Call for Proposals

Settling and Unsettling: the city in South Asia

The Center for South Asian Studies at the University of Hawai’i
invites paper and panel proposals on aspects related to its

29th Annual Spring Symposium

“Settling and Unsettling: The City in South Asia”

Conference Dates: April 18-20, 2012, in Honolulu, Hawai’i
Co-sponsored by the School of Architecture and the
Department of Urban and Regional Planning, University of Hawai’i

In the next twenty years, the number of people living in cities in South Asia will be close to 40
percent of the region’s total population. Yet, the South Asian city presents a conundrum. Much
of what can be imagined about the city remains unmapped. Perceptions of South Asian cities
often oscillate between the urban-rural dichotomies. South Asian cities also continue to be
framed within the parameters of urbanization. Stepping outside of technocratic approaches, and
the view of the city as a site of intractable problems, this symposium aims to highlight the
multifaceted energies and imaginaries that animate contemporary interpretation of cities. We
invite participants from all disciplines to consider the different ways in which cities are settled
while also unsettling the concept of the city in South Asian contexts. We welcome a variety of
approaches. The paper or panel could cover topics and themes such as:

• Urbanism versus urbanization
• The urban, the rural, the quasi-urban
• City in historical perspective
• Urban cultures, politics and citizenship
• Gendering the city
• Media and the city
• Mapping new urbanscapes
• Senses and the city
• Aesthetics and the city
• City as mobility
• Hometowns and homelands
• Narratives of small towns
• Migrations and urban affiliations
  

We are pleased to announce that panels will be anchored by keynotes delivered by the
following distinguished scholars:

• Kazi Khaleed Ashraf, School of Architecture, University of Hawaii at Manoa
• Dilip da Cunha, School of Design, University of Pennsylvania
• Will Glover, College of Architecture and Urban Planning, University of Michigan
• Uzma Khan, Department of English, University of Hawaii at Manoa
• Ravi Sundaram, Sarai Program, Center for the Study of Developing Societies, India
  

Deadline to submit proposals: January 25th, 2012
Please send 200-word abstracts for individual papers by email to csas@hawaii.edu. If
proposing an entire panel, please also include a paragraph-length rationale and a proposed
title for the panel.
A limited amount of free lodging will be available to participants.

Rama Watumull Collaborative Lecture Series

The Center for South Asian Studies invites applications to bring to UHM scholars with an expertise in South Asian studies or South Asia related topics as part of the Rama Watumull Collaborative Lecture Series. If you are applying to bring a speaker in early fall, contact the director.  The award is aimed at supporting the interest in departments across the UHM campus in South Asia-related topics and perspectives.

We are now accepting applications on a rolling basis.

The funds provided by the Center will cover reasonable costs of travel, lodging, and honorarium for invited speakers.  The responsibility for organizing and making arrangements for the visit and associated events as well as for hosting the visiting scholar(s) will be that of the faculty/department receiving funds.

The invited speaker will:

• Deliver a lecture on South Asia related research or material for a departmental colloquium series, and
• Participate in a workshop with faculty and graduate students on the relationship between South Asia and or South Asian studies and the specific concerns of the department.

CSAS hopes that this collaborative project will be interdisciplinary and ongoing.  Departments and programs interested in making use of this opportunity should submit:

• the name of the prospective invitee
• a brief rationale for choosing the speaker, with dates for the visit
• a CV or other biographical information
• a budget.

Rama Watumull Collaborative Lecture Series awards will not exceed $1,200. This grant may be combined with other awards if necessary.