The Taiwanese-Dutch connection in historical perspective: cooperation, interactive learning, and circulation of knowledge.

This project focuses on the connection between Taiwan and the Netherlands from a long term perspective. This collaborative project brings together Taiwanese and Dutch scholars from historical and social science backgrounds, interested in the cooperation between Taiwanese and Dutch organizations and its impact on the circulation of knowledge, interactive learning, and knowledge building. In addition to sharing the transnational approach and focus on cooperation, all project participants will take a long term perspective and link the past to the present and vice versa. This means when investigating historical Dutch-Taiwanese relations we question how these determine the present, while the analysis of current cooperation will always take the historical roots into account. Finally, we will open the black box of the Taiwanese-Dutch relations by making in-depth analyses, which will reveal the underlying mechanisms of transnational cooperation, interactive learning, and knowledge circulation as well as the impact on social and economic development. The abundance of Taiwanese-Dutch relations and its long-term existence, make it interesting. Investments between the two countries are substantial. Since 2015 most foreign direct investment in Taiwan has been coming from Dutch firms, while also the Taiwanese presence in the Netherlands is striking, with more than 200 companies active. Examples of knowledge infrastructure connections are the presence of the Taiwanese Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) on the High Tech Campus Eindhoven. Dutch-Taiwanese connections have a long history, which does not only go back to the Dutch Formosa period. From the second half of the 20th century, Taiwan and the Netherlands were increasingly connected. Examples are Philips’ involvement in the Taiwanese economy from 1966 onwards and the establishment of a production facility in Lelystad by the Taiwanese bicycle manufacturer Giant in 1997. Nevertheless, this remains an under-researched topic. Transnational research on Taiwan’s development stresses the importance of the US-connection, while the Dutch received much less attention. Most studies on Dutch–Asian relations focus on the Dutch East Indies, Japan or China. Although there is increasing scholarly attention for the relationship between Taiwan and Europe, this interest is more politically oriented and often related to Taiwan’s current cross-strait connections with China. It is less focused on knowledge circulation and interactive learning. Also, those interested in transnational history in Dutch Formosa pay more attention to maritime and inter-cultural relations in the 17th century itself. Only recently became traces of the past in current Taiwan, especially in the domain of water management the focus of attention. The project will consist of several subprojects, which only will be final when the definitive group of researchers has articulate their contribution. Topics the current participants are interested in: • Electronics and semiconductor industry (e.g. the entanglement of the semiconductor industry in both countries with companies like Philips Electronics, TSMC, ASML, ASMI, NXP, Delta Electronics). • Water management (e.g. the organizational set up of irrigation districts in Taiwan; the involvement of Taiwanese water management experts in the IHE Delft Institute for Water Education). • Bicycle sector (e.g. Giant, Merida, innovative bicycle start-up VanMoof).