Culture Ella Wu Culture On the Edge of Extinction: 'The Last of the Sea Women' Now streaming exclusively on Apple TV+. On the rocky shores of Jeju Island, a remarkable culture hangs on by a thread, embodied in the... Ella Wu Culture How Xenia Deviatkina-Loh Is Redefining Diversity in Classical Music Many people think of classical music as a thing of the past. Its compositions have stood the test of time, holding a unique place in... Ana Clancey Entertainment Bao Vo's Journey from Refugee to Artist Can you share a bit about yourself and how your Asian identity shaped who you are? Today I am an artist, music producer, and songwriter... A.D. Herzel Adoptees Korean Adoption Documents: The print portfolio The meaningful and meaningless documents that make up the story of my adoption inspired this set of digital composites. The first step in... OSH Lifestyle Food: Truly colorblind glue As I walked the streets in the Asian part of Rome near Termini Station, the Asian stores were mostly empty, perhaps as a result of COVID... OSH Entertainment Introducing Cathy Lu & 'ABCs for the American Born Chinese' Artist Cathy Lu, a 20-something American born Chinese, has launched her debut children’s book. She shares this with The Universal Asian,... 1 2 3

Entertainment Ella Wu Entertainment 'Interior Chinatown' Pushes You To Step Outside Your Lines All 10 episodes are now streaming on Hulu. At some point, we all wonder: are we the star of our own story or just another face in the... Ella Wu Culture On the Edge of Extinction: 'The Last of the Sea Women' Now streaming exclusively on Apple TV+. On the rocky shores of Jeju Island, a remarkable culture hangs on by a thread, embodied in the... Ella Wu Entertainment ‘Dìdi (弟弟)’ (2024) Is Quiet, Awkward, but Heartfelt In the summer of 2008, Chris Wang, a 13-year-old Taiwanese-American boy, stumbles his way through friendship, family, and identity. He... Ella Wu Entertainment Holly M. Kaplan Reflects on the Bittersweetness of Youth in 'Sunflower Girl' (2023) Skateboard wheels on asphalt and a mellow, pulsing instrumental ease us into “Sunflower Girl” (2023), a tender yet poignant coming-of-age... Ella Wu Entertainment Justinian Huang: Breaking barriers with queer-led romance novel The Universal Asian got to speak with Justinian Huang, author of "The Emperor and the Endless Palace." Lockdown in 2020 was a massive... Ella Wu Entertainment ‘The Tiger’s Apprentice’ (2024) “The Tiger’s Apprentice” (2024) is a fantastical, fast-paced animated movie that sits comfortably in its seat on the streaming platform... 1 2 3 4 5

< Back Jon Oaks Web Specialist Jon, aka 백승찬 (Baik Seung Chan), is a KAD currently living in the Detroit area. He is an award-winning professor of mathematics with over 17 years of teaching and tutoring experience. He values equity and believes that learning should be equitable for everyone. He is passionate about what he does, and his goal is to make sure every student knows that he cares about them. On a tour of Seoul in 2018 during his first trip back to Korea since being adopted, one of his friends gave him the nickname Prof. Seung Chan. The name has stuck with him as a reminder that he should be proud of who he is—past and present. He now uses the name Prof. Seung Chan on his weekly podcast with his friend Nick Ha. His hobbies include going to Detroit Pistons games, eating tacos, and drinking the occasional bottle of soju. One of his goals is to eventually visit every MLB Stadium and go to Paris when he retires.

< Back Erika Fisher Contributor Erika Fisher is an #importedAsian from Korea; born in Seoul and raised in the U.S. While her professional background is in international education, she’s also worked as a freelance writer, editor, and writing instructor for nearly 20 years. Erika currently lives in London with her husband and two children, and has previously lived in Kenya, Thailand, and the U.A.E. You can find her at www.erika-fisher.com .

