Monthly Archives: October 2011

New Course: Asian Medical Systems (CSOC 225)

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ImageIn case you haven’t seen the posters around McIntyre, Dr. Denise Glover is offering a new course next semester. Asian Medical Systems (CSOC 225) is a basic introduction to three traditional medical systems of Asia: Chinese medicine, Ayurveda, and Tibetan medicine. We will examine theoretical underpinnings, training of practitioners, materials and techniques utilized in treatment, and important historical developments in each system. Additionally, we will explore issues of the interface between biomedicine and these systems, and larger issues of globalization in the practice and consumption of traditional medicines. Taking an anthropological approach, we will aim to understand each system from within itself while also paying close attention to the social and cultural conditions under which each system has thrived and has also faced challenges. We will examine how systems of healing are both biologically as well as culturally based. Furthermore, we will consider how these medical systems relate to issues of national identity and global politics.

Students with questions can contact Professor Glover at [email protected].

Barcelona and a Meeting about Circular Migration

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The lovely campus of the University of Barcelona

Hi all,

If you’re a student of mine, you know that I spent the fall break in Qatar and Spain. Although most of my mid-semester time away was spent working with my collaborators on the two Qatar-focused projects I’m leading, I was invited to deliver a paper at workshop sponsored by the United Nations University (UNU) in Barcelona (in cooperation with the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona). That paper will eventually become part of a book to be published by the UNU. The workshop provided all of the contributors with an opportunity to present a draft of their work and, in a larger sense, to bring their chapters into cadence with one another. I thought I would tell you a little more about it.

My contribution to the volume is being prepared in collaboration with Zahra Babar (Center for International and Regional Studies at Georgetown University in Qatar). Over the past few years, she’s developed an expertise in the policy frameworks by which the Gulf States manage and govern the vast flows of foreign labor to the region. I know a little bit about this as well, but my strengths are ethnographic in nature, and largely concentrated around the experiences and perspectives of the migrants who arrive in the Gulf in search of opportunity. In Europe and North America, the idea of “circular migration” has a particular currency at the moment: policymakers and states are interested in finding ways to support the eventual return of migrants to their home countries. In our paper, Zahra and I are considering how the circular migration framework might or might not describe the sorts of migration patterns we see in the Gulf States. While our argument is evolving based on our conversation with the other scholars at the workshop, we remain somewhat concerned that this framework helps justify some of the more problematic aspects of the Gulf migrant’s experience on the Arabian Peninsula, and inevitably seems to guide our attention away from the failure of development in many of the countries from which these Gulf migrants come.

We’ll return to Barcelona for a second meeting in February — I’ll post another update then.

Best wishes,

Andrew

Reminder – TONIGHT: Indonesia/Thailand Course Interest Meeting

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ImageJust a reminder that the interest meeting for Southeast Asia in Cultural, Political & Economic Context will be tonight at 5pm in McIntyre 309.


It’s the CSOC/IPE course that includes a trip to Southeast Asia at the end of spring semester.

We will be discussing the details of the course and trip, showing some photos, and distributing applications. Should be over by 5:30 or so. See you there!

Catching up with Amanda Hart, class of ’10

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Hi all,

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Amanda Hart (left) and her colleagues, evidently practicing AmeriCorps maritime evacuation procedures.

We asked Amanda Hart, class of 2010, to pen a piece for the blog about her AmeriCorps experience. What we got back was this lovely essay, entitled “My Year of AmeriCorps: So Nice I Did It Twice!”

Don’t get me wrong here, I know plenty of people (many of them fellow CSOC-ers or with similar backgrounds) who have shared with me their AmeriCorps horror stories, of being overworked and underpaid, overwhelmed by a sense of responsibility for things with which they had no previous experience, and shockingly underappreciated for the efforts they made to take on these responsibilities.  However, after a junior year study abroad experience that left me disillusioned about the Peace Corps program and what I considered to be its entitled vision of “knowing what’s best” for other countries and cultures (thank you, Anthropology, for making me overanalyze everything), I figured AmeriCorps would be a good way to give back to a community that I already pretty much understood.  I mean, I’m an American, right?  Wouldn’t I kind of already know what to do here?  These were the two main conceptions I had of AmeriCorps—that is, that I’d likely be pretty miserable but also have an intrinsic knowledge of what to do—when I accepted my position as a Community Involvement Specialist for an afterschool program run by a local non-profit at a Portland area elementary school.  Of course, I was wrong.

