Register here.

Join us from March 28th to April 1st for the 2022 Global Career Week!

This series features over 25 sessions covering the breadth of careers and competencies currently sought in the international economy. Network with and learn from Pitt alumni and other experts on how to gear up and navigate the competitive job market. Themes for the week include technology and data , health and well-being, human rights, security and diplomacy, entrepreneurism, and international development.

This area refers to how globalization affects people’s susceptibility to physical and mental illnesses, their access to appropriate kinds of care, and their general well being within the context of their community. Speakers include dedicated professionals within the fields of global health, public health, medicine, policy and advocacy.

Caitlin Thistle, Senior Advisor for South Africa, Bureau for Global Health, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) will discuss her 10+ years of experience in global global health, family planning program design/analysis, multi-million-dollar program and project management, and knowledge management. Caitlin has worked and partnered with a number of organizations including USAID, FP2020/30, WHO/IBP, the Institute of Reproductive Health, JHU/Center for Communication Programs, and Pathfinder International. Caitlin holds a master’s degree in International Development from the University of Pittsburgh and bachelors’ degrees from Susquehanna University.

Join Pitt Law’s Center for Civil Rights and Racial Justice for a panel discussion regarding the PUSH documentary, directed by Fredrik Gertten. PUSH sheds light on a new kind of faceless landlord, our increasingly unlivable cities and an escalating crisis that has an effect on us all. This is not gentrification, it's a different kind of monster. The film follows Leilani Farha, the UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing, as she's traveling the globe, trying to understand who's being pushed out of the city and why.

The Global Studies Center and Professor Jacques Bromberg, Department of Classics, invites you to join them from 12:00-2:00pm in 4130 Posvar Hall. The Uprooting Medea presentation will introduce the Medea project and discuss the development and adaptation of the work since its original conception in Oxford as it questions the pertinent topics of race, belonging and identity, both in antiquity and today.

Lunch will be provided.

British Indian film and theatre producer Shivaike Shah will introduce the Medea Project and lead students in a discussion about adapting ancient scripts and making diverse theatre, followed by an acting and dramaturgy workshop using the script from Medea.

Shivaike Shah has worked in fashion, theatre and film, and recently finished production on a major Netflix feature film. After graduating in English from University College, Oxford University, in 2019, he founded Khameleon Productions in March 2020. He has since been awarded support from across the UK and the US to build the project and company, and is the creator and host of the Khameleon Classics podcast.

Khameleon Productions, co-sponsored by the Brown Arts Institute, presents the Uprooting Medea tour. The company, founded in 2020, will share their all-global majority project at 30 institutions from February to May 2022. Commencing at Brown, they will visit classes, lead workshops and participate in roundtable conversations. The four-month tour, curated and produced by BAI Visiting Artist Shivaike Shah, will commence at Brown as part of their inaugural Interrogating the Classics Series and will continue across 12 states, visiting 30 of the nation’s leading colleges and universities. Khameleon will visit classes, work with students in script workshops and participate in roundtable conversations with students and staff around multiple topics related to the project. Khameleon Productions was founded in 2020, based on a production company built at Oxford University where Francesca Amewudah-Rivers originally adapted the play. Their Medea reimagines Euripides’s Greek tragedy with an all-global majority cast and crew, and features original compositions, movement and spoken word commissioned by the company.

Technology and Data
Whether it be the development of a new app, advocating for new health care policies, creating accessible transportation, or building defense systems, all major projects require a form of data collection and interpretation. The collection and analyzation of data plays an ever-increasing critical role in our society. Speakers, including several alums from the social sciences, will share their career path to the fields of technology and data.

Conversation with Pitt REEES and Slavic Department alumni Drs. Elise Thorsen and Beach Gray, who work for Nvetta, a data analysis, consulting, and international cybersecurity firm.

The Uprooting Medea presentation will introduce Khameleon Productions' Medea project and discuss the development and adaptation of our work since its original conception in Oxford. Khameleon's Medea questions the pertinent topics of race, belonging and identity, centring themes which are already prevalent in Euripides’s ancient drama. The presentation will explore the creative practice of elevating global-majority artists through multimedia forms including theatre, film, music and poetry. The presentation will give an insight into the upcoming short film project (to be released later in 2022), featuring excerpts and exclusive behind-the-scenes footage to bring to life Khameleon's vision for Medea.

British Indian film and theatre producer Shivaike Shah will introduce the Medea Project, describing its development and adaptation..

About the speaker: Shivaike Shah is a British Indian producer who has worked in fashion, theatre and film, and recently finished production on a major Netflix feature film. After graduating in English from University College, Oxford University, in 2019, he founded Khameleon Productions in March 2020. He has since been awarded support from across the UK and the US to build the project and company, and is the creator and host of the Khameleon Classics podcast.

Khameleon Productions, co-sponsored by the Brown Arts Institute, presents the Uprooting Medea tour. The company, founded in 2020, will share their all-global majority project at 30 institutions from February to May 2022. Commencing at Brown, they will visit classes, lead workshops and participate in roundtable conversations. The four-month tour, curated and produced by BAI Visiting Artist Shivaike Shah, will commence at Brown as part of their inaugural Interrogating the Classics Series and will continue across 12 states, visiting 30 of the nation’s leading colleges and universities. Khameleon will visit classes, work with students in script workshops and participate in roundtable conversations with students and staff around multiple topics related to the project. Khameleon Productions was founded in 2020, based on a production company built at Oxford University where Francesca Amewudah-Rivers originally adapted the play. Their Medea reimagines Euripides’s Greek tragedy with an all-global majority cast and crew, and features original compositions, movement and spoken word commissioned by the company.

