===================================== MONASH ASIA INSTITUTE BULLETIN 3/2004 1 April 2004 ===================================== In this bulletin 1. CSEAS Seminars 2. CSEAS Commencement Party 3. 11th Workshop on SEA Women 4. MAI Postgraduate Seminar 5. Report - Mumbai Conference on 'Cultures and Technologies in Asia' 6. Report - 3rd Dialogue on 'Regional Security in the Asia Pacific' 7. Photogram Exhibition 8. "Soundtrack to War" - preview screening and seminar 9. Conference: Novels and Newspapers in SEA 10. Conference: Sexualities, Masculinities, and Cultures in South Asia 11. Dragon 100 Young Chinese Leaders Forum 2004 12. Social Science Scholarships in the Netherlands 13. Website of the month: Yale South Asia ---------------------------------------------------- Item 1. CSEAS Seminars Seminars are held on Thursdays 11.00 am (ALL WELCOME) Room SG02 Manton Rooms, Monash University Clayton Campus 1 April 2004 "Aspects of Malaysian Banking" Rubi Ahmad, PhD candidate in Business and Economics, Monash University --- 8 April 2004 "Indonesian banking" Mega Valensi, PhD candidate in Business and Economics, Monash University --- 15 April 2004 Mid-Semester Break: No seminar --- 22nd April 2004 "Dukuns, Doctors and Shrinking Penis Disease" Dr David Mitchell, Hon. Fellow of Faculty of Medicine and CSEAS, Monash University Dr Joost Cotè, Senior Lecturer in Indonesian Studies, Deakin University --- 29 April 2004 "Writing Sundanese-Indonesian and Indonesian-Sundanese Dictionaries" Rabin Hardjadibrata, Hon. Fellow in Indonesian Section, School of Languages, Cultures and Linguistics, Monash University Enquiries for all CSEAS Seminars: Prof Margaret Kartomi Website: http://www.arts.monash.edu.au/mai/cseas/cseasseminar04.html ---------------------------------------------------- Item 2. CSEAS Commencement Party Invitation You and your partner and family are warmly invited to the Centre for Southeast Asian Studies/Monash Asia Institute Commencement party to be held on SUNDAY April 4th from 12.30pm at the home of Margaret and Mas Kartomi 83 Grandview Rd (off Jells Road) Wheelers Hill 3150 As is usual at CSEAS Commencement parties, please bring a savoury dish to eat with rice (provided) and your favourite drinks. Also please bring a musical instrument if you wish either to perform or for community singing. Offers to dance, play or entertain also welcome. Please RSVP by April 1 to Mas Kartomi, Tel: 9560 3966. ---------------------------------------------------- Item 3. 11th Workshop on SEA Women Monash Asia Institute Centre of Southeast Asian Studies Eleventh Annual Workshop on Southeast Asian Women Monash University, Clayton, Victoria Friday 25 June 2004 The aim of the Workshop is to bring together researchers and others interested in the study of matters relating to Southeast Asian women, in any field, such as politics, geography, literature, the arts, history or health. CALL FOR PAPERS Please send brief offers of papers to: Dr Susan Blackburn, School of Political and Social Inquiry, PO Box 11A Monash University, Victoria,3800. Email address: sue.blackburn@arts.monash.edu.au Telephone (03) 9905 2384 The deadline for offers is June 1. Website - http://www.arts.monash.edu.au/mai/cseas/seawomen04.html ---------------------------------------------------- Item 4. MAI Postgraduate Seminar Friday 30 April 2004 10.00 am to 12.30 pm Room S822, Level 8 South, Menzies Building (11) Monash Asia Institute, Monash University Clayton Campus "Pedagogical Analysis of Electronic Learning in Malaysian Institutions of Higher Education" Marlia Puteh, PhD Candidate, Monash Asia Institute Brief Description of Research This study is conducted for the purpose of investigating the methods and strategies of using electronic learning in institutions of higher education in Malaysia. The objectives are to highlight the e-learning strategies executed by these institutions and outline any misconceptions experienced by them in their understanding of this new field. The approach will involve Malaysian case studies with some comparisons with international best practice. E-mail address: mput2@student.monash.edu.au ---------------------------------------------------- Item 5. Report - Mumbai Conference on 'Cultures and Technologies in Asia' The 1st International Conference of the Monash Asia Institute was held in Mumbai in early February 2004. It involved key academic specialists from Australia, India, Japan, Finland and Malaysia. An 'Asia on Asia Network' was established to promote research and conferencing about the region, in the region. The network brings together important regional research centres. A more detailed report about the conference and the research outcomes will be published on the MAI homepage by the end of April. People interested in contributing chapters to the proposed two volumes of research on 'Corporate Social Responsibility in Developing Countries' and 'IT Solutions for Poverty' are encouraged to write to the Director of the MAI, Professor A M Vicziany at: marika.vicziany@adm.monash.edu.au For further information about the conference see: http://www.arts.monash.edu.au/mai/ructa/conference/ ---------------------------------------------------- Item 6. Report - 3rd Dialogue on 'Regional Security in the Asia Pacific' During the first week of March, the Monash Asia Institute held its 3rd Dialogue on Regional Security in Asia Pacific in partnership with the Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies, CASS (Chinese Academy of Social Sciences). Some 50 participants from across Asia were involved, together with some observers from foreign embassies in Beijing. A detailed report on the dialogue will be published on the MAI homepage by the end of April. It is proposed to publish two volumes of research from the