US-China Relations is the topic of a Bellingham City Club program featuring Dr. Kristen Parris, an Associate Professor at Western Washington University. Dr. Parris will discuss US flashpoints with China, domestic changes in China and common US misperceptions of its people and how Chinese Communist power functions. The community is invited to this free educational meeting on Zoom at noon, Wednesday, March 22. Early registration is recommended at https://bhamcityclub.wildapricot.org/event-5188006/registration.
Parris earned her MA in East Asian Studies and her PhD in Political Science from Indiana University. She joined the Political Science Department at Western Washington University in 1991
Dr. Parris’ research interests include Chinese Politics (Nationalism, identity and ideology, civil society, community governance), Authoritarianism, Citizenship and State Building. She has traveled extensively and conducted research in China and is a member of the WWU Center for East Asian Studies, an interdisciplinary program that draws upon the expertise of more than 20 faculty from across the university. She speaks and reads Mandarin Chinese.
Professor Parris teaches courses on Modern Government and Politics, East Asian Politics, International Relations of East Asia, Democratization, Chinese Politics, Citizenship and Nationalism, US-China Relations. As part of the Western Faculty Led Study Abroad Programs, Professor Parris has taken groups of students to China to study Chinese culture, community and citizenship. She also Past President of the Association of Asian Studies on the Pacific Coast (ASPAC).
Bellingham City Club’s mission is to inform, connect, and engage our community to strengthen the civic health of our region. Membership is open to all who support our mission and involves modest annual dues to pay speaker expenses and support operations. More information is available at bellinghamcityclub.org.