The Global Studies Center is honored to welcome Leilani Farha, the former UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Right to Adequate Housing, to the University of Pittsburgh as a H.J. Heinz Foundation Visiting Fellow.

Leilani Farha is the former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Housing and Global Director of The Shift. Her work is animated by the principle that housing is a social good, not a commodity. Leilani has helped develop global human rights standards on the right to housing, including through her topical reports on homelessness, the financialization of housing, informal settlements, rights-based housing strategies, and the first UN Guidelines for the implementation of the right to housing. She is the central character in the documentary PUSH regarding the financialization of housing, screening around the world. Leilani Launched The Shift in 2017 with the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and United Cities and Local Government.

During the week of April 4th to 7th, join us as Leilani takes part in a number of public lectures, student and faculty visits, and meetings with City officials and community organizers to highlight housing as a human rights issue. See a full schedule of events below.

As UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Right to Adequate Housing, Ms. Farha worked to push governments to do more to protect residents’ access to safe and affordable housing. She continues to work with governments at local, national and global levels while also helping housing justice advocates make better use of international tools to defend and advance the right to housing.

Join the French Club for French language conversation practice

Portuguese conversation at all levels

Come join the German Club to practice your language skills and learn about German culture!

Join AQUARIUS and the Vietnamese Student Association (VSA) for a movie screening of the Vietnamese film, Song Lang. Song Lang (2018) is a film that narrates the unlikely bond between a debt collector and a Vietnamese opera performer in 1980s Saigon.

This event is co-sponsored by the Asian Studies Center.

Screening will occur from 6 until approximately 7:40PM, followed by a discussion until 8:30PM

University members can view the film at any time through the University Library System here: https://pitt.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/fulldisplay?context=L&vid...

Join the Arabic Language & Culture Club for an hour of conversing in the colloquial Arabic language while speaking on various current events.

An emerging issue that should be included in the compact provision talks. The impact of climate change is global and our collective security is at risk. It has become increasingly clear that climate change has consequences that reach the very heart of the security agenda: economic disruption, flooding, disease, famine, resulting in migration on an unprecedented scale in areas of already high tension; drought and crop failure, leading to intensified competition for food, water, and energy in regions where resources are already stretched to the limit.

Speakers:

Dr. Charles Fletcher
Interim Dean
School of Earth Science and Ocean and Technology
Chair Honolulu Climate Change Commission
University of Hawai’i at Mānoa

Dr. J. Scott Hauger
Retired Professor Daniel K. Inouye Asia Pacific Center for Security Studies
Senior Advisor to the USINDOPACOM Climate Change Impacts Program

The Summer EDGE in Entrepreneurship and Innovation program will take place from May 9-August 6. This is an undergraduate certificate program offered in the College of Business Administration and targeted toward non-business students. Through this curriculum students will be exposed to the mechanics of opportunity creation. These skills include modules on business plan preparation and feasibility analysis, presentation skills, interactive marketing, customer relationship management, and competitive analysis, project management, and leadership. Upon completion of the certificate students will have increased their ability to compete for summer and permanent positions in a wide range of industries and functions. ALL non-business undergraduate students are welcome to enroll.

Register here: https://pitt.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJIrcOqqrjsjGdOjTE5UhFCucwIvUy_XXJyW

Recent decades have seen increasing demands from policy makers for publicly funded universities to be proactive drivers of innovation and development in the places in which they are located, particularly in less developed or peripheral regions. This has led to a resurgence of interest in concepts such as the civic university in understanding the contributions universities might make to local social and economic development. This research explores, and culminates in challenging, many of the orthodoxies underpinning the policy rhetoric around the role of universities as civic anchors. It contends that a more realistic, honest understanding of the limitations of universities’ contribution as local civic anchors coupled with a more nuanced and context sensitive approach to policy design might lead to more mutually beneficial outcomes for them and the places in which they are located.

Lecture by Dr. Louise Kempton, Newcastle University

Please join us for a faculty panel discussion on the human security of civilians during the war in Ukraine. The invasion has created an escalating humanitarian crisis in a country of 41 million people, where approximately 10 million people have been displaced (including nearly 4 million refugees so far). Topics will include targeting of civilians; access to power, food, water, medical services; refugees; humanitarian assistance.

Panelists include:

Taylor Seybolt, Associate Professor, GSPIA
Paul Nelson, Associate Professor, GSPIA
Gemma Marolda, Teaching Faculty, Political Science
Svitlana Maksymenko, Senior Lecturer, Economics

Moderated by Luke Condra, Associate Professor & Public and International Affairs Program Director, GSPIA

There will be time for Q&A from the audience.

Register here: https://pitt.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_QjJxZqrzSLqSMWMGTSesnQ

Professor Daniel Thomas (University of Leiden) joins Pitt Professor Gregor Thum (History) for a discussion of his recent work entitled "The Limits of Europe: Membership Norms and the Contestation of Regional Integration" and how it outlines the potential expansion of the European Union and what it means to be a member of Europe.

Please register using the following link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/302753522937

This talk focuses on three imaginary writers invented by Borges: Pierre Menard, Herbert Quain and Mir Bahadur Alí, on how the invention of these authors, and the imagining of their literary production, as a way for Borges to invent himself as a new kind of writer in the 1940s, and to reimagine literary history.

