Asian American / Asian Research Institute

Virtual Two-Day Facilitating Racial Equity: 2/17 & 2/18
2026-02-17 - 2026-02-18 | NY
Please note that this is a training happening over the span of 2 days.
Please note that there is a prerequisite course prior to taking this training. Participants are REQUIRED to take the Building Racial Equity: Foundation course.
Race Forward believes that racial justice is more important now than any other we have faced. We must embed racial equity into all of our daily operations and hold fast to a commitment that enables us to learn, grow, and practice racial equity work together.
As the world adapts to the pandemic, we will continue to offer virtual learning spaces that center on normalizing, organizing, and operationalizing racial equity in our work at every intersection.
One of the biggest challenges of racial equity work in organizations is building a culture where people feel supported to learn, grow, and practice together. Facilitating for Racial Equity is a workshop that gives participants the tools and practice to face this challenge. This workshop builds on the foundation of the Building Racial Equity workshop, equipping participants with the skills, frameworks, and practice that they need to facilitate their own racial equity workshops. Participants will engage with a behind-the-scenes view of how racial equity workshops are structured, built, and delivered. Participants will leave this training:

More familiar with the practices of equity-focused facilitation
With more comfort & fluency with naming social dynamics and guiding group learning.
Able to understand and recreate similar structures, frameworks, and exercises as the Building Racial Equity workshop.

Who we most want to reach and engage:
This training is geared towards people in organizations that are already mostly aligned in their commitment to racial equity and have already dedicated resources and collective labor. The organization should have staff education as a significant priority of their internal-facing organizational change strategy and have sent staff to participate in a Building Racial Equity Workshop.
We also welcome individual facilitators who facilitate conversations around race and racial justice.

Losar Family Celebration: Year of the Fire Horse
2026-02-17 - 2026-02-18 | Intrepid Museum, Pier 86, West 46th Street, New York, NY, United States
Join us for two days of hands-on learning and discovery as we celebrate Losar, the Tibetan New Year, during Kids Week at the Intrepid Museum.

Better Chinatown Annual Firecracker Ceremony
2026-02-17 11:00 - 15:00 (America/New_York) | Handball Court, Grand Street, New York, NY, 10002, United States
Come celebrate Lunar New Year with Better Chinatown at their firecracker event! It’s time to promote Asian culture through participating in a cultural and festive event with Better Chinatown.
Volunteers will be participating in the event through being mascots (dragons, panda, rabbit), participating in booths, as well as setting up and cleaning up!
Lunch will also be provided for all volunteers!! Vegan options are also included.

Career Ceilings Masterclass "Personal Marketing and Mentorship"
2026-02-17 18:00 - 19:00 | NY
Throughout the many events we have held over the years, one of the observations that comes out repeatedly is the importance of engaging in effective personal marketing, having a strong network inside and outside of the organizations that you are part of, and developing mentors. This event will feature insights from three accomplished panelists who have expertise on this topic from their current professional responsibilities as well as their own personal careers: Raj Gupta, Co-Chair of the Board of Advisors, Johns Hopkins GUPTA-KLINSKY India Institute; Former CEO, Rohm and Hass; Bob Lee, Chairman of the Board, Blue Shield of California; and Deb Liu, former President & CEO of Ancestry.
Peter Young, Committee of 100 Board Member and New York Regional Chair, and Chair of the Asian American Career Ceilings Initiative, will moderate.
After the conclusion of the fireside chat, there will be a Q&A session during which members of the audience may ask questions.

Weeds: A Germinating Theory Book Launch with author Kwan Queenie Li and Curator Kelly Ma
2026-02-17 18:00 - 20:00 | Head Hi, 146 Flushing Ave, Brooklyn, NY, 11205
Join us for the New York book launch for Weeds: A Germinating Theory by artist Kwan Queenie Li who will be joined by curator Kelly Ma in a lively discussion about this brand new book published by MACK as part of their new Sightlines series featuring essays looking at architecture from distinct points of view, each taking the perspective of a particular entity, history, discipline, or form of writing.

