The Stranger and the City - Research Seminar

The Stranger and the City 

"Cities, like dreams, are made of desires and fears, even if the thread of their discourse is secret, their rules are absurd, their perspectives deceitful, and everything conceals something else." - Italo Calvino, Invisible Cities

Organized by Babel – www.babelcities.org Sponsored by CHI – Center for Humanistic Inquiry at Amherst College

“It is illuminating that the Chinese symbol for ‘crisis’ includes the symbol for both ‘danger’ and ‘opportunity’. The former has been much discussed, but the latter largely ignored.” – Janice Perlman, Author of Favela: Four Decades of Living on the Edge

Originally, this seminar was established to explore how the rapidly urbanizing, technology‐based societies of today present both risks to, and opportunities for establishing “home” and social connections. Now, amidst the global COVID-19 pandemic, with students and professionals working from home, “shelter in place” orders in some communities and social distancing advised for everyone, our concepts of “home” and importance of social connections are taking on new meaning. Join us in these seminars with guests who bring unique perspectives in navigating this topic from their respective fields. Participants will find the interdisciplinary and transcultural views relatable to their own experiences and will be invited to join the discussions. Creative prompts will also be proposed.

HOSTS: Ana Candida Carneiro, PhD Visiting Artist in Playwriting at Amherst College, Artistic Director of Babel Brian English Urban planner, Executive Director of Babel Friday, April 3, 2020 11:00am-12:30pm •Gustavo Salcedo – Political Science & International Relations (Amherst College) •Renata Moretti – Biology & Environmental Sciences (Harvard University) •Kirun Kapur – Poetry (Amherst College)

Friday, April 10, 2020 11:00am-12:30pm •Jessica Litwak – Theater & Social Change (H.E.A.T. Collective) •Carolina L. Zilli Vieira – Environmental Health (Harvard University) •Kasper Villadsen – Political Science & Philosophy (Copenhagen Business School)

Friday, April 17, 2020 11:00am-12:30pm •Jenna Riegel / Sha Harrell – Dance (Amherst College) •Janice Perlman – Anthropology (Mega Cities Project/Columbia University) •Alex Ros – Travel Industry (Founder of Open Sky Expeditions)

Friday, April 24, 2020 11:00am-12:30pm •Thomas Dumm - Political Science (Amherst College, author of "Home in America") •Sabato Visconti - Visual Arts (ex-Daca artist) •Brian English - Urban Planning (Babel)