The New York Conference on Asian Studies (NYCAS) is among the oldest of the nine regional conferences of the Association for Asian Studies (AAS), the largest society of its kind in the world. NYCAS has been represented on the Council of Conferences, a division of the governing body of the AAS, since the council was formed in 1977.

The organization was originally called “The Upstate New York Conference on Asian Studies,” with support principally from Cornell University, Syracuse University, and the University of Rochester. In 1975, the Executive Board voted to change the name to “The New York Conference on Asian Studies” to more accurately reflect how the organization had become a state-wide scholarly body with the active involvement of faculty from both large and small public institutions, as well as private universities and colleges.

Membership in NYCAS is open to all persons interested in Asian Studies. While the organization draws its membership primarily from New York State, participants in the annual conference come from throughout the United States and indeed the world. Each person registering for the annual meeting pays a membership fee to NYCAS, which is part of the registration fee, and then is considered a NYCAS member eligible to participate in the annual meeting and to vote in all NYCAS elections for that year. The membership is invited to nominate members of the Executive Board, who are elected in rotation at the annual meetings.

The annual conference is held on a different campus each year, usually during the last half of September or the first half of October. Besides panels and roundtables, NYCAS conferences usually feature an outreach activity for school teachers and/or the public, in addition to a cultural performance. Annual conferences, which are identified on the Past Conferences page, have been held since 1965.

Information on upcoming NYCAS meetings is available on the Upcoming Conferences page.

For additional information about NYCAS, please email the NYCAS Executive Secretary.