World Ella Wu World Introducing Studio ATAO’s ‘Food Systems 101’ Studio ATAO is raising funds for their first food education program “Food Systems 101: An Introduction to the Politics of Food &... OSH Adoptees Book Review: 'The Global Orphan Adoption System' by Dr. Kyung-eun Lee "The Global Orphan Adoption System: South Korea’s Impact on Its Origin and Development" by Dr. Kyung-eun Lee is an informative and... 이영숙 Kristin R. Pak World Living as a Returned Migrant in Korea (Part 2 of 2) Reposted from Ildaro.com As Koreans from the diaspora who have returned to the motherland we are acknowledged by the government as part... 이영숙 Kristin R. Pak World Human Rights: My life as a migrant adoptee, 2018 (Part 1 of 2) Reposted from Ildaro.com Introduction: As someone who became a migrant through intercountry adoption, Kristin Pak has a unique... Dr. Kyung-eun Lee Adoptees Dialogues With Adoptees: Let’s make adoptees’ rights mainstream Reposted from The Korea Times This article is the 30th in a series about Koreans adopted abroad. Apparently, many Koreans never expected... Dr. Kyung-eun Lee Adoptees Dialogues With Adoptees: The systematization of ‘child exports’ for economic and political aims Reposted from The Korea Times This is the 29th article of the series. It is time to turn our attention to the least discussed, but the... 1 2 3 4 5

< Back Stephanie Fung Contributor Stephanie Fung is a #hyphenatedAsian . Born and raised in Hong Kong, Stephanie moved to Bristol in the U.K. at the age of 13 and currently lives in London. Her passion lies in writing and sharing stories of people. In 2018, she founded a media platform called Asians in Britain to share stories, amplify Asian voices, and empower and inspire Asian youths in the U.K. She recently also started a podcast called "High Expectasians" with her co-hosts Sanil Patel and Teresa Fan to discuss topics that highlight issues faced by the Asian community.

< Back Ella Wu Managing Editor She was born in China and grew up on the U.S. East Coast. She is an actress, writer, and filmmaker, finding inspiration in the world around her. She has a passion for storytelling, particularly stories that highlight any of the endless facets of the Asian/Asian-American experience. She is currently based in Washington, D.C., but has made it a goal to travel to every corner of the world.

< Back Ana Suli Clancey Contributor Ana Suli Clancey is a Chinese #importedAsian . She was adopted from Yueyang, Hunan at 18 months old and is passionate about traveling, eating, and connecting with nature. Ana is also an advocate for mental health. She was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and strives to raise awareness, especially for communities of color and adoptees. Also, when her mother passed away as a child, she buried her emotions for eight years. She found that being vulnerable, although painful, was the way to reclaim her power. Ana's goal is to fight systemic racism by sharing her story and creating equitable solutions. She strives for a future where leadership is representative of all backgrounds, and the voices of underrepresented folks are amplified instead of being taught to remain quiet.

< Back Cynthia Landesburg Contributor Born in Busan, South Korea, Cynthia spent seven weeks with her birth family and the next four months in an orphanage and foster home before being flown to Washington, D.C., to her Jewish adoptive family as an #importedAsian . As a recovering perfectionist and overachiever, she left her legal career in favor of caring for her two sons, both adopted from Korea, and her biological daughter. She currently spends her day homeschooling her sons, chasing her baby daughter around the house, and spoiling her dog with a lot of walks to clear her head. And in the moments in between, she writes. Cynthia looks forward to exploring issues around parenting, adoption as an adoptee, and the overall adoptee experience. You can find more of her writing at her website, www.adoptionsquared.com .

< Back Tara Footner Founder Her everyday identity is an English language educator, which she has done for over 20 years in Japan, the U.S., and the U.A.E. to fuel her passion for travel and experiencing the world’s vastness. However, like most, OSH holds a number of other identities including writer. With the dream of writing since she was eight-years-old, OSH has written for April Magazine and contributed to various other online publications over the years. Yet, none have quite satisfied a desire to provide our community with a platform to share our collective experiences, showcase our many talents, and inspire each other to express ourselves openly in an otherwise dominated society. Therefore, OSH’s aim as founder of this online magazine is to offer an open and safe forum for our varied voices to be highlighted and heard. You can also follow Tara’s adventures here .

