Edgar’s research and teaching interests sit at the intersection between the global history of childhood and youth and the study of imperialism, colonialism and nationalism and the Cold War in Southeast Asia. His current dissertation traces the history of the making of “youth” in post-1942 Singapore. He has previously published on student activism in Malaya and Singapore. He is also a member of the UBC Centre for Southeast Asian Research and the UBC Inter-disciplinary Histories Research Cluster.

At UBC, he taught courses on Southeast Asian history as a sessional lecturer. Between 2011 and 2014, Edgar was an Instructor in History in the National University of Singapore’s Department of History, where he taught Singapore history, Southeast Asian history, U.S. history, and historical methodology to classes ranging from 30 to 450 undergraduates from a variety of disciplines.

Edgar also possesses more than fourteen years of experience in leadership and youth development, project and event management, and community development and leadership, as a volunteer for non-profit organizations, welfare organizations, and national youth leadership development programs in Singapore. His most significant positions were as an elected Management Committee member of the National University of Singapore Society and as Co-chair of the Young Changemakers Grant Panels, a national grant and mentoring program for youth-led community projects.

Edgar brings a dramatist’s sensitivity and intuition to his teaching and community work. He won prizes in a couple of playwriting competitions in Singapore and had his first play produced to mixed reviews (Ma Goes Home by Action Theatre) in October 2010. Since then, he mainly writes scripts pro bono for charity shows and programs in Singapore.

Research Interests

• Southeast Asian history and historiography
• Singapore history and historiography
• Student and youth movements, activism and politics
• History of childhood and youth
• History of colonialism and imperialism
• History of education
• History of the Cold War

Books

L.Kah Seng; E. Liao; L.Cheng Tju; S. Guoquan. Tangled Strands of Modernity: The University Socialist Club and the Contest for Malaya. Amsterdam, Netherlands; Singapore: Amsterdam University Press; National University of Singapore Press, 2012.

Articles/Book Chapters

E. Liao, “Other Kinds of Amnesia – Young Singaporeans and the Internet”, in Singapore Shifting Boundaries: Social Change in the Early 21st Century, W. Lim, Siddique, S., and Feng, T. Dan Singapore: Asia Urban Lab , 2011.

National:

2016-2019

Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship (Canada)

2014

Tan Ean Kiam Postgraduate Scholarship in the Humanities (Singapore)

University of British Columbia:

2020

President’s Academic Excellence Initiative PhD Award

St. John’s College Sir Quo-Wei Lee Fellowship

St. John’s College Reginald and Annie van Fellowship

2019

St. John’s College George Shen Fellowship

St. John’s College Charles C.C. Wong & Sophia Wong Memorial Fellowship

Faculty of Arts Graduate Award

2016

St. John’s College George Shen Travel Fellowship

Department of History Summer Research Fellowship

UBC International Tuition Award

2015

Faculty of Arts Graduate Award

Graduate Student Travel Award

2014

Department of History Fellowship

Faculty of Arts Graduate Student Research Grant

UBC Four Year Fellowship

National University of Singapore:

2007

National University of Singapore Research Scholarship

2005

Journal of Southeast Asian Studies Book Prize

2005

Tan Lark Sye Scholarship