性之辯, in Zhongguo wenhua de chuancheng yu kaito: Xianggang Zhongwen daxue sishi zhounian xiaoqing guoji yantaohui lunwenji 中國文化的傳承與開拓—香港中文大學四十周年校慶國際研討會論文集 (Transmission and New Development of Chinese Culture: Papers from the International Conference Commemorating the 40th Anniversary of the Chinese University of Hong Kong), edited by Wang Hongzhi 王宏志, Liang Yuansheng 梁元生, and Luo Bingliang 羅炳良. Hong Kong: Chinese University of Hong Kong Press, 2009, 181–221 (in Chinese).
  • Filial Piety in Chinese Thought and History (Lead editor; with Sor-hoon Tan). London: Routledge, 2004, 245pp.
  • Historical Perspectives on East Asian Science, Technology, and Medicine (Lead editor; with G. Clancey and H.C. Loy). Singapore: Singapore University Press and World Scientific Publishing Company, 2002. 585pp.
  • Mencius: Contexts and Interpretations (Editor). Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2002. 328pp.
  • Taoism: Outlines of a Chinese Religious Tradition (in Chinese and English; co-authored with C.Y. Lee and T. Tsu). Singapore: Taoist Federation, 1994. 167pp.
  • Two Visions of the Way: A Study of the Wang Pi and the Ho-shang Kung Commentaries on the Lao-tzu. New York: State University of New York Press, 1991. 314pp.

Other Professional Activities (Selected)

  • Member, Social Science Research Council of Singapore, 2019 – present
  • Member, Governing Council, International Confucian Association, China, 2014 – present
  • Member of the Board of Directors, Consortium of Humanities Centres and Institutes (an international consortium of 200+ members headquartered at Duke University), 2012 – 2019
  • Director, NTUV International Private Limited, 2011 – 2020
  • Member of the International Advisory Panel (IAP) of Asia Competitiveness Institute (ACI) of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKYSPP), National University of Singapore, 2011 – present
  • Member, Editorial Board, Journal of Daoist Studies (USA), 2009 – present
  • Co-Chair, Governing Council, Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore, 2014 – 2018
  • Member of the Founding Editorial Board, Oxford Bibliographies of Chinese Studies, 2012 – 2016
  • Member, Board of Directors, Singapore Examination and Assessment Board, 2007 – 2010