< Back Heath Hyun Houghton Contributor A Korean American adoptee who grew up in rural Michigan and is currently based in Portland, OR. Heath Hyun Houghton is an actor, writer, and director. He holds an MFA in creative writing with a focus in playwriting from Goddard College and a B.A. in theatre with a focus in performance from Humboldt State University. He also studied Korean dance and performance styles in Jinju, South Korea, with USD Modern Dance. Poems and essays have been published in Spring Time Magazine and The Pitkin Review. Heath’s work has appeared online in Pif Magazine, MiGoZine, and Korea4Expats. He has also contributed lyrics to albums released by Ultraviolet Hippopotamus (“One Eye Shut,” Stop Watch Time Drop ) and The Turnips (“Move Your Ass,” Background Music ). His plays have been seen as staged readings in Jinju, Gyeongsangnam-do, South Korea, and in the U.S. in California, Michigan, and Oregon. He is currently an Ensemble Member with Theatre Vertigo and Linestorm Playwrights. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild and USA Gymnastics.

< Back Haiku Kwon Contributor Haiku Kwon, aka Laura Kruis, is a Korean American #importedAsian , writer, and wanderluster, who loves dogs, weightlifting, food, and connecting with others. Through her contributions to The Universal Asian , she hopes to demonstrate the importance of storytelling and sharing one’s personal truth to build community. Haiku has held many varied roles throughout her life and travels as much as possible, which has taught her that “home” isn’t always a place. Sometimes, it’s a moment. Blog: https://haiku-kwon.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/haiku_kwon/

Our Mission The Universal Asian is an open and safe online database platform in a magazine-style to provide inspiration to Asian adoptees (#importedAsians) and immigrated Asians (#hyphenatedAsians) around the world. We strive to mainstream discussions on topics related to pop culture, politics, lifes tyle, and more importantly help make our community of Asian voices universally heard . Our Val ues Anti-discrimination and abuse The Universal Asian will not tolerate racism, discrimination, violence, or abuse of any kind. We embrace diversity and are committed to ensuring a space, culture, and platform that is free from discrimination or abuse in any form. If there are any instances of racist, discriminatory, or abusive language used in deal ing with The Universal Asian or any of our collaborators, then we shall block the account immediately and call it out publicly on our platform. Honesty The Universal Asian is committed to being honest about our diverse experiences without sugar-coating or diluting the voices of our contributors and collaborators for what is shared is our TRUTH. Integrity Trust is essential to any organization. We build that trust through the actions and judgment of all The Universal Asian team — in our social media platforms, in our workplace and in what we post on the site. Respect The Universal Asian aims to build and serve a global audience that is vast and diverse representing the Asian diaspora. To do that fully and fairly, we treat our community — our readers, contributors, collaborators, and our team with the utmost empathy and respect. Collaboration The Universal Asian does not place itself in competition with others raising voices or sharing stories, but rather gives respect to and raises up the creativity and expertise from every part of the diaspora to fulfill our mission. It is our greatest aim to work together and support each other to provide a sense of community and inspiration to those who engage with us.

Essay Heather Lewis Essay Musings of a Middle-aged Matriarch: Finding my tribe There’s a sea of different people in this world. While everyone is unique and different, there are enough commonalities between us all to... Vanessa Nguyen Essay What It Means To Be Asian in America: Recognizing and breaking the cycle of trauma The rise in hate crimes against the AAPI community has left many of us questioning not just our identity as Asian-Americans, but how we... Cynthia Landesberg Essay Artificial Habitat Growing up, I lived in one of those unremarkable suburban neighborhoods everyone has seen and no one remembers. Two-story houses.... Heather Lewis Essay Musings of a Middle-aged Matriarch: How do you find joy? As adoptees, many of us have had to create our own joy. We have to work at joy because it doesn’t come naturally to us. We are too busy... Cynthia Landesberg Lifestyle Choosing Parenthood “I think, maybe, we should talk about starting a family,” my husband said one day, as we sat on the back porch of a winery north of our... Heather Lewis Essay Musings of a Middle-aged Matriarch: Looking exotic sitting at Cracker Barrel I was adopted into a small farming community with one blinking stop light. For all my life, I was surrounded by people who did not look... 1 2 3 4 5