Details

EXCLUSIVE WEBINAR | “The Enlightened Man From the West: Matteo Ricci’s Extraordinary Mission to ‘Open’ China”
Presented by Dr. Balbina Y. Hwang
with Additional Commentary by Dr. Rocky Ruggiero

In 1582, Matteo Ricci, a Jesuit missionary and polymath from Macerata (Italy) arrived in Macao, the only place in all of China that foreigners were allowed to visit and inhabit at the time. In the ensuing years until his death there in 1610, Ricci introduced Christianity and Western scientific ideas to Ming China, which had remained largely closed to the Western world for centuries. Most remarkably, Ricci was the first Westerner in over a century to be granted entry into mainland China and welcomed at the Imperial Court in Beijing. No other European since Marco Polo during his famed journeys 300 years earlier became an astute observer of the ancient Chinese civilization, providing crucial insights whose legacy remains relevant today. Most remarkably, Ricci mastered the Chinese language and culture garnering tremendous respect among the Chinese people and ruling elite, and is still one of the most respected and well-recognized Western figures in contemporary China. While Ricci is less well-known in the Western world, his remarkable mission was one of the most significant in the history of the West’s engagement with China, and has profoundly affected the development of relations between West and East.

The webinar will include a 45-minute lecture followed by 15-minutes of Q&A.

Please note:

• Your participation is confirmed once you have purchased your ticket. You will receive the Zoom link to join the presentation circa 30 minutes before the start time.
• VIDEO RECORDING of the webinar will be available for unlimited streaming at your convenience for the entire month after the event.

Lecturer

Dr. Balbina Hwang is Visiting Professor at Georgetown University, where she lectures on International Relations and Security, East Asian Affairs, and the International Political Economy. She is also AdjunctResearch Associate with IHS Markit.

Between 2007-2009, Dr. Hwang was appointed and served as Senior Special Advisor (to Assistant Secretary Christopher Hill, Bureau of East Asian Affairs) at the U.S. State Department. She was also a Research Fellow at the Institute for National Security Strategy (Seoul, Korea). Prior to joining the U.S. State Department, (2000-2007) she was the Senior Policy Analyst for Northeast Asia in the Asian Studies Center of The Heritage Foundation.

Dr. Hwang frequently lectures at military and diplomatic missions and their instructional institutions, as well as think tanks and other policy institutes around the world. She also advises global strategic risk managementfirms. Her previous teaching experiences have included: the National Defense University; the BushGraduate School of Government and Public Service (University of Texas A&M, D.C. campus), GeorgeWashington University, and American University. Dr. Hwang has testified before several U.S.Congressional Hearings as an expert witness on Asian affairs, and has contributed to numerousdocumentary series for national and international broadcasts. She is also a lecturer for the SmithsonianAssociates Program in Washington D.C.

Dr. Hwang is a frequent commentator for major international and national media outlets, including: CNN;BBC; PBS Lehrer News Hour; NPR; FOX; NBC; ABC; and CBS among others, and her writtencommentaries have appeared in publications such as: The Wall St. Journal; Washington Post; and NewYork Times, Janes Intelligence Review, and numerous other international media publications.

She was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship (for doctoral dissertation field research) in South Korea) in 1998-1999, and has published numerous articles for scholarly journals and book chapters, for which she hasreceived several writing awards. Currently, she is completing two book manuscripts for publication: PlatonicParadox on the Peninsula: Korea’s: Divided Lines; and Tocqueville in Asia: Dilemmas of Democracy andModernization.

She is a member of NCNK (National Committee on North Korea) and Korean Overseas Women’sInternational Network (KOWIN); and was an elected Board Member of U.S. CSCAP (Council for Securityand Cooperation in the Asia Pacific). She has also recently achieved a Certificate in World Art History at theSmithsonian Institution.

A native of (South) Korea, Dr. Hwang earned: an MA and Ph.D. (in Government) from GeorgetownUniversity; an MIA (Masters of International Affairs) from Columbia University; an MBA from the DardenBusiness School at the University of Virginia; and a BA (in Philosophy and Government) from SmithCollege. She also spent one year matriculated at the University of Geneva, Switzerland.