Tag Archives: Research

Call for Proposals: 2023 Rustgi Undergraduate Conference on South Asia

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Identity and Cultural Dissonance 

March 31 and April 1, 2023

University at Buffalo, SUNY

The University at Buffalo, SUNY, is proud to hold its fifth annual Rustgi Undergraduate Conference on South Asia. We invite papers on the theme of “Identity and Cultural Dissonance,” which may be interpreted broadly in its social or political sense. The quintessential struggle with identity that the South Asian diaspora experience correlates to the importance of seeking out and understanding one’s origins. The 2023 Rustgi conference will feature a keynote lecture from New York City Council Member of District 39 Shahana Hanif, representing the divisions of Kensington, Borough Park, Windsor Terrace, and more. Her work in the community extends beyond her career as a Council Member: she has contributed to Participatory Budgeting and served as a tenants’ rights organizer and advocate for gender justice. 

Reused temple pillar, Qutbuddin Mubarak Khilji's Jama` masjid (since 1948, a Bharat Mata Mandir), 1318, Daulatabad fort
Reused temple pillar, Jamaʿ Masjid/Bharat Mata Mandir, Daulatabad fort (credit: Walter Hakala)

We welcome undergraduate participants studying South Asia from all disciplines to submit proposals, preferably but not necessarily working on any topic relating to the theme. Possible topics of discussion include: 

  • Identities in the diaspora
  • Identity in religion
  • Gender and identity
  • Fashion in identity
  • Identity and public health
  • Identity and politics
  • Online and offline identities
  • Names and identity
  • Burdens of representation 
  • Appropriation
  • Intersectionality 

This list of suggestions is by no means exhaustive. We encourage papers that explore sociopolitical issues, communities, or theories stemming from under-represented perspectives. We shall organize panels around presentations addressing similar issues that draw from various disciplinary perspectives, including the social sciences, natural sciences, engineering, management, humanities, fine arts, and others. 

Please visit https://bit.ly/rustgisubmissions2023 to submit proposals.

Format

The conference will be held on Friday, March 31st and Saturday, April 1st 2023. Student presenters should plan for 15-minute presentations. Each panel will include 30 minutes for discussion. Though the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic may require the conference organizers to shift the conference online, we have every hope of holding the event in person.  

Deadline

Proposals, including 250-word abstracts and the contact information of a faculty supervisor, must be submitted via the online submissions portal (https://bit.ly/rustgisubmissions2023) by Sunday, January 8, 2023.

When submitting abstracts, applicants must affirm that they will be enrolled as undergraduate students at the time of the conference. Those in graduate programs or not currently enrolled in an undergraduate program will not be permitted to present. The organizers reserve the right to confirm student status with their advisor and home institution.

Funding and Accommodations

We are able to provide a limited number of presenters with a travel subvention of up to US$300. Accepted participants who attend in person will also be provided with individual hotel accommodations. The University at Buffalo cannot provide any additional assistance or guidance to international applicants seeking entry into the United States. 

Inquiries

Please contact southasiaundergradconf@gmail.com for more information about the conference.

To view past conference programs, please visit 

The fourth annual Rustgi South Asian Undergraduate Research Conference is made possible by a generous gift from the families of Dr. Vinod Rustgi and Dr. Anil Rustgi as well as funding from the University at Buffalo Office of International Education. 

CfP: 2022 Rustgi Undergraduate Conference on South Asia (deadline Feb. 20, 2022)

CfP, Conferences, Funding, ,

(Mis)Information 

April 29 and 30, 2022

University at Buffalo, SUNY

Man seated at table in Barton Library (Bhavnagar, Gujarat)
Barton Library (Bhavnagar, Gujarat) Photo Credit: Walter Hakala

The University at Buffalo, SUNY, is proud to hold its fourth annual Rustgi Undergraduate Conference on South Asia. We invite papers on the theme of “(Mis)information,” which may be interpreted broadly in its social or political sense. The echoes of misinformation ring in all our ears today as we interact with information endlessly. Regardless of whether it is inadvertent or purposeful, the spread of misinformation has affected how we communicate and process “truths” in our world. The 2021 Rustgi conference will feature a keynote lecture from novelist, essayist, and journalist Dr. Michael Muhammad Knight, Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Central Florida. As a scholar, Knight has explored misinformation by contending with prominent descriptions of Islam in media, dissecting concepts of religious othering both within and outside the Muslim community. His works include The Taqwacores, Why I Am a Five Percenter, and Magic in Islam.

We welcome undergraduate participants studying South Asia from all disciplines to submit proposals, preferably but not necessarily working on any topic relating to the theme. Possible topics of discussion include: 

  • Censorship (of journalism and activist voices)
  • Role of information in religious conflicts
  • Disinformation 
  • Digital literacy 
  • Institutions that diffuse information 
  • Determinants of beliefs arising from information 
  • Future of misinformation
  • Ethics of information dissemination

This list of suggestions is by no means exhaustive. We encourage papers that explore sociopolitical issues, communities, or theories stemming from under-represented perspectives. We shall organize panels around presentations addressing similar issues that draw from various disciplinary perspectives, including the social sciences, natural sciences, engineering, management, humanities, fine arts, and others. 