One of my first realizations about AmeriCorps was that you should never use the official AmeriCorps website to look for a position.  There is something very wrong about that website, and I am convinced it will only confuse you and make you feel bad.  Many amazing non-profits now apply for grants to fund AmeriCorps positions in their already-established programs, and these are good to look for.  Do your homework!  Make sure you research these organizations first to make sure they are effectively run and value their employees, and that should mean they’ll treat you and your position well, too. 

Another realization: Don’t believe the hype!  Or at least not all of it.  The truth of the matter is that most AmeriCorps positions will be overwhelming at some point, because there is a lot expected of you.  But once I realized that I was feeling this way because I was, say, trying to plan a ground-breaking ceremony for our school’s community garden, or organizing a comprehensive system of ordering the rush of families at our weekly food pantry distribution, I understood that this is the good kind of overwhelming.  Truly, AmeriCorps is uniquely awesome in that it allows you to gain hands-on professional experience to an extent that is hard to come by in other jobs you might qualify for right out of college.  As someone who struggles with feeling like I’m “doing enough” with my post-graduate life, AmeriCorps has been an invaluable way to throw myself into community-building projects that really mean something to me and the community I’m supporting.  Which, yes, sometimes results in pulling 12-hour workdays, but I figure now is a pretty great time to give it all I’ve got. 

A final realization: I don’t actually know the American culture and community as a whole!  A-doy!  When I learned to stop beating myself up for having to work to understand the community I was now a part of, and the people within it, I could truly appreciate the relationships I have been slowly cultivating at my school.  Building trust and understanding takes time (almost a year in my case) and now that I’ve figured that out, I realized that another year of AmeriCorps, at the same site, is the right way to go.  Sure, having a disposable income would be nice, and I still cringe anytime someone refers to me as a “member” and not an “employee” with my organization (have I not earned the title?!), but there’s also a sense of freedom and a kind of self-righteous importance with AmeriCorps positions that is hard to beat.  So look into it!  I feel weird saying exactly where I work since there are a million guidelines and policies with this federally-funded program (all of which I’ve forgotten), but if you email me I’ll tell you everything I know.  Which isn’t much, but I definitely have some good stories.  Good luck and hack hack chop chop!

Thanks, Amanda. We hope you have a great fall semester at your school.

Interest meeting for new Southeast Asia field course: Thursday, 10/20 @ 5pm

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Southeast Asia in Cultural, Political, and Economic Context is a new seminar course that incorporates an immersive cultural experience in Indonesia and Thailand for two weeks at the end of the semester.  It replaces CSOC 312 for this year, will be taught by Gareth Barkin and Nick Kontogeorgopoulos, and counts as an upper-division elective for CSOC and IPE. Applications are required, and the informational meeting should be attended by all interested students.  The study-abroad portion of the course is integrated into the curriculum, and will require fees, including airfare. 

ImageCourse Description

This course provides an overview of diversity and change in Southeast Asia, with a focus on, and field component in, Indonesia and Thailand. Students will examine the origins and development of complex state societies from an in-depth, ethnographic perspective. Students will explore issues of religious syncretism, gender, agriculture, the cultural impact of European colonialism, and the post-colonial period of nation building in Southeast Asia. Students will also delve into geographically focused case studies, which look at the cultural component of many important issues facing the region, including environmental decline and deforestation, the impact of globalization, the problems of ethnic and religious minorities, and other socio-cultural issues. The second half of the course will examine economic and political processes shaping the region. Specific topics include the economic legacies of colonialism, contemporary patterns of economic growth, patterns of change in rural communities, the process of urbanization and challenges faced by residents of Southeast Asian cities, the role of the state in managing development, democratization and human rights in Southeast Asia, and demographic patterns. The international portion of the course lasts approximately two weeks, and features an immersive stay at local universities in Indonesia and Thailand. The field component is required, and includes guest lectures by local scholars, trips to cultural and historic sites, ethnographic projects, and potential trips to neighboring areas. Students will be responsible for their own airfare, as well as other potential program fees. Prerequisites are CSOC 200 or IPE 201. Application and instructor permission are required.

