Week of January 24, 2021 in UCIS

Monday, January 25

9:00 am Conference
China-Latin America and the Caribbean
Location:
via Zoom online
Sponsored by:
Asian Studies Center and Center for Latin American Studies
See Details

China-Latin America and the Carribbean: Infrastructure, Connectivity, and Everyday Life [DAY 1]

The conference is sponsored by the Asian Studies Center, the Center for Latin American Studies (University of Pittsburgh), and the Red Académica de América Latina y el Caribe sobre China (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México).

Dr. Joseph Alter (Asian Studies Center at the University of Pittsburgh), Dr. James Cook (Asian Studies Center at the University of Pittsburgh), and Dr. Enrique Dussel Peters (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México) have organized a remote conference scheduled for January 25-26, 2021, on the topic of "China-Latin America and the Caribbean: Infrastructure, Connectivity, and Everyday Life."

Register here

For the conference schedule and more information, please visit: https://www.clari.pitt.edu/research/china-latin-america-and-caribbean-in...

Tuesday, January 26

8:30 am Conference
China-Latin America and the Caribbean
Location:
via Zoom online
Sponsored by:
Asian Studies Center and Center for Latin American Studies
See Details

China-Latin America and the Carribbean: Infrastructure, Connectivity, and Everyday Life [DAY 2]

The conference is sponsored by the Asian Studies Center, the Center for Latin American Studies (University of Pittsburgh), and the Red Académica de América Latina y el Caribe sobre China (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México).

Dr. Joseph Alter (Asian Studies Center at the University of Pittsburgh), Dr. James Cook (Asian Studies Center at the University of Pittsburgh), and Dr. Enrique Dussel Peters (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México) have organized a remote conference scheduled for January 25-26, 2021, on the topic of "China-Latin America and the Caribbean: Infrastructure, Connectivity, and Everyday Life."

Register here

For the conference schedule and more information, please visit: https://www.clari.pitt.edu/research/china-latin-america-and-caribbean-in...

12:00 pm Lecture
Steppe Irrigation: Water, Rivers, and Canalization in the USSR
Location:
Zoom
Sponsored by:
Center for Russian East European and Eurasian Studies
See Details

The desiccation of the Aral Sea is one of the greatest environmental catastrophes of the late twentieth century. But efforts to harness and divert the Aral’s freshwater are rooted in efforts to use technology to terraform landscape in the modern era. Using water to irrigate a wasteland was a hallmark of modernity, progress, productivity, and prosperity. Water was also emblematic of the colonial infrastructure of Russia and the Soviet Union. This live interview with Maya Peterson (University of California, Santa Cruz) and Christopher Ward (Clayton State University) will discuss the role of water in its winder environmental history of the Soviet project.

Register via Zoom here: https://pitt.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJMtcuqtrTMvG9BeDyxIAiHaudte7pJDYb6Q

The existential threat of climate change has inspired renewed intellectual engagement with the Anthropocene. Eurasian Studies are no exception to this trend. In the last decade, studies that grapple with the past, present, and potential future of the human-nature dialectic are on the uptick. These studies have forced us to reconsider intellectual and ideological paradigms, sources, mission, and role of scholar in society.

Nature’s Revenge: Ecology, Animals, and Waste in Eurasia seeks to bring some of this scholarship and activism to a wider public through a series of live-recorded interviews. The goal is to illuminate recent scholarship and complicate our understanding of the Eurasian Anthropocene and its place in our world.

1:00 pm Lecture Series / Brown Bag
The European Union and Youth Employment
Sponsored by:
European Studies Center along with University of Colorado-Boulder Colorado European Union Center for Excellence
See Details

As shown by earlier recessions, youth employment is more sensitive to the business cycle than adult employment and the economic recession triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to bring back dramatically high youth unemployment and NEET rates (young people who are not in education, employment or training). To further support an inclusive economic recovery, school to work transitions in the changing world of work, and ensure that young people make the most of the opportunities stemming from digital, resilient and green transitions, the European Union had developed programs and initiatives along with funding sources to address these needs.

For example, The Youth Employment Initiative (YEI) exclusively supports NEETs, including the long-term unemployed or those not registered as jobseekers. It ensures that in parts of Europe where the challenges are most acute, young people can receive targeted support. Typically, the YEI funds the provision of apprenticeships, traineeships, job placements and further education leading to a qualification.

Join us to hear Birgit Daiber discuss the various youth programs in Europe and how they are funded. The Zoom meeting link will be emailed to you prior to the event.