Please visit https://bit.ly/rustgisubmissions2022 to submit proposals.

Format

The conference will be held on Friday, April 29 and Saturday, April 30, 2022. Student presenters should plan for 15-minute presentations. Each panel will include 30 minutes for discussion. Though the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic may require the conference organizers to shift the conference online, we have every hope of holding the event in person.  

Deadline

Proposals, including 250-word abstracts and the contact information of a faculty supervisor, must be submitted via the online submissions portal (https://bit.ly/rustgisubmissions2022) by Sunday, February 20, 2022.

When submitting abstracts, applicants must affirm that they will be enrolled as undergraduate students at the time of the conference. Those in graduate programs or not currently enrolled in an undergraduate program will not be permitted to present. The organizers reserve the right to confirm student status with their advisor and home institution.

Funding and Accommodations

We are able to provide a limited number of presenters with a travel subvention of up to US$200. Accepted participants who attend in person will also be provided with shared hotel accommodations. The University at Buffalo cannot provide any additional assistance or guidance to international applicants seeking entry into the United States. 

Inquiries

Please contact rustgiconference@buffalo.edu for more information about the conference.

To view past conference programs, please visit 

The fourth annual Rustgi South Asian Undergraduate Research Conference is made possible by a generous gift from the families of Dr. Vinod Rustgi and Dr. Anil Rustgi as well as funding from the University at Buffalo Baldy Center for Law and Social Policy, UB Community for Global Health Equity, UB Humanities Institute, and UB Office of International Education. 

November 3, 2018: Rustgi Undergraduate Conference on South Asia, University at Buffalo (deadline August 1)

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2018 Rustgi Undergraduate Conference on South Asia

Origins of the Contemporary

​November 3, 2018
​University at Buffalo, SUNY​

We inaugurate the first annual Rustgi Undergraduate Conference on South Asia by reflecting upon the great body of historical work done in this field and bringing historical analysis and context to the study of contemporary issues. We invite papers on the theme of “Origins of the Contemporary.” We may think of these origins as fixed dates or as strands of ideas and events buried in the colonial and pre-colonial past. The conference will feature a keynote lecture by Sujatha Gidla, acclaimed author of Ants Among Elephants: An Untouchable Family and the Making of Modern India (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2017).

By opening up the conference to both historical and contemporary analyses, we invite undergraduate ​participants from all disciplines, working on any topic. These topics include but are in no way limited to:

  • Modern political movements including Hindutva and New Right in India, ethnic and caste-based parties, leftist and Maoist movements.
  • Independence movements and postcolonial trends in present-day Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
  • New religious movements as well as reform movements and fundamentalisms within Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Sikhism.
  • Trends in domestic and international law, including NGO and INGO work.
  • Social issues, human rights issues, LGBTQ issues, gender and caste concerns.
  • Wars, genocides, ethnic or political violence, and refugee issues (in recent or long-standing conflicts).
  • Human migration, population shifts, and environmental issues.
  • Literary genres, artistic movements, new and old technologies, trends in South Asian cinema and pop culture.

While this list of suggestions is by no means exhaustive, we encourage papers that address less commonly researched sociopolitical issues, communities, or theories. We hope to organize panels with presenters addressing similar issues from a variety of disciplinary perspectives.Please visit http://bit.ly/rustgiconferencesubmissions to submit proposals.

Accepted applicants who submit complete proposals by August 1, 2018 may be eligible for a travel subvention of up to $200. Applicants should also seek funding from their home institutions. The conference organizers will assist participants in seeking affordable accommodations in Buffalo.

Format

The conference will be held on Saturday, November 3, 2018 at the University at Buffalo, SUNY​. Students presenters should plan for 15-minute presentations. Each panel will include 30 minutes for discussion.

Deadline

Proposals, including 250-word abstracts and the contact information of a faculty supervisor, must be submitted via the online submissions portal (http://bit.ly/rustgiconferencesubmissions). Those seeking travel subventions must submit their complete application (including a brief justification of expenses and efforts to seek supplemental funding) no later than August 1, 2018. Submissions will be accepted after this date on a rolling basis, space permitting, until September 7, 2018. Applicants will be notified about the status of their submissions and the  availability of travel subventions beginning in late August 2018.

​Inquiries​

Please contact rustgiconference@gmail.com ​with questions or ​for more information about the conference.

The first annual Rustgi South Asian Undergraduate Research Conference is made possible by a generous gift from Dr. Vinod Rustgi and his family.

AIIS Dissertation-to-Book workshop (deadline July 1)

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Workshop: Transforming Your Dissertation into a Book
Application deadline: July 1

Part of the Annual Conference on South Asia at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, this workshop aims to help a select number of recent PhDs to re-vision their doctoral dissertations as books.

To Apply: submit a SINGLE PDF FILE containing a current CV, the dissertation abstract, its table of contents, and its first chapter plus a draft book prospectus.

For more info and to apply, contact Susan Wadley: sswadley@syr.edu

Participants must arrange their own transport to Madison, Wisconsin for the Annual Conference on South Asia in October.