Washington, DC event on disaster response

Trends in Natural Disaster Response and the Role of Regional Organizations

Monday, April 22, 2013, 2:00 — 3:30 pm
The Brookings Institution, Saul/Zilkha Rooms, 1775 Massachusetts Ave, NW, Washington, DC

Global demographic trends suggest that more people are living in areas vulnerable to sudden-onset natural disasters even as scientists predict that the frequency and intensity of these disasters are likely to increase as a result of the effects of climate change. These trends, coupled with recent high-profile mega-disasters like Hurricane Sandy and the drought in the Sahel, are raising global awareness of the need to build the capacity of national governments, civil society organizations and international actors to prevent, respond to and recover from natural disasters. The Brookings-LSE Project on Internal Displacement’s third annual Review of Natural Disasters outlines these major disasters in 2012 and key response opportunities, in particular the role of regional organizations. Although regional mechanisms are playing increasingly important roles in disasters, there has been remarkably little research on their role in disaster risk management.

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WAPA event tomorrow: Anthropology career panel

Washington Association of Professional Anthropologists will hold an anthropology career panel tomorrow.

Speakers: Kirsti Uunila, Frances Norwood, and John Primo

Date: Tuesday, 2 April 2013

Meeting: 7:00 pm, Sumner School, Rotating Gallery G-4

Pre-meeting get-together: 5:30 pm Beacon Bar and Grill

PANELISTS:

Kirsti Uunila is a Registered Professional Archaeologist and has served Calvert County since 1993 as Historic Preservation Planner. She reviews development projects for potential effects on cultural resources, creates projects to capture, preserve and share the history of Calvert County.

Frances Norwood is a medical anthropologist who specializes in end-of-life and long term care research in the U.S. and in The Netherlands. She won the 2011 Margaret Mead award for her book, The Maintenance of Life (2009). She is currently working on health care reform related to the Affordable Care Act as social science research analyst at the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation and holds an appointment as assistant research professor at George Washington University in the Department of Anthropology and the Institute for European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies.

John Primo is an ecological anthropologist in the Department of Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM). He oversees a broad body of research focused on understanding the social impacts resulting from the development of energy resources on the outer continental shelf. Some of the issues and topics studied by the bureau, include, subsistence practices in Alaska, ocean space-use, the history of the oil and gas industry in the Gulf of Mexico, and the infrastructural needs of energy development. John’s responsibilities and duties involve research design, coordination, and oversight at the programmatic and project level, as well as a number of associated procurement activities.

Meeting: Charles Sumner School, corner of 17th St and M St NW, Washington, DC.

How to get there: The Sumner School is located at 1201 17th St NW (corner of 17th St and M St NW). The entrance to the meeting area is on 17th St under the black metal stairway. Directions from Metro Red Line: From Farragut North station, take either L St exit, walk one block east to 17th St, turn left and walk 2 blocks north. Enter the building through the double doors under the black metal staircase. MEETING ROOM: Rotating Gallery G-4 (ground floor)

Pre-meeting: Beacon Bar & Grill (one block north of Sumner School)

How to get there: The Beacon Bar & Grill is in the Beacon Hotel located at 1615 Rhode Island Ave NW (corner of Rhode Island and 17th St). Directions from Metro Red Line Farragut North station: take either L St exit, walk one block east to 17th St, turn left and walk 3 blocks north (one block past Sumner School). All are welcome.

Upcoming event: State of the World 2013 book launch and symposium

On Tuesday, April 16, the Worldwatch Institute will release the latest edition of its annual flagship publication, State of the World 2013: Is Sustainability Still Possible?, in Washington, D.C.

The event will feature some of the book’s key contributors, who will share their expertise and ideas on the three main themes of the book, discussing how the term “sustainability” should be measured, how we can attain it, and how we can prepare if we fall short.

Speakers will include:

Worldwatch President Robert Engelman and Project Co-directors Erik Assadourian and Tom Prugh

Contributing authors Jennie Moore of the British Columbia Institute of Technology, Pat Murphy of the Arthur Morgan Institute for Community Solutions, and science fiction author Kim Stanley Robinson

The symposium will take place from 1:30 to 5:00 p.m. on April 16 at 1400 16th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20036. A reception with food and refreshments will follow the event. Space is limited, RSVP here . You can also pre-order a copy of the book here.

Email Grant Potter at gpotter@worldwatch.org if you have any questions.

