Dr. Leon N. Kunz
I am a political scientist specializing in contentious politics and democratization, with a regional focus on East Asia (especially China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan). After completing my PhD in Politics and International Studies at SOAS University of London, I held positions as Postdoctoral Fellow, Lecturer, and affiliated scholar in the Departments of Government and Asian Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, where I contributed to building a new Center for Taiwan Studies.
My research examines how (1) activists’ organizational strategies affect movement trajectories and outcomes, (2) protest and social movements contribute to democratic transition (and backsliding) processes, (3) authoritarian states respond to popular challenges. My wider research and teaching interests include deliberative democracy, the politics of memory, and East Asian international relations.
Education
SOAS University of London
PhD, Politics and International Studies, 2021
Humboldt University of Berlin
MA, Research Training in Social Sciences, 2016
SOAS University of London
MSc, Politics of China, 2014
Free University of Berlin
BA, Political Science, 2013
Publications
„Strategic and Prefigurative Deliberation in Hong Kong’s Pro-Democracy Movement,“ Social Movement Studies, 1–19, 2025. Link.
„The Sunflower Movement, Ten Years On: Taiwan’s January 6 Insurrection?,“ Taiwan Insight, 2024. Link.
Book review, “Sunflowers and Umbrellas: Social Movements, Expressive Practices, and Political Culture in Taiwan and Hong Kong.” Edited by Thomas Gold and Sebastian Veg. Pacific Affairs, 2022. Link.
“The Public Nature of Civil Disobedience: Lessons from the Sunflower and Umbrella Movements,” Taiwan Insight, 2021. Link.
Grants & Fellowships
My work has been supported by a Taiwan Fellowship by the Taiwanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the National German Academic Foundation, SOAS University of London, Taiwan’s National Central Library, and the Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange.
Teaching
Comparative Politics: Japan, Korea, and Taiwan
Instructor, UT Austin, Upper-Division Undergraduate Course, Spring 2023
This course introduces students to the study of comparative politics by contrasting the experiences of Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. Topics explored include: Japan’s modernization and imperial expansion; the historical legacies of Japanese colonial rule in Korea and Taiwan; the emergence of the East Asian developmental state; dynamics of authoritarian rule and democratization; as well as the relationship between social movements and party politics.
Social Movements: China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan
Instructor, UT Austin, Upper-Division Undergraduate Course, Fall 2022
This course examines historical and contemporary expressions of contentious politics in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. Topics dealt with include: Rebellion and revolution in Pre-1949 China; mass mobilization in the authoritarian People’s Republic of China; Taiwan’s experience of democratization fuelled and followed by vibrant social movements; and the troubled trajectory of Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement. Moreover, we compare recent struggles over the environment, labor, women’s, LGBTQI+, and indigenous rights in the region.
International Relations of East Asia
Graduate Teaching Assistant, Undergraduate Course, SOAS University of London, Term 2 2018-19
Contact
leon.kunz@austin.utexas.edu
Leon N. Kunz 