International Affairs

India and Pakistan once again step back from the brink

Rachel Sauer — Fri, 16 May 2025 16:44:25 +0000

India and Pakistan once again step back from the brink Rachel Sauer Fri, 05/16/2025 - 10:44

Rachel Sauer

ɫ��ֱ�� historian Lucy Chester notes that the recent tensions between the two nations, incited by the April 22 terrorist attack in Kashmir, are the latest in an ongoing cycle

When a gunman opened fire April 22 on domestic tourists in Pahalgam, a scenic Himalayan hill station in Indian-administered Kashmir, killing 26 people, the attack ignited days of deadly drone attacks, airstrikes and shelling between India and Pakistan that escalated to a perilous brink last weekend.

A U.S.-brokered ceasefire Saturday evening diffused the mounting violence between the two nuclear-armed nations that increasingly seemed on a trajectory toward war. It was the latest in a string of escalations spanning many decades between India and Pakistan, which invariably led to the question: Why does this keep happening?

ɫ��ֱ�� historian Lucy Chester notes that the recent conflict between India and Pakistan is part of a broader history that includes not only religion, but water, maps and territorial integrity.

Lucy Chester, an associate professor in the ɫ��ֱ�� Department of History and the International Affairs Program, has studied the region and relations between the two nations for many years; her first book, Borders and Conflict in South Asia, explores the drawing of the boundary between India and Pakistan in 1947.

Despite President Donald Trump’s assertion that the origins of the conflict date back a thousand years, “that’s not the case,” Chester says. “I would say it’s mainly about Kashmir, with some additional issues at play this time around that changed the dynamics a bit.”

When more than a century of British colonial rule of India ended in August 1947, the Indian subcontinent was divided into Hindu-majority India and Muslim-majority Pakistan—a bloody, devastating event known as Partition. An estimated 15 million people were displaced and an estimated 1 to 2 million died as a result of violence, hunger, suicide or disease.

The first Indo-Pakistani war ignited two months after Partition, in October 1947, over the newly formed Pakistan’s fear that the Hindu maharaja of the princely state of Kashmir and Jammu would align with India. The Indo-Pakistani wars of 1965 and 1971 and the the Kargil War of 1999 followed, as well as other conflicts, standoffs and skirmishes.

Chester addressed these and other issues in a recent conversation with Colorado Arts and Sciences Magazine.

Question: These decades of conflict are often framed as Hindu-Muslim conflict; is that not the case?

Chester: There’s an older dynamic of Hindu-Muslim tension that definitely plays a role in this, but a significant aspect of the conflict over Kashmir is a conflict over water, which is really important. It has to do specifically with Kashmir’s geopolitical position and how a lot of the water that is important to India, that flows through India into Pakistan, originates in Kashmir.

It was a lot about popular pressure this time—Hindu nationalist pressure—on (Indian Prime Minister Narendra) Modi, which is a dynamic that he has very much contributed to. So, in that sense, it could be framed as Hindu-Muslim tension.

But it’s also about territorial integrity—that’s a phrase that kept coming up—and it’s a very loaded phrase that does go back to 1947 and the kinds of nations that India and Pakistan were conceived of in the 1940s and the kinds of national concerns they’ve developed in the years since.

Question: What role did Hindu nationalism, which has been very much in the news since Modi’s re-election last year, play in this recent conflict?

Chester: Hindu nationalism has been important in South Asia since the late 19th century, certainly, and it’s become more important since the 1930s. It’s one strand of the larger Indian nationalist movement—Indian nationalism was behind the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi in 1948. So, it’s always been there, but Modi, of course, has really ramped it up. For a while he distanced himself from the BJP (the Bharatiya Janata Party political party associated with Hindu nationalism), but he’s since made it very clear that he is very much in line with Hindu nationalist ideals and played on those symbols and those dynamics centered to what Hindu nationalist voters wanted.

Colonel Sofiya Qureshi addresses the media about Operation Sindoor at the National Media Centre in New Delhi May 7, 2025. (Photo: Government of India Ministry of Defence)

This whole idea of Hinduness gets back to the various ways both India and Pakistan are conceived of as nations. Hindutva (a political ideology justifying a Hindu hegemony in India) conceives India as a fundamentally Hindu nation, and that idea has gotten so much more reinforcement from Modi and the national government over last 10 years. So, part of what happened with this awful terrorist massacre two weeks ago is that it created a lot of pressure on Modi to respond in a way that previous Indian administrations haven’t felt they had to respond.