Upcoming event at GW on gender and migration

Migrant Care Work from Two Sides: Care Work in the U.S. and Families Care Workers Leave Behind

When: Wednesday, March 20, 5:00pm-7:00pm
Where: 1957 E Street NW, 5^th Floor, Room 505

Open to the public. Refreshments will be provided.
Please RSVP at http://bit.ly/WNoKYn

The Global Gender Program (GGP) at the Elliott School for International Affairs is pleased to announce its first-year Spring Roundtable panel, which is devoted to gender issues in migration and international development. It aims at bringing together scholars, researchers, practitioners, students, and activists to educate the public on the intersections between gender, migration, international development, economics, race, ethnicity, social class, and religion across disciplines. A discussion will follow with questions and answers from the audience.

Panelists will include:

Sonya Michel, professor of history at the University of Maryland, College Park, is a founding co-editor of the journal Social Politics: International Studies in Gender, State and Society, published by Oxford UP. Her research interests include migrant women and care provision in the developing and developed worlds.
Helma Lutz, professor of sociology and chair of Women and Gender Studies at Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany. She currently holds a research fellow position at the Woodrow Wilson Center, in Washington, DC. Her research interests include gender, migration, “care crisis,” and “care migration.”
Tunde Turai completed her PhD at Eötvös Lóránd University in Budapest. She is a researcher at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Ethnographic Institute. She also teaches at the International Student Program of the Corvinus University. She is currently a Fulbright Exchange Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center. Her research interests include the care system and the social and economic constraints of the sending communities.
Gabrielle Oliveira, PhD student in Anthropology at Teachers College, Columbia University, in New York City. Her area of interest includes migration, transnational motherhood and care networks between New York and Mexico.
Robin Shaffert holds a Law degree from University of Michigan. She is a Policy Director at Caring Across Generations. Ms. Shaffert has extensive experience in employment law and disability rights issues.

The Roundtable will be moderated by:

Natacha Stevanovic-Fenn holds a PhD in sociology from Columbia University. Her area of interests includes migration, remittances, international development, gender and culture. She currently teaches a class on Migration, Gender, and International Development at the Elliott School for International Affairs, in the GGP.

This event is sponsored by George Washington University’s Global Gender Program which is part of the Elliott School’s Institute for Global and International Studies

Upcoming event: The Social Dimensions of Resilience

The Environmental Change and Security Program will host The Social Dimensions of Resilience at the Wilson Center on:

Monday, March 18, 2013
12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.
5th Floor Conference Room

Featuring: Roger-Mark De Souza
Vice President of Research and Director of the Climate Program, Population Action International

Elizabeth Malone
Senior Research Scientist, Joint Global Change Research Institute

Betty Hearn Morrow
Professor Emeritus, Florida International University
Moderator: Laurie Mazur
Author, ECSP Consultant

RSVP Here

From the Haitian earthquake to Superstorm Sandy, recent years have presented many “teachable moments” about the need for greater resilience in the face of disaster. To date, much of the conversation on resilience has focused on making infrastructure more robust—by, for example, building seawalls to protect against storm surges. But resilience has social dimensions that are at least as important. Social factors largely determine the extent to which people and communities respond to and recover from changes in the environment, whether gradual (such as climate change) or more abrupt (such as hurricanes). This panel will explore the social dimensions of resilience, including the role of equity–especially gender equity–and inclusive governance. Panelists will present research and initiatives that link reproductive health to climate adaptation, and showcase current projects in Malawi, Bangladesh, the Philippines, and the Caribbean that take a holistic approach to cultivating resilience.

Location: Woodrow Wilson Center at the Ronald Reagan Building, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, D.C. (“Federal Triangle” stop on Blue/Orange Line). A map to the Center is available at WilsonCenter.org/directions. Note: Photo identification is required. Please allow additional time to pass through security.

Ed Liebow speaking at WAPA meeting on March 5

Ed Liebow, Executive Director, American Anthropological Association, will speak on “Crafting a Long-Range Plan for the Association’s Future” on Tuesday, March 5, 7pm, at the Charles Sumner School, Washington, DC. Liebow is the new Executive Director of the AAA. Charles Sumner School is located at 1201 17th St NW (corner of 17th St and M St NW). The entrance to the meeting area is on 17th St under the black metal stairway. Directions from Metro Red Line: From Farragut North station, take either L St exit, walk one block east to 17th St, turn left and walk 2 blocks north. Enter the building through the double doors under the black metal staircase. Meeting room Rotating Gallery G-4 (ground floor). Pre-meeting: Beacon Bar & Grill (one block north of Sumner School), 1615 Rhode Island Ave NW. Directions from Metro Red Line Farragut North station: take either L St exit, walk one block east to 17th St, turn left and walk 3 blocks north (one block past Sumner School). All are welcome.

You can now sign up for WAPA’s Google discussion group right from WAPA’s home page. Participants can communicate directly with each other about events, publications, and other information of interest to practicing anthropologists. Click here and scroll to the bottom of the page to sign up.

