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Einaudi Center for International Studies

Classical Chinese | Wang Jinping, National University of Singapore

April 15, 2022

9:00 am

The Cornell Classical Chinese Colloquium (CCCC) is pleased to welcome Wang Jin Ping, of the National University of Singapore to lead our next CCCC text reading:

The 1265 Dual Steles: Narrating, Visualizing, and Gendering a Quanzhen Daoist Lineage on Stone

The Cornell Classical Chinese Colloquium (CCCC) 古文品讀 is a reading group for scholars interested in premodern Sinographic (古文) text. The group typically meets monthly during the semester to explore a variety of classical Chinese texts and styles. Other premodern texts linked to classical Chinese in Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese have been explored. Presentations include works from the earliest times to the 20th century. Workshop sessions are led by local, national, and international scholars. No preparation is required, all texts will be distributed at the meeting.

Additional Information

Program

Einaudi Center for International Studies

East Asia Program

Cold War Reckonings: In the Shadow of Solzhenitsyn UPDATE: ONLY VIRTUAL

April 1, 2022

4:00 pm

Jini Kim Watson, Associate Professor of English and Comparative Literature at New York University speaks on, 'Cold War Reckonings: In the Shadow of Solzhenitsyn.' UPDATE: ONLY VIRTUAL Register for Zoom below.

How did the Cold War shape political modernity in the decolonizing world, and what do literature and literary networks reveal about such political contestations and their afterlives? In the first half of the presentation, Kim gives an overview of her new book, "Cold War Reckonings: Authoritarianism and the Genres of Decolonization" (Fordham UP, 2021), which examines cultural production that emerges from, and reflects upon, the entanglement of the Cold War and decolonization in East and Southeast Asia.

In the second half, she considers several high-profile dissident writers from the region: Pramoedya Ananta Toer, Kim Chi-ha, and Ninotchka Rosca. Kim argues that these figures challenge Cold War liberal, human-rights notions of the dissident Third World writer via their emphases on incomplete decolonization and bipolar economic restructuring. Such an analysis, suggests Kim, helps us parse the way Cold War exigencies reshaped notions of literary and political freedom in postcolonial Asia. 

This event is facilitated by Bonnie Chung, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Literatures in English at Cornell University.

Co-sponsored by the Asian American Studies Program and Literatures in English Department.

Additional Information

Program

Einaudi Center for International Studies

East Asia Program

Southeast Asia Program

CEAS Author talk | Spring and Autumn Annals of Wu and Yue

March 21, 2022

4:45 pm

CEAS (Cornell East Asia Series) welcomes author Jianjun He to discuss his book, 'Spring and Autumn Annals of Wu and Yue: An Annotated Translation of Wu Yue Chunqiu'.

Spring and Autumn Annals of Wu and Yue is the first complete English translation of Wu Yue Chunqiu, a chronicle of two neighboring states during China's Spring and Autumn period. This collection of political history, philosophy, and fictional accounts depict the rise and fall of Wu and Yue and the rivalry between them, the inspiration for centuries of poetry, vernacular fiction, and drama.

Jianjun He is an Associate Professor, Chinese Studies at the University of Kentucky. His primary research interest is on early Chinese literature and cultural history with a special emphasis on political conceptualization and social practice of the body in early China. His approach to the materials is interdisciplinary and involves Chinese literature, philosophy, medicine, and paleography. Currently, he is working on a book that draws on this research. In addition to this, he is also interested and trained in the field of medieval and late-imperial studies.

Hosted by CEAS editor, Alexis Siemon. Housed in the East Asia Program, CEAS is an internationally known, award-winning scholarly press. CEAS publishes on subjects relative to the cultures of East Asia, covering topics in history, culture, and society, and translations of literary works.

Additional Information

Program

Einaudi Center for International Studies

East Asia Program

IAD Global Africa Monthly Webinar Series: The European Union Policy in the Sahel Region: Challenges of Security, Development and Migration

February 11, 2022

10:00 am

Friday February 11th, 2022 at 10:00am (EST) / 3:00pm – 5:00pm (GMT). Simultaneous French translation. Zoom registration link here

Introduction of the Series - N’Dri Thérèse Assié-Lumumba is the Director of the Institute for African Development (IAD) and Professor of African and African Diaspora education, Comparative and International education, Social institutions, African social history, and the study of Gender, in the Africana Studies and Research Center at Cornell University.