2:00 pm Lecture Series / Brown Bag
A Virtual Discussion with UK Ambassador Dame Karen Pierce
Sponsored by:
European Studies Center along with American University Transatlantic Policy Center
5:00 pm Information Session
REEES Information Session for Prospective Students
Location:
Zoom
Sponsored by:
Center for Russian East European and Eurasian Studies
See Details

Are you interested in Russia, Eastern Europe, or Central Asia? Have you ever wanted to master a language from this region?Have you considered pursuing a career or degree that requires intimate knowledge of Eastern European and Eurasian politics, culture, history, or economics?There has never been a better time to specialize in this vast, diverse, and captivating region? and the Center for Russian, Eastern European, and Eurasian Studies (REEES) at the University of Pittsburgh is one of the best places in the world to do it. REEES offers interdisciplinary certificates, generous scholarships, professional development opportunities, unique courses and study abroad programs, and a variety of enriching academic and cultural events each year. If you would like to learn more about what you can achieve at REEES, join us for this information session to hear from the Center?s director, academic advisor, and a recent graduate of the REEES program.

Speakers:
Nancy Condee, Director, REEES
Trevor Erlacher, Academic Advisor, REEES
Frances Tish, American Bar Association, REEES alumna

Register here: https://pitt.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_bHET2kWnQe2o1kNrWbi_Rg

Wednesday, January 27

11:00 am Information Session
African Studies Program Virtual Office Hours
Location:
Zoom
Sponsored by:
Center for African Studies and Global Hub
See Details

Meet with African Studies Program Student Ambassador Emmanuel Ampofo to ask questions about the African Studies Certificate, upcoming events, and more.

Meet via Zoom: https://pitt.zoom.us/j/97841843639

12:00 pm Lecture Series / Brown Bag
Walter Memorial Lecture with Federica Mogherini
Sponsored by:
European Studies Center along with CUNY Graduate Center EU Studies Center
See Details

#JMintheUS

4:00 pm Information Session
Global Studies Center Virtual Office Hours
Location:
Zoom
Sponsored by:
Global Studies Center and Global Hub
See Details

Meet with Global Studies Academic Advisor Elaine Linn to ask questions about the Global Studies Certificate, upcoming events, funding, and more.

Meet via Zoom: http://pitt.zoom.us/j/97393655966

5:00 pm Cultural Event
La Parlotte: French Conversation Club
Location:
Zoom
Sponsored by:
Global Hub along with Department of French & Italian
See Details

Chat with other French students, French faculty, and PhD students and practice your French language skills. Email PhD student Pat Nikiema at PAN32@pitt.edu for the Zoom link.

6:30 pm Lecture
Hemispheric Conversations: Urban Art Project (HCUAP)
Sponsored by:
Global Studies Center along with HCUAP
See Details

Presented in collaboration with Hemispheric Conversations Urban Art Project (HCUAP) at the University of Pittsburgh, this month's program will focus on the collaborative mural project, Disrespecting the Border, that was created for the Latinx community of Pittsburgh in October 2019. We'll join a conversation about the role of mural art as a resource to think through migration and border politics between visiting artist Gil Rocha and local artists Leah Patgorski and Max Gonzales organized by Camilo Ruiz and Marisol Vilella Balderrama. The talk will be facilitated by Dr. Caitlin Bruce. Join us to hear about the dialogues, motifs, and collaborations that came out of the project and their salience today.

Register here: https://millvalemuralsofmaxovanka.salsalabs.org/vankamuralstabletalkjune...

Thursday, January 28

10:00 am Lecture Series / Brown Bag
Reinventing Leadership in the Transatlantic Relationship
Sponsored by:
European Studies Center along with Center for European and Transatlantic Studies at Georgia Tech University
See Details

The newly inaugurated U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to reinvent the transatlantic relationship early in his presidency, markedly shifting the relationship established by the previous administration. What will an invigorated alliance look like? What are the specific challenges and opportunities that Russia poses to this alliance? How can the United States navigate these shoals in a manner that can reinvigorate U.S.-EU partnership?

Join us for a program featuring Sam Nunn, James F. Collins, Federica Mogherini, and Alasdair Young on the future of transatlantic relations.
#JMintheUS

12:00 pm Lecture Series / Brown Bag
CoE: Creating Europe Through Crises
Sponsored by:
European Studies Center
See Details

The ESC’s 2020-21 theme, Creating Europe, explores both the political, social, cultural, and geographical forces that have given shape to contemporary Europe and also individuals who create and are creative in their daily or artistic expressions of what it means to be European.