Yan'an is China's "Revolutionary Holy Land," the heart of Mao Zedong's Communist movement from 1937 to 1947. In this lecture, Joseph W. Esherick, Emeritus Professor of History at University of California, San Diego, will examine the origins of the Communist Revolution in Northwest China, from the political, social, and demographic changes of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), to the intellectual ferment of the early Republic, the guerrilla movement of the 1930s, and the replacement of the local revolutionary leadership after Mao and the Center arrived in 1935. Esherick compels us to consider the Chinese Revolution not as some inevitable peasant response to poverty and oppression, but as the contingent product of local, national, and international events in a constantly changing milieu. To register, go to https://tinyurl.com/pittesherick

Children, we are told, are becoming more anxious. But what are they anxious about? Recent studies on “climate anxiety” suggest that the current climate crisis is at the top of children and young people’s concerns and is being expressed in the form of grief. This presentation considers a growing body of climate fiction for children that links personal grief to planetary grief as a way of promoting climate activism. It examines contemporary middle-grade books that include Ali Benjamin’s The Thing about Jellyfish (2015) and Sarah Baughman’s The Light in the Lake (2019), tracing the historical and literary roots of this trend in literature for the young. Beginning in the early twentieth century, an increasing number of materials for parents and educators attempted to “teach” children how to immerse themselves in nature. But, as the archival records produced by children reveal, young people often took charge of their own relationship with the environment. Through an examination of these historical records, Dr Emily Murphy argues for a participatory approach—a method that focuses on co-production between adult and child—to the narration of these experiences as a way of broadening who we identify as young climate activists and recognizing the complex emotions associated with ecological grief.

Emily Murphy is a Lecturer in Children’s Literature at Newcastle University (UK), with research interests in international children's literature, childhood studies, and global citizenship education. Her monograph, Growing Up with America: Youth, Myth, and National Identity, 1945 to Present (University of Georgia Press, 2020), was the winner of the 2021 International Research Society for Children’s Literature Book Award. The book explores the role of the figure of the adolescent in challenging national myths about U.S. identity, and looks at both canonical American novels and young adult fiction, including Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita and M.T. Anderson’s Feed, to support its argument. She has published essays in The Lion and the Unicorn, Children’s Literature Association Quarterly, and Jeunesse, and her work also appears in Prizing in Children’s Literature (ed. Kenneth Kidd and Joseph Thomas) and Connecting Childhood and Old Age in Popular Media (ed. Vanessa Joosen). Currently, she is working on a new book project entitled The Anarchy of Children’s Archives: Children’s Literature and Global Citizenship Education in the American Century, for which she has received an Ezra Jack Keats/Janina Domanska Research Fellowship from the De Grummond Children’s Literature Collection and an International Youth Library Research Fellowship.

The Spring 2022 Asia Pop Series explores the growth of the gaming culture across East Asia and its historical implications along with distinguished scholars and experts in the field. Please join us for our last event in the series, a panel discussion led by Dr. Yun-Oh Whang, Clinical Assistant Professor of Business Administration at the University of Pittsburgh, and Dr. Zach Horton, Assistant Professor in Film & Media Studies at the University of Pittsburgh. Register here.

Many local policy makers and legal practitioners remain unaware of the extensive body of international law and precedent upholding the internationally recognized human right to adequate housing. Farha will discuss this legal context and how the United Nations is working to support governments to do better and more to realize this most basic right for all residents.

The Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS) as part of the University Center for International Studies (UCIS) at the University of Pittsburgh welcomes faculty and students to the Latin American Social and Public Policy Conference. For 25 years we have welcomed researchers from around the world to Pittsburgh, creating spaces where the scientific community can discuss the past, present, and future of Latin America, Caribbean, and its Diasporas. Though this is always important, it seems even more crucial these days.

LASPP conference participants, authors and presenters will benefit from CLAS' extensive international network and in-house scholars, to collect insightful feedback benefitting from top researchers in Latin American Studies. As a way to lower barriers for scientific exchange, papers may be presented in English, Spanish, and/or Portuguese

Social Italian event for students of Italian at Pitt

A live interview with Isaac Scarborough (Liverpool John Moores University)

Register here: https://pitt.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_IptNQlv6RCmORUl8bANvhg

French casual conversation table. Open to all students of all levels of proficiency.

This program will feature a brief talk by Leilani, opportunities to ask questions and talk about housing rights, and space to talk about action steps in Pittsburgh and the world. Coffee and food will be provided!

Join the French Club for French language practice

Join our panel of community leaders as they share examples of how Pittsburghers are working to advance housing justice in our city and to engage with our international guest, Ms. Leilani Farha, in explorations of how we can make more use of global alliances and international legal strategies in efforts to protect and promote housing as a human right.

ADDverse+Poesia is a poetry collective that shares stories and works of art from underrepresented communities within our society - including but not limited to: the LGBTQIA+ community, Black and Indigenous individuals, and people living with disabilities.

In partnership with the Japan America Society of Pennsylvania and the Phipps Conservatory, please join us for a virtual lecture about these masterpieces in miniature. Enjoy learning about bonsai; what the art form is and how it relates to gardens. Discover its ancient origins in China, its refinement in Japan and its popularity now around the world. Explore how bonsai were introduced to the United States and its ongoing role in international diplomacy. To register: https://tinyurl.com/PittMcClellan

This conference will introduce many of the forces that have shaped Vietnam's modern development. Presenters will analyze topics such as the impact of French colonialism on Vietnam's history, Vietnamese war literature both in Vietnam and amongst the Vietnamese-American community, Vietnam's rise as an economic powerhouse and producer of consumer goods, and the impact of the Mekong River in Vietnam's history and modern relationship with China.

