Michael Berry, director of the UCLA Center for Chinese Studies, has been selected as one of seven winners of the Taiwanese Cultural Collaboration Medal (文協獎章) in the field of international cultural exchange by the Ministry of Culture.
Due to the pandemic, he was unable to come to Taiwan and receive the award in person. Thus, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Los Angeles delivered the medal and certificate on the ministry's behalf to pay tribute to Professor Berry for his long-term efforts in promoting Taiwanese culture.
To mark the 100th founding anniversary of the Taiwanese Cultural Association (TCA) and highlight its spirit, 90 individuals were honored with awards this year. The award ceremony in Taiwan was held on Nov. 11, and Culture Minister Lee Yung-te presented the medals and certificates to the winners.
Berry's areas of research include modern and contemporary Chinese literature, Chinese cinema, popular culture in modern China, and literary translation. Taiwanese literary works that he had translated include "Wild Kids (野孩子)" by writer Chang Ta-chun (張大春), "Remains of Life (餘生)" by writer Wu he (舞鶴), and others. He received the honorary nomination of translation prizes from the Modern Language Association of America and the Association for Asian Studies. He recently edited "The Musha Incident: A Reader in Taiwan History and Culture (霧社事件：台灣歷史和文化讀本)" and he was also invited to serve as a judge for the Golden Horse Awards. For many years, Berry has been supporting MOC's branches in North America to organize Taiwan-theme activities and serving as a keynote speaker, sparing no effort in promoting Taiwanese culture.