INTEREST MEETING: Thursday, October 20th, 5pm in McIntyre 309

 

New Book from Andrew Gardner

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ImageThe third of four books published by faculty over the last year: Andrew Gardner, Associate Professor of Anthropology, published his new book, City of Strangers: Gulf Migration and the Indian Community in Bahrain with Cornell University Press. The book explores the experiences of transnational Indian migrants in the wealthy Arabian Gulf States. The book is broadly concerned with the kafala (or sponsorship system) that governs migrants in the region, with the strategies by which Indian foreigners navigate the constraints of that governance, and with the impact of such a large foreign presence on the Bahraini state and society. His research received attention in the New York Times, the Gulf Times, and more).

Here’s a synopsis of the book from Cornell University Press:

In City of Strangers, Andrew M. Gardner explores the everyday experiences of workers from India who have migrated to the Kingdom of Bahrain. Like all the petroleum-rich states of the Persian Gulf, Bahrain hosts an extraordinarily large population of transmigrant laborers. Guest workers, who make up nearly half of the country’s population, have long labored under a sponsorship system, the kafala, that organizes the flow of migrants from South Asia to the Gulf states and contractually links each laborer to a specific citizen or institution.

In order to remain in Bahrain, the worker is almost entirely dependent on his sponsor’s goodwill. The nature of this relationship, Gardner contends, often leads to exploitation and sometimes violence. Through extensive observation and interviews Gardner focuses on three groups in Bahrain: the unskilled Indian laborers who make up the most substantial portion of the foreign workforce on the island; the country’s entrepreneurial and professional Indian middle class; and Bahraini state and citizenry. He contends that the social segregation and structural violence produced by Bahrain’s kafala system result from a strategic arrangement by which the state insulates citizens from the global and neoliberal flows that, paradoxically, are central to the nation’s intended path to the future.

City of Strangers contributes significantly to our understanding of politics and society among the states of the Arabian Peninsula and of the migrant labor phenomenon that is an increasingly important aspect of globalization.

Invited Speaker: Professor Miriam Kahn, Thurs Oct 13

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Hi all,

ImageThe CSOC Club, in conjunction with the CSOC and IPE departments, is happy to announce the second presentation of the semester. Dr. Miriam Kahn (University of Washington) will be delivering a presentation entitled Illusion and Reality in Tahiti’s Tourist Cocoons. Here’s the key information:

Thursday, October 15, 5:00 PM
SUB 101

Refreshments will be provided. Here’s a more detailed description of the topic:

Professor Miriam Kahn, professor in the department of anthropology at the University of Washington, will speak about the idea of tourist “cocoons” — carefully managed spaces of illusion — prevalent in the resort hotels of Tahiti/French Polynesia. These cocoon-like environments, which are settings of total control, are highly effective strategies for coping with the disjuncture between the larger reality of Tahiti (with its pesky mosquitoes, ordinary buildings, and everyday Tahitians) and the Tahiti of tourists’ imaginations.

We hope to see you there!

CSOC Faculty Update: Denise Glover

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ImageFall is a good time to enjoy the fruit of one’s labor. In my case, this does not mean ripe, juicy tomatoes (unfortunately—I was not able to win the battle of the weeds in our gardens and essentially gave up) but rather the fruit of several years of hard work at the computer. Just days ago (the last week in September) we welcomed the arrival of Explorers and Scientists in China’s Borderlands, 1880-1950, published by the University of Washington Press (and edited by me, Stevan Harrell, Charles McKhann and Margaret Swain). The book examines the work and lives of several important explorers / scientists that worked in China in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It highlights their epistemological orientations: belief in objective, progressive, and universally valid science; a close association between scientific and humanistic knowledge; a lack of a conflict between science and faith; and the union of the natural world and the world of “nature people.” In addition to being lead editor of the volume, I wrote a chapter about Ernest Henry Wilson, a plant collector for Harvard’s Arnold Arboretum, in which I discuss the way that Wilson was able to be both an objective documentarian as well as a passionate humanist, especially (although not exclusively) through the medium of photography. I find Wilson’s ability to embrace this spirit of balance to be particularly inspiring.

ImageA month previously (although not technically autumn), the final publication of a special issue that I co-edited of the journal Asian Medicine: Tradition and Modernity arrived. Our issue is titled “Conservation, Cultivation, and Commodification of Medicinal Plants in the Greater Himalayan-Tibetan Plateau.” My colleague Sienna Craig (of Dartmouth) and I edited the volume and wrote the introductory essay. The volume was based on a panel that Sienna and I had organized for a conference in Bhutan in 2009 and focuses on issues of sustainability, cultivation, and problems associated with the increasing trend of medicinal plants as hot commodities in a globally expanding trade in medicinals.