To register for this event, please click here.

The Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS) as part of the University Center for International Studies (UCIS) at the University of Pittsburgh welcomes faculty and students to the Latin American Social and Public Policy Conference. For 25 years we have welcomed researchers from around the world to Pittsburgh, creating spaces where the scientific community can discuss the past, present, and future of Latin America, Caribbean, and its Diasporas. Though this is always important, it seems even more crucial these days.

LASPP conference participants, authors and presenters will benefit from CLAS' extensive international network and in-house scholars, to collect insightful feedback benefitting from top researchers in Latin American Studies. As a way to lower barriers for scientific exchange, papers may be presented in English, Spanish, and/or Portuguese

The Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS) as part of the University Center for International Studies (UCIS) at the University of Pittsburgh welcomes faculty and students to the Latin American Social and Public Policy Conference. For 25 years we have welcomed researchers from around the world to Pittsburgh, creating spaces where the scientific community can discuss the past, present, and future of Latin America, Caribbean, and its Diasporas. Though this is always important, it seems even more crucial these days.

LASPP conference participants, authors and presenters will benefit from CLAS' extensive international network and in-house scholars, to collect insightful feedback benefitting from top researchers in Latin American Studies. As a way to lower barriers for scientific exchange, papers may be presented in English, Spanish, and/or Portuguese

The Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS) as part of the University Center for International Studies (UCIS) at the University of Pittsburgh welcomes faculty and students to the Latin American Social and Public Policy Conference. For 25 years we have welcomed researchers from around the world to Pittsburgh, creating spaces where the scientific community can discuss the past, present, and future of Latin America, Caribbean, and its Diasporas. Though this is always important, it seems even more crucial these days.

LASPP conference participants, authors and presenters will benefit from CLAS' extensive international network and in-house scholars, to collect insightful feedback benefitting from top researchers in Latin American Studies. As a way to lower barriers for scientific exchange, papers may be presented in English, Spanish, and/or Portuguese

Join us for a presentation live on April 8 from the Scottish Nationality Room celebrating the Tartan Week 2022!

This free event will celebrate Scottish heritage in the Pittsburgh region, promote the new Glasgow Sister City initiative and showcase Scottish innovation!

Speakers:
- Neil Owen (Host, Scottish Business Network)
- Kathy Risko (Sister Cities International)
- Fergus Bruce (Edify.ac)
- Bill McShane, Associate Director for Integrated Learning at the University of Pittsburgh Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business & Scottish Nationality Room Secretary

Co-Sponsors:
- University Center for International Studies
- Nationality Rooms and Intercultural Exchange Programs
- European Studies Center
- Scottish Nationality Room
- Scottish Business Network
- Sister Cities International (SCI)
- Edify

In-Person: Scottish Nationality Room, Cathedral of Learning, Room #139, First Floor, 4200 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15260

Please note, in-person capacity is limited and will be offered to the first registrants to select that they plan to attend in-person.

Effective March 28, the University has announced that masks are optional indoors. Further information can be found at the Power of Pitt: Building a Healthy and Resilient Community: https://www.coronavirus.pitt.edu/healthy-community/pitts-health-rules

If you are attending this event in-person, parking is available on-street or in Soldiers and Sailors parking garage.

A small reception will take place in the Schenley Croghan Room following the event.

Virtual: Please indicate that you plan to attend virtually when registering via Eventbrite. The virtual meeting link will be sent prior to the date of the event.

Join the Vietnamese Student Association for a poetry workshop with Professor Diana Khoi Nguyen that will explore expressions of Vietnamese identity.

In this lecture, Dr. Berlin will draw on archeological evidence to showcase how ancient Judeans in the first century BCE began the practice of “household Judaism,” using specific goods to infuse homes and lives with a religious sensibility and common material identity that was noticeably distinct from the cosmopolitan lifestyles surrounding them.

This lecture is in memory of the late Professor Jerry Rosenberg, a formative leader of the Jewish studies program at the University of Pittsburgh.

This event is co-sponsored by The Jewish Studies Program, Nationality Rooms and Intercultural Exchange Programs and the Israel Heritage Room Committee.

Register to attend in-person or virtually: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/hellenism-hasmoneans-and-household-judaism-...

The Undergraduate Research Symposium is an annual event since 2002 designed to provide undergraduate students, from the University of Pittsburgh and other colleges and universities, with advanced research experiences and opportunities to develop presentation skills. The event is open to undergraduates from all majors and institutions who have written a research paper from a social science, humanities, or business perspective focusing on the study of Eastern, Western, or Central Europe, the European Union, Russia, or Central Eurasia.

After the initial submission of papers, selected participants are grouped into panels according to their research topics. The participants then give 10- to 15- minute presentations based on their research to a panel of faculty and graduate students. The presentations are open to the public.

Visit the website at ucis.pitt.edu/crees/urs

Apply here by January 7, 2022: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd-jrnDiSkgRpr81fKHzQQMXm3E2UN3...

The Emerging Global Leaders Program encourages early- to mid-career global leaders to model their expertise and experience. This year's Emerging Global Leader Tareq Alaows will be holding office hours from April 11-15, 2022 at the Global Hub for students who are interested in hearing more about Tareq's experiences.

