Can the displacement of refugees continue to be understood as exceptional? The recent global increase in refugees has prompted calls to develop new solutions to displacement that focus on integrating refugees into the local economies of nations that receive them. Transforming refugees from economic burdens to economic benefits does not, however, resolve displacement: doing so only shifts the project of refugee protection from a supposedly humanitarian imperative to an economic incentive.

Join Pittsburgh professionals who work with refugees and immigrants to learn about refugee resettlement services, adapting to Pittsburgh, daily life, and ways to help. We will hear from representatives of Jewish Family and Children's Services, the Somali-Bantu Community Association, PRYSE Academy, and Northern Area Multi-Service Center, as well as from Syrian teens recently arrived in Pittsburgh. This is also part of the GSC Career Toolkit Series.

Deepa Kumar is an Associate Professor of Media Studies at Rutgers University and President, Rutgers AAUP-AFT faculty union. She is a leading scholar in communication, prominent public intellectual, and champion of the humanities on the national stage. The title of her lecture, “Constructing the Terrorist Threat: Islamophobia, the Media, and the War on Terror,” stems from her 2017 Media Education Foundation video, designed to support pedagogical efforts to teach critically about media discourse on Muslims.

CERIS member institutions and K-12 educators are invited to participate in conversation over dinner and a book discussion on Thomas Jefferson's Quran, Islam and the Founders, on Friday, March 24th at the University of Pittsburgh. The discussion will be led by Patrick Hughes, Instructor of Religious Studies, University of Pittsburgh.

Book discussion for educators on book A Sultan in Palermo by Tariq Ali, Dr. Joseph Heim, Professor of History, CALU

CERIS hosts the annual Undergraduate Research Symposium to encourage undergraduate students to advance their research experience, specially on issues that impact Muslims in historical or contemporary contexts or Islamic thought, history, and theology. A broad range of topics are accepted (see below a list of past papers presented.) If you think a paper you are writing may qualify but aren’t sure, please email Elaine Linn at eel58@pitt.edu.

When is – and isn’t— forced marriage a form of modern slavery? To answer this controversial question, this Workshop explores the range of types of forced marriages – from customary forced marriages, to mail-order-brides, and abducted “wives” of armed fighters – in relation to competing legal definitions and conceptual debates about slavery.

The Global Studies Center and the International Business Center work with high school language and social sciences teachers to introduce international business concepts to students through an international marketing competition. It culminates in an interscholastic competition hosted by the Global Studies Center and the IBC at Pitt, where students present their marketing plans in front of fellow competitors and a panel of judges from the academic and business communities, as well as answer audience questions.

Fox Chapel Area High School is proud to announce this year's Pittsburgh World Language Connection Day, with Keynote speaker Professor Richard Donato. This is a great opportunity for world language teachers to learn about new pedagogies. Bring along your principals, curriculum directors, and administrators to learn about how to enhance your school's international programs through meaningful and fun community connections.

Osama Alomar is a prominent Syrian writer of al-quisa al-quasira jiddan, or what has been called “flash fiction.” These extremely short stories (sometimes only one or two sentences) have the appeal of a fable. Currently an exiled writer-in-residence at City of Asylum in Pittsburgh, Alomar will be conducting this session himself at City of Asylum (40 W. North Ave). Prof. Uma Satyavolu (English) will offer a lecture on Alomar's innovative form and ideas for classroom use. Books and Act 48 credit hours provided. Reception at City of Asylum.