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In this issue: Follow us on International Studies Public Forum (ISPF) Unless noted otherwise, ISPF is held on Thursday evenings in Social Science Plaza A Room 1100 | 5:00-6:20 pm
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The Global Commons–Institute for International, Global and Regional Studies (IIGaRS) - Spring 2015
UCI is a place where the concept of the “commons”—the physical and virtual spaces of cultural, intellectual, social and political exchange that are available to all—“goes global” virtually every day. From the Arctic to the Antarctic and (nearly) everywhere in between, UCI students and faculty continue to create dynamic events with international, global, and regional implications. Please check out some of the numerous exciting events that have happened across campus in past months. Our goal is for our newsletter—and website—to showcase past and future international, global and regional events taking place at UCI. We welcome both individual contributions and information from research centers, institutes, and departments. If you would like us to link your center or department to ours (http://www.iigars.socsci.uci.edu), please contact Hallee Caron at hcaron@uci.edu. WHO CARES?: Workshop on the Economies, Technologies, and Ethics of Aid | October 1-2, 2015
The Institute for International, Global and Regional Studies (IIGaRS) invites proposals for papers or panels on the theme of "Who Cares? The Economies, Technologies and Ethics of Aid," to take place at UCI in early October. What has been called “the Great Aid Debate,” regarding whether non-governmental assistance to populations in need around the world results in improvements in social welfare or worsening economic conditions has played out in numerous scholarly works, best-selling, popular books and ever-increasing numbers of news articles over the past several years. Yet the popular discussion tends to remain fairly superficial, focusing on aid efficiency and measurable economic results rather than the historical, socio-cultural and political tensions and contradictions in aid provision, and the scholarly discussion has not sufficiently bridged the gap between socio-cultural critiques and the understanding of emerging technologies and economies of aid. In keeping with the purpose of IIGaRS -- to foster collaborations across campus and produce new knowledge on critical issues that cross borders -- papers and panels in this workshop should probe aspects of the economies, technologies and ethics of aid, drawing on faculty and graduate students across campus (Social Sciences, Humanities, Arts, Public Health, Physics and Chemistry, Engineering, ICS, Social Ecology, Law, etc.), along with a targeted selection of invited guests from outside of UCI. Papers and panels might address, for example, how technologies (past and present) have shaped and are shaping the aid landscape, from medical technologies to agricultural and engineering innovations, the increasing use of social media, twitter, blogs, and websites by NGOs vis-a-vis donor practices (religious, corporate, state, international organization) of the past, the changing legal architecture of aid, critical environmental threats that are changing the aid landscape (climate change, water shortages, farming practices, air pollution), new technologies used to assess and monitor them (including drones), and the ethics of aid practices of the past and present. Panels can also be developed using innovative formats, including new media and the arts. We envision the production of an edited volume with selections from workshop presentations. Co-sponsors thus far include the Forum for the Academy and the Public, the Literary Journalism Program, the Center on Ethics and Morality, the Newkirk Center for Science and Society, the Center for Biotechnology and Global Health Policy, and Humanities Commons. We invite all interested centers, institutes, and departments to co-sponsor this event. For more information about the workshop or how to submit paper and panel proposals, see the IIGARS Website or contact Hallee Caron at hcaron@uci.edu. Numerous events and activities at UCI this year have crossed regional, global, and international boundaries. Students for Global Peacebuilding held several events for their 3rd Annual UCI Peace Week. SGP members also blogged about their experiences at a travel research symposium in Costa Rica.
The International Studies Public Forum (ISPF) and the Department of History teamed up to host a talk by Annette Becker, Professor of Contemporary History, Université Paris Ouest, Nanterre La Defense: "Civilians in a Global War, a New Paradigm."
