Category : Faculty
Feb 8, 2023 | Announcements, Community, Faculty, In Region, News, South Asia in the News, Students
Last semester, a new multi-year project was launched to research, document, and create conversations around architecture in South Asia. The project, “The State of Architecture in South Asia,” utilizes podcasts, lecture series, exhibits and conferences to ask fundamental questions about architecture’s role and space in the region. The project is coordinated by the Mittal Institute, the Harvard University Graduate School of Design (GSD), and supported by The Architecture Foundation, India and The South Asia GSD Student Group. We spoke with project conveners Rahul Mehrotra, Chair of the Department of Urban Planning and Design at the Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD) and an LMSAI Steering Committee member, and Pranav Thole, an urban design graduate student at the GSD and co-chair of the South Asia GSD student group, who also launched a corresponding virtual lecture series, “The Architecture of Transition: Emergent Practices in South Asia.” Fall installments of the series can be found on our YouTube channel – upcoming events are listed below and on our events calendar.
Feb 8, 2023 | Announcements, Community, Faculty, In Region, News, Social Enterprise, South Asia in the News
Milind Tambe, Gordon McKay Professor of Computer Science at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), will be awarded the Feigenbaum Prize at the 37th Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) Conference later this month. The Feigenbaum Prize, awarded biennially, recognizes outstanding artificial intelligence research that combines experimental computer science methods with real-world applications.
Feb 8, 2023 | Announcements, Community, Faculty, In Region, News, Pakistan, South Asia in the News
Economists provide policy advice at the institutional, country, and regional levels, on a host of pressing issues: climate change, education, financial stability, and more. In the recent talk, “Sound Economics can Enrich Pakistan,” Professor Asim Khwaja explored how successful these economic policies have been to the set of challenges facing Pakistan. Asim Khwaja is Sumitomo-FASID Professor of International Finance & Development; Director, Center for International Development, Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard University; and a Mittal Institute Steering Committee member. He was joined in conversation by the talk’s chair, Alnoor Bhimani, Director, LSE South Asia Centre and Professor of Management Accounting at LSE. The event was hosted in collaboration with the Mittal Institute and the London School of Economics South Asia Centre.
Jan 24, 2023 | Announcements, Community, Faculty, Fellows, In Region, India, News
The Mittal Institute’s New Delhi Office was a beehive of activity over winter break, playing host to two separate major events: an interdisciplinary conference on indigeneity and a celebration of LMSAI’s past year and new focus on climate change.
Jan 8, 2023 | Faculty, In Region, News
Over Winter Break, some of our LMSAI faculty set off for teaching, collaboration and learning experiences in South Asia. They kept in touch with the Mittal Institute during their travels, and sent us photos of their time abroad. We curated some of our favorites,...
Dec 7, 2022 | Announcements, Associates, Community, Faculty, Fellows, News, Students
As winter descends on Cambridge’s skies, our thoughts turn to novels read by the comfort of roaring fires. Nothing completes a holiday season more than a good book—so we turned to our community of faculty, fellows and students for their help in curating a list of Holiday Reading Recommendations. They shared their favorite South Asian authors; their most inspiring reads; and what they hope to cozy up with this holiday season.
Nov 16, 2022 | Announcements, Community, Faculty, Fellows, In Region, News, Pakistan, South Asia in the News
Yaqoob Khan Bangash is a historian of Modern South Asia and a current Fulbright Fellow at the Mittal Institute (read our Q&A with Dr. Bangash). He is also the coordinator of the upcoming event, “The Pakistan Conference: 75 Years of Independence,” November 29-30 at CGIS South.
The conference aims to bring a focused, though not exclusionary, lens to the study of the country and its 75 years since independence. It will provide the space to reflect upon the past, but also explore the lingering legacies and challenges that continue to cast a shadow over the country. We spoke with Yaqoob about his motivations behind the conference, and what attendees can expect.
Nov 3, 2022 | Announcements, Community, Faculty, In Region, India, News, South Asia in the News
Ela Bhatt, founder of the Self-Employed Women’s Association of India (SEWA) in 1972 and dedicated women’s right activist, passed away at age 89. Often called a “gentle revolutionary” for her Gandhian practitice of non-violence, Bhatt championed the lives of marginalized women across the world through SEWA. With a membership of over 2.1 million, SEWA is the largest Central Trade union, comprised of self-employed women workers across 18 states of India. SEWA works to improve their livelihoods through technical training, microfinance, market linkages, technology, and more. Bhatt is the recipient of a host of honors, including an Honorary Doctorate degree from Harvard University, a Radcliffe Medal, and the civilian honour of Padma Shri by the Government of India. Our Mittal Institute community remembers Bhatt and her lasting legacy in the following remembrances.
Nov 1, 2022 | Announcements, Community, Faculty, In Region, India, News, South Asia in the News
Adaner Usmani, an Assistant Professor of Sociology and Social Studies at Harvard University, is a recent recipient of a Mittal Institute faculty grant for his project, “The History of Punishment in India.” LMSAI faculty grants support research projects that catalyze connectivity between scholars at Harvard and those in South Asia. Professor Usmani’s particular project explores the incarceration system in India and how, despite low levels of policing and punishment, India has remarkably low levels of (recorded) violence. Professor Usmani’s project aims to solve this sociological puzzle by collecting data to understand the history of violence and punishment in India. We spoke to him about his project, his interest in the field, and an upcoming book.
Oct 19, 2022 | Announcements, Community, Faculty, News, South Asia in the News, Students
As a teenager, Richard Delacy’s interest in Hindi and Urdu was piqued – and that interest led to a career as a language scholar and educator. Richard is a Preceptor of Hindi (one of two official languages of India, and 3rd most spoken in the world) and Urdu (spoken by more than 70 million people as the official state language of Pakistan) in Harvard’s Department of South Asian Studies. We spoke with Richard about his language journey and his role at Harvard.
Oct 12, 2022 | Announcements, Community, Faculty, News, South Asia in the News
The State of Architecture in South Asia, a new multi-year project, will research, document, and create conversations around architecture in South Asia and the emergent frameworks and models of practice. This multi-year project will utilize podcasts, lecture series, exhibits and conferences to ask some fundamental questions.
Oct 4, 2022 | Announcements, Community, Faculty, News, South Asia in the News
The State of Architecture in South Asia, a new multi-year project, will research, document, and create conversations around architecture in South Asia and the emergent frameworks and models of practice. This multi-year project will utilize podcasts, lecture series, exhibits and conferences to ask some fundamental questions.
