Role of the University in the Crisis of Forced Displacement Conference
The Role of the University in the Crisis of Forced Displacement: Ethics, Innovation, and Immersive Learning
September 26 – 27, 2019 Boston University
Please RSVP for events at the bottom of this page.
Muhammad Zaman: Howard Hughes Medical Inst. Professor. Professor of Biomedical Engineering. Boston University.
Carrie J. Preston: Kilachand Professor, Dir. Kilachand Honors College. English and Women’s, Gender, & Sexuality Studies. Boston University.
Mission:
Globally, 70.8 million people have been forcibly displaced by wars and persecution, more than have ever been recorded by the UN Refugee Agency.[i] How should universities respond to this unprecedented crisis? Can the three pillars of the mission of contemporary universities, that is research, teaching, and service, be engaged in the effort to address the crisis of forced displacement? This two-day, interdisciplinary conference will consider these questions, with a particular focus on ethical concerns, creativity and innovation, and pedagogical approaches.
“The Role of the University in the Crisis of Forced Displacement” will be uniquely structured:
- traditional panel presentations in the mornings featuring a diverse array of scholars, artists, and practitioners;
- lunches with plenary speakers;
- workshops in the afternoon that will provide opportunities for discussion, collaboration, and course development;
- evening events focused on the contributions and interventions of artists.
Conference Schedule
Thursday, September 26
Rajen Kilachand Center for Integrated Life Sciences and Engineering (CILSE), 610 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston
9:30 am: Welcome – Beth Loizeaux, Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education and Gloria Waters, Associate Provost for Research, Boston University
9:45 – 10:15 am: Opening Address – Muhammad Zaman and Carrie Preston, Boston University
Panel 10:15 – 11:15 am: Activism, Awareness, Service, and the Role of the University
Beth Loizeaux, Boston University
Hala Ghattas, American University of Beirut
Chris Orach, Makerere University
Moderator: Zachary Crawford, Boston University
Panel 11:30-12:30 Interdisciplinary Collaborations in Research
Aline Germani, American University of Beirut
Marios Dikaiakos, University of Cyprus
Azer Bestavros, Boston University
Moderator: Patricia Ward, Boston University
Kilachand Hall Commons, 91 Bay State Road
Panel 2:15 – 3:15 pm Immersive Learning in Complex Environments
Muhammad Zaman, Boston University
Aline Germani, American University of Beirut
Joseph Finkhouse, Boston University
Moderator: Trent Masiki, Boston University
Open Workshop 3:30 pm – DIALOG: Transdisciplinary Humanitarian Studies in the Age of Climate Change
Moderators: Marios Dikaiakos and Anastasia Niccolopoulou, University of Cyprus
6:30 pm – Performance, A Stone’s Throw by Ismail Khalidi, followed by a Panel Discussion on The Arts and Forced Displacement
Panelists: Ismail Khalidi, Playwright
Anastasia Nikolopoulou, University of Cyprus
Kinh Vu, Boston University
A light dinner will be served.
Friday, September 27
Kilachand Hall Commons, 91 Bay State Road
Panel 9:00 – 10:00 am Ethics of Conducting Research on and Teaching Classes about Refugees
Charles Griswold, Boston University
Susan Akram, Boston University
Chris Orach, Makerere University
Aline Germani, American University of Beirut
Moderator: Carrie Preston, Boston University
Panel 10:15 – 11:15 am Technologies and Solutions: Ethically Appropriate Technology Development and the Place of STEM Fields in Teaching and Research on Forced Displacement
Imad Elhajj, American University of Beirut
Hala Ghattas, American University of Beirut
Marios Dikaiakos, University of Cyprus
Noora Lori, Boston University: “Urban Refuge: From class project to non-profit”
Muhammad Zaman, Boston University
Moderator: Saundria Moed
Panel 11:30 – 12:30 pm The Place of the Humanities in Teaching and Research on Forced Displacement
Anastasia Nikolopoulou, University of Cyprus
Susan Mizruchi, Boston University
Kinh Vu, Boston University
Barbara Buckinx, Princeton University
Moderator: Carrie Preston, Boston University
5:00 – 6:30 pm Staged reading of Liwaa Yazji’s play Question and Question and Talkback (Kilachand Hall Commons)
Liwaa Yazji, Playwright
Nicole Rizzo, Director
Margaret Litvin, Boston University
Refreshments will be served
Click here to read the bios of our Conference Participants.
Student Organizing Committee
Serene Bahi
Mohammad Ahsan Fuzail
Mackenzie Hall
*Hailey Hart-Thompson
Pablo Kurzan
Misty Ouyang
*Hailey Hart-Thompson organized the gallery “Resilience.”
[i] UNHCR: USA, “Figures at a Glance” (2019), https://www.unhcr.org/en-us/figures-at-a-glance.html (Accessed 31 July 2019).