ISPF featured two events focusing on the complexities and inequities of the global economy. Professor Saskia Sassen of Columbia University spoke about her new book Expulsions: Brutality and Complexity in the Global Economy and UC Berkeley Professor and former U.S. Secretary of Labor Robert Reich screened his film Inequality for All. Political Science Professor Kristen Monroe was featured on a CBC program discussion about what factors contribute to the bystander effect. The History Graduate Student Association hosted their annual conference Negotiating the Public Sphere: Rethinking History from Below. The UCI Center for Ethnography hosted a workshop exploring the relevance of fieldwork for anthropological projects. The Center in Law, Society and Culture (CLSC) hosted presentations by Peterson fellows that featured a wide range of topics that touched on international themes. Several centers and departments co-sponsored “Death Sentences: The Art and Science of Writing about Disease and Disaster”: a public conversation between epidemiologist Elizabeth Pisani and Erika Hayasaki, moderated by Amy Wilentz (UCI Literary Journalism). The Institute of International, Global and Regional Studies (IIGaRS), the Center in Law, Society and Culture (CLSC), the Graduate Student International Relations Group, and the Law, Reason and Values Group co-sponsored a series of three workshops with Professor Nicholas Onuf on “The Problem of the International.” Other departments and centers collaborated on a wide range of programs and events on biosecurities, imperialism, the transoceanic data network, histories of capitalism, and human geography. Various honors and awards were accorded to UCI faculty with international and transnational interests including (but certainly not limited to):
The Liquid Plain by Naomi Wallace, a deeply moving play about the Transatlantic slave trade, was produced by UCI’s Drama Department and directed by UCI Drama and Theatre alum Jaye Austin Williams. Both Dr. Williams and UCI Drama Professor Gary Busby were interviewed about the play in the OC Weekly, and Dr. Williams also gave a talk in early March: “Theory-in-Practice: When and Where the Black Feminist Dramatic Enters." The University Art Gallery featured a group exhibition (Paradox in Language: What I look at is never what I wish to see) that investigated the influences of various strains of conceptual thought. The School of the Arts presented The Electra Project, an “anthropological project that aims to be a practical artistic experiment, as well as a meditation on the cross-cultural approaches that ancient Greek tragedy is generating when performed in our time.” UCI’s Guitar Ensemble hosted a noon concert of guitar music around the world with Irvine Valley College. UCI Professor of English and Religious Studies Jack Miles was interviewed by Terry Gross about his work on The First Norton Anthology of World Religions. Professor Miles is also featured in a Humanities Headlines talk on global warming and religion. ISPF hosted a lecture by Professor Zeki Saritoprak on perceptions and misperceptions about Islam and Jesus. The Muslim Student Union held several events for Islam Awareness Week including a one-woman play “Unveiled.” AbdouMaliq Simone came to UCI for a series of conversations on religion, race, and urban planning. The Department of Anthropology hosted its annual graduate student conference: Contingency and Commitment. The Olive Tree Initiative (OTI) presented a lecture from Carol Bakhos exploring the extent to which Christianity, Judaism, and Islam are Abrahamic. Africa The UCI Program in Public Health hosted a seminar on the Ebola outbreak in West Africa: "EBOLA: Six Weeks in West Africa-- Public Health, Nursing, Medicine, and the Threatening Pandemic." University of South Carolina Professor Jessica Barnes gave a lecture on “The Everyday Politics of Water in Egypt.” The CIHA Blog: Critical Investigations into Humanitarianism in Africa continues to provoke stimulating and timely discussion on a range of issues pertaining to humanitarianism and religion in Africa. Posts have focused on subjects like the narrative of Africa as "virgin territory," the idea of governments and aid agencies as "guardians of virtue," the promotion of neoliberalism in humanitarian projects, the complicated role of NGOs in Kenya, the making of the documentary Framed, which tackles the fascination of Westerners to "save Africa," the use of drones in humanitarian work, and the demise of the aid group Invisible Children. Artic/Antarctic The Newkirk Center at UCI hosted a two-day Program on Arctic Governance including a lecture from State Department Official Brian Israel. At the other pole, Eric Rignot, a UCI Earth system science professor and senior scientist at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory took VICE News on a tour of Antarctica, and also wrote an article for the Huffington Post Blog. Mindy Nicewonger, a PhD student in Earth System Science at UCI was interviewed by Grist about studying ultra trace gases in Antarctica. East/Southeast Asia ISPF and the History Department hosted a talk: “Fair Trade Fantasies, Vietnam Gaps, and Coffee Statecraft” by Gavin Fridell Professor of International Development Studies at Saint Mary’s University Canada. UCI faculty, students, and guest lecturers explored various aspects of China’s economic (Chinese Debt: Is it Sustainable?), social, and political (Xi Jinping’s Rule of Law at Home and in the World) past (Translating the Pathological Mind: Psychiatry and Modern China, 1900-1930), present (Hukou Reform and Rural Dispossession), and future (China 20/20: Looking Forward). UCI Sociology Professor Wang Cheng was quoted in both The Financial Times and The Diplomat regarding Chinese public sector pension management and population patterns. UCI History Professor Jeffrey Wasserstrom wrote an op-ed on “The Elusive Chinese Dream” for the New York Times. Political Science Professor and Tierney Chair in Peace Studies and Etel Solingen evaluated the potential for conflict with China at the John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum; and discussed a framework for peace and security in the Pacific at the Boston Global Forum. The Humanities and East Asian Languages and Literature