Ngoc Lan Tran
Higher Degree by Research Candidate
School of Social Sciences
Faculty of Arts, Business, Law and Economics
Laura Tran is a Doctor of Philosophy candidate, whose thesis examines the chemical warfare of Agent Orange in the aftermath of the Vietnam War using sociological theories and qualitative methods. She is particularly interested in the politics of science on Agent Orange, the role of spirituality in the response of the warfare's victims, and how this has the possibility of developing into a critical discourse that may help overcome human-nature dualism.
Other interests include the undergraduate Work Integrated Learning experience and outcome, on which Laura has produced research for the University's Central Internships Team and later the Faculty of Sciences. She is committed to reading feminist theories and literary works.
You can occasionally bump into Laura's musings about food, culture, politics well as books and theatre reviews in the student magazine On Dit, where she is currently contributing as Sub-Editor.
My research revolves around many unchallenged areas on the topic of Agent Orange, particularly in the context of post-revolutionary Vietnam and its (geo)political relations with the US and China.
The multidisciplinary and multinational nature of the Agent Orange problem allows me to explore topics that seemingly have nothing to do with one another: chemical warfare; the politicisation of science and scientific certainty; Vietnam-US (and China) diplomacy; spirituality, animism, and critical discourse for ecological awareness.
Other areas of interest include Work Integrated Learning, feminist theories, and literature.
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Appointments
Date Position Institution name 2021 - 2021 Research Assistant The University of Adelaide 2020 - ongoing Teaching Assistant The University of Adelaide -
Language Competencies
Language Competency English Can read, write, speak and peer review Vietnamese Can read, write, speak, understand spoken and peer review -
Education
Date Institution name Country Title 2017 - 2020 University of Adelaide Australia Bachelor of Social Sciences (major in Sociology) -
Research Interests
Laura is a teaching assistant across a variety of Asia-related social science courses for the Department of Asian Studies. These include:
ASIA 1103 Asia & the World
ASIA 1104 Introduction to Asian Cultures
ASIA 3007 Beyond Asian Ecological Crises
Connect With Me
External Profiles
