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LMSAI Events Archive

Macabre Social Capital: The Families of Pakistan’s Lashkar-e-Tayyaba

WHEN
Fri, Oct 11, 2019 from 04:30pm — 06:00pm, ET

VENUE
CGIS South, S050
Harvard University

ADDRESS
CGIS South, S050
Harvard University
1730 Cambridge Street
Cambridge MA

Lashkar-e-Tayyaba is the most competent, lethal, and loyal proxy of the Pakistani state, operating in India, Afghanistan, and elsewhere in South Asia and beyond. In this presentation, C. Christine Fair will draw from a narrative analysis of a ten percent random sample of nearly 1,000 biographies of slain LeT fighters to delve into the battlefield motivation of the fighters. She will reveal the dark role that families play in a young man’s decision to fight in Pakistani terrorist organizations, deriving various forms of social capital from a male family member’s participation in so-called “jihad.”

Speaker:

C. Christine Fair, Provost’s Distinguished Associate Professor, Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University

Moderator:

Kristin E. Fabbe, Assistant Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School

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Data Privacy 3.0: Are We Ready for AI in South Asia?

WHEN
Tue, Oct 8, 2019 from 05:00pm — 06:30pm, ET

VENUE
CGIS South, S020 Belfer
Harvard University

ADDRESS
CGIS South, S020 Belfer
Harvard University
1730 Cambridge Street
Cambridge MA 02138

How can India take advantage of data to achieve its developmental objectives while balancing the need for personal privacy? The recently implemented Account Aggregator framework tries to establish a digital consent architecture to allow post-collection transfers of data. This will unlock a number of financial models to serve those who are not currently part of the formal banking systems. But at the same time, this can have a serious impact on personal privacy. A similar model is being attempted in the health system, and that too has similar repercussions. The speakers on this panel will delve into the interplay between data transfer and personal privacy in both the financial and healthcare systems.

Speakers:

Rahul Matthan, Partner, Trilegal, India
I. Glenn Cohen, James A. Attwood and Leslie Williams Professor of Law, Harvard Law School; Director, Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology, and Bioethics at Harvard Law School
Moderator: Tarun Khanna, Jorge Paulo Lemann Professor, Harvard Business School; Director, the Mittal Institute

This event is co-sponsored by The Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology, and Bioethics at Harvard Law School.

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Raj Rewal: Timeless Rasa & the Spirit of Our Times for Epic Works

WHEN
Tue, Oct 1, 2019 from 06:00pm — 07:30pm, ET

VENUE
CGIS South, S020 Belfer
Harvard University

ADDRESS
CGIS South, S020 Belfer
Harvard University
1730 Cambridge Street
Cambridge MA 02138

Raj Rewal is internationally recognized for the creation of buildings that respond with sensitivity to the complex demands of rapid urbanization, climate, and culture. Earlier in his career, his focus on low-cost housing led him to design a large number of dwelling units, fragmented into smaller aggregations enclosing a variety of spaces for different building types — an experience that led him to create a series of public projects in a humane manner, for works of epic proportions. Rewal will discuss his past work in public housing, the lessons learned from the cities of Rajasthan, Mediterranean villages, and high-density developments, and how the study of the existing traditional pattern of living can provide cues for place-making that can promote community activities.

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Voting for Strongmen: Nationalist and Populist Leadership in Brazil and India

WHEN
Mon, Sep 30, 2019 from 04:30pm — 06:00pm, ET

VENUE
CGIS South, S020 Belfer
Harvard University

ADDRESS
CGIS South, S020 Belfer
Harvard University
1730 Cambridge Street
Cambridge MA 02138

Around the world, numerous nations have witnessed a resurgence of strongman politics — and with it, many governments are bypassing democratic norms and embracing populist ideals. Focusing on President Bolsonaro of Brazil and Prime Minister Modi of India, the speakers on this panel will discuss what nationalist and populist leadership means for Brazil, India, and the global political system at large.

Speakers:

Rachel Brule, Assistant Professor of Global Development Policy, Boston University
Bruno Carvalho, Professor of Romance Languages and Literatures, Harvard University
Patrick Heller, Professor of Sociology and iNternational and Public Affairs, Brown University

This event is co-sponsored by the Lakshmi Mittal and Family South Asia Institute and the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies.

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Winter Student Grants Information Session

WHEN
Thu, Sep 26, 2019 from 05:00pm — 06:00pm, ET

VENUE
CGIS South, S010

ADDRESS
CGIS South, S010
1730 Cambridge Street
Cambridge, MA

Over wintersession, Harvard undergraduate and graduate students can fund their research, internship, or language study in South Asia with a grant from the Mittal Institute. Get your questions answered at our upcoming information session and don’t forget to apply for a grant by October 11.