Tareq Alaows was a recipient of a Johnson Institute Emerging Leader award in the Fall and is an activist engaged in migrant/refugee issues and a former candidate for the Bundestag whose campaign was derailed by threats to himself and his family. Tareq has been involved in the Seebrucke movement in Germany and more recently has been working on refugee/migration issues related to Afghanistan and Ukraine.

The Euro Challenge is a competition for high school students on European economic and monetary policy. It gives participants the opportunity to learn about the Euro, the single market, and other important concepts central to the European Union and macro/microeconomics.

Stop by the Global Hub to purchase some baked goods in support of Ukraine! Proceeds will be donated to Slovak-Americans Stand With Ukraine fund.

This event is sponsored by the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, the Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies, and the Graduate Organization for the Study of Europe and Central Asia.

Join the French Club for French language conversation practice

Portuguese conversation at all levels

Come join the German Club to practice your language skills and learn about German culture!

The Emerging Global Leaders Program encourages early- to mid-career global leaders to model their expertise and experience. This year's Emerging Global Leader Tareq Alaows will be holding office hours from April 11-15, 2022 at the Global Hub for students who are interested in hearing more about Tareq's experiences.

Tareq Alaows was a recipient of a Johnson Institute Emerging Leader award in the Fall and is an activist engaged in migrant/refugee issues and a former candidate for the Bundestag whose campaign was derailed by threats to himself and his family. Tareq has been involved in the Seebrucke movement in Germany and more recently has been working on refugee/migration issues related to Afghanistan and Ukraine.

POSTPONED!!

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a leading cause of death around the world, with the highest burdens in low-resource settings, and is expected to grow exponentially to cause around 10 million deaths annually in 2050. It is defined by high degrees of complexity given its international, multisectoral, ‘one health’ and ‘creeping’ features, which creates significant challenges for good governance. In addition, only 0,5% of all AMR related research comes from the social sciences, which indicates that we know relatively little about the behavioral and institutional aspects of antibiotics. It is also typically referred to as a low-salient political issue. This talk will introduce three dimensions of European governance of antibiotics; first, how experts, typically top senior bureaucrats, create an ‘administrative action space’ when politicians fail to raise the issue; second, the networking dynamics among domestic bureaucracies to create collaborative governance; and thirdly, the role and function of the EU Commission to act as a third-party enforcer in solving the large-scale collective action dilemma of AMR.

Daniel Carelli is a PhD Candidate in political science at the University of Gothenburg. His dissertation investigates how administrative traditions and bureaucratic autonomy affect inter-bureaucratic collaboration around the issue of antimicrobial resistance in Europe.

Dr. Joseph-Masséna will present excerpts from her book manuscript Voicing Vodou: Haitian Women Writers and the Goddess Ezili. Her project highlights a previously unidentified literary genre created by three Haitian women writers which she calls “The Eziliphonic text. ”The term “eziliphonic” is a neologism which combines the name of feminine vodou deity “Ezili'' with the adjective “phonic,” referring to “voice” or “speech sound.” The book centers Haitian Women writers as theorists by demonstrating how, within this collectively created literary genre, they effectively rehabilitate vodou culture through their textualization of the feminine deity Ezili, while also centering voice and sound, not vision, as a critical category of the vodou imaginary. There are many iterations of Ezili spirits or lwas in Haitian vodou, but the ones studied here are Ezili Freda, the flirtatious mulatta and lover of all things beautiful, and Ezili Danto, the passionate dark-skinned single mother and fierce defender of her children. Each chapter draws on an interdisciplinary framework, grounded in Black feminist theory, Voice Studies, literary criticism, and Vodou Studies in order to show how Haitian women novelists mobilize Ezili’s vocal, or phonic, specificities in their narratives.

In preparation for the session, students will get acquainted with Jacques Stéphen Alexis’ Réalisme merveilleux or Frankétienne’s Spiralisme. Then, they will read passages from Omise'eke Natasha Tinsley’s Ezili's Mirrors (2018) and Christina Elizabeth Sharpe’s In the Wake: On Blackness and Being (2016). They will also listen to a selection of jazz music.

Dr. Cae Joseph-Masséna is an Assistant Professor of Comparative, Cultural and Francophone studies in the department of Modern Literature & Languages at the University of Miami. Her recent work focuses on contemporary Haitian women writers. A trained Jazz Vocalist and Berklee College of Music alumnus, her research focuses more broadly on the entanglement of voice, music, ritual and sound in Black women’s literary texts. Her research areas include comparative approaches to African diasporic literatures of the francophone Atlantic with an emphasis on Sound/Voice Studies, Haitian Studies and feminist queer of color critique.

Join the Arabic Language & Culture Club for an hour of conversing in the colloquial Arabic language while speaking on various current events.

Join the Chinese Language & Culture Club every other Tuesday to practice the Chinese language and participate in Chinese cultural activities,

The first meeting on 1/18 will be virtual: https://pitt.zoom.us/j/94596594820

The Emerging Global Leaders Program encourages early- to mid-career global leaders to model their expertise and experience. This year's Emerging Global Leader Tareq Alaows will be holding office hours from April 11-15, 2022 at the Global Hub for students who are interested in hearing more about Tareq's experiences.

Tareq Alaows was a recipient of a Johnson Institute Emerging Leader award in the Fall and is an activist engaged in migrant/refugee issues and a former candidate for the Bundestag whose campaign was derailed by threats to himself and his family. Tareq has been involved in the Seebrucke movement in Germany and more recently has been working on refugee/migration issues related to Afghanistan and Ukraine.