Chair - Marcel Kitissou is a historian and political scientist. He is a professor in the African Studies Department at the State University of New York at Albany and an IAD Regional Scholar Affiliate. Professor Kitissou previously served as Faculty Director of the Global Humanitarian Action Program and Executive Director of the Africa Faith and Justice Network.

Discussant - Kassim Kone is a Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the State University of New York-Cortland. Professor Kone teaches Introduction to Cultural Anthropology, Peoples of Africa, Introduction to Linguistics, Language in Culture and Society, Development Anthropology, Anthropological Theory, and Research Methods.

Panelists

Valeria Fargion is associate professor of political science, holder of a Jean Monnet Chair at the "Cesare Alfieri" school of political science of the University of Florence, where she teaches "Politics of European Integration" for the master's degree in international relations and European studies. Until 2020 she coordinated the path of European Studies and was responsible for international relations for the School of Political Science. Her priority attention to the international dimension and to the dialogue between scholars from different disciplinary fields and socio-political and cultural contexts have led her over the years to cover coordination roles in a series of transnational academic networks: two mandates (2002-2006 and 2006-2010) as an elected member of the Executive Board of the Research Committee 19 "Poverty, Social Welfare and Social Policy" of the International Sociological Association; from 2002 to 2007, she was a member of the executive committee of ESPANET (the European network of social policy scholars) and from its foundation until 2014, Co-Chair of ESPANET-Italy. From 2008 to 2010 she worked as a national expert for the DG Employment of the European Commission, and from its foundation in 2014 until 2019, she was co-director and then director of Politiche Sociali / Social Policies, published by Il Mulino.

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Program

Einaudi Center for International Studies

Institute for African Development

Institute for African Development Seminar Series: Growth, Inclusive Development and Sustainability in Africa: General Introduction

January 27, 2022

9:40 am

Uris Hall, G-08

Issues in African Development Seminar Series examines critical concerns in contemporary Africa using a different theme each semester. The seminars provide a forum for participants to explore alternative perspectives and exchange ideas. They are also a focal activity for students and faculty interested in African development. In addition, prepares students for higher level courses on African economic, social and political development. The presentations are designed for students who are interested in development, Africa’s place in global studies, want to know about the peoples, cultures and societies that call Africa home, and explore development theories and alternate viewpoints on development.

Speaker's bio details can be found here

Zoom registration link here

Additional Information

Program

Einaudi Center for International Studies

Institute for African Development

Contemporary China | Ant Tribes (Yizu) in China's contested Urban Space

April 11, 2022

11:30 am

CCCI welcomes Kimiko Suda, Ph.D. Post Doc researcher, National Discrimination and Racism Monitor (NaDiRa) speaking on, 'Ant Tribes'(Yizu) in China´s contested Urban Space: A Discourse Perspective.'

In 2009 the term "Yizu" (Ant tribe) was selected as one of the ten most popular terms in China´s social media discussions. It was coined by the economist Lian Si to provoke a discussion about the social group of migrant graduates from China´s rural areas, working and living in precarious situations in China´s biggest cities, often in so-called urban villages. The term was taken up by various actors from governmental strategists, scientists, social media influencers, TV-script writers, novelists, to critical media activists. They functionalized the figure of the "Yizu" to tell their version of the story about the "Chinese Dream“, urban transformation processes, social stratification, social mobility, new emerging collective identities, and different shades of the brightness of the future. When analyzing the different variations of the narratives about "Yizu", it all boils down to one question: how to keep your human dignity in a social context, in which an increasing economization and mediatization of almost everything shapes everyday life, and makes it impossible to create a stable, publicly respected and self-determined social identity and position.

