Introducing Jamestown Perspectives
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At The Jamestown Foundation, we focus most of our efforts on understanding the world from the Bering Strait and the South China Sea to the Baltic and Mediterranean seas. The strength of our work comes from our analysts who reside in more than 30 countries and have direct, first-hand experience with the countries and developments they analyze. Too often, however, the presentation of analysis follows the pursuit of objectivity in sanitizing the writing and removing the analyst’s experience.
To help draw out the experiences and observations that enrich our understanding, we are launching Jamestown Perspectives. It will serve as a vehicle for articles that do not necessarily fit the traditional mold of our publications and that incorporate observational and experiential data.
Our first article will be the first in a 10-part series from Niva Yau, an extraordinary Hong Konger, who moved to Kyrgyzstan to develop an on-the-ground perspective of how the People’s Republic of China (PRC) operates in the world. As you will see in the coming months, her analysis would not be possible without her time in the field. Reading Ms. Yau’s direct observations offers readers a deeper understanding of the context from which her conclusions were drawn.
Jamestown staff will also add their observations from trips and high-level meetings. The first such installment will be my reflections on recent trips to Japan and Taiwan organized by the Sasakawa Peace Foundation and Global Taiwan Institute, respectively. Although the focus of these meetings was on Asia, officials and analysts in both countries share a growing concern about the ways in which Beijing and Moscow are growing together. What once seemed to be regional problems are now challenges for the United States and all of its allies, not simply those in Europe, Asia, or the Middle East.
Jamestown Perspectives will remain true to the spirit of our other publications. Our purpose is to continue to provide insights unavailable from mainstream media outlets and prioritize on-the-ground experience.
Jamestown welcomes article pitches sent to pubs@jamestown.org. The pitch should include the main argument and a brief explanation of how personal observations or direct experience informs the piece. A Perspectives article should provide analysis, not simply journalistic reporting. Pride of place will be given to articles that address issues that cross the regions covered by Jamestown’s flagship publications China Brief, Eurasia Daily Monitor, and Terrorism Monitor/Militant Leadership Monitor.
We are excited to launch Perspectives and hope you will find it valuable.
