Elizabeth Hentschel, a doctoral student in the Department of Global Health and Population, based at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, spent this past summer working in-country in Pakistan on a dissertation research project, “Measuring Nurturing Care: A Pathway to Healthy Child Development and Protection.” Funded in part by a Mittal Institute Summer Research Grant, Elizabeth’s project took her to Naushahro Feroze, in the Sindh Province of Pakistan where she spent a month at a child development research site. She lead the efforts to create two evidence-informed measures for assessing responsive care and early learning for children.
This year was marked by change – on a global scale, the world is learning to mitigate the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic; and on a University scale, the Mittal Institute bid a fond farewell to devoted staff, and welcomed new leadership (read more about our new Executive Director Hitesh Hathi). Our operations shifted to both virtual and in-person formats, and we continued hosting events, offering funding opportunities, and providing programming for students and faculty. This year also marked the inauguration of our Delhi office, further deepening our in-country footprint.
Pranav Dixit, a technology reporter for BuzzFeed News in India, recently traveled to Harvard to begin his yearlong position as a Nieman Fellow. Back home in New Delhi, Pranav’s work covers the intersection of technology and culture in India. He focuses on the impact that technology has on more than a billion Indians. His articles have sparked global conversations about the impact of American technology companies on the Global South. In 2019, he won Syracuse University’s Mirror Award for Excellence in Media Industry Reporting. The Mittal Institute sat down with Pranav to discuss his journalism career and his own Harvard project, which explores the American tech press and what lessons it offers for the global media.
For the past decade, the Harvard College Pakistani Students Association (HCPSA) has shared the vibrant history and culture of Pakistan with the campus community. HCPSA is dedicated to creating inclusive, social spaces for Pakistanis and advancing meaningful discourse about prominent Pakistani issues, events, and politics. Each year, they host academic programming that celebrates Pakistani heritage; organize events like Cultural Night and moving screenings; and educates Harvard students about Pakistan’s culture. The Mittal Institute sat down with co-presidents Iqra Noor ‘23 and Hamaad Mehal ‘24 to learn more about mission of the HCPSA.
In the “Research Agenda of Harvard Art Museums’ Straus Center for Conservation and Technical Studies” conversation, panelists discussed how short and longstanding research projects related to technical art history at Harvard Art Museums are generated, take shape and benefit from a deeply collaborative approach between Conservators, Scientists and Curators.