Departments hosted Dr. Thomas Navarre of McGill University’s talk “Regional TV: Affective Media Geographies” on “new television” or “media regionalism” in East Asia. Eleana Kim, UCI Associate Professor of Anthropology was quoted in an article in New York Times Magazine on adoptees returning to South Korea. The Center for Asian Studies presented a discussion of anti-mainland sentiment in Hong Kong with Professor Yan Hairong of Polytechnic University and Professor Barry Sautman from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Dr. Songyuan Tang from Kunming Medical University, China presented his research on the Reproductive Health of Foreign Women in Yunnan, China. The Vietnamese American Arts & Letters Association hosted their biennial Vietnamese international film festival, including full features, short films, documentaries, and animation from more than 15 countries around the world. Europe UCI Political Science Professor Heidi Hardt published a piece for the Washington Post’s Monkey Cage on NATO’s role in Ukraine. ISPF hosted a talk from UC Riverside Professor Paul D’Anieri: “Anarchy in [the] Ukraine: How Ukraine’s Crisis Represents "post-Post-Cold War" Politics.” In response to the events in Paris this January, there was both a colloquium and Forum on Europe after Charlie Hebdo and a “pop-up event” on Charlie Hebdo. ISPF hosted a talk by Mark Blyth from Brown University: “Europe in 2015: When You Find Yourself Going Through Hell...Look for an Exit.” The Center for Global Peace and Conflict Studies hosted a lunch talk by Stergios Skaperdas, UCI Professor of Economics about Greece and the Eurozone. UC Irvine economist, Antonio Rodriguez-Lopez was quoted in the New York Times in January about Americans seeking deals on luxury goods as the Euro falls. Pulitzer Prize-winning Harvard Professor Caroline Elkins gave the David Easton Lecture for the Center for Ethics and Morality, challenging the audience to engage in Rethinking the End of the British Empire. Marc Crepon, a member of the National Center for Scientific Research, chair of the Philosophy Department of the Ecole Normale Superieure in Paris and director of the transdisciplinary Graduate School of Letters and Science of the ENS, gave a talk about the philosophical and cultural contexts of hatred. History Professor Timothy Tackett’s book The Coming of the Terror in the French Revolution was featured in an article in the Atlantic. South Asia The Department of Criminology, Law and Society hosted a talk for graduate students and faculty by Jody Miller, Professor in the School of Criminal Justice at Rutgers University: "Sex Work and Violence in Sri Lanka: The Politics and Practice of International Scholarship for Social Change.” Indrani Chatterjee, Professor of History at the University of Texas at Austin gave a presentation--“ The Outlines of a Programme to Decolonise Abolitionism”-- and met with graduate students. Samira Sheikh, history and Asian studies associate professor at Vanderbilt University gave a talk on the Indian region Gujarat that was sponsored by the History Department. The Americas The UCI Office of Global Engagement hosted a lecture and reception on the Mexican Space Agency Agencia Espacial Mexicana (AEM). Humanities Headlines released Episode 4: Endangered or Dangerous? Unaccompanied Children and US Immigration Policy. U.S.-Cuba relations warmed at the end of 2014 when diplomatic ties were formally restored for the first time in over 50 years. Emeritus Biological Sciences Professor Michael Clegg seems optimistic about further scientific exchange between the U.S. and Cuba in Scientific American. UC Santa Cruz Anthropology Postdoctoral Fellow Kristina Lyons exposed a disturbing aspect of US-Latin American relations in her talk “ Decomposition as Life Politics: Soils, Shared Bodies, and Stamina Under the Gun of the U.S.-Colombia War on Drugs.” Francisco Goldman gave a talk: “Can Mexico Save Itself? YoSoy#132 to Ayotzinapa and Beyond” about the disappearance of 43 students and the aftermath that followed. Middle East A number of events during winter quarter explored various aspects of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. UCI’s Olive Tree Initiative (OTI) hosted several events during OTI Week including a talk from visiting Professor Mohammed Wattad on the ICC and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Center for the Study of Democracy held a panel discussion on Israeli democracy. UCI’s Critical Theory Emphasis presented a talk by UC Berkeley Professor Judith Butler: “ Versions of Binationalism in Said and Buber.” UCI’s Center for Persian Studies and Culture presented a lunchtime talk by the award-winning illustrator, author, animator, and painter Rashin Kheiriyeh. The Center also hosted a discussion: Culture Wars in Iran: Repressive Tolerance or a New Modernity? The Olive Tree Initiative (OTI) invited Jonathan Gribetz to speak about his new book, Defining Neighbors: Religion, Race, and the Early Zionist-Arab Encounter. OTI also hosted a talk by Menachim Klein about the intertwined lives of Jews, Muslims, and Christians in Jerusalem, Jaffa, and Hebron.
UCI students Brennan Lagman & Jessica Pasa, both recently reflected on their year abroad in writing. Brennan eloquently summarized his 2013-2014 study abroad experience in a blog post entitled “Goodbye Ghana.” Jessica, who received a Humanities scholarship to study abroad in France back in 2004-05, recently published a book: Pas Possible: Falling in and out of Love with France. Thank you for reading, and please send your comments, questions, and contributions for the next Global Commons to hcaron@uci.edu |
Chancellor’s Professor of public policy at the University of California at Berkeley, senior fellow at the
Blum Center for Developing Economies and ISPF Speaker Robert Reich with Dean Bill Maurer, Professor Richard Matthew, Professor Kamal Sadiq, and Professor Cecelia Lynch
Keynote speaker Dr. Paul Farmer, Kolokotrones University Professor of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard University, and Partners In
Health Co-founder.
Members of Students for Global Peacebuilding in Costa Rica
Graduate student Bemmy Maharramov with Columbia
University Professor Saskia Sassen
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