Theater: An Evening with Lloyd Suh, Shannon Tyo, Daniel K. Isaac, & Christine Mok
2026-02-17 19:30 - 20:30 | The Drama Book Shop, 266 West 39th Street, New York, NY, 10018, United States
The Drama Book Shop presents, in association with Jay Michaels Global Communications, An Evening with Lloyd Suh, Shannon Tyo, Daniel K. Isaac, & Christine Mok- A Talkback, signing and live podcast recording.

Teaching AAPI Cross-Cultural Solidarity to Grades 6-12
2026-02-18 10:00 - 11:00 | NY
Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities have played active roles in U.S. history, yet their narratives and contributions are often overlooked. When included in curricula, AAPI stories are frequently taught in isolation, with little attention paid to moments of cross-cultural solidarity and collective struggle with other communities. This workshop seeks to bridge that gap by equipping educators with historical context, shared narratives and tools to teach AAPI history through a lens of connection and solidarity.

A4 Insider: Commercial Casting for Actors
2026-02-18 12:00 - 13:00 | NY
Join Asian American Arts Alliance (A4) for A4 Insider, a new series that invites established artists and arts leaders for candid discussions with emerging artists on navigating professional industries. Held in a free virtual format, presenters will share practical advice and address often gatekept industry knowledge, with the aim of building confidence and community for the next generation of creatives.

“Archival Interregnum: Caste, Sexuality, Indenture,” A Lecture by Anjali Arondekar
2026-02-18 18:00 - 20:00 | 19 University Place, Great Room, 19 University Place, first floor, New York, NY, United States
Presented by the Comparative Approaches to the Literatures of Africa, the Middle East, and the Global South (CALAMEGS) 2025-26 Lecture Series. Co-sponsored by the Asian/Pacific/American Institute at NYU, NYU Department of Social & Cultural Analysis, and Center for the Study of Gender & Sexuality at NYU.

The Troublemaker: How Jimmy Lai Became a Billionaire...and China's Most Feared Critic - Mark Clifford in Conversation with Evan Osnos
2026-02-18 18:30 - 20:00 | CUNY Graduate Center (Elebash Recital Hall), 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY, 10016
Learn about the extraordinary story of businessman, democracy activist, and political prisoner Jimmy Lai.

Who Gets to Belong?: Teaching About AAPI Citizenship History 4-12
2026-02-19 10:00 - 11:00 | NY
Join The Asian American Education Project for a live, virtual workshop. This interactive session will explore the pivotal role Asian Americans have played in shaping U.S. history, particularly in the realm of citizenship and immigration. Participants will delve into the landmark case of United States v. Wong Kim Ark, which secured birthright citizenship under the Fourteenth Amendment. The workshop will also highlight the powerful story of Tereza Lee, often recognized as the first “DREAMer,” whose experience helped ignite a national conversation on undocumented youth and immigration reform. Educators will leave with a deeper understanding of these narratives as well as ready-to-use lesson plans and classroom materials.

Indigenizing in the Spanish Empire: An African Perspective
2026-02-19 19:00 - 20:30 | NYU Espacio de Culturas, 53 Washington Square S, New York, NY, 10012, United States
Join us for the inaugural lecture by Andrés Bello Chair Enrique Okenve (University of the West Indies), exploring the contested meanings of “indigenous” in Equatorial Guinea within the history of the Spanish Empire. The talk examines how colonial policies, memories, and local resistance shaped processes of indigenization across Africa, the Americas, and the Pacific. Introduced by Monique Bedasse and moderated by Adrian de León (NYU History).
This program co-sponsored by the Department of History and the Center for Latin American Studies.

