Harvard South Asia Institute

In the second episode of The COVID Chronicles podcast, in collaboration with the Times of India, Dr. Satchit Balsari speaks with Enakshi Ganguly, child rights activist and the co-founder of HAQ: Centre for Child Rights. In July 2020, Ganguly was part of the 11-member expert committee set up by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to investigate the impact of COVID-19 on human rights; especially those of marginalized and vulnerable sections of the society. Ganguly led the discussion related to the advisory on the rights of children. Discussing the impact of COVID-19 on children, education, and the families of migrant workers, Ganguly says that the pandemic has unfolded as a child right’s crisis. She touches on the importance of mid-day meals in addressing the food insecurity and unemployment engendered by the pandemic. She observes that the marginalized children are paying the heaviest price as millions of young people are not able to access remote learning during school shutdowns. Highlighting the spi

The Mittal Institute’s podcast series, “India In-Focus,” in collaboration with The Times of India, brings one-on-one discussions between faculty and experts from Harvard right into your home. Listen to prominent speakers discuss the latest transformative research and pivotal breakthroughs that have the potential to change how India conducts business, creates new ideas, and tackles pressing social, technological, and environmental challenges. With a variety of topics ranging from science, education, politics, economics, arts and culture, to social entrepreneurship, this podcast offers a deep dive into both broad and niche subjects for anyone with a curiosity and desire to learn more about cutting-edge research across numerous disciplines.

The Mittal Institute’s podcast series, “India In-Focus,” in collaboration with The Times of India, brings one-on-one discussions between faculty and experts from Harvard right into your home. Listen to prominent speakers discuss the latest transformative research and pivotal breakthroughs that have the potential to change how India conducts business, creates new ideas, and tackles pressing social, technological, and environmental challenges. With a variety of topics ranging from science, education, politics, economics, arts and culture, to social entrepreneurship, this podcast offers a deep dive into both broad and niche subjects for anyone with a curiosity and desire to learn more about cutting-edge research across numerous disciplines.

The Mittal Institute’s podcast series, “India In-Focus,” in collaboration with The Times of India, brings one-on-one discussions between faculty and experts from Harvard right into your home. Listen to prominent speakers discuss the latest transformative research and pivotal breakthroughs that have the potential to change how India conducts business, creates new ideas, and tackles pressing social, technological, and environmental challenges. With a variety of topics ranging from science, education, politics, economics, arts and culture, to social entrepreneurship, this podcast offers a deep dive into both broad and niche subjects for anyone with a curiosity and desire to learn more about cutting-edge research across numerous disciplines.

The Mittal Institute’s podcast series, “India In-Focus,” in collaboration with The Times of India, brings one-on-one discussions between faculty and experts from Harvard right into your home. Listen to prominent speakers discuss the latest transformative research and pivotal breakthroughs that have the potential to change how India conducts business, creates new ideas, and tackles pressing social, technological, and environmental challenges. With a variety of topics ranging from science, education, politics, economics, arts and culture, to social entrepreneurship, this podcast offers a deep dive into both broad and niche subjects for anyone with a curiosity and desire to learn more about cutting-edge research across numerous disciplines.

The Mittal Institute’s podcast series, “India In-Focus,” in collaboration with The Times of India, brings one-on-one discussions between faculty and experts from Harvard right into your home. Listen to prominent speakers discuss the latest transformative research and pivotal breakthroughs that have the potential to change how India conducts business, creates new ideas, and tackles pressing social, technological, and environmental challenges. With a variety of topics ranging from science, education, politics, economics, arts and culture, to social entrepreneurship, this podcast offers a deep dive into both broad and niche subjects for anyone with a curiosity and desire to learn more about cutting-edge research across numerous disciplines.

The India In-Focus podcast is back with a special mini-series that recaps the societal response to COVID-19 in India. Over the course of this seven-part series counting down to the one-year mark of the nationwide lockdown in India, our host Satchit Balsari talks with experts across industry. Each episode gives a narrative exploration of issues key to India’s response to the pandemic and the challenges that lie ahead.

Ronak Desai, Research Associate at the Mittal Institute, moderates a discussion between Nirupama Rao, Former Foreign Secretary of India, and Vipin Narang, Associate Professor of Political Science at MIT, as they explore how the potential outcomes of the 2020 US presidential election may impact the region of South Asia.

Afghanistan was omnipresent in global news for the past two decades for all of the wrong reasons. In this podcast, the panelists explore modern and contemporary architecture and urbanism in Afghanistan to provide an updated, informed view of the country. Discussants: Rahul Mehrotra, Professor of Urban Design and Planning, Harvard Graduate School of Design Ajmal Maiwandi, Director, Aga Khan Trust for Culture Anne Feenstra, Founder and Principal, Sustainable Mountain Architecture, Kathmandu; Former Dean of Architecture, CEPT University, Ahmedabad Koukaba Mojadidi, Architect and Founder, Wingspan Architects Ramin Sadiq, Head of Urban Planning and Design Department, Kabul University

JOIN US FOR SESSION 3 ON SATURDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2020: https://bit.ly/2FceeMQ Until recently, Afghanistan was omnipresent in global news for the past two decades for all of the wrong reasons. Addressing primarily architectural, urban, and territorial aspects of Afghanistan, the second discussion in this series focuses on the history and traditions of architecture and urbanism in Afghanistan. Speakers: Charlotte Malterre-Barthes, Assistant Professor of Urban Design, Harvard Graduate School of Design Ayaz Hosham, Faculty, Architecture Department, Kabul University Sofia Sahab, Former Lecturer, Urban Design and Planning Department, Kabul University Abdul Wasay Najimi, Architect and Conservator, Aga Khan Trust for Culture