The Summer EDGE in Entrepreneurship and Innovation program will take place from May 9-August 6. This is an undergraduate certificate program offered in the College of Business Administration and targeted toward non-business students. Through this curriculum students will be exposed to the mechanics of opportunity creation. These skills include modules on business plan preparation and feasibility analysis, presentation skills, interactive marketing, customer relationship management, and competitive analysis, project management, and leadership. Upon completion of the certificate students will have increased their ability to compete for summer and permanent positions in a wide range of industries and functions. ALL non-business undergraduate students are welcome to enroll.

Register here: https://pitt.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJEtcuqsrTMsEtXB3h8KXh8FKBFe3jsnU-3K

Emily Olmstead is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh with a Global Studies Certificate. She serves as Program Coordinator at American Councils for International Education, Tajikistan and possesses diverse global work experience. Emily is experienced in language instruction, development, and youth work, with an interest in international education, gender equality, and human rights. She will discuss her career experiences as well as insight navigating changes in global work from a currently remote position.

To Register:
https://pitt.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUpf-Crqj4jHNfcF98DJhdvp2ihDYLi5W5F

This keynote event is part of the European and Eurasian Undergraduate Research Symposium 2022.
In this presentation Professor Balmaceda will revisit the burning question of how global, more specifically Europe's dependency on Russian fossil fuel chains has affected international responses to Ukraine's security. Her latest book, Russian Energy Chains: The Remaking of Technopolitics from Siberia to Ukraine to the European Union, sheds light on how Russia's fossil fuel exports have created what now seems like more of a threat than an opportunity for all parties involved. In her book, Professor Balmaceda follows the geopolitical journey of three fossil fuel molecules from production in Siberia to processing and transit in Ukraine, to final use in Germany, while giving us invaluable insight into the moving forces behind the politics and economics surrounding fossil fuels.

View the Poster: https://www.ucis.pitt.edu/creees/sites/default/files/images/documents/RE...

Register to attend: https://pitt.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwsdu6urzkpHNWK_cVUxGX2Ow1F-JSLOv...

In this lecture, Dr. Kerry Brown, Professor of Chinese Studies and Director of the Lau China Institute at King’s College, London, will reveal how the island's shifting fortunes have been shaped by centuries of conquest and by a cast of dynamic characters. Using the backdrop of Cold War intrigue and the rise of its neighbor as a global power, this lecture will examine how this tiny island, caught between the agendas of two superpowers, is attempting to find its place in a rapidly changing world order.

Register here.

The Emerging Global Leaders Program encourages early- to mid-career global leaders to model their expertise and experience. This year's Emerging Global Leader Tareq Alaows will be holding office hours from April 11-15, 2022 at the Global Hub for students who are interested in hearing more about Tareq's experiences.

Tareq Alaows was a recipient of a Johnson Institute Emerging Leader award in the Fall and is an activist engaged in migrant/refugee issues and a former candidate for the Bundestag whose campaign was derailed by threats to himself and his family. Tareq has been involved in the Seebrucke movement in Germany and more recently has been working on refugee/migration issues related to Afghanistan and Ukraine.

Social Italian event for students of Italian at Pitt

A live interview with Nanci Adler (University of Amsterdam)

Register here: https://pitt.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_j6I2NNm-QCy_r_lcvvRNgQ

French casual conversation table. Open to all students of all levels of proficiency.

Dr. Victor Figuereo is an Assistant Professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work. His work focuses on racialization, the intersections of race and ethnicity, and access to health and mental health care as it pertains to the psychological well-being and distress of Latinx individuals living in the United States. The purpose of his works is to demystify the ethnic and racial homogeneity of U.S. Latinxs, render visible the lived experiences of Afro- and Black-Latinxs, and contribute to the elimination of Latinx health and mental health disparities in the U.S. He is the author of Racialization and Psychological Distress among U.S. Latinxs (Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities, 2021). Dr. Figuereo received his bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Clark University and master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from Ball State University. He completed his master’s degree in social work and doctorate degree at the Boston College School of Social Work.

In this brief presentation, Willem Noe, European Commission Official and former EU Fellow at GSPIA, will give a brief overview of working at the European Commission as an international organization, and his own career path as an economist at the Commission dealing with globalization, European Union Enlargement (entry of new Member States into the EU), and the economies of several Member States. He is currently stationed at the EC Representation in Ireland, where he closely follows the Irish economy and the impact of Brexit on Ireland, and acts as a liaison between government, civil society, and the EC Country Team Ireland in Brussels.

View the poster: https://www.ucis.pitt.edu/creees/sites/default/files/images/documents/RE...

Register Here: https://pitt.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwsdu6urzkpHNWK_cVUxGX2Ow1F-JSLOv...

Join the Bosnian Croatian Montenegrin Serbian Club at Pitt for an afternoon of Bosnian coffee and making Balkan desserts.

ADDverse+Poesia is a poetry collective that shares stories and works of art from underrepresented communities within our society - including but not limited to: the LGBTQIA+ community, Black and Indigenous individuals, and people living with disabilities.

Farsi students and those interested in the Persian language and culture can participate in language practice and cultural events

The Emerging Global Leaders Program encourages early- to mid-career global leaders to model their expertise and experience. This year's Emerging Global Leader Tareq Alaows will be holding office hours from April 11-15, 2022 at the Global Hub for students who are interested in hearing more about Tareq's experiences.