Korean Travel: Survival Language & Tips Workshop
2026-02-20 08:00 - 17:00 | NY
Planning to travel to Korea soon? In this fun and engaging workshop, you learn how to navigate around Korea.
You will learn how to introduce yourself, ask for directions, order in a restaurant, and ask the price of things as well as how to say hello, thank you, excuse me in Korean and much, much more!
And, you explore key etiquette practices including: greetings and bowing, dining protocols, passing items and gift giving. Suggestions on what to do and see, where and how to get a taxi, and maneuvering public transportation are also provided. Language instruction is in English and Korean. Etiquette and tip instructions are in English.
This workshop is open to ages 16+.
Materials will be provided in class.

2026 Jerome Krase Awards Ceremony
2026-02-20 13:00 - 14:30 | CUNY Graduate Center – Skylight Room, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY, 10016
The Jerome Krase & Sandi Cooper Awards are new awards from CUNY Academy, to be presented each year to associate professors at CUNY in recognition of outstanding research in the humanities or sciences, including social and life sciences.
The awardees are selected among a large group of nominees of associate professors from all CUNY campuses and receive university-wide recognition of their work. The awards are named after Jerome Krase, founding member of the CUNY Academy, and longstanding member of the CUNY Academy board.

Contemporary art and ecological Transformation in East and Southeast Asia
2026-02-20 17:30 - 19:00 | NY
Editor Meqin Wang, with contributors Midori Yamamura, Vicki Kwon and Stephanie Benzaquen-Gautier examine how contemporary art in East and Southeast Asia confronts environmental destruction, ecological degradation, and social injustice in the backdrop of global ecological crises.

Between Two Worlds
2026-02-20 19:30 - 21:00 | Bruno Walter Auditorium – Lincoln Center, 111 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY, 10023
JH Arts & IC Artists Series proudly presents an evening with soprano Jaeyeon Kim, an artist who is actively performing across the United States and earning recognition for her outstanding artistry and compelling stage presence.

Moon Over Manhattan: Lunar New Year Family Day 2026
2026-02-21 13:00 - 16:00 | Asia Society, 725 Park Avenue, New York, NY, 10021
Save the Date! Welcome the Year of the Horse at Asia Society’s 2026 Lunar New Year Family Day. Watch exciting lion dances and martial arts demonstrations, learn fun New Year’s music, make shadow puppets, enjoy Year of the Horse arts and crafts, and more.

Winter One-Act Festival '26 Program #23
2026-02-21 14:00 - 15:30 | Chain Theatre, 312 West 36th Street, New York, NY, 10018
Part of the annual Chain Winter One-Act Festival, this program showcases a curated selection of new theatrical works. The festival is a “mix-tape” of storytelling, featuring over 90 original plays ranging from comedy to drama. It highlights a mix of emerging playwrights and veteran artists from Broadway and television in an intimate Midtown Manhattan setting.

Did It Follow You In? by Aladen Gulmohamad
Molly Goes Dancing by Chloe Selavka
Telemachy by Michelle Cage

The 6th Annual Crazy Talented Asians & Friends (CTAF) Animation Festival for Short Films and Motion Design
2026-02-21 17:00 - 19:30 | Flushing Town Hall, 137-35 Northern Blvd, Flushing, NY, 11354, United States
Come celebrate the creativity of storytelling with a festival of animated short films and motion design by Asian American and Asian artists—and their friends! The 6th Annual Crazy Talented Asians & Friends (CTAF) Animation Festival for Short Film and Motion Design will showcase the work and talents of animators from across the globe. Join us at 5 PM to see award-winning animations on the big screen and stick around for our mixer at 6:30 PM to meet with the artists, jurors, and professionals from the animation industry!

