Last month, a team of six staff from the Civic Initiative (a business group of the University of Massachusetts Amherst Donahue Institute) were in Islamabad. They held a three-day follow-up conference for alumni from recent cohorts of the Study of the U.S. Institutes Comparative Public Policymaking program that has been held annually by the Civic Initiative since 2010. The SUSI program is funded by the US Department of State Education and Cultural Affairs Office.
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Popular Culture Across Borders
Dr. Joel Gordon held workshops on Popular Culture Across Borders at Government College University, Lahore and the University of Punjab. These workshops explored the state of Popular Culture Studies, the relevance of discourse about cosmopolitans and “Levantines,” and the avenues through which creators – and consumers – of popular culture may have engaged in their own ‘broader’ regional discussions. These workshops were then followed by roundtable discussions in which Dr. Gordon was able to provide feedback to students on their current research projects and proposals. As discussions progressed, an increased familiarity with the state of Cultural Studies occurred in disciplines including History, Sociology, Gender Studies, and Public Health. During this project, Dr. Gordon finalized a review essay on recent popular culture publications, which is published in the International Journal of Middle East Studies (2018).
Workshops
Popular Culture Across Borders
Date: July 10-12, 2018
Location: Government College University
Participants: 60+
Popular Culture Across Borders
Date: July 19-20, 2018
Location: University of Punjab
Participants: 125+
Lectures and Other Engagements
In the Roundtable Discussions below on Research Methodology, students presented research projects and proposals to Joel Gordon, and he provided feedback. Questions and topics covered included: how to formulate a research topic, framing a literature review, determining and gathering sources, working interviews and oral histories into the thesis, balancing quantitative and qualitative data, and concluding by pointing to ongoing/future work.
Research Methodology
Date: July 12, 2018
Location: Government College University
Attendees: 25
Research Methodology
Date: July 20, 2018
Location: University of Punjab
Attendees: 40
Bio: Dr. Joel Gordon is a Professor of History at the University of Arkansas with a specialization in modern Egypt and the Middle East. His teachings and publications cover the topics of politics, public and popular culture, historical memory and the cross-currents of religion and secularism.