Faculty Profile

Dr Charlotte Setijadi teaches Asian studies and Southeast Asian history at the School of Social Sciences. She is also the Coordinator of the Global Asia second major programme.

An anthropologist, Dr Setijadi researches Chinese Indonesian identity politics, Indonesian political culture, Chinese soft power among ethnic Chinese communities in Southeast Asia, and Indonesian diaspora politics. Her first book Memories of Unbelonging: Ethnic Chinese Identity Politics in Post-Suharto Indonesia (University of Hawai’i Press, 2023) explores how collective memories of state-sponsored ethnic discrimination have shaped Chinese identity politics in contemporary Indonesia. Dr Setijadi’s research has also been published in prestigious academic journals such as the Journal of Contemporary China, Asian Survey, Asian Ethnicity, and Bulletin of Indonesian Economic Studies. She has a number of on-going research grants and collaborations, including as part of a Singapore Social Science Research Council-funded multi-institution project entitled ‘The Anatomy of Choice: Southeast Asia Between the Superpowers.’

As an expert on Indonesia political culture, Dr Setijadi’s commentary has been sought after by international media outlets such as The Economist, The New York Times, Al-Jazeera, The Guardian, Financial Times, The LA Times, The Sydney Morning Herald, and Channel NewsAsia among others.

Qualifications

• PhD in Anthropology, La Trobe University, 2014
• B. Communications (1st Class Honours) & B. Business, Monash University, 2005

Research Interests

• Identity Politics in Southeast Asia
• Rise of China and its Implications for Ethnic Chinese Communities in Southeast Asia
• New Waves of Chinese Migrations into Southeast Asia
• Transnational Indonesian Migrations and Diaspora Politics

Course(s) Taught in SMU

• Exploring Asian Identities
• Southeast Asia: Past & Present
• InterAsian Migrations
• Managing Diversity in Asia
• History of Southeast Asia
• Global Asia Study Mission
• Global Asia Independent Study