Kimiko Suda´s talk is based on a chapter of her book "Das Phänomen Yizu“ (published in September 2021 by transcript)

The Contemporary China Initiative this spring is directed by Arnika Fuhrmann, Associate Professor of Southeast Asian Studies at Cornell University and the author of Ghostly Desires: Queer Sexuality and Vernacular Buddhism in Contemporary Thai Cinema.

This semester's CCCI lecture series is connected to Asian 6623 being taught by Professor Fuhrmann called 'The City.'

CCCI spring 2022 is co-sponsored by the East Asia Program, the Department of History, Asian Studies, The Cornell Society for the Humanities, and the Migrations initiative.

Additional Information

Program

Einaudi Center for International Studies

East Asia Program

Southeast Asia Program

Contemporary China | Provincializing China: Race and Architecture

March 14, 2022

4:45 pm

Rockefeller Hall 122, 122

HYBRID event: CCCI welcomes Lawrence Chua, of Syracuse University, to speak on "Provincializing China: Race and Architecture in Colonial-era Penang."

This presentation examines the role of architecture in racialization in 19th and 20th-century Penang. It uses three case studies: the Khoo Kongsi (邱公司) (1850), a Hokkien clan temple; the Penang mansion of Cheong Fatt Tze (1898-1903), deemed “China’s first capitalist and last mandarin”; and the mansions built by wealthy towkay or comprador families on Northam Road in the early 20th century. These three sites allow scholars to tease out the diverse histories of the region that the term “Chinese” often disguises. Racialized identities began to develop in mid-19th-century Penang that sought to consolidate diverse migrant groups into racial categories that could be more easily controlled and manipulated by the colonial state. Architecture became a key instrument in the racialization of urban space and the built environment but it also expressed ambivalence towards official categories of race.

Lawrence Chua, is an Associate Professor at the School of Architecture, Syracuse University.

The Contemporary China Initiative this spring is directed by Arnika Fuhrmann, Associate Professor of Southeast Asian Studies at Cornell University and the author of Ghostly Desires: Queer Sexuality and Vernacular Buddhism in Contemporary Thai Cinema.

This semester's CCCI lecture series is connected to Asian 6623 being taught by Professor Fuhrmann called 'The City.'

CCCI spring 2022 is generously co-sponsored by the East Asia Program, the Department of History, Asian Studies, and the Migrations initiative.

Additional Information

Program

Einaudi Center for International Studies

East Asia Program

Southeast Asia Program

Contemporary China | Everyday Erotics: Older Chinese Lesbians

February 22, 2022

7:30 pm

The Cornell Contemporary China Initiative is pleased to start its spring '22 lecture series with Denise Tang of the Lingnan University of HK. Her talk is titled,

'Everyday Erotics: Older Chinese Lesbians and Bisexual Women'

This talk presents the life stories of older Chinese lesbians and bisexual women (born in the 1940s and 50s) in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Taiwan through an interdisciplinary ethnography combining fieldwork and cultural analysis of inter-Asia mediations of femininities and masculinities. I will examine the figure of the Chinese lesbian as both real and imagined in our historical narratives and contemporary social worlds.

Denise Tang, is an Associate Professor, in the Department of Cultural Studies, and the Associate Dean, of the Arts Department at Lingnan University, in Hong Kong.

The Contemporary China Initiative this spring is directed by Arnika Fuhrmann, Associate Professor of Southeast Asian Studies at Cornell University and the author of Ghostly Desires: Queer Sexuality and Vernacular Buddhism in Contemporary Thai Cinema.

This semester's CCCI lecture series is connected to a course Asian 6623 being taught by Professor Fuhrmann called 'The City.'

CCCI spring 2022 is generously co-sponsored by the East Asia Program, the Department of History, Asian Studies, and the Migrations initiative.

Additional Information

Program

Einaudi Center for International Studies

East Asia Program

Southeast Asia Program

Migration in the Age of Pandemics (Lund Critical Debate)

February 16, 2022

9:30 am

The spread of the COVID-19 pandemic has strained the world's healthcare systems and compounded challenges for governments and NGOs dealing with global waves of forced and voluntary migration. These movements of peoples across borders have magnified pressing issues ranging from social and economic inequalities and global climate change to civil war and political unrest. In the United States and worldwide, how can we promote the best public health outcomes while working to protect human rights, manage resources, and address inequality?

