Palden Gyal is a doctoral student in Tibetan and late imperial Chinese history. He holds a B.A. in philosophy and an M.A. in philosophy of religion and Buddhist studies. Palden’s research interests lie broadly at the intersections of religion, ethics, and political theory. His dissertation project focuses on the practices of governance, the political and institutional history of Tibetan communities in the Sino-Tibetan borderlands from the 18th to the 20th century.