Over the years, Kundiman’s national network of Regional Groups have provided opportunities for AAPI writers to build community locally. In 2025, our ten Regional Groups held over 38 events, bringing together hundreds of writers across the country and internationally. Writers convened for a variety of events — readings, workshops, salons, book clubs, hikes, and more — to discuss literature, generate work, and celebrate each other’s accomplishments.
Kundiman Hawai'i reading with Mixing Innovative Arts in Honolulu, featuring Anjoli Roy, D. Keali'i MacKenzie, Misty Sanico, and Amanda Huynh. Photo credit: Megan Kamalei Kakimoto
Many gatherings were held in partnership with neighborhood businesses and organizations, providing Regional Group members with the opportunity to meet fellow artists within their region while supporting their local community.
Below is a sampling of some events and highlights from this past year:
-Kundiman Midwest presented “A Night in Brooklyn,” a reading featuring Jeremy Gordon, R.A. Villanueva, and Tyriek White at Pilsen Community Books in Chicago.
-Kundiman Hawai‘i hosted a reading with Hawai‘i-based writers Anjoli Roy, D. Keali'i MacKenzie, Misty Sanico, and Amanda Huynh to celebrate the return of the Mixing Innovative Arts (MIA) Literary Series, one of the longest-running arts series in Honolulu.
-Kundiman Northeast rang in the Year of the Snake with a Lunar New Year dinner in Connecticut.
-Kundiman Mountain West organized over ten events this year including a mindfulness hike, picnic, and writing session in the Spring Mountains in Las Vegas.
-Kundiman Southwest held “Excavating Personal History,” a panel with Susan Nguyen, Zoë Luh, Sylvia Chan, Lan Lesmeister, and Shipra Agarwal at Desert Nights, Rising Stars Conference at ASU Tempe in Arizona. The panelists discussed ways to translate our ancestral histories onto the page.
-Kundiman South opened up the opportunity for folks within their Regional Group to use towards in-person, local community-based events with a literary element. They sponsored a two-part series poetry open mic at 2nd & Charles Bookstore in Kennesaw, Georgia, organized by Yong Takahashi; and an exhibition, museum night, and receptions of drawings of refugee resettlement in Gainesville, Florida, organized by Terrence Ho.
-Kundiman Pacific Northwest partnered with Common Area Maintenance to host a book launch in Seattle for Ching-In Chen’s collection Shiny City. The event was part of the Whispering the Future: Common Objects Bookstore Pop-up and featured readings by Ching-In Chen and special guests Ebo Barton, William Nuʻutupu Giles, Paul Hlava Ceballos, Jenne Hsien Patrick, Jane Wong, and Shuxuan Zhou.
-Kundiman International presented a virtual two-part fall salon featuring writers from Belgium, Canada, Germany, Philippines, Switzerland, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom: Anna Alves, Neil Aitken, Sylee Gore, Melanie Hyo-In Han, Miriam Ho Nga Wei, Denise Melanie Du Lagrosa, Hanna Lee, Vivian Li, Emerald Liu, Yilin Wang, Juliana Feliciano Reyes, Dojiang Wang, and Yun Wei.
Hike & Write in the Spring Mountains in Las Vegas with Kundiman Mountain West. Photo credit: JM Huck
Kundiman Midwest reading “A Night in Brooklyn,” with Jeremy Gordon, R.A. Villanueva, and Tyriek White at Pilsen Community Books in Chicago.
Photo credit: Helene Achanzar
Kundiman Southwest “Excavating Personal History” panel at Desert Nights, Rising Stars Conference in Arizona, featuring Susan Nguyen, Zoë Luh, Sylvia Chan, Lan Lesmeister, and Shipra Agarwal.
Kundiman Northeast Lunar New Year celebration in Connecticut.
Photo credit: Angela Siew
Growing From Our Roots: An Asian Debut Showcase, an AWP25 offsite reading at Art Share L.A., featuring Asha Thanki, Tarik Dobbs, Summer Farah, Grace Loh Prasad, Megan Pinto, Jessica Nirvana Ram, Rhoni Blankenhorn, Jimin Seo, Joseph Han, and Sophia Terazawa. Photo credit: Kundiman South
We’re deeply grateful to the Kundiman regional chairs for organizing these events and so many more: Kathy Chow and Thuy Phan (Northeast), Helene Achanzar (Midwest), JM Huck (Mountain West), Tiffany Mi and Joshua Nguyen (South), Anushah Jiwani and Shella Parcarey (Southwest), Ching-In Chen and Asela Lee Kemper (Pacific Northwest), Isa Maloof (Northern California), Jessica Abughattas and Kien Lam (Southern California), Joseph Han & Megan Kamalei Kakimoto (Hawai‘i), and Neil Aitken (International). Learn more about the regional chairs here. Browse our calendar to check out other recent Regional Group happenings.
Whispering the Future: Common Objects Bookstore Pop-up in Seattle, co-sponsored by Kundiman Pacific Northwest, and featuring Ching-In Chen, Ebo Barton, William Nuʻutupu Giles, Paul Hlava Ceballos, Jenne Hsien Patrick, Jane Wong, and Shuxuan Zhou. Photo credit: Ching-In Chen
Photo credit: Ching-In Chen
Flyers for a virtual Fall Salon presented by Kundiman International.
Kundiman Mountain West craft talk with Claire Jia and Willa Zhang. Photo credit: Claire Jia
Kundiman Mountain West workshop with Claire Jia. Photo credit: Claire Jia
An exhibition at Matheson History Museum in Florida, featuring artwork by Terrence Ho and co-sponsored by Kundiman South. Photo credit: Foad Seyed Mohammadi
A Museum night at Harn Museum in Florida, co-sponsored by Kundiman South. Photo credit: Foad Seyed Mohammadi
A poetry open mic at 2nd & Charles Bookstore in Georgia, co-sponsored by Kundiman South.
Photo by Yong Takahashi
Every Drop & Friends: A Paperback Party with Kundiman Hawaiʻi at da Shop in Honolulu. Photo credit: Kundiman Hawaiʻi
The spaces cultivated by our Regional Groups served as a much-needed salve this year and a reminder that writing is not a siloed activity, but rather, one that thrives through connection.
Thank you to all who attended a Regional Group event in 2025! We hope to see you next year. If you’re interested in joining a Regional Group, sign up here.