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The Fears Have Gone Away: Exploring the Roots of Insurgent Citizenship in India’s Bhil Heartland

WHEN
Tue, Sep 24, 2019 from 06:00pm — 07:30pm, ET

VENUE
CGIS South, S153
Harvard University

ADDRESS
CGIS South, S153
Harvard University
1730 Cambridge Street
Cambridge, MA 02138

In India, subaltern groups must resort to the universalizing vocabulary of citizenship in order to stake claims for redistribution and recognition. But on what basis do they do this — especially under severe coercion? Alf Nilsen, Professor of Sociology at the University of Pretoria, will explore this question by investigating movement patterns in the Bhil heartland of western India, where Adivasi communities have organized and mobilized against the tyranny of the local state.

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Crisis in Kashmir: Current Events Seminar

WHEN
Thu, Sep 19, 2019 from 05:00pm — 07:00pm, ET

VENUE
CGIS South, Tsai Auditorium S010
Harvard University

ADDRESS
CGIS South, Tsai Auditorium S010
Harvard University
1730 Cambridge Street
Cambridge, MA 02138

The panel will discuss the recent events in Jammu and Kashmir, including the lead-up to the dissolution of its special autonomous status, the current situation on the ground, and the greater geopolitical implications of the recent change in status. Speakers include:

Salil Shetty, Former Secretary General of Amnesty International and Senior Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School
Ashutosh Varshney, Sol Goldman Professor of Political Science and International and Public Affairs and Director of the Center for Contemporary South Asia, Brown University
Prerna Singh, Mahatma Gandhi Associate Professor of Political Science and International and Public Affairs, Brown University
Ashwaq Masoodi, Nieman Fellow, Nieman Foundation for Journalism, Harvard University
Beena Sarwar, Affiliated Faculty, Emerson University; Editor, Aman Ki Asha

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Crisis in Kashmir: Valley of Saints Film Screening

WHEN
Wed, Sep 18, 2019 from 05:00pm — 07:00pm, ET

VENUE
CGIS South, S020 Belfer
Harvard University

ADDRESS
CGIS South, S020 Belfer
Harvard University
1730 Cambridge Street
Cambridge MA 02138

Film Director Musa Syeed will join Professor Ali Asani for a screening of his film, Valley of Saints, followed by a question-and-answer session.

About the Film:
Dal Lake is a sprawling aquatic community in Kashmir where erupting political violence often distracts from the natural beauty. Gulzar, a young, working-class boatman, plans to skip town with his best friend in search of a better life, but a weeklong military curfew derails their departure. Forced to wait it out, Gulzar takes a job assisting a scientist named Asifa. As they navigate the floating landscape, an unlikely relationship blossoms between the two. When Asifa’s research reveals that the lake and an entire way of life face an alarming threat, everything in Gulzar’s own life begins to take on a new hue. Intricately weaving contemporary issues with traditional culture and ancient myths, VALLEY OF SAINTS is a vibrant, lyrical film about finding one’s path home in a changing world.

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Mobilities and Immobilities: Histories of Modern Migration to and in the Americas

WHEN
Thu, Sep 12, 2019 at 09:00am, ET —
Fri, Sep 13, 2019 at 04:00pm, ET

VENUE
Robinson Hall, 35 Quincy Street, Lower Level Library

ADDRESS
Robinson Hall
35 Quincy Street
Lower Level Library


VENUE
William James Hall, 1550

ADDRESS
William James Hall, 1550
33 Kirkland Street
Cambridge MA

This workshop consists of pre-circulated papers. Please contact the author directly for a copy of their paper. Each hour of discussion will follow the same model: 5-7 minutes of speaking time for the author, a 30-35 minute forum in which workshop participants discuss the paper without a response from the author, a 5 minute faculty response, and 3-5 minutes of response from the author. Meals and snacks will be provided for all participants.

Location
Thursday, September 12: William James Hall 1550
Friday, September 13: Robinson Hall, Basement Seminar Room

Keynote
The Commerce (Clause) in Sex and Migration in the Life of Lucille de Saint-Andre
Grace Peña Delgado, University of California, Santa Cruz
Comments: Walter Johnson, Harvard University

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Welcome Back Mixer

WHEN
Wed, Sep 4, 2019 from 04:30pm — 06:00pm, ET

VENUE
CGIS South Concourse
Harvard University

ADDRESS
CGIS South Concourse
Harvard University
1730 Cambridge Street
Cambridge, MA 02138

Celebrate the start of the school year with the Mittal Institute over chai and snacks! Learn from our team about the work that the Mittal Institute is doing in South Asia and the numerous funding opportunities available, interact with various Harvard South Asia student groups, and meet with other Harvard students who are interested in South Asia! 

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