Tareq Alaows was a recipient of a Johnson Institute Emerging Leader award in the Fall and is an activist engaged in migrant/refugee issues and a former candidate for the Bundestag whose campaign was derailed by threats to himself and his family. Tareq has been involved in the Seebrucke movement in Germany and more recently has been working on refugee/migration issues related to Afghanistan and Ukraine.

In celebration of the centenary of Modern Art Week in Brazil, stop by the Global Hub on Monday, April 18 from 12-4:30PM to view an exhibition of the life and work of the main modernist representatives and Luso-Brazilian traditions and cultural manifestations.

This event is sponsored by the Brazilian Lectorship Program, the Center for Latin American Studies, the Lusosphere Program, and the Department of Hispanic Languages and Literatures.

Join the French Club for French language conversation practice

The Summer EDGE in Entrepreneurship and Innovation program will take place from May 9-August 6. This is an undergraduate certificate program offered in the College of Business Administration and targeted toward non-business students. Through this curriculum students will be exposed to the mechanics of opportunity creation. These skills include modules on business plan preparation and feasibility analysis, presentation skills, interactive marketing, customer relationship management, and competitive analysis, project management, and leadership. Upon completion of the certificate students will have increased their ability to compete for summer and permanent positions in a wide range of industries and functions. ALL non-business undergraduate students are welcome to enroll.

Register here: https://pitt.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0udOugrzoiHNT_BFBxmxSbXWbQP2rrU1TZ

Integrative Community Therapy is a method of conducting large dialogic groups, facilitated by lay people or professionals, that provide social and emotional support in a unique way. The Brazilians call it “solidarity care”, noting that its the community that is the therapy. Visible Hands Collaborative is making the first effort to bring it to the US and the anglophone world. Dr. Barreto will describe ICT’s developments, outline how it is organized, the principles it is based on, and share information about its results. The challenges in front of any effort to translate it from its Brazilian culture form to an American one will be highlighted, as well as the ways that might facilitate this to happen. Reception to follow the lecture.

Join the Arabic Language & Culture Club for an hour of conversing in the colloquial Arabic language while speaking on various current events.

On April 10th, France will hold a presidential election putting ideologies, personalities, and the future of France on the ballot. A run-off will be held on April 24th if no one secures a majority. The last Conversations on Europe for the 2021-22 academic year will focus on the ramifications of this election's outcome, how Russia's invasion of Ukraine will impact the election, and how this can shape the next decade not only of France but of Europe as a whole.

Panelists:
Jean Beaman, University of California Santa Barbara
Arthur Goldhammer, Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Philippe Marliere, University College London

Moderated by Jae-Jae Spoon, University of Pittsburgh

We cannot discuss global sustainability without including the Amazon; however, what exactly is the Amazon? Our conversation explores a facet often ignored about the Brazilian Amazon: cities. We will offer a contemporary profile of challenges and characteristic of the cities in the forest, inserting them in the axis of sustainable development. The recent and intensive urbanization process is often associated with lack of planning and adequate infrastructure that adds to the other challenges such as the loss of forest and other natural environments faced by this region.

Social Italian event for students of Italian at Pitt

French casual conversation table. Open to all students of all levels of proficiency.

Born in Colombia, Mariana is finishing her MA in Applied Linguistics and TESOL at the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences. She obtained her BA in Foreign Language Teaching from Universidad del Valle in Colombia where she graduated with a National Recognition Award by the Ministry of Education for her outstanding performance. Following, she received a Fulbright scholarship at Bard College in New York. Returning to Colombia, she moved to Leticia where she worked as an English teacher inspiring her current research which earned her a second Fulbright scholarship. During her stay at Pitt, she has focused on English teaching as a tool for empowering the indigenous identity and revitalization of minority languages in the Colombian Amazon. The now Robert T. Henderson awardee discusses how turning to remote instruction due to the Covid-19 pandemic constituted a bigger challenge to teachers and administrators in Leticia, where connectivity was already an issue before the crisis. The session will explore how schools faced on-line education, the limited available tools and how the teacher’s population was affected by Covid-19. Moreover, speaker will describe what are the lessons and challenges to consider now that students and teachers are back to in-person classes.

This panel, made up of young professionals, provides first-hand experiences from the student perspective regarding European work settings, including legal, cultural, and other human resources differences.

PANELISTS
• Alex Alibrandi FIU Alumni
Sales and Marketing Associate Bozzuto Group

Juan Debesa
FIU Alumni
Graduate Student
Master of Science in Information & Communications Technology
at University of Denver

• Ian Schreiber-Altamirano FIU Alumni
Renewal Manager at DocuSign
MBA Candidate at Nova Southeastern University

• Isabella Venturini FIU Alumni
Graduate Student
Master in Security Studies Program
at Georgetown University

MODERATOR
Renata Urban
Intercultural Coach, Language, and Communication Skills Trainer URBAN Training and Services, Inc.

Join the French Club for French language practice

For their final event of the year, the International Relations Club will hold officer elections and play international relations-themed trivia.

Amidst rapid urbanization and massive emigration from rural areas in recent decades, the countryside has suffered from increasing neglect. Yet growing urban-rural polarization around the world today tells us that the countryside remains as relevant as ever. American politics and European politics are now utterly divided between urban and rural areas. Similarly, urban-rural inequality bears profound consequences for Chinese society and politics. A substantial amount of the world’s population will remain in the countryside for decades to come, and their lives, livelihoods, and political participation will continue to affect the fates of societies as a whole.