With a focus on the intersection of mobility, human rights, and public health, the Einaudi Center's Lund Critical Debate this year brings together one of the world's leading public health policymakers at the World Health Organization with a United States Senator and Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, who led the Senate's efforts to study the consequences of global forced migration. The event will examine the geopolitical dimensions, the epidemiological aspects, and the humanitarian issues of this critical topic. The debate will illuminate key issues surrounding public health, migration, and racial and social justice at stake globally and nationally.

We welcome questions during the event. Registration is required.

Panelists

Dr. Zsuzsanna Jakab serves as Deputy Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations agency dedicated to promoting public health and responsible for responding to health emergencies. Prior to her current appointment, Dr. Jakab has held several high-profile national and international public health policy positions: as WHO Regional Director for the European Region (2010-2019); as Founding Director of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (2005-2010); and as State Secretary at the Hungarian Ministry of Health, Social, and Family Affairs (2002-2005), where she managed the country’s preparations for European Union accession in the area of public health.

Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ). The son of Cuban immigrants, Sen. Menendez has represented the state of New Jersey in the United States Senate since 2006. As Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, he has established himself as a foreign policy leader, seeking to do globally what he has done in New Jersey—supporting the most vulnerable in our society and lending a voice to those least able to speak for themselves. In June 2020, under his leadership, the committee published the report, "Global Forced Migration: The Political Crisis of Our Time." He helped pass the Senate's COVID relief packages and other healthcare legislation as well as playing a key role in shaping immigration reform bills. Prior to his position in the Senate, he served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1993-2006.

Moderator

Dr. Gunisha Kaur is an assistant professor of anesthesiology who specializes in human rights research. Dr. Kaur serves as the Founding Director of the Human Rights Impact Lab, a Medical Director of the Weill Cornell Center for Human Rights, and a Faculty Fellow at the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies, where she co-leads the migrations research team. Dr. Kaur’s research interests focus on advancing the health of displaced populations such as migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. She has used her extensive training and research in neuroscience as an analytical framework to pioneer the study of human rights through scientific methodology. Her research is currently funded by the National Institutes of Health. A foremost leader in scientific investigations into migrant health, Dr. Kaur was selected as a member of the Sigma Xi Scientific Research Honor Society and as a Stephen M. Kellen Term Member at the Council on Foreign Relations. She earned her B.S. from Cornell University in 2006, M.D. from Weill Cornell Medical College in 2010, and her M.A. in medical anthropology from Harvard University in 2015.

About the Debate
This year's Lund Critical Debate is hosted by the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies and co-sponsored by Migrations: A Global Grand Challenge and in partnership with the Institute of Politics and Global Affairs, with production assistance from eCornell. Established in 2008, Einaudi's Lund Critical Debate Series is made possible by the generosity of Judith Lund Biggs ’57.

Additional Information

Program

Einaudi Center for International Studies

Reppy Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies

East Asia Program

Southeast Asia Program

Latin American and Caribbean Studies

Institute for African Development

Institute for European Studies

South Asia Program

Classical Chinese | Jingya Guo, Ph.D. grad student

February 11, 2022

3:30 pm

The Cornell Classical Chinese Colloquium (CCCC) is pleased to start spring '22 with a text reading led by Jingya Guo, Ph.D. graduate in the Department of History at Cornell.

The text is titled, “Xinke zengbu Gujin yijian,” 新刻增補古今醫鑑(1576)(1576)

The Cornell Classical Chinese Colloquium (CCCC) 古文品讀 is a reading group for scholars interested in premodern Sinographic (古文) text. The group typically meets monthly during the semester to explore a variety of classical Chinese texts and styles. Other premodern texts linked to classical Chinese in Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese have been explored. Presentations include works from the earliest times to the 20th century. Workshop sessions are led by local, national, and international scholars. No preparation is required, all texts will be distributed at the meeting.

Additional Information

Program

Einaudi Center for International Studies

East Asia Program

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