Zong-qi Cai, Professor of East Asian Languages and Cultures, is the recipient of the Distinguished Editor Award, the highest honor given by the Council of Editors of Learned Journals.

Cai received the award at the online Modern Language Association (MLA) Convention held on Saturday, Jan. 9.

The award citation read, in part, “The global impact of Cai’s editorial work is signaled by his efforts to bridge the work of North American and Chinese sinologists.” In addition, “Cai is committed to publishing interdisciplinary work by early career and senior scholars that brings new theoretical perspectives to Chinese literature and culture.”

Cai has founded (or co-founded) two Duke University Press journals:  Journal of Chinese Literature and Culture (JCLC) and PRISM: Theory and Modern Chinese Literature. He serves as editor-in-chief of both.

Additionally, in 2014 Cai resurrected a Chinese-language journal, the Lingnan Journal of Chinese Studies, which had been shuttered since 1952.

Cai also is the general editor of “How to Read Chinese Literature,” a 10-book series by Columbia University Press.