This conference brings together scholars from various disciplines to engage in an in-depth discussion about society and politics of the Chinese countryside. A central theme of this conference is to highlight the Contemporary Chinese Village Gazetteer Dataset assembled by the University of Pittsburgh Library System (ULS). Participants are encouraged to present preliminary findings using this dataset, although other kinds of intellectual contributions are also welcome. To register, click here.

Please contact asia@pitt.edu to register to attend in-person, or register to attend virtually on Zoom at https://tinyurl.com/PittRuralChina.
To view the conference agenda, please visit here.

How have the electric vehicle markets evolved in Europe and Asia in the past decade? How do these changes impact energy choices and consumption in the 21st century? Join us as we explore these questions and more in our BETH series on Energy.

Speakers: Dr. John Helveston, George Washington University; Dr. Marianne Ryghaug, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Dr. Maciej Mazur, AVERE--The European Association for Electromobility.

Register at https://tinyurl.com/PittElectric

Amidst rapid urbanization and massive emigration from rural areas in recent decades, the countryside has suffered from increasing neglect. Yet growing urban-rural polarization around the world today tells us that the countryside remains as relevant as ever. American politics and European politics are now utterly divided between urban and rural areas. Similarly, urban-rural inequality bears profound consequences for Chinese society and politics. A substantial amount of the world’s population will remain in the countryside for decades to come, and their lives, livelihoods, and political participation will continue to affect the fates of societies as a whole.

This conference brings together scholars from various disciplines to engage in an in-depth discussion about society and politics of the Chinese countryside. A central theme of this conference is to highlight the Contemporary Chinese Village Gazetteer Dataset assembled by the University of Pittsburgh Library System (ULS). Participants are encouraged to present preliminary findings using this dataset, although other kinds of intellectual contributions are also welcome. To register, click here.

Please contact asia@pitt.edu to register to attend in-person, or register to attend virtually on Zoom at https://tinyurl.com/PittRuralChina.
To view the conference agenda, please visit here.

On Saturday, April 23rd, students of the course FR 1023 (French Theater Workshop) at Pitt will be performing scenes from the play “On ne badine pas avec l’amour” (No trifling with love) by Alfred de Musset. The students have worked all semester studying and interpreting the play while practicing performance and theater.

The play follows the tragic love story of Perdican and Camille as their efforts to win the other over through jealousy ultimately backfire. All the costumes, sets, and props were designed by the students of the course and the performances are all by members of the class. 

Please join us on April 23rd at the Global Hub for the performance. Your support is greatly appreciated!

The 2022 Otto and Fran Walter Foundation Memorial Lecture features Ivan Krastev, Permanent Fellow at the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM), Vienna, discussing what the Russian invasion of Ukraine means for the future of Europe, Russia and transatlantic relations.

This is presented by the CUNY Graduate Center's EU's Studies Center.

This is a part of the JMintheUS.

#JMintheUS

The Pitt Policy Journal (PPJ) is a student-led publication in the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs (GSPIA) whose goal is to give GSPIA students a platform to conduct and present research that focuses on a diverse set of topics.

Please join the PPJ for this launch event on Tuesday, April 26 from 4:30-6PM in the Global Hub!

O seminário "Culturas Negras no Atlantico (CULTNA)" é uma iniciativa que congrega o Laboratório de História Oral e Imagem (LABHOI) da Universidade Federal Fluminense e da Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora, e o Center for Latin American Studies da University of Pittsburgh. Neste encontro, será discutido o texto "Zoologicos humanos: gente em exibição na era do imperialismo", de Sandra Koutsoukos, com a própria autora. Evento em português.

Dr. Eddie Bonilla is currently a Postdoctoral associate in Latinx Studies and teaches in the History Department at the University of Pittsburgh. He joined Pitt after being a Postdoctoral fellow in Ethnic Studies at the University of Illinois from 2019-2020. Eddie received his PhD in History from Michigan State University in 2019. His most recent article, “Latina/o Communists, Activism, and the FBI during the Chicana/o and New Communist Movements” was published by the Southern California Quarterly in March 2022. He is currently working on his book manuscript, Homegrown Communists in the Age of Reagan: Multi-Racial Politics and Socialist Revolution.

Global Issues Through Literature (GILS) Fall and Spring 2021-22: Imagining Other Worlds: Globalizing Science Fiction and Fantasy

April 28th, 2022 - "Dark is Rising" by Susan Cooper. Co-sponsored by the European Studies Center

Facilitated by Emilee Ruhland, who graduated this spring with her Master’s in Critical and Cultural Studies from the University of Pittsburgh, and she holds an MA in English from North Dakota State University. Emilee is a medievalist and has written about Beowulf, Joan of Arc, Notre Dame de Paris, and Gothic architecture in Pittsburgh. She works in higher ed communications, most recently as the Communications Coordinator for the European Studies Center.

This reading group for K-12 educators explores literary texts from a global perspective. Content specialists present the work and its context, and participants brainstorm innovative pedagogical practices for incorporating the text and its themes into the curriculum. Sessions this year will take place virtually on Thursday evenings from 5-8 PM (EST). Books and three Act 48 credit hours are provided.

Register for the reading groups here- https://www.ucis.pitt.edu/global/gils

Contact Maja Konitzer with questions at majab@pitt.edu