Question: In the recent conflict, India accused Pakistan of perpetrating the attack, which Pakistan denied, and framed the response as a defense of ‘Mother India.’ What does that mean?

Chester: Sumathi Ramaswamy explained it best in her book (The Goddess and the Nation: Mapping Mother India), where she talks about Mother India as this cartographed divine female figure who’s very much identified with the cartographic body of the nation. So, any attack on the territorial integrity (of India) is an attack on this woman, this mother figure.

The (recent) Indian Operation was called Operation Sindoor—sindoor is the red coloring that married Hindu woman put in the part of their hair—a call-out to this idea of Mother India and a call to the nation’s sons to be willing to die for her or to kill for her in this case.

In 1947, with the Partition of British India into India and Pakistan, the conception for many in India was a really tragic carving up of the body of the nation, and for a number of Hindu nationalists, that was a specifically female body. For a lot of people in India to this day, the 1947 Partition is this massive failure and an amputation of key elements of the national body. On the other side in Pakistan, for many it’s this great narrative of victory, but on the Indian side there’s this recurring existential fear that further parts of the country could be carved off this way. I think a big part of why conflict keeps happening is that both sides feel very strongly about defending the national territory because it was torn apart in such a violent way, and I think that fear is just most vividly present in Kashmir.

Question: How does the history of Kashmir in terms of British rule and Partition come into play?

Chester: In terms of British India, there were areas that were directly ruled and areas that were indirectly ruled. The indirectly ruled areas were princely ruled, and this is important because Kashmir was a princely state with a Hindu maharaja and a majority-Muslim population. With princely states, in theory they could decide for themselves whether to accede to India or Pakistan, and the maharaja of Kashmir, most would say he was angling for some kind of autonomy or independence and delayed the decision on whether to accede to India or Pakistan.

In October of 1947, militia groups—almost certainly supported by Pakistan—invaded Kashmir and the maharaja appealed to India for help. India airlifted troops in, because there was no all-weather road efficient for deploying troops, which gives you a sense for both how remote Kashmir was and parts of it still are, and also that there weren’t a lot of infrastructure connections.

So, the first Indo-Pakistan war was in 1947 to 1948, then a second war in 1965 and a third in 1971. This reinforces that fear of the country fragmenting and losing parts of the national body, because it was after the 1971 war that Bangladesh became independent (from Pakistan).

In 1949, India and Pakistan established a Ceasefire Line that became the Line of Control in 1972 with the Simla Agreement. The Line of Control is significant because it’s treated as an international boundary—not de jure (existing by law or officially recognized), but de facto. In 1972, officials came up with a textual description for the Line of Control and they define it up to NJ9842, which is the northernmost point on the map where it ends. The text of treaty says something like, “Proceed thence north to the glaciers.” This territory is so remote, so geopolitically useless, that no one at the time thought spending time to define where boundary line ran was important.

In the mid-1980s, both India and Pakistan sent troops to the Siachen Glacier, creating one of the highest more-or-less permanent military bases at about 22,000 feet. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

So, north of NJ9842 is this really undefined area—you’ve got Pakistan-controlled territory, India-controlled territory, China is right there, the Karakoram Pass is right there. What happened in the late 1970s, and possibly earlier even into the late 1960s, was Pakistan began issuing permits to international climbing expeditions, and in the early 1980s Indian troops discovered evidence of these international climbing expeditions. India realized that Pakistan had been exercising a certain form of administrative control over this undefined territory, and that’s what triggered the mid-1980s sending of troops from India and Pakistan to the Siachen Glacier. It includes what I think is the highest more-or-less permanent military base at something like 22,000 feet.

As a map geek, I find it really interesting that maps have contributed in pretty direct ways to these conflicts. One of the really tragic elements is that we know that on the Indian side, 97% of conflict casualties in that area are due to terrain and weather, and we can assume similar numbers on the Pakistani side. You’ve got these two countries fighting this battle, but they’re also fighting Mother Nature. In fact, the 1999 Kargil War happened because Pakistan tried to move some of its troops to a higher altitude where they could overlook an Indian road that supplied these high-altitude posts.

Question: What role did water play in the recent conflict?