Beijing dialogue: one volume will deal with the 'Security Scenario in Southeast Asia after the Bali bombings' and the second volume will be about 'Controlling Arms and Terrorism in Asia after the Bali Bombings'. For further information about this dialogue and the previous ones see: http://www.arts.monash.edu.au/mai/virtualforum/beijing/index.html =============================================================== Monash activities =============================================================== Item 7. New Branches on an Old Tree Photograms by Susan Purdy, a Monash staff member in the Faculty of Art and Design who has had a residency in the Southern Chinese Collection at the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne New Branches on an Old Tree offers audiences a fresh take on cultural connection by exploring a botanical collection through contemporary art. A year in the making, the exhibition New Branches on an Old Tree is a collection of images in which Chinese plants have been explored to tell stories that excite the imagination and develop new understandings of the wide significance that Chinese plants have in our lives. The exhibition represents a year through the seasons in the Royal Botanic Gardens Southern Chinese Collection. Exhibition currently open until Saturday 24 April 2004 at the Centre for Contemporary Photography (CCP) 205 Johnson St., Fitzroy, Vic 3064, on Wednesdays to Saturdays: 11.00 am - 5.00 pm Enquiries: Tel (03) 9417 1549 or email:info@ccp.org.au The will also be guided tours of the Royal Botanic Gardens Southern Chinese Collection on: Thursday 15 April 2004, 11.00 am - 12.30 pm Saturday 17 April 2004, 11.00 am - 12.30 pm Entry fees apply to both events A free floor talk will be presented at the Centre for Contemporary Photography with artist Susan Purdy on Saturday 17 April 2004 at 2.30 pm - 3.15 pm. For more information see: http://users.tpg.com.au/users/purdy/ http://www.ccp.org.au/ http://www.rbg.vic.gov.au/ =============================================================== Other items of interest =============================================================== Item 8. "Soundtrack to War" - preview screening and seminar The Institute of Postcolonial Studies presents a GEORGE GITTOES preview screening and seminar: SOUNDTRACK TO WAR Iraq | Cultures of War | Xit Art War artist George Gittoes returns from Iraq to preview the first cut of his film 'Soundtrack to War' - a documentary that presents unique insights into the politics of violence through the medium of American musical culture. By asking front-line soldiers about the music they listened to, he explores how it influenced them and why they thought they were there, just as American tanks pushed their way into Baghdad. After the screening, he will draw on fresh, confronting footage, photography and painting to follow the concurrent cultural invasion now occurring beyond the cockpit of the tank. Here, George Gittoes will range across the last days of the Saddam regime, the Coalition occupation and the escalating violence perhaps heralding civil war. He will also discuss his own artistic practice - Xit Art - and more recent manipulations of horror in the place of violence. THURSDAY 22nd APRIL, 7.30 PM. Venue: Uniting Church, 51 Curzon Street, North Melbourne (Melway 2A H9). Entry: Waged: $10, Unwaged/Students: $5, Members: Gold coin George Gittoes AO is one of Australia's foremost figurative painters, whose work has been exhibited around the world and for which he has won several prestigious awards. He has placed himself in many of the major conflicts of the last 20 years, working face to face with both combatants and victims as his subjects in: Nicaragua, the Philippines in the '80's, Somalia, Sinai, Southern Lebanon, Israel, Gaza, Western Sahara, Cambodia, Laos, Rwanda, Mozambique, South Africa, Bosnia, Northern Ireland, Bougainville and Tibet in the '90's, Timor, the Congo, Rwanda, Afghanistan, and the Middle East. Currently, he is working in Iraq and on a collaborative project with Mike Moore. He returns especially for this Institute presentation. * The Institute wishes to acknowledge the financial support of the IPCS Postgraduate Group. Enquiries: Institute of Postcolonial Studies, Tel: 9329 6381 Email: postcol@netspace.net.au Website: http://www.ipcs.org.au/ -------------------------------- Item 9. Conference Center for Southeast Asia Studies, UC Berkeley 21st Annual Conference "Novels and Newspapers in Southeast Asia: Instruments of Modernity" April 9-10, 2004 150 University Hall The conference examines the role played by novels and news media, including newspapers, magazines, radio and other media forms, in the emergence of distinctive forms of modernity in Southeast Asia. Papers will address the significance of these forms in an historical or present-day context from the range of disciplinary traditions in the social sciences and humanities. For additional information, contact the Center for Southeast Asia Studies, UC Berkeley, CSEAS, 2223 Fulton St., No. 617, Berkeley CA 94720-2318. Tel. (510) 642-3609; Fax (510) 643-7062; E-mail: cseas@uclink.berkeley.edu. http://ias.berkeley.edu/cseas -------------------------------- Item 10. Conference: South Asia The Dharani Trust Swabhava Trust Bangalore (India) CALL FOR PARTICIPATION 2nd International Conference on Sexualities, Masculinities, and Cultures in South Asia 9 - 12 June 2004, Bangalore. "developing discourses and discourses of development" The South Asian context of debates around sexuality reveals wide-ranging concerns that have emerged through a whole range of complex movements in history. The patriarchal systems in the region are seen to add to the diverse constructions, narratives, and performances of sexualities, including masculinities