Caixia’s current research areas are in development studies, environmental governance and urban geography to examine the increasing global presence of China in development cooperation through a comparative lens with Japan. Her PhD research is through urban anthropology to understand how the transnational infrastructure initiatives launched by China and Japan form/transform urban spaces and environment in Southeast Asia.
She is a member of the research consortium under “Grants-in-Aid For Scientific Research” by Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (2019-2024) to explore potential cooperation between China and Japan in global infrastructure development under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).