This might be of interest to some on the list...
Sussex Asia Centre and Centre for World Environmental History Workshop: The Environment in Trans-Asian Contexts Wednesday 13th May 2015 Jubilee 155 Sussex University This day-long workshop seeks to stimulate reflection and insight on the intersections between the study of trans-Asian contexts and the environment. It is now widely accepted that the lens of the nation-state is ill-suited to the study of the environment. A new wave of scholarship has extended this insight and brought attention to the ways in which the study of the environment also raises questions about the analytical validity of the conventional boundaries of area studies. Climate change in the Bay of Bengal for instance has effects on parts of Asia that were traditionally treated by scholars as being located either in South or South East Asia. As Sunil Amrith's work demonstrates, understanding the multi-dimensional effects of climate change in such a context requires a consideration of trans-Asian connections and dynamics. This workshop will seek to encourage researchers working on the environment in Asian contexts to reflect on the ways in which their work stands to be enriched by a consideration of such trans-Asian dynamics, connections, and comparisons. More generally, the workshop will stimulate reflection on the relevance of questions relating to the environment to the study of a wide range of issues in historic and contemporary Asian contexts. The day will be organised as follows: In the morning session two external speakers will make presentations on their current research interests and long-term experience of the study of trans-Asian contexts and themes: Professor Sunil Amrith (Mehra Family Professor of South Asian Studies, Harvard University http://history.fas.harvard.edu/people/sunil-amrith) Prof Sivaramakrishnan (Dinakar Singh Professor of India & South Asia Studies, Yale University http://anthropology.yale.edu/people/kalyanakrishnan-sivaramakrishnan) In the afternoon session Sussex faculty/students are invited to present their ongoing/future research interests and benefit from question/answer sessions led by the external speakers. Importantly, we are encouraging presentations that take the form of think pieces rather than finalised papers. This is because the workshop aims to promote cross-campus collaborations and subsequently the development of inter-disciplinary research projects. It is also envisaged that the workshop will act as a springboard for Sussex Asia and the Centre for Wold Environmental Histoty to influence wider research agendas beyond the University. The afternoon session will be organised in relationship to the following four panels: Impact of Climate on Societies in Asia Long periods of drought and flooding caused by natural events such as El Niño and/or volcanic activity have had an impact on Asian climates, including the monsoon - the single most determinant of rainfall in the Indian Ocean world. Such climactic shifts in turn effected the dynamics of societies and empires. Furthermore, the impact of some of these extreme events were exacerbated by political processes played out at varying scales. Contributions that explore natural and social entanglements in Asia from 1500 onwards in the context of climate, droughts, famines and livelihoods in trans-Asian contexts are invited. Participants might assess for instance the relationship between the climate and migration processes and flows, or the factors influencing the variable nature of political responses to climate change. Water, Dams & Policy in Asia This panel will explore rivers, wells and traditional irrigation systems in Asia. Historically the major rivers from the Yangtze, and Brahmaputra, to the Indus, Amu Darya, and Ganges have been managed both in the pre-colonial and colonial periods by pre-modern and modern empires. Problems of canals and irrigation systems were compounded in the modern period by extensive dam building. The panel encourages discussions on the history of water management and the current politics of water and conflicts related to it in trans-Asian contexts. Environmentalism in Asia While environmental challenges including air pollution, water management and climate change have cross-boundary features, interpretations of 'the environment' and related issues differ across cultural contexts and are grounded in local values, narratives and communities of knowledge. This panel aims to generate interdisciplinary discussions of 'environmentalisms' as both environmentally-oriented ideas and also specific place-based socio-cultural, political and historical conceptualisations of 'environment' occurring at critical intersections between the global and local. Participators are invited to address concerns including, but not limited to, contemporary movements and/or everyday practices that have developed in response to environmental challenges, representations of environmental conflicts, notions of governance and the politics of participation, and the production of environmental discourses in society. Long-distance Trade and the Environment Explorations of long-distance trading activities across Asian contexts offers unique opportunities into exploring both trans-Asian connections and the intersection of these with changing environments. Subjects for presentations in this panel might include: The transplantation/movement of plants with traders and migrants - including food crops (e.g. rice), materia medica (e.g. neem), narcotics (e.g. opium), and cash crops (e.g. silk, coffee); The introduction of animals (e.g. goats, horses, rabbits, and some exotics) across trans-Asian contexts and the impacts this has had on local food chains and environments; The observations of the natural environment made by travellers and traders; The use of natural resources in the process of long-distance trade (e.g. timber, mining for tin for packaging, cowries as currency); Changes to the built environment that have arisen as a result of trade (e.g. roads, ports, infrastructures)and the environmental effects on these; The construction of places for travellers to stay (e.g. mosafer-khanas/funduq/modern hotels) and resulting environmental changes ( e.g. Buddhist monasteries appeared on trade routes and led to subsequent changes to the environment through the development of connected water projects, and the irrigation of rice fields). Presentations should be between 15 and 20 minutes in length. Those interested in presenting their ideas should send tentative titles to Magnus Marsden ([email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>) by Friday 20th March. Thanks in advance! Sussex Asia Centre Centre for World Environmental History Magnus Marsden Professor of Social Anthropology Director of Sussex Asia Centre Department of Anthropology School of Global Studies University of Sussex Falmer BN1 9RH UK Tel 01273 606755 ext 2312 Peter Newell Professor of International Relations Department of International Relations School of Global Studies University of Sussex Brighton East Sussex BN1 9SN UK T: (0044) 1273 873159 E: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Director of Research and Knowledge Exchange, School of Global Studies Co-editor of the European Journal of International Relations My latest book The Politics of Green Transformations is now out (co-edited with Ian Scoones and Melissa Leach) http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9781138792906/ -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "gep-ed" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. 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