Exploring Culture, Climate, and Connections
November 2nd, 8:30AM – 6PM
Capen 107, University at Buffalo, North Campus
Free and open to the public. Registration is required.
Register at: bit.ly/2019rustgi
Join fellow scholars and distinguished faculty from around the world for the 2nd annual Rustgi Conference on South Asia. Featuring keynote speaker Suraj Yengde, renowned scholar and activist from Harvard University.
This conference is made possible by a generous gift from Anil and Vinod Rustgi and their family, the University at Buffalo Asian Studies Program, Department of English, Department of History, Department of Comparative Literature, Department of Linguistics, Department of Anthropology, Department of Sociology, and Community for Global Health Equity.
Click here for the Online Conference Program
Opening Remarks 8.30A
Panel 1: Migration and Climate Change 8.45-10.00A
Chair: Dr. Sharmistha Bagchi-Sen (University at Buffalo)
- Mahwesh Buland (KIIT University), “Analyzing the Possible Impact of Climate Change Based Migration in South Asia and the Role of International Organisations.”
- Phariha Rahman (Binghamton University), “The Effects of Climate Change on Bangladesh.”
- Anuush Vejalla (Cornell University), “The Effects of Migration and Earthquake on Indigenous-Dalit Interactions within the Hill Region of Nepal.”
Coffee Break 10.00-10.15A
Panel 2: Conservation and Sustainability 10.15-11.55A
Chair: Dr. Samina Raja (University at Buffalo)
- Aditi Natarajan (Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts), “Exploring the ‘Gemeinschaft’: An Ethnographic Study on the Role of Community in Conservation in Uttarakhand.”
- Francine Barchett (Cornell University), “Waste and Women: A Gendered Study on Solid Waste Management in Telangana, India.”
- Jon Bessette (University at Buffalo), “Water Quality Pilot Study for Traditional Water Structure Revitalization in the Deccan Plateau of India.”
- Shermeen Imam (University of Virginia), “The Integration of Both Class and Workshop Based Approaches to Development and Empowerment Creates Longer, More Sustainable Development Towards Equity.”
Lunch 11.55-1.00P
Panel 3: Systematic Discrimination 1.00-2.40P
Chair: Dr. Shaanta Murshid (University at Buffalo)
- Oishika Neogi (Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts), “Global to Grassroots Transformations: The effect of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) on Muslim Women in Bangladesh and India.”
- Jordan Pilant (Yale University), “Sex Work in Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan: De Jure and De Facto.”
- Rachel Alexander (University of Virginia), “Mental Healthcare Delivery in Bangladesh: A System Which Forgets its Women.”
- Sarah Ahmad (Northwestern University), “Libraries, Partition, and the “Ahmadi Issue”: the intellectual development of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.”
Coffee Break 2.40-2.55P
Panel 4: Colonialism and Identity 2.55-4.10P
Chair: Dr. Peter Samuels (SUNY Geneseo)
- Peter Diamond (Brandeis University), “Queer Citizenship, Caste, and the Literary Public Sphere in Contemporary India.”
- Araxie Mehrotra (Ithaca College), “Love, Life, Marriage, Troubles, Alone: The Struggle for Indian Identity in Guyana.”
- Rory Green (Newcastle University), “The Colonial Ghost Haunting Myanmar: The Rohingya Crisis in Historical Context.”
Keynote 4.10P
Suraj Yengde (Harvard University), “Global Impacts on Caste and Racism”