MOCA CINEMA – Blurring the Color Line
2026-02-22 14:00 - 16:00 | Museum of Chinese in America, 215 Centre Street, New York, NY, 10013
Where did Chinese Americans sit on the bus during Jim Crow? Blurring the Color Line challenges the rigid Black-and-white narratives of segregation by centering the often-overlooked experiences of Asian Americans in the American South. While much has been written about the systemic oppression of Black communities under Jim Crow, far less attention has been given to the social positioning of Asian Americans during this period.
The Museum of Chinese in America is honored to host a screening of the documentary Blurring the Color Line, continuing vital conversations about the historical and contemporary relationships between Asian American and Black communities. At a moment when “Sinners” is competing for the Academy Awards and drawing renewed attention to Chinese American life in the South, this documentary offers timely historical context and deeper insight into the lived experiences of Chinese communities under Jim Crow. By tracing a shared yet complicated past, the film invites critical reflection on today’s racial tensions and the legacies that connect them.
Inspired by filmmaker Crystal Kwok’s grandmother’s memories of her family’s grocery store in Augusta, Georgia, the film draws from lived experiences within a Black neighborhood to reveal the contradictions and inequities of a deeply racialized system.
A post-screening talkback with filmmaker Crystal Kwok and additional panelists will follow.

Curator Tour - LEGENDS: Athleticism in Asian/American Art
2026-02-23 12:30 - 13:30 | Queens College – Godwin-Ternbach Museum, 65-30 Kissena Blvd - 405 Klapper Hall, Flushing, NY, 11365
Exhibition curator Jayne Cole Southard will lead visitors through the exhibition, sharing insights into its inspiration, featured artists, and the dynamic intersection of art and sport.
The museum is located in Queens College, Klapper Hall 405. The tour is free and open to students and the public. Registration is highly encouraged. To register, please email gtmuseum@qc.cuny.edu.

To Rule All Under Heaven: A History of Classical China
2026-02-23 15:40 - 16:00 | Brooklyn College Library, 2900 Bedford Avenue, Room 242, Brooklyn, NY, 11210
The first ever comprehensive history in English, by Professor Andrew Meyer (Brooklyn College/CUNY), of China’s Warring States period, an era that saw epic battles, the birth of profound philosophies, groundbreaking innovations, and shaped much of East Asian culture as we know it today.
Book Info: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/to-rule-all-under-heaven-9780197667484?cc=us&lang=en&

Making Sense of the Myanmar and Thai Elections: Complicated Processes, Fraught Results
2026-02-23 17:00 - 18:00 | NY
Speakers:

Joel Sawat Selway (Ph.D. 2009, University of Michigan) is a Thai-British associate professor of political science at Brigham Young University. He has published extensively on Thai politics, including a Cambridge University Press book Coalitions of the Wellbeing (2015) analyzing the politics of the 30-baht scheme, an edited volume with University of Michigan Press Regional Movements and Identity Demands in Developing Democracies (2024), plus over 30 journal articles and book chapters on subjects ranging from the politics of health in Thailand, Thai elections and electoral reform, ethnic inequality in Thailand, Thaksin and populism, regionalism in Lanna, Thai nationalism, and Buddhism and politics. He has recently completed two book manuscripts: a solo-authored work on regionalism in Thailand and a co-authored volume on Thai nationalism (with Jacob Ricks, Singapore Management University). He is the co-founder and managing editor of ThaiDataPoints, an academic blog on Thai politics dedicated to the application of transparent methodological and theoretical analysis of current events in Thailand.

Dr. Kyaw Yin Hlaing is the Chairman of the Myanmar Scholars Network and a Visiting Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS), Singapore. He has been actively involved in community peace-building initiatives across various regions of Myanmar and possesses extensive experience in conducting research on Myanmar politics.