Upcoming event at GW: Nobel Peace Prize Winner Jody Williams speaks at International Women’s Day

A stunning line-up of speakers for International Women’s Day Event!

When: Monday, March 4, 9:00am – 5:30pm
Where: City View Room, 7th floor
1957 E Street NW
The Elliott School of International Affairs
Washington, DC 20052

RSVP here: http://bit.ly/ZfJYnC

Nobel Laureate Jody Williams, who has just returned from a trip to Liberia and Ethiopia, will speak about the new Nobel Women’s International Campaign to Stop Rape & Gender Violence in Conflict. Her memoires have recently been published by the University of California Press. Eve Ensler in the foreword says “Jody Williams is many things—a simple girl from Vermont, a sister of a disabled brother, a loving wife, an intense character full of fury and mischief, a great strategist, an excellent organizer, a brave and relentless advocate, and a Nobel Peace Prize winner”.

International Activists and US advocates for gender equality will debate the question: Is Violence against Women a Problem with a Solution?

Come and listen to Rabha Elis’s fresh perspective on violence against women in South Sudan!
Have you heard of sextortion? Joan Winship will describe the findings of a 3-year international research project on sex as cash for services
How does movement building in meso-America mobilize for action on VAW? Lisa Veneklasen from Just Associates has insights to share!
Learn about the campaign to pass the Violence against Women Act in the US from Alexandra Arriaga – the Senate down and the House of Representatives to go!

What are the connections between gender norms and violence?

Riki Wilchins, a transgender leader who founded the first national transgender advocacy group in the US, will give us insights into her analysis and work linking gender norms and discrimination and violence

What Are Viable Responses?

Listen to a range of responses from:

The international Safe Cities initiative and with GROOTs International’s Sandy Shilen
Sheepa Hafiza will tell us about BRAC’s work in Bangladesh to build community awareness and community mobilization for prevention
Joe Vess from Promundo will share strategies of men’s activism and transforming masculinities in addressing violence against women
Keguro Macharia, a Kenyan by birth, who works in black diaspora studies and queer studies, will share pathways of stories and imaginings

Come and watch the award winning film “In the Name of the Family” by Shelley Saywell on honor killings in North America.

Conference at American University on LGBTQ languages and linguistics

Marking the 20th anniversary of the Lavender Language Conference, the program will feature an array of special events celebrating two decades of scholarship and activism in LGBTQ languages and linguistics.

Lavender Languages and Linguistics Conference at American University
Dates: Friday, February 15 through Sunday, February 17
Location: 6th Floor, Butler Pavilion, 4410 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC

To register, visit the American University website.

Washington DC photo exhibit on Pakistan floods

“Rebuilding Hope after Pakistan’s Floods” a United Nations Development Program exposition of photos by Satomi Kato, will be on display at The National Press Club from February 4th to 15th. A former television anchor and radio broadcaster in Japan, Satomi Kato documented UNDP’s work throughout Pakistan’s hardest hit areas by flooding in 2010-2011. These images were previously exhibited in New York, Milan, and Tokyo. Kato has also traveled to remote areas of Peshawar, Pakistan, near the Afghan border, to photograph Afghan refugee children in 2005.

satomi kato1 — Photo courtesy of Satomi Kato, Pakistan

There will be a reception on Tuesday, February 12th, from 5:30-7:30 p.m at 529 14th Street NW on the 13th Floor Lobby with remarks by:

Ajay Chhibber, United Nations Assistant Secretary-General & Director, UNDP Regional Bureau for Asia & the Pacific

J Alexander Thier, Assistant to the Administrator for the Office of Afghanistan & Pakistan Affairs, US Agency for International Development (USAID)

Sherry Rehman, Ambassador of Pakistan in the United States (invited)

Koji Tomita, Minister Plenipotentiary & Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of Japan in the United States

For more information, contact sarah.jackson-han@undp.org or RSVP here.

Taped lecture series on indigenous wellbeing in Australia

The aim of this open-access lecture series is to summarize the evidence on Indigenous wellbeing, with a particular focus being an examination of the variation in measures of wellbeing across the life course. The series will suit students and policy makers working on or researching Indigenous issues, as well as academics with an interest in indigenous people’s wellbeing.

Each lecture is available on as a PDF document with presentation slides and embedded audio, along with an accompanying short formal paper addressing the lecture’s subject.

The series was created by Dr. Nicholas Biddle, a Fellow at the Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research (CAEPR) at the Australian National University (ANU). He has a Bachelor of Economics (Hons.) from the University of Sydney, a Master of Education degree from Monash University, and a Ph.D. in Public Policy from the ANU where he wrote his thesis on the benefits of and participation in education of Indigenous Australians.