As another academic year comes to a close, we pause to reflect on a year chock-full of lively events, knowledge exchange, and connection-building. The Mittal Institute’s community turned out in full force for our virtual and in-person events in our Cambridge space, our New Delhi office, and other locations across the globe. We brought you such wide-ranging events as an exploration of climate change’s impacts on our world; a symposium on the role of science and technology in South Asia; a workshop on architecture in transition; an examination of Sri Lanka’s past and future; and so much more. Below is a curated list of some not-to-be-missed events – please visit our YouTube page for more.
TOP 10 EVENT VIDEOS OF THE 2023-2024 ACADEMIC YEAR
Annual Cambridge Symposium: Science and Technology – The Future of Asia
In the Mittal Institute’s spring flagship event, panelists explored such topics as the role of AI in South Asia; the changing landscape of genetics and medicine; navigating the impacts of climate change; and the role of empathy in social medicine. The symposium was followed by this year’s Harish C. Mahindra lecture by WHO expert Soumya Swaminathan on global health lessons from the pandemic. The event was held in Cambridge and live-streamed on Zoom.
Diana Eck on “Teaching India in a Changing World”
In her Honorary Lecture, Diana L. Eck, Professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies at Harvard Divinity School, reflected on her long trajectory of teaching in relation to her life and work in India and the changes and challenges of India over these decades. She spoke to a crowd of more than 150 colleagues, students, faculty, alumni, and Mittal Institute affiliates in Cambridge.
Senator Sherry Rehman on “The Climate Crisis”
A discussion with Sherry Rehman, Chair of the Climate and Environment Caucus of the Senate of Pakistan, former Federal Minister of Climate Change, first woman Opposition Leader in Senate of Pakistan, Vice President of Pakistan Peoples Pakistan and James Stock, Vice Provost for Climate and Sustainability, Harvard University.
Crisis in Sri Lanka Series
This two-part series explored the past and future of political turmoil and resistance in Sri Lanka, and probed Sri Lanka’s human rights record and ongoing movements for justice.
Architectures of Transition Conference
This conference, hosted in New Delhi and on Zoom, aimed to create a forum that helps architects reflect upon the breadth of work undertaken in the South Asia region collectively.
Recalibrating Sustainability: Living with a Changing Climate
This lecture with Prabhu Pingali and Joseph Onoja was a keynote event of the workshop on ‘Adapting to Climate Change in South Asia and West Africa.’ The workshop, organized by the Harvard Climate Research Clusters on South Asia and the Gulf
of Guinea, was held in Cambridge in November 2023.
Asia After Europe Book Discussion with Sugata Bose
Sugata Bose, Gardiner Professor of Oceanic History and Affairs at Harvard University and an expert on Modern South Asia and Indian Ocean history, shared his new book, Asia After Europe: Imagining a Continent in the Long Twentieth Century, in New Delhi.
Adaner Usmani on the History of Punishment in India
This webinar with Prof. Adaner Usmani, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Social Studies, discussed findings from four years of archival research into the history of punishment in India, spanning the colonial and post-colonial periods.
South Asia in Translation: Geography, Memory, and Textuality Conference
This conference hosted in New Delhi aimed to study South Asia through these themes of translation, geography, and memory and place translation within the framework of the geographical settings in which knowledge and power were transacted.
The Patriarchal Political Order: The Making and Unraveling of the Gendered Participation Gap in India
This Joint Seminar on South Asian Politics, “Patriarchal Political Order: The Making and Unraveling of the Gendered Participation Gap in India,” featured Soledad Artiz Prillaman, Stanford University. This event was co-hosted by Brown University, MIT, the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs and the Mittal Institute.