Chester: All of the water that feeds the rivers that run downstream into western India and Pakistan originates in that region, which gives it real geopolitical value. One of the things that had me particularly concerned this time was India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty from 1960, which was a really landmark agreement governing the sharing of these waters. Some of these rivers flow through India before they get to Pakistan, and at this point India doesn’t have the infrastructure to turn off the water. But Pakistan has said if India starts building that infrastructure, they will consider it an act of war.

Question: Is there anything that makes you feel even slightly hopeful amid these ongoing tensions?

Chester: Over the last two weeks, both sides have been very carefully walking this fine line between being very visibly seen to acknowledge popular pressure on them to stand up strongly to their adversary, but also making very carefully planned choices that as far as possible avoided uncontrollable escalation. Everyone is keenly aware these are both nuclear-armed powers. I was very concerned that it escalated as much as it did on both sides, particularly in the use of airstrikes, but I think both sides were doing their best to leave themselves and their adversaries an off-ramp.

Part of the significance of (the Kargil War in) 1999 was both sides had just come out of the nuclear closet, so everyone was watching that conflict very closely, but both sides were able to walk back from edge. That gives us a lot of reason to hope and to believe that there are very professional people on both sides—in addition to people who are whipping up popular frenzy—who have a good sense for what the limits are, what signals they can send, and who are saying to the population, “We listen to you, we respect your grievances,” but they also know where the edge is and aren’t crossing it.

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ɫ��ֱ�� historian Lucy Chester notes that the recent tensions between the two nations, incited by the April 22 terrorist attack in Kashmir, are the latest in an ongoing cycle.

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Research colloquium addresses ongoing crisis of liberal democracy

Anonymous — Mon, 12 Feb 2024 20:04:30 +0000

Research colloquium addresses ongoing crisis of liberal democracy Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 02/12/2024 - 13:04

Eminent German historian Paul Nolte will discuss whether the golden age of democracy is over or whether it can escape collapse and recover

One of Germany’s leading contemporary historians will present a research colloquium addressing the stage of crisis that liberal democracy has entered in the early 21st century—asking whether the golden age of democracy over and is on course for eventual collapse, or whether it can recover.

Historian Paul Nolte will present the colloquium, titled “Crisis or Transformation? From Good-old Democracy to Rough Democracy, ca. 1970-2020,” which is jointly organized by the ɫ��ֱ�� Program in Jewish Studies, the Louis P. Singer Endowed Chair in Jewish History and the Pacific Office of the German Historical Institute Washington in cooperation with the Gerda Henkel Foundation.

Historian Paul Nolte will discuss the crisis in liberal democracy at a research colloquium Tuesday.

It will be from 2-3:30 p.m. Tuesday in Center for Academic Success and Engagement (CASE) E422. To receive the pre-circulated text on which the discussions will be based, please RSVP by email to cujewishstudies@colorado.edu.

At ɫ��ֱ��, the visit is co-sponsored by the Center for Humanities and the Arts; the International Affairs Program; and the Departments of Germanic and Slavic Languages and Literatures, History and Sociology.

As one of Germany’s leading contemporary historians, Nolte holds a chair in modern history with a special emphasis on contemporary history and international relations at the Friedrich Meinecke Institute of the Freie Universität Berlin. His research areas include social, intellectual and political history of the 18th to 20th centuries, especially post-1945 Germany and the United States; transatlantic history of democracy; public intellectuals and social, economic and political concepts and mentalities; urban history and metropolitan cultures; religion and civil society in Western societies; and public history and cultures of memory.

Research colloquium

What: Crisis or Transformation? From Good-old Democracy to Rough Democracy, ca. 1970-2020

When: 2-3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 13

Where: CASE E422

More information

Nolte has written more than a dozen books and has served as a fellow or guest professor at Oxford University, Harvard University and the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. Among his many transatlantic undertakings is chairing the academic advisory committee of the Berlin Program for Advanced German and European Studies, which brings American PhD candidates to Germany.

His colloquium will focus on the current state of crisis in which liberal democracy exists, when they are under attack from neo-authoritarian ideas, movements and regimes, externally as well as from within. He will address what a potential recovery could look like, asking, “What if we were not witnesses to a crisis of democracy, but rather to its transformation, with the current predicaments being the new normal?”

Nolte will discuss how, from a historical point of view, “pre-crisis” democracy corresponded to social structures, cultural milieus and technological environments that will never return. Further, this longing often projects a relatively short period in the trajectory of democracy, participation and liberal society as an ideal state, while it was in itself full of shortcomings, rigid structures and privileges for the few.