For this first installment, the ESC and the European Union Studies Association (EUSA) will collaborate to explore how several crises – including financial, Brexit, migration, democratic backsliding, and public
health – have shaped the European Union over
the past decade.

Audience participation is encouraged.

Panelists:
Catherine De Vries, Bocconi University, Milan
Sara Goodman, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva
R. Daniel Keleman, Rutgets University
Matthias Matthijs, Johns Hopkins University

3:15 pm Cultural Event
Laber Rhabarber - German Conversation Hour
Location:
Zoom
Sponsored by:
Global Hub along with Department of German
See Details

Laber Rhabarber - More than a German conversation hour!

"... the most human thing we have is language, and we have it in order to talk." German author Theodor Fontane wrote in 1892. So, here's chance! Be human with us for an hour every week, albeit in German ;D

Everyone and every level of German welcome!

Zoom Meeting link: https://pitt.zoom.us/j/99661883076
German Dept. website: http://www.german.pitt.edu/
Follow us on Instagram/Facebook/Twitter: @UPittGerman

5:00 pm Lecture
From Russian Studies to Careers in Non-Profit Organizations
Location:
Zoom
Sponsored by:
Center for Russian East European and Eurasian Studies
See Details

Russian Studies Career Toolkit Series:

From Russian Studies to Careers in Non-Profit Organizations with
Heather Ficke, Care Manager at Jewish Social Service Agency
Melissa Shostak, Research Assistant at RAND Corporation

Register here: https://pitt.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJArcO6opzwtG9f_hzK2tW3edLBLeuqKy83j

7:00 pm Film
Maidan Film Screening
Location:
Zoom
Sponsored by:
Center for Russian East European and Eurasian Studies along with Graduate Organisation for the Study of Europe and Central Asia
See Details

A film screening of Maidan hosted by the Graduate Organization for the Study of Europe and Central Asia

Register here: https://pitt.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUpf-ygrz8rGNQvH2CmduQOt7M_TqZVLV0a

Thursday, January 28 until Thursday, February 4

4:00 pm Festival
MEET EU Short Film Festival
Sponsored by:
European Studies Center
See Details

Inspired by the European Year of Rail, which shines a light on one of the most sustainable, innovative, and safest modes of transportation, and acknowledging the challenges we have all faced during the pandemic in traveling and forging new connections, the inaugural MEET EU Short Film Competition for U.S. Youth asks young people to create a short film (documentary or non-documentary) responding to the theme “Transatlantic Connections”. The theme is intentionally broad and entrants are encouraged to be creative in how they interpret it.

MEET EU: Making Encounters, Engaging Transatlanticists, is a grant generously funded by the European Union through the European Union Delegation to the US in Washington, DC. The goals of this grant are to shine a light on the EU and the importance of the transatlantic relationship through the eyes of young Americans. We encourage entrants to think creatively to give us your perspective on the European-American relationship, similarities and differences between countries, and why this relationship matters.

Friday, January 29

1:00 pm Cultural Event
Russian Language Tutoring
Location:
Online
Sponsored by:
Center for Russian East European and Eurasian Studies
See Details

Russian tutoring available for students by appointment.

Book your appointment here: https://calendly.com/katya-kovaleva/russian-language-tutoring

2:00 pm Presentation
UCIS Research Toolkit,
Sponsored by:
Director's Office and Global Studies Center
See Details

Are you interested in doing independent research? Are you unsure about how to get a research project started? This workshop, led by Dr. Michael Goodhart, GSC Director, and Dr. K. Frances Lieder, UCIS Visiting Professor of Contemporary Global Issues, will walk you through the process of formulating and pursuing an independent academic research project in the social sciences or humanities. Students will get an overview of the research process, learn how to develop clear research questions, and take away practical tips for getting started and getting through. This workshop is for anyone curious about research, but we especially encourage students pursuing or considering a BPHIL/IAS to attend.

Link to register: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdwiazxA8MznsI32Wt7txoBZ-tl4SBm...

3:00 pm Student Club Activity
German Club Meeting
Location:
Zoom
Sponsored by:
Global Hub along with Pitt German Club
See Details

Join the Pitt German Club every Friday at 3PM to practice your German language skills and learn about different aspects of German culture!

Zoom ID: 950 0542 1812