Yung Lin received her PhD in Security and Global Affairs from Leiden University in December 2025. Her research examines identity-based conflict, public diplomacy, and non-traditional security in the Indo-Pacific.

More information about Yung Lin

Yung Lin received her PhD in Security and Global Affairs from Leiden University in December 2025. Her research focuses on identity-based conflict, public diplomacy, and non-traditional security in the Indo-Pacific.

Her doctoral research examines how state and non-state actors, including civil society, diaspora communities, and public institutions, shape security practices beyond traditional military frameworks. Focusing on Taiwan and the broader Indo-Pacific, her work explores how political institutions, historical narratives, and economic interdependence interact to shape both conflict and cooperation. Employing qualitative methods, including document analysis and semi-structured interviews, her research analyzes Taiwan’s public diplomacy and its implications for identity, soft power, and regional security. Her recent publications also engage with conceptual debates on human security and de facto sovereignty, with a comparative focus on Taiwan and Northern Cyprus.

More broadly, her work contributes to interdisciplinary discussions at the intersection of International Relations, area studies, and security studies. It develops a human-centered approach to geopolitics, emphasizing the role of society, identity, and transnational connections in shaping security outcomes, while also aiming to bridge academic research and policy-relevant insights. She is also engaged in public-facing writing on Indo-Pacific security and Taiwan, contributing to broader discussions beyond academia.

In addition to her research, she is actively involved in teaching at Leiden University, where she contributes to courses for the Bachelor’s programme in International Studies. She has taught courses including Sociolinguistics, Political Economy of East Asia, Global Political Economy, Introduction to International Studies, and International Relations. She has also supervised third-year students’ consultancy group projects in the course Practising International Studies. Her teaching reflects her research interests, with an emphasis on critical approaches to security and the role of society in global politics.

Fields of interest

• Human security and non-traditional security
• Public diplomacy and soft power
• Civil society and diaspora politics
• Taiwan and cross-strait relations
• Indo-Pacific regional security
• De facto states and international recognition
• Qualitative and interpretive research methods

Publications