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Eminent German historian Paul Nolte will discuss whether the golden age of democracy is over or whether it can escape collapse and recover.

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Program aims to offer deeper insight into Israel, Gaza war and history

Anonymous — Mon, 27 Nov 2023 20:26:39 +0000

Program aims to offer deeper insight into Israel, Gaza war and history Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 11/27/2023 - 13:26

In response to public requests, ɫ��ֱ�� experts will discuss range of topics in Arab-Israeli conflict at Wednesday forum, which is open to the community

A weekend cease-fire extension and the continuing release of hostages have raised some hopes, but the devastating war in the Middle East has also raised many questions.

Many members of the ɫ��ֱ�� campus community have asked for expert insight into the conflict and its centuries-long history. In response, the Program in Jewish Studies will host “Explaining Conflict and War in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank: Community Discussions with CU Faculty Members” from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 29, in UMC 382-384.

Map of Israel and Palestine

The event, which is open to the public, is being organized by the Program in Jewish Studies and co-sponsored by the Center for Humanities and the Arts, the Department of English, the Department of History and the International Affairs Program.

It will follow an informal format and allow individuals and smaller groups of participants to discuss a specific sub-topic, ranging from antisemitism to the long history of the Arab-Israeli conflict, with faculty experts, including:

Janet J. Jacobs, professor of distinction in women and gender studies
Zach Levey, Israel Institute visiting professor and visiting professor of international affairs
Karim Mattar, associate professor of English
Thomas Pegelow Kaplan, Louis P. Singer Endowed Chair in Jewish History and interim director of the Program in Jewish Studies
Eyal Rivlin, teaching associate professor of Jewish studies

The program will continue the discussions about the war, which is a significant escalation of the decades-long conflict. The war began with the terrorist attacks by Hamas, which killed 1,200 civilians on Oct. 7. Not since the Holocaust had this number of Jews been murdered in a single day. Israel’s response to the terrorism, an invasion of the Gaza Strip, has drawn criticism from some observers.

The Program in Jewish Studies sponsored a panel discussion last month, as well.

Wednesday’s event will offer another forum for these discussions. Many members of the ɫ��ֱ�� campus community are directly affected by the war, given that they have family and friends in the region who have been hurt or killed.

For weeks, tensions have been running high on many U.S. university campuses, including ɫ��ֱ��, and many students feel threatened and unsafe. Social media continues to be saturated with inflammatory posts, partial truths and falsehoods.

For more information, please contact the Program in Jewish Studies at 303-492-7143 or CUJewishStudies@colorado.edu

In response to public requests, ɫ��ֱ�� experts will discuss range of topics in Arab-Israeli conflict at Wednesday forum, which is open to the community.

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Global Grants Fund gets big boost from chancellor

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Nov 2023 19:02:28 +0000

Global Grants Fund gets big boost from chancellor Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 11/07/2023 - 12:02

Donations unlock a $200,000 fundraising match commitment, helping support study abroad experiences

The ɫ��ֱ�� International Affairs Program recently reached a major milestone when it unlocked a $200,000 fundraising match commitment made by Chancellor Phil DiStefano last year.

“The Program in International Affairs thanks the chancellor for challenging our community of supporters to create study abroad opportunities for our students,” said Thomas Zeiler, director of the Program in International Affairs. “The Global Grants Fund enables students to reach beyond CU and experience the world, making them truly global citizens.”

Reaching this goal, which generated a total of $400,000 for the International Affairs Program (IAFS) Global Grants Fund, is important because it showcases the impact of giving and highlights the work IAFS and Global Grants does for its students and their international educational experiences, which inspires further important work abroad.

In February 2022, DiStefano approved a match of $200,000 for all gifts of $10,000 or more made to the Global Grants Fund. The match ended in July, at which time nine donors had given a total of more than $200,000.

With these funds, the Global Grants’ endowment is now more than $1.1 million.

Global Grants support IAFS students participating in a ɫ��ֱ�� Study Abroad program. They are need- and merit-based scholarships that help students gain meaningful global experience. Global Grant recipients have received awards to study in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East. Participating students have studied current events and issues in Bordeaux, France; locally led social and environmental projects in Mexico City; and methods for saving indigenous crops in Jaipur, India.

"Achieving the Chancellor's match is a testament to the enduring support and commitment of the International Affairs Advisory Board and alumni, who continue to meaningfully support the university,” said Evan Hanson, chair of the International Affairs Advisory Board. “Thank you all!"