Asian Americans in Focus: Data, Narrative, and Action
2026-02-23 17:30 - 19:00 | Columbia University (Pulitzer Hall), 2950 Broadway, New York, NY, 10027
Centering on AAI’s philosophy of Data, Narrative, and Action (DNA), this panel discussion will showcase several existing projects that analyze national and local data on Asian Americans, explore directions for future research, and discuss implications for policy and action.
Columbia Journalism School | 2950 Broadway
Lecture Hall, 3rd Floor

AAPI New York: Stories From Queens
2026-02-24 16:00 - 20:00 | CUNY School of Law, 2 Ct Square W, Queens, NY, 11101, United States
The Asian American / Asian Research Institute’s Localized History Project, and The Asian American Education Project, are building New York City’s K-12 Asian American & Pacific Islander (AAPI) Studies curriculum! New York City teachers, community members, and youth are invited for an interactive day of storytelling, community building, and curriculum development on the localized history of Queens’ Asian American community.

Serica Storytellers at the Noguchi Museum: Poetry, Memory, and Remembrance
2026-02-24 18:00 - 21:00 | NY
In honor of Day of Remembrance, The Serica Initiative presents a special salon-style Serica Storytellers gathering exploring Japanese American incarceration through poetry, translation, and community dialogue.
Hosted by AAPI community leader Julia Azuma, the evening brings together art, food, and memory. The program centers on By the Shore of Lake Michigan, the award-winning English translation of a 1960 tanka poetry collection written by Tomiko and Ryokuyō Matsumoto — an Issei couple forcibly incarcerated at Heart Mountain during World War II and later resettled in Chicago.

Asian American Career Ceilings “Advice and Networking Event - Finance"
2026-02-25 18:00 - 19:30 | NY
We are pleased to invite you to the 54th event organized by the Committee of 100 Asian American Career Ceilings Initiative. This virtual event will enable Asian Americans of all ages to get valuable career advice from experienced and successful Asian Americans in the Finance industry. We have been holding this event for different professions in the past and will continue to do so in the future.
We will start with welcoming comments and introduction to the advisors, followed by virtual breakout rooms where the experienced Asian American advisors will host individual breakout rooms that attendees can join. The attendees will have a list of the experienced advisors in advance and will be able to choose which breakout rooms they want to visit to get career advice and to ask questions. We will have breakout rooms for the different areas of finance. The attendees will be able to move from room to room as they wish.

Misremembering EDSA, 40 Years Later: A Reading and Conversation with Novelist Gina Apostol and Scholar Neferti Tadiar
2026-02-25 18:00 - 19:30 | NYU Wagner – Faculty Seminar Room, 105 East 17th Street, New York, NY, 10003
Presented by Sulo: The Philippine Studies Initiative at NYU, New York Southeast Asia Network (NYSEAN), and NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.
Join us for a conversation with Gina Apostol, acclaimed author who teaches writing at the Fieldston School, Barnard College, and The New School; and Neferti Tadiar, Professor of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Barnard College.

Voices Against Anti-Asian Hate (Screening & Discussion)
2026-02-25 18:00 - 20:30 | Philippine Center in New York, 556 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY, 10036
The Coalition for Asian Pacific Americans (CAPA), in partnership with the Asian American Bar Association of New York and the Asian American Law Fund of New York, invites you to a screening of “Voices Against Anti-Asian Hate,” hosted by Philippine Consulate General. The documentary, produced by AABANY and AALFNY, features a series of interviews with survivors and other individuals impacted by anti-Asian violence. The panel will address key issues surrounding hate crimes and anti-Asian bias. A reception will follow the event.

MOCA PERFORMS – Strings of Fortune
2026-02-25 19:00 - 20:00 | Museum of Chinese in America, 215 Centre Street, New York, NY, 10013
In celebration of the Lunar New Year, the Museum of Chinese in America is delighted to continue its partnership with the New Asia Chamber Music Society to present Strings of Fortune, a festive evening of classical string music. Blending beloved Chinese folk melodies with works by Asian and Asian American composers, the program weaves tradition and innovation into a vibrant musical tapestry. Artistic Director Andy Lin will shine a spotlight on the erhu, the expressive traditional Chinese string instrument, revealing its remarkable versatility and emotional depth. Join us for an evening of music that welcomes the New Year with warmth, resonance, and joy.
