Pengyuan comes to OHMA with a passion for literature and writing. She recently graduated with Summa Cum Laude in English from Tufts University, having decided that being a doctor may not be the most delightful thing in the world.

Her name, Peng, comes from Xiaoyaoyou, one of the sacred texts in Daoism. According to the story, Peng is a leviathan that used to occupy the oceans and then one day soars into the sky by metamorphasizing into a bird. The origins of her name, told by Pengyuan's mother and later read from Xiaoyaoyou by Pengyuan herself, sparked her earliest interest in storytelling.

Pengyuan's draw toward storytelling led her to fiction writing in college. Realizing what great influence and beauty a story can bring, Pengyuan is excited to pursue different forms of narration and explore storytelling through audio/visual mediums during her time in OHMA. She aims to use oral history to counteract censorship and broaden the range of voices and types of narratives that can be heard in public. Pengyuan is also planning to study oral history as a research methodology to see how the past impact the present as well as the future to come. During the past year, Pengyuan has been working as an editor and videotographer for Hunan Daily. She is currently participating in an oral history project against domestic violence. Pengyuan is thrilled to join the OHMA 2021 cohort and receive further technical training in interview strategies.