All Posts By

Felix Brender 王哲謙

Nov 07

China’s Peacekeepers in South Sudan: Diplomacy, Narrative and the Language of Credibility | InOtherWords

By Africa, China, intercultural communication, narrative strategy and diplomacy, perspectives from the field

China’s Peacekeepers and the Diplomacy of Recognition

My latest piece for The China Global South Project examines how China’s contributions to UN peacekeeping are presented — not only in what peacekeepers do, but in how their work is described and celebrated. I take the recent medal ceremony for China’s 11th Peacekeeping Infantry Battalion in South Sudan as a case study in the language of diplomacy. It is a story less about peace achieved, and more about how recognition itself becomes part of China’s global self-presentation.

This tension between what is and what is being communicated in contexts of peace and conflict runs through much of my work. Over the past few years, I’ve explored how policy, perception, and narrative intersect in China’s engagement with the Global South. Through regular contributions to The China Global South Project, I’ve written about China’s presence across East Africa and the Middle East.

This new piece connects that ongoing inquiry with my academic roots — and with the fieldwork at the heart of my PhD. During that research, I spent extended periods among the Chinese community in Juba, studying how peace and security were lived, discussed, and understood from within. These experiences continue to shape how I approach questions of language, diplomacy, and credibility in international settings.

The article appears against a shifting backdrop. South Sudan once again faces rising insecurity, with conflict spreading in the north and political struggles testing a fragile peace. Juba today feels markedly less stable than it once did. It’s a reminder to ask what “peacekeeping” really means — and whose narratives define it.

→ Read the full article on The China Global South Project

Photo: Members of China’s peacekeeping battalion receiving UN medals for service in Juba, South Sudan (2017). Via Flickr, by Eric Kanalstein / UNMISS — used under a Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 license.

Oct 02

Chinese food in Germany

By Food

If you often deal with people who have experience of China, or have even been to Asia yourself, then this problem will not be unknown to you: The food even in a not cheap Chinese restaurant in Germany may simply not taste the same as what you could get everywhere in Asia after all. In fact, it is not easy to find authentic Chinese food in Germany, perhaps precisely because migration from China to Germany, unlike in the UK for example, started relatively late.

In this very entertaining and entertaining TedTalk, Jennifer Lee takes a close look at “Chinese” food abroad, noting that different countries have their very own Chinese cuisine, always tailored to local tastes. In doing so, she also shows how the understanding of what Chinese eat reflects the historical development of the Chinese minority in the US.

From her own experience, however, this is also the case with European food in Asia. And besides, there is an increasing amount of good Chinese food everywhere in Germany, and even restaurants that specialise in one of China’s many regional cuisines. Feel free to contact me if you need restaurant recommendations!

 

 

Feb 01

Understanding the Chinese calendar and Chinese zodiac

By Chinese Culture

As you might have read or seen on TV, the Chinese cultural sphere celebrated the Spring Festival, also known as Chinese New Year, in late January. You might also have seen that the lunar year that began on 28th January is known as the year of the rooster. If you have wondered about the story behind the Chinese zodiac, this TedEd video outlines perfectly how this cycle works, and also provides great insight into the traditional calendar still applied in the Chinese-speaking world and other countries such as Korea and Vietnam to date. Prior to adoption of the Gregorian calendar for official purposes, this calendar had been used for all occasions — which actually makes the work of historians even harder, as 60 years was the longest period of time that could be measured under this system: Once the 60 years were up, the cycle would restart at year 1. To make matters even more complicated, each new emperor ascending to the throne would announce a new era name — and the cycle would restart at 1, regardless of which year it had been. But that would be a story for another post.

 

Aug 10

A Little Introduction to Conference Interpreting

By Interpreting

This little TedTalk by professors teaching on the MA Conference Interpreting at the Monterrey Institute of International Studies (MIIS) is great introduction to the two main modes of conference interpreting: simultaneous and consecutive interpreting.