and femininities. These are areas of significant interest not only to researchers but also to many engaged in the field of social change and human development work. More recently, questions of 'alternative' sexuality and development debates on trafficking, sex work, and HIV/AIDS have also brought sexuality discourses to the forefront of contestations. This conference follows the first conference held in Melbourne, Australia in 1999. The papers presented there have appeared in a special issue of South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies, Volume XXIV, 'Sexual Sites, Seminal Attitudes: Sexualities, Masculinities and Cultures in South Asia' (Ed.: Sanjay Srivastava). This 3-day conference will bring together an array of scholars, activists, artists, organisations, and approaches under a common aegis. It will provide space for non-traditional presentations and also presentations in Hindi and Kannada, in an effort to stimulate wider discussions and dialogue. Enquiries: Dr. Chandra Shekhar Balachandran Vinay Chandran Dr. Sanjay Srivastava (Conference Co-Chairs) Contact details: 2nd International Conference on Sexualities, Masculinities, and Cultures in South Asia (2004) c/o The Dharani Trust, 1 Shanthi Road, Shanthinagar, Bangalore 560027, India Email: conf2004@dharanitrust.org Website: http://www.dharanitrust.org/ ----------------------------------------------------- Item 11. Dragon 100 Young Chinese Leaders Forum 2004 24 September - 1 October 2004, (Closing date for applications is 1 April, 2004.) This year's programme will comprise a 3-day Forum in Hong Kong and a 5-day Study Trip to Beijing. In Beijing the participants will attend the "Dragons in China - First World Chinese Youth Forum" sponsored by The Dragon Foundation, where two thousand youth leaders from around the world will join the Forum at the Great Hall of the People. We hope to draw 100 participants from Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Mainland China and the rest of the world, who are between the ages of 18 and 35, who have demonstrated leadership skills, academic prowess and a commitment to the community. The Dragon Foundation will be sponsoring the delegates to cover the cost of the Programme, including return tickets to their home base, airfares and ground transportation between Hong Kong and Beijing, travel and medical insurance, meals and accommodation as stated in the final itinerary. Those who are selected will be expected to pay visa fees and all out of pocket expenses. Enquiries: Secretariat, The Dragon Foundation Tel: (852) 2811-2779, by fax: (852) 2811-2669 Email: dragon100@dragonfoundation.net Website: http://www.dragonfoundation.net/english/index.html ---------------------------------------------------- Item 12. Scholarships in the Netherlands Interuniversity Center for Social Science Theory and Methodology (ICS) is a joint project of the Universities of Groningen, Utrecht, and Nijmegen in The Netherlands. The institute offers a postgraduate program for a small selection of excellent graduates in one of the social sciences (including economics, history, mathematics or computer sciences). The structured program consists of training in advanced theory construction and research methods by means of courses, tutorials and individual study in each of the three participating institutions - Groningen, Utrecht and Nijmegen. At the end of four years, the Assistant in Training (Aio), as we call our Ph.D students, will also have finished his or her dissertation, ready to enter the growing market for highly trained researchers in the social sciences. The ICS was officially accredited as a 'center of the excellence' by the Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1993, 1998 and 2003. Through funds provided by the Dutch Ministry of Education and Science, the ICS is able to grant full scholarships to the Aio's, including tuition and living expenses, during the entire program. Ten to twelve Aio's, at least three of whom from foreign countries, will be admitted into the 2004 programme. For General information on the ICS, program and selection procedure, see: http://www.ics-graduateschool.nl To order brochure, email: Sociologie@maw.kun.nl Applications for 2004 close on: 1 May 2004 ----------------------------------------------------- Item 13. Website of the month: Yale South Asia The Council on South Asian Studies at the Yale Center for International and Area Studies is pleased to announce the launch of its expanded and re-designed web site at http://www.yale.edu/ycias/southasia The site is meant to serve as a comprehensive introduction to the variety of scholarly and cultural activities and resources on South Asia available at Yale University. In addition to information about faculty and course offerings on South Asia, there are pages devoted to a full spectrum of activities by faculty, students, alumni, and the Connecticut South Asian community, including on-going seminars and upcoming conferences. In addition, check out the calendar of South Asia-related activities at Yale. The site was designed by Lisa Brennan (YCIAS), in consultation with various members of the Yale University community. Comments and suggestions for the site are always welcome to south.asia@yale.edu ======================================================================== The Monash Asia Institute Newsletter incorporates news items from the six research centres of the Monash Asia Institute, partner organisations and other groups working to promote Asian Studies in Australia. For further information about the Monash Asia Institute and this newsletter: http://www.arts.monash.edu.au/mai/ email: monash.asia.institute@adm.monash.edu.au ========================================================================