< Back Lilly Schmaltz Contributor Lilly is an #importedAsian from China. She is currently obtaining her doctorate in cellular and molecular biology. Outside of her career, she advocates for human and adoptee rights. She aims to create safe and validating spaces for fellow transracial adoptees. Her love of reading and writing lead her to the world of book reviews and The Universal Asian . As a contributor, Lilly hopes to share her love of books that represent both hyphenated and imported Asians. You can find her at LillyFei.com

< Back Erika Fisher Contributor Erika Fisher is an #importedAsian from Korea; born in Seoul and raised in the U.S. While her professional background is in international education, she’s also worked as a freelance writer, editor, and writing instructor for nearly 20 years. Erika currently lives in London with her husband and two children, and has previously lived in Kenya, Thailand, and the U.A.E. You can find her at www.erika-fisher.com .

< Back Kath Pacao Administrative Specialist Her weekday life revolves around being an administrative professional and communication expertise from staff to presidential levels. She has a demonstrated history of working in various financial institutions and organizations. As her weekday might seem tedious, Kath’s weekend revolves around cosplay as a hobby. For more than 10 years, she’s been traveling around the world doing cosplay photoshoots, meeting new friends, and trying world cuisines. Kath’s goal is to connect with people on various platforms and do small actions to make the world a better place.

< Back Lauren Kofalt Contributor Lauren Kofalt is an #importedAsian. She was adopted from China at age one and is currently in the United States. Lauren has taken back her birth name of Zhu Ling Jin as of the past few months, and has been writing poetry since she was little and has always had a passion for it. She is currently attending Penn State University and is happy to share her poetry with our Universal Asian community!

< Back Kara Bos Contributor Kara Bos (Kang Misuk) is an #importedAsian from Korea to America, and is now a Dutchie—living in Amsterdam with her Dutch husband and two amazing children. Kara is an adventure-seeker discovering the world one country at a time (more than 50 so far!), an entrepreneur running a drowning prevention program Swim4Survival , and through her journey has become a resilient spokesperson for adoptees’ rights. She is determined to change the rhetoric of the more than 200,000 Korean adoptees searching for their identities and past; while also hoping to change the narrative of the definition of what adoption means to the average individual. Furthermore, she is a woman, wife, and mom, trying to do her best at all three of those while not sacrificing any of them.

< Back Samantha Der Contributor Samantha Der is a multigenerational #hyphenatedAsian. Her passions include lifelong learning; the humanities and creative arts; supporting socially conscious enterprises; and strengthening communities through family care advocacy. She graduated with a B.A. from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. She loves writing both fiction and nonfiction. Follow her on IG @samantha_der_writer

< Back Cynthia Landesburg Contributor Born in Busan, South Korea, Cynthia spent seven weeks with her birth family and the next four months in an orphanage and foster home before being flown to Washington, D.C., to her Jewish adoptive family as an #importedAsian. As a recovering perfectionist and overachiever, she left her legal career in favor of caring for her two sons, both adopted from Korea, and her biological daughter. She currently spends her day homeschooling her sons, chasing her baby daughter around the house, and spoiling her dog with a lot of walks to clear her head. And in the moments in between, she writes. Cynthia looks forward to exploring issues around parenting, adoption as an adoptee, and the overall adoptee experience. You can find more of her writing at her website, www.adoptionsquared.com .