South Asia Faculty Working Group
The South Asia Faculty Working Group aims to promote public and scholarly engagement with the arts, cultures, politics, religions, history, languages and literatures of South Asia and the South Asian diaspora. By providing a forum for scholars to discuss projects, ideas, and approaches in research and teaching, the working group seeks to deepen understanding of the region on the UNC-Chapel Hill campus and in the surrounding community. The group also sponsors lectures, conferences, exhibitions, performances and other public events that reach audiences on and off campus, invite student and community participation, and discuss issues of regional and global relevance.
The group is supported by contributions from the Center for Global Initiatives and the Carolina Asia Center, with additional funding for specific events from the Departments of Art, Anthropology, Asian Studies, Religious Studies, Women’s and Gender Studies, and Communication Studies. We have also partnered on specific events with the Ackland Museum and the Institute for Arts and Humanities. For more information, contact Afroz Taj at taj@unc.edu
Core Faculty:
- Afroz Taj, Department of Asian Studies—Group Coordinator
- Pamela Lothspeich, Department of Asian Studies
- Lauren Leve, Department of Religious Studies
- Townsend Middleton, Department of Anthropology
- Meenu Tiwari, Department of City and Regional Planning
- Debashis Aikat, School of Journalism
- John Caldwell, Department of Asian Studies
- Carl Ernst, Department of Religious Studies
- Emma Flatt, Department of History
- Iqbal Sevea, Department of History
- Kumi Silva, Department of Communication
- Sara Smith, Department of Geography