A Turbulent Decade: Revisiting the Legacy of Taiwan's Sunflower Movement and Hong Kong's Umbrella Movement

On 19 March 2024, the Hong Kong Studies Hub hosted a jointly organised workshop with the University of Nottingham’s Taiwan Research Hub to mark the tenth anniversary of Taiwan’s Sunflower Movement and Hong Kong’s Umbrella Movement.

Over 50 participants joined this evening event, which brought together leading activists and scholars to reassess a decade of democratic mobilisation that transformed Taiwan-Hong Kong-China relations. City Councillor Jiho Chih-Hao Chang (Keelung), a veteran of the Wild Strawberry and Sunflower movements and former speechwriter to President Tsai Ing-wen, offered first-hand reflections on student activism, institutionalisation and the Democratic Progressive Party’s third consecutive presidential victory in 2024. Dr Chun-Yi Lee analysed cross-Strait political economy and the movements’ impact on Taiwan’s party politics and China policy, while Dr Desmond Sham examined the cultural and identity legacies of the Umbrella Movement, including the emergence of an overseas Hongkonger identity. Discussion explored continuities with earlier Taiwanese movements, connections and mutual learning between Sunflower and Umbrella protesters, and the evolving role of Taiwanese and Hongkonger diasporas. 

Following the workshop, presenters developed their insights in a series of blog essays jointly published by Taiwan Insight and the Hong Kong Studies Association Hong Kong Insight Blog. 

A Decade Later: What is the Lasting Impact of the Sunflower and Umbrella Movements on Political Activism by Dr Chun-Yi Lee.

Searching for Identity: Context and Legacy of the Hong Kong Umbrella Movement by Dr Malte Kaeding.

The Coming of an Overseas Hong Konger Identity and Taiwan-Hong Kong Identity: Reflection on the Legacy of the Umbrella Movement by Dr Desmond Sham.