A final fruit (somewhat unripe) of labor—but not much related to time behind a computer—is a CD that the band of which I am a member (called Rosin in the Aire) has been working on; we have a “first draft” of sorts completed. We are re-recording some of the tracks and hope to have the CD finished before the end of the year. We also just completed a soundtrack for a short film titled Running the Colorado The Way It Was by Dave Mortenson (shown at the Port Townsend Wooden Boat Show last month). I play mandolin and sing in the band. We play bluegrass, old time, and swing tunes mostly. It’s a blast. Here is a track from our draft CD, a tune called “Hadacol Rag.”

I will be offering a new course in the spring, titled Asian Medical Systems (CSOC 225) that will examine foundational concepts, traditions of practice, and issues of modernity and change in three main systems of healing in Asia: Chinese medicine, Ayurveda, and Tibetan medicine. This is a new course for both me and for Puget Sound; I am very much looking forward to teaching it and sharing my interest and enthusiasm for the topic.

Happy fall harvesting everyone!

New Book From Monica DeHart

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Hi all,

ImageThe second of our four books published this year: Associate Professor of Anthropology Monica DeHart’s new book, Ethnic Entrepreneurs: Identity and Development Politics in Latin America, was recently published by Stanford University Press. You can buy it here. And here’s an overview of the the book:

Indigenous groups are not often recognized as driving forces in the push for economic development. However, in development efforts across Latin America, governments and corporations have begun to see ethnic cultural difference as an advantage. Ethnic Entrepreneursexplores how diverse groups historically seen as obstacles to development have become valuable to state and regional development initiatives.

From collaboration between a Maya organization and Walmart to a UN-sponsored program that recruits diasporic Latinos, states and corporations are pursuing strategies that complement regional neoliberal shifts. This book examines how ethnic difference is produced through development policy, breaking down the micropolitics of identity and development. It uncovers surprising convergences between ethnic community businesses and corporate social responsibility practices and illuminates how formulations of ethnic difference influence not only changing cultural identifications, but also the political and moral projects that shape Latin America.

Congrats, Monica.

Catching up with Maureen Wolsburn, class of ’10

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Maureen Wolsburn in Washington D.C.

Hi all,

We heard from Maureen Wolsburn, class of 2010, and asked her to tell us a bit about her Americorps experience. Here’s her report:

Working as an AmeriCorps VISTA member for Share Our Strength Colorado has been both rewarding and challenging.  My job encompasses all aspects of non-profit work, from direct service teaching to fund development and partnership building.  Being able to see the ins and outs of non-profit work has guided me to focus on what I really want my career to focus on in the future. 

One large component of my work is fund development.  Grant writing was something totally new to me and I quickly learned about the many differences from academic writing. Being succinct and to the point is critical since there is often a three-page limit for explaining the mission of an organization, their work in the community, and a complete financial history. But I learned to research, think critically, and argue a point with facts and statistics in CSOC, skills which have helped me to learn the grant writing ropes.  I also now appreciate what it takes to keep an organization up and running, so the next time you think about donating, remember that every dollar counts! Non-profits rely on the generosity and commitment of the community. 

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The Munroe School Garden

I also work in community education, including youth farmer’s markets. Denver Public Schools (DPS) started a farmer’s market coalition to teach students about gardening and food systems. Teaching children about healthy fruits and vegetables has been an extremely rewarding experience. Many of the children I work with are tasting new foods, especially fruits and vegetables, every day. I have seen the power of educators, as well as the importance of introducing children to new opportunities at a young age.

Beyond my work with low-income families, AmeriCorps has truly taught me how to live with less. In particular, I have learned how difficult it can be to eat healthy on a limited budget, and I understand the strain these financial challenges can pose for working families. I’ve been careful and strategic with my own spending: this summer, it seems all my additional funds went to race entries, bike tune-ups, and other outdoor activities.  I’ve enjoyed making Washington Park my “gym,” and I have really embraced being able to exercise outside every day – thanks to the Colorado sunshine. Overall, AmeriCorps has been more than a resume-building experience. It is truly character-building. It has pushed me to think outside my own comfort zone and, like so many other Americans, to live with less.

Great to hear from you, Maureen. And send some of that Colorado sunshine this way, please.