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Donations unlock a $200,000 fundraising match commitment, helping support study abroad experiences.

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Having built a business in Russia, alum fled as war began

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Feb 2023 22:40:13 +0000

Having built a business in Russia, alum fled as war began Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 02/15/2023 - 15:40

Clay Bonnyman Evans

Benjamin Lourie’s career has made twists and turns, taking him to outer Mongolia and back to Moscow, where he opened a Tex-Mex restaurant near Red Square—two weeks before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

Benjamin Lourie (IntlAf/Russ’16) knew exactly what he wanted when he started his undergraduate education at the ɫ��ֱ��: to become a commissioned officer in the U.S. Marine Corps through the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps.

Since then, he’s learned Russian, earned two degrees, gotten married, started a business in Moscow—Russia, not Idaho—moved to Georgia—the country, not the state—and experienced an ongoing evolution in his political thoughts and opinions.

Life, he’s discovered, has a way of rewriting scripts, and he’s happy with its twists and turns so far. For example, having done well in math and science in high school in suburban Denver, Lourie first thought he might want to study engineering as an undergraduate.

“Then I shadowed a mechanical engineer,” he says, “and realized I didn’t want to do that.”

Instead, he decided to follow his older brother into International Affairs and pursue a language that would be useful to a Marine officer. He settled on Russian.

Benjamin Lourie, alum of the ɫ��ֱ��, found a 'home away from home' in Russia.

When he didn’t get a spot in a shipboard ROTC program the summer after freshman year, he decided to join Russian Studies Professor Artemi Romanov for a six-week seminar in St. Petersburg—Russia, not Florida.

“My fellow midshipmen were going to live on a ship. I wanted to get outside my comfort zone, too,” Lourie says.

During that summer, he realized that Russia was not “like it seemed from Cold War documentaries. It reminded me of places I had been in Europe.”

After experiencing the frustration of not being able to communicate, Lourie returned to CU and “kind of nerded out with Russian.” By the time he returned to St. Petersburg in 2015, with the support of a ɫ��ֱ�� Global Grant scholarship, he was sufficiently advanced to be able to make friends, understand Russian TV shows and use social media in Russian.

In 2014, after Russia invaded and annexed the Crimean Peninsula of its neighbor Ukraine, Lourie began to see a career path that lay outside military service, perhaps in diplomacy. Eventually he decided to spend a full semester in Russia rather than continue seeking a spot in an officer-candidate training program. His senior year, he met his soon-to-be wife at ɫ��ֱ��.

He earned a prestigious Fulbright Scholarship after graduating and spent a year teaching English at a university in a remote Siberian town “literally in outer Mongolia,” where almost nobody spoke English.

There, he saw “the provincial side of Russia,” including the effects of corruption and propaganda with a much lower standard of living than in Moscow or St. Petersburg.

Returning from Siberia, he and his wife married and moved to the Netherlands, where she was attending graduate school. While working for nonprofits, he applied to the MBA program at Georgetown University. After earning his degree, he accepted a job offer in Moscow with a company that does outsourced software development for customers in the West and his wife took a job teaching science at a private high school in Moscow. Their plans to move in early 2020 were delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, but they were settling in by early 2021.

“It was everything I’d dreamed of; I was finally making a life in Russia,” Lourie says.

But then life happened—again—and he found himself looking for a way to have a larger impact in Russia. He decided to open a fast-casual Tex-Mex restaurant less than a half mile from the famous Red Square and the Kremlin. After many exhausting months learning about Russian laws, taxes, contracts and more, Sabroso Tex-Mex opened in February 2022.

Two weeks later, Russia invaded Ukraine.

“I saw the headlines before the invasion, but I was so preoccupied with the restaurant that I thought, “OK, that’s just us (the U.S.) wanting to sell more oil to Europe.”

Lourie assumed the threats would result in a minor cross-border incursion, and nobody he knew wanted war. Instead, “the Russian army was full-on bombing the capital of Ukraine and sending tanks across the border.”

When he and his wife saw how brutally the Russian government was suppressing all dissent, they decided to leave Russia for a few months with their cat, hoping things would settle down by summer or fall.

They moved to Georgia, where Lourie took a job with a Canadian company that makes restaurant software and his wife continued to study Russian. When it became clear that the war was not going to end any time soon, they sold the restaurant.

Disturbed by Russia’s decision to invade, passive and active support for the war among high-profile actors and large swaths of the population and the “storm trooper” tactics of shutting down dissent, he became more and more disillusioned, especially with the Russian government.

