Wherever I am, the world comes after me. It offers me its busyness. It does not believe that I do not want it. Now I understand why the old poets of China went so far and high into the mountains, then crept into the pale mist. "The Old Poets of China" by Mary Oliver
Reflections and Conversations on Decolonial Asian Knowledge | An International Seminar
Reflections and Conversations on Decolonial Asian Knowledge | An International Seminar
Details
The UP Asian Center, in partnership with the UP Center for International Studies, will be holding an on-site lecture on 21-22 February 2023, 10:00 am to 12:30 pm (PST) for Day 1 and 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm (PST) for Day 2, at the GT-Toyota Asian Cultural Center. The event is free and open to the public. Online registration is required.
Much of the literature and teaching in the humanities and social sciences is influenced by western scholarship, partly due to colonial legacies. The dominance of western scholarship in our education carries over into our daily lives and the lenses that we use to understand and interact with the world around us. As a consequence, we fail to appreciate the value of indigenous knowledge.
This seminar will revisit indigenous knowledge as an important component in area studies and have scholars from Malaysia, Iran, and the Philippines presenting their works on decolonial thoughts and Asian experiences. Together with Professor Farid Alatas and his delegation, the UP Asian Center and the Center for International Studies will hold a conversation on decolonial knowledge from February 21 and 22 2023. The seminar aims to identify possible topics for joint research among our faculty and students.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
PROF. SYED FARID ALATAS Dr. Syed Farid Alatas is professor of sociology at the National University of Singapore, where he has been since 1992. His areas of interest are sociological theory, the philosophy of social science, the sociology of religion, and interreligious dialogue. Alatas previously taught at the University of Malaya in the Department of Southeast Asian Studies. A Malaysian national, he obtained his Ph.D. in sociology from Johns Hopkins University in 1991. Click here to know more about Prof. Alatas.
Day 1: SEMINAR ON DECOLONIAL THOUGHTS AND AUTONOMOUS KNOWLEDGE
21 February 2023 | 10 AM to 12:30 PM, Philippine Standard Time | Seminar Room, UP Asian Center
OPENING AND WELCOME REMARKS Henelito A. Sevilla. Jr., Ph.D. Dean and Professor, Asian Center, University of the Philippines Diliman
INTRODUCTION TO THE SEMINAR AND THE SPEAKERS Amparo Adelina C. Umali Coordinator of Asia and Southeast Asian Studies, Center for International Studies, University of the Philippines Diliman
THEORIZING WITHIN THE TRADITION OF AUTONOMOUS KNOWLEDGE Syed Farid Alatas, Ph.D. Department of Sociology and Anthropology, National University of Singapore
Mustapha Dimaro, DPA Admission Director, Mindanao State University Marawi - Main Campus
QUESTION AND ANSWER
CLOSING REMARKS Matthew M. Santamaria, Doctor of Law Assistant to the Dean for Cultural Affairs Asian Center, University of the Philippines Diliman
MASTER OF CEREMONIES: Don McLain Gill Philippine-Middle East Studies Association, Inc.
THE ORGANIZERS
The event was organized by the UP Asian Center and the UP Center for International Studies (CIS), in partnership with the Philippine Middle East Studies Association (PMESA); Asia West East Center (AWEC); Department of International Relations, Mindanao State University-Marawi City; Office of International Affairs, Mindanao State University-General Santos City; Department of International Studies, Miriam College; Department of Foreign Service, New Era University; and Department of International Studies, Far Eastern University.
For inquiries, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 8 981 8500 local 3580.
The UP Asian Center offers M.A. degrees in Asian Studies with four fields of specialization: Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, and West Asia. The Center also has an M.A. program in Philippine Studies that allows students to major in Philippine society and culture, Philippine foreign relations, or Philippine development studies. The Center offers a Ph.D. program in Philippine Studies in conjunction with the College of Arts and Letters and the College of Social Sciences and Philosophy. For an overview of these graduate programs, click here. The Asian Center also publishes Asian Studies: Journal of Critical Perspectives on Asia, the latest issue of which can be downloaded at the journal's website. For other news and upcoming events at the Asian Center, click here.
PROF. SYED FARID ALATAS
