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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2024 Conferences
Workshop on the Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project
Beaconhouse National University
Lahore, Pakistan
September 20, 2024
The AIPS-funded workshop at the Beaconhouse National University in Lahore examined the ambitious yet contentious Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project. This project, billed as the first and the largest riverfront being developed on the bank of the Ravi River, is spread over 110,000 acres, and it aims to simultaneously reinvigorate the Ravi River, stimulate economic development, and offer residential opportunities to 10 million people. However, this project has evoked environmental concerns, prompted accusations of triggering unplanned displacements, and has also become the target of litigation. The proposed conference adopted a multidisciplinary approach which drew on technical and anthropological lenses to assess the design, sustainability, and socio-cultural elements of relevance to the Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project.
Panelists
Opening Remarks
- Dean, Razia Hassan School of Architecture Department
- Recorded remarks by Dr. james Wescoat, Aga Khan Professor Emeritus of Landscape Architecture and Geography, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Panel 1 - RUDA's Sociocultural and Economic Potential and Challenges
- Imran Amin, RUDA CEO
- Dr. Ijaz Nabi, Country Director, IGC Pakistan
Panel 2 - RUDA and the Environment
- Hammad Naqvi, DG, WWF-Pakistan
- Imran Daultana, Member of National Assembly, Government of Pakistan
- Ghammaz Sandhu, Assistant Professor & Director of Center for Urban and Rural Environment, BNU
Panel 3 - Urban Development, Green Transition Imperatives, and RUDA
- Faisal Naqvi, Lawyer
- Rafay Alam, Environmental Activist/Lawyer
- Amina Qadir, Lawyer
APEX Conference
Kinnaird College for Women
February 26-27, 2024
The American Pakistan Educational Exchange (APEX) program brought eight faculty from Bristol Community Colle ge and Sauk Valley Community College to Kinnaird College for Women in Lahore, Pakistan. In conjunction with the APEX program, four faculty members from Sauk and four from Bristol attended the 4th Annual Social Sciences and Humanities Conference at Kinnaird. Each US part icipant delivered keynotes or workshops on our content areas. In addition, Kinnaird led cultural visits and visits with officials from Pakist an to introduce the US faculty to Pakistan, its culture, and its people.
Lectures, Workshops, Roundtables Presented at Kinnaird College for Women
Keynote Presentations, Feb 26, 2024
- Farah Habib: “Finding my Voice: The Journey of an Imposter.” ~450 participants
- Paul R. Edleman: “Linked Humanity.” ~450 participants
Invited Talks, Feb 27, 2024
- Shelly Murphy: “The ‘Fake News’ Crisis: Erosion of Free Press and Democracy in the United States.” ~250 participants
- Glenn Bodish: “Art as Agency for Personal Expression and Community Engagement.” ~250 participants
- Amy Jakobsen: “Anxiety: Symptoms and Strategies for Coping.” ~250 participants
Workshops and Roundtables, Feb 27, 2024
- Stacie Charbonneau Hess: Workshop on “The Power of Storytelling.” ~35 participants
- Janis Jones: Workshop on “Mental Health Issues among Students in Primary, Elementary and Secondary School Systems.” ~43 participants
- Jenn Puniello: Roundtable discussion with Kinnaird College administrators on what it means to be an administrator in US Community College. 14 participants