JOIN US FOR SESSION 2 ON SATURDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2020: https://bit.ly/2HuPaS9 Addressing primarily architectural, urban, and territorial aspects of Afghanistan, this discussion explores varied topics ranging from vernacular architecture and building traditions to infrastructure and cultural specificities in conjunction with issues related to historic settlements and contemporary planning in Afghanistan. Speakers: Rahul Mehrotra, Professor of Urban Design and Planning, Harvard Graduate School of Design Onno Rühl, General Manager, Aga Khan Agency for Habitat Dennis Pieprz, Principal, Sasaki Research Victor Eskinazi, Senior Associate, Urban Designer, Sasaki Research Alykhan Mohamed, Associate, Planner, Sasaki Research Thomas Nideorest, Professional Staff, Landscape Designer, Sasaki Research Einat Rosenkrantz, Senior Associate, Urban Designer, Sasaki Research

The impact of the 1947 Partition still ripples throughout South Asia, 73 years later. However, our knowledge of this historic event is constantly being reevaluated by academics and researchers who have continued to illuminate the details of what occurred. Moderated by Jennifer Leaning, Professor of the Practice of Health and Human Rights at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, this panel explores how new research efforts help us understand the full depth of the history and legacy of Partition. Ian Talbot, Professor of History and Director of the Centre for Imperial and Post-Colonial Studies at the University of Southampton, and Yaqoob Bangash, Assistant Professor at Information Technology University in Lahore, join the discussion to provide their insights on this historic event.

In our latest podcast created with the Times of India, Shubhangi Bhadada, Mittal Institute Research Fellow, and Nadhra Khan, Associate Professor at the Lahore University of Management Sciences, discuss the pre-Partition architecture of Lahore, how it has been forgotten or ignored, and the importance of remembering such buildings.

Sven Beckert (Laird Bell Professor of History, Harvard University) and Dinyar Patel (Assistant Professor, S.P. Jain Institute of Management and Research)discuss Dadabhai Naoroji and his five decade political career.

The global apparel industry is currently facing an unprecedented crisis resulting from the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. Major fashion retailers in the Global North are closing their stores and laying off workers. This discussion addresses how we can engage in dialogues and organize across borders to simultaneously hold the global retailers, governments, and factory owners accountable for ensuring workers’ safety and wellbeing. Moderators - Dr. Elora Chowdhury, Professor, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, University of Massachusetts, Boston - Dr. Durba Mitra, Assistant Professor, Studies of Women, Gender, and Sexuality, Harvard University Discussants - Taslima Akhter, Photographer and Organizer, Bangladesh Garments Sramik Shanghati - Barrister Jyotirmoy Barua, Advocate, Supreme Court of Bangladesh - Dr. Seuty Sabur, Associate Professor, Department of Economics and Social Sciences, BRAC University, Bangladesh - Dr. Dina M. Siddiqi, Clinical Associate Professor, Liberal Studies, New York University - Dr.

The global apparel industry is currently facing an unprecedented crisis resulting from the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, as major fashion retailers in the Global North close their stores and lay off workers. In this clip, Dina M. Siddiqi — Clinical Associate Professor at New York University — discusses how the pandemic has forced us to think about inequality, and the unequal system between international brands and the local manufacturers and workers who provide their products.

COVID-19 has shut down traditional education programs throughout South Asia, from primary education to higher education. This podcast delves into the unique challenges that the region is facing in the education sector, such as access to technology and the potential long-term effects of distance learning. Discussants: - Zainab Qureshi, LEAPS Director, Evidence for Policy Design (EPoD), Harvard Kennedy School - Asim Ijaz Khwaja, Director, Center for International Development; Sumitomo-Foundation for Advanced Studies on International Development Professor of International Finance and Development, Harvard Kennedy School - Fernando Reimers, Ford Foundation Professor of Practice in International Education; Faculty Director, International Education Policy

A recent panel discussion at the Mittal Institute, “Rethinking the Museum Experience During and Post-COVID-19" — moderated by Jinah Kim, Professor of History of Art and Architecture at Harvard University — explores how art institutions can remain nimble enough to respond to uncertainties, such as COVID-19, adapting their approach to tackle similar situations in the future. How can art institutions engage their patrons as partners in the sustainability of museums? Martha Tedeschi, Director of the Harvard Art Museums, and Naman Ahuja, Professor of Indian Art and Architecture and Dean of the School of Arts and Aesthetics at Jawaharlal Nehru University, join Professor Kim to delve into the changes that have taken place at museums during COVID-19. Together, they explore the need for more virtual accessibility of museum exhibitions, and the critical importance of partnerships between academic institutions and museums to establish centers for research and teaching.

Enterprises have found themselves caught in the COVID-19 maelstrom across South Asia. This podcast explores the extent to which entrepreneurs have been able to work with both the state and civil society to limit the damage and distress caused by the pandemic, but also to begin exploring new opportunities that a possible “global reset” has opened up to the developing world. Speakers include: - Tarun Khanna, Jorge Paulo Lemann Professor, Harvard Business School; Director, The Mittal Institute - Rajeeb Samdani, Co-Founder and Trustee, Samdani Art Foundation; Managing Director, Golden Harvest Group - Osman Khalid Waheed, CEO, Ferozsons Laboratories Limited; Founder and Chair, Lahore Biennale Foundation

In this clip from our "Science, Business, and Vaccine Development to Combat the Pandemic" podcast, Umang Vohra — Managing Director and Global Chief Executive Officer of Cipla Ltd — discusses the balance between equitable access and vaccine nationalism, as well as the availability and affordability of the vaccine, with a focus on South Asia.