Speaker Series
Speaker Series – Dr. Cristina Bertrand
Learning from Nature Learning from Nature is a new way of understanding the place of human beings in the world. It is also the first step for inquiring about the laws of the material world, the interrelation of these laws with the human world and its practical application to daily life. Nature, then, will be […]
Speaker Series: Bees, sand and water: healing and an ‘everyday extraordinary’ in contemporary Mongolia
For many late 19th and early 20th century thinkers, the modern condition was one synonymous with increasing rationalization and secularization. They predicted a growing ‘disenchantment of the world,’ a banishing of the mystic or mysterious as humans increasingly separated from and sought mastery over the natural world. However, instead of simply a disenchanted ‘modern’ world, […]
Speaker Series – Snow Leopard Conservation in South Gobi – Nadia Mijiddorj & Justine Alexander
The mountain landscapes used by the endangered snow leopard (Panthera uncia) and their prey is increasingly subject to human pressures. Humans are at the centre of major threats to the species, including retaliatory killing, livestock rearing, contribution to loss of prey, and the increasing penetration of development projects into snow leopard areas. This talk will […]
Speaker Series – Dr. Kurt Galbreath – Building infrastructure for biodiversity research in Mongolia
Mongolia has a complex landscape that is home to a rich assemblage of plants and animals. This biological diversity represents a unique legacy that sets Mongolia apart from neighboring regions. Though the Mongolian biota remains relatively intact, large-scale forces such as climate change and expanding economic development have potential to negatively impact species. Unfortunately, very […]
Dual Presentation – Dr. Marissa Smith & Dr. Saskia Abrahms- Kavunenko – From Contemporary Mongolian Buddhism to International Research Models
This weeks topics. Models for International and Interdisciplinary Research in Mongolia: Perspectives from Participant Observation with Historical Considerations In this talk I will present some examples of successful international and interdisciplinary research collaborations from a participant observation project this past July. As an American cultural anthropologist working with a team of Mongolian, American, Australian, and […]
Speaker Series – Dr. Wayne Lee & Dr. Günhan Börekçi- comparative military history of Mongolia
Tuesday July 5th, 5:30-7:00 pm American Corner, Natsagdorj Library, Ulaanbaatar Comparing Strategies of Conquest and Control in the Sown, the Steppe, and the Wilderness: Understanding Landscapes and Logistics Like most army planners, military historians tend to focus on conquest. They spend less time thinking about how a conquering society then manages or controls those territories […]
Sensory Engagements with Ulaanbaatar’s Toxic Atmosphere
Speaker Series: Chisato Fukuda Air quality metrics have become the most pervasive scientific form of air pollution evidence. In Ulaanbaatar, the government has invested in an air quality monitoring network, planted Air Quality Index (AQI) boards along sidewalks, and designed websites to showcase real-time air quality data. Although these initiatives attempt to raise public “awareness”, […]
Ecological change in Lake Hovsgol, Mongolia’s largest lake
Speaker Series: Chris Free Lake Hovsgol, Mongolia’s largest freshwater lake and the 19th largest lake in the world by volume, is among the world’s most pristine and unique lakes. Despite its remoteness, protected status, and low human population density, Lake Hovsgol is threatened by the synergistic pressures of climate change, water pollution, overfishing, and development. […]
Non-Formal Education, Development and Mobile Pastoralism in Mongolia
Speaker Series: Jade Richards In recent decades, decentralised education has become increasingly important as a conduit for the dissemination of key skills and inclusion of marginalised groups into the State. In Mongolia, the decentralisation of education and implementation of non-formal educational reforms were central to post-socialist transformation. This research will investigate the lived experience of […]
Putrefaction and Prototyping: the political economy of spatial and temporal transformation in Ulaanbaatar
Speaker Series: Alex Skinner What can a single building in central Ulaanbaatar reveal about the bricolage of social, political and material transformations at play within in Ulaanbaatar today? In the wake of socialism and colonialism, a rich vein of transitology offers us array of concepts through which to render the potentialities of space, place, networks […]
Preliminary Results of the “Airagiin Gozgor” Project Research in Jargalant sum, Orkhon province
Speaker Series: Odbaatar Tserendorj In addition to historical documents, archaeological excavations are one of the most important sources for information on the ancient history of Mongolia. Results of excavations at the site of Airagiin Gozgor in Jargalant sum, Orkhon province will shed new light on Mongolian ancestors and clarify our understanding of Mongolia. This project […]
The State and Fate of Mongolia’s Environment
Speaker Series: Caleb Pan Mongolia is uniquely located in the heart of the Asian landmass and as a consequence this geographic location facilitates one of the strongest continental climates on earth. Largely governed by its unique climate, Mongolia is a water restricted country. Despite Mongolia’s limited access to water, the country has been rapidly developing […]