The Asian Pacific American Religions Research Initiative (APARRI) is a scholarly network advancing the interdisciplinary study of Asian Pacific Americans and their religions.
Initiated by a group of doctoral students and early-career scholars who sought to support each other’s scholarship, APARRI conferences have fostered intergenerational engagement and collaborative projects centered on Asian North American and Pacific Islander religions since 1999.
For the last twenty years, APARRI has convened scholars, religious leaders, and thought leaders of APA religions, across scholarly disciplines, faith traditions, and secular and religious affiliations at our own and national professional conferences such as AAR/SBL and AAAS. From these meetings, we have built a network of stakeholders whose commitment to the study of APA religion in all its diversity—faith traditions, ethnic backgrounds, geographical locations, methodological approaches—has fueled the work of innovative scholarship and collaboration. Undergirding this network is a strong commitment to issues of race and religious belonging, with a focus on greater representation and inclusion.
APARRI’s vision is to create a society in which Asian Pacific American religions are valued, recognized, and central to the understanding of American public life. Our community promotes critical awareness of Asian Pacific American religions and fosters the next generations of faith leaders, teachers, and scholars. By advancing the interdisciplinary and engaged study of Asian Pacific Americans and their racial and religious realities through conferences, mentoring, research, collaboration, and community partnerships, we seek to ensure the legacy of Asian Pacific Americans religions within the broader religious and racial landscape.
Asian Pacific American Religions Research Initiative 