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| Friday, 5 November 2004 |
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South Asia Fellowship - a fillip to scholarly, social science discourse The South Asia Program of the Social Science Research Council, New York announced the recipients of its South Asia Regional Fellowships recently. Twelve (12) fellowships have been awarded this year after a rigorous selection process conducted by an international panel of experts on South Asia. Nine of this year's winners are from India and three are from Sri Lanka. Hinged on themes of regional significance, this prestigious postdoctoral program engages social scientists based at universities and colleges seeking to bridge the gap between teaching and research. The Social Science Research Council (SSRC) was founded in Chicago in 1923. The world's oldest social science research organisation, it is mandated to foster collaborations between disciplines and institutions. The Council has over 30 programs addressing global challenges in areas such as HIV/AIDS children in situations of armed conflict, development and inequality, global security and cooperation, international migration, amongst others. The SSRC supports academic exchanges and encourages social scientists to conduct research on issues of public concern that inform policymaking. The council's commitments in South Asia date back to the 1950s, when it collaborated with leading South Asian scholars of the time including Professors Rajni Kothari, T. N. Madan and the late Mahhub ul Haq. It facilitated the establishment of the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) and implemented a decade long fellowship in the 1990s to encourage US based scholars to work in Bangladesh. Its other significant activities include a handbook on Social Science Terms and Concepts in Nepali which not only examined the ways in which action and advocacy are being altered by powerful external discourses but also created a critical space in which Nepali understandings of their own conditions and histories could be articulated. The South Asia Program under the aegis of Professor Partha Chatterjee also conducted the first region-wide investigation into the state of social science research capacities in South Asia. Providing a forward-looking assessment of needs and potential in these countries this paved the way for existing interventions such as the South Asia Region Fellowship Program. Reflecting upon the fellowship which has recruited over 40 scholars in the past three years, Dr. Itty Abraham, Program Director stated: "This program is unique as it aims to address issues that transgress both disciplinary and national boundaries. We are happy to note that academics from diverse disciplinary backgrounds and interests often from non-metropolitan centres of learning like regional colleges have applied for this fellowship. It is extremely important that meritorious academics based in smaller institutions get the recognition they deserve. I am confident that this endeavour along with our past projects such as the Bangladesh area studies program and SARN (http://sarn.ssrc.org), an electronic forum that promotes the production, exchange and dissemination of social science knowledge and practices, will encourage partnerships between institutions and individuals to prepare the next generation of social scientists." The SSRC South Asia Fellowship is administered through regional partner organisations to make it convenient for local scholars to get information and support in the application process. The Centre for Alternatives in Dhaka, Bangladesh, the Centre for the Study of Social Sciences in Calcutta, India, the Social Science Baha in Lalipur, Nepal, the Sustainable Development Policy Institute, Islamabad, Pakistan, the Social Scientists' Association, Colombo, Sri Lanka are the partner organisations in the South Asian region. Commenting on the theme for the third round of this program Professor Neloufer de Mel of Colombo University and advisory member to the South Asia Program said: "The uniqueness of this year's topic, 'Boundaries of Bodies, States and Societies' was that it encouraged engagement with a vast range of possibilities within social sciences and proved that social science research can be exciting. It attracted a wide range of proposals rooted in anthropology, literature, history, gender and security studies amongst others showing that the South Asia Regional Fellowship is now recognised as providing important support for innovative and inter-disciplinary research." As part of the fellowship the awardees will attend an annual workshop prior to the start of their fellowship tenure. An annual event guided by a panel of international resource persons, the workshop will expose SSRC fellows to contemporary theoretical approaches and advancements in the subject and facilitate regional networks. This year the venue for the workshop is Kolkata, and the event will comprise lectures and panel discussions. The Regional Project Manager, Malini Sur emphasised: "This gathering provides a much needed platform for scholarly exchange within the region which is so critically lacking. Scholars from South Asian countries seldom get the opportunity to discuss research concerns that spill across national borders with their colleagues. The workshop engages critical reflection on the theme from a range of cross-disciplinary view points and induces dialogues that are sustained even after scholars disperse." The Fellowship requires scholars to take time off their teaching and administrative duties. This three to four months of leave provides the necessary time to write up completed fieldwork/research for publication. The fellowship thus facilitates space for active research away from heavy academic responsibilities, which is essential to maintain the quality of both research and teaching. Fellows affiliate with research centres during the fellowship tenure thereby reversing the trend of compartmentalising teaching in universities and research in specialised institutes. As a further measure in this direction, fellows are encouraged to incorporate their research into their regular work by modifying existing courses they teach or by introducing new courses. SSRC South Asia Fellowship Awardees for 2004-2005 Dilip K. Das, Berhampur, University, Orissa, India, Samir Kumar Das, Calcutta University, India, Swati Ghosh, Rabindra Bharati University, Kolkata, India, Charu Gupta, Motilal Nehru College, Delhi, India, Asha Hands, Utkal University, Orissa, India, Sandhya Hewamanne, University of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Chitra Joshi, Indraprastha College, Delhi, India, Kavita Panjabi, Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India, Sasanka Perera, University of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Muraleedharan Tharayil, St. Aloysius College, Kerala, India, K. V. Cybil, MG University, Kerala, India and Carmen Wickramagamage, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka. For further information and queries contact [email protected] (Social Science Research Council) |
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