“I don’t think we’re going back to Russia any time soon,” he says.

But Lourie is also frustrated when those who know little of Russian history make sweeping statements about its people and individual Russians are shut out of opportunities because of decisions made by the authoritarian government of Vladimir Putin. He says people outside of Russia can’t imagine how steep the consequences are for expressing dissent over the war.

Russia is responsible for the bloodshed and there is no justification for the invasion and occupation of Ukraine. But I do think the conflict could have been avoided had the U.S. and the West been sensitive to Russia’s concerns sooner.”

He also believes the West bears some blame for the direction of Russia since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, noting, for example, that the United States turned a blind eye to blatant anti-democratic trends, crime, and a massive decline in the standard of living in Russia in the ‘90s, which ultimately led to the consolidation of power in the hands of the president of the Russian Federation.

It was Russians themselves who “allowed the Soviet Union to be disintegrated in the hope they could rejoin the world. They were told they could join all the clubs, but they didn’t get to, and instead all of the sins of the Soviet dictatorship were on their heads. Now there is a lack of trust,” he says. And he understands why Russia would be leery of its opponents’ powerful military alliance “right up to the border.”

“Nonetheless Russia is responsible for the bloodshed and there is no justification for the invasion and occupation of Ukraine,” he says. “But I do think the conflict could have been avoided had the U.S. and the West been sensitive to Russia’s concerns sooner.”

With a return to Russia now unlikely, Lourie is studying French.

“I’ve always wanted to learn French. I’m opening up to learn a new language and culture. Russian is such a major part of who I am. But,” he says with a touch of mourning, “to make room for French, Russian has to become less.”

Lourie remains involved with his alma mater as a member of the ɫ��ֱ�� International Affairs Advisory Board.

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College announces inaugural class of social justice scholars

Anonymous — Fri, 01 Jul 2022 15:34:43 +0000

College announces inaugural class of social justice scholars Anonymous (not verified) Fri, 07/01/2022 - 09:34

This new program, headed up by the social sciences division, recognizes students that are taking a stand

The College of Arts and Sciences at the ɫ��ֱ�� is excited to announce the 2022 inaugural class of social justice scholars.

The social justice scholars program is a brand-new program that aims to elevate social justice as an orienting theme in the social sciences divisional work, demonstrating how different disciplines can effectively converge to tackle some of society’s biggest problems.

Up to ten undergraduate students (rising seniors) will be chosen on an annual basis to serve as social justice scholars their senior year. Each scholar will be awarded $5,000 that will become of a part of their financial aid package. Each year’s cohort will take part in social events and seminars throughout the year designed to build connections between each other, faculty in the division and members of the community engaged in related activity.

“Whether it was work for community organizations (both nationally and internationally), or service to fellow students at CU, this year’s social justice scholars have clearly defined a high level of excellence and achievement. What is more, their stories give hope that there is a very strong current of empathy, intelligence and energy directed at what we in the social sciences hold as a foundational goal: social justice,” said David Brown, the college’s divisional dean for the social sciences.

This year’s recipients are:

Aliya Trapp, international affairs and ethnic studies
Molly Fox, leadership and community engagement and sociology (minor in business analytics)
Rachel Hill, political science and mathematics (minor in philosophy)
Meenakshi Manoj, international affairs and economics
Shae Stokes, sociology and philosophy
Sibonelly Espitia Sanchez, sociology and psychology
Gabriela Mejia, cinema studies and ethnic studies (minor in leadership studies)
Peri Cooper, International affairs and theatre
Natasha Panepinto, political science (minor in Spanish)
Blen Abamecha, ethnic studies
Isla DePuy-Bravo, international affairs (minors in Spanish and political science)
Makayla Sileo, speech, language and hearing sciences (minors in sociology and leadership studies)
Maymuna Jeylani, ethnic studies and secondary education (minor in leadership studies)

For these students, the resounding response at being chosen has been one of excitement.

“I can't think of a better opportunity to finish out my time here than serving as a Social Justice Scholar. I am excited to see not only what this experience has to offer me, but to learn how I can leave an impact on both the program and the university and ɫ��ֱ�� community that has given me so much,” said Panepinto.

Espitia Sanchez agrees, adding: “My studies have confirmed the frequent occurrence of everyday social problems, exposing just how cruel the world can be and how many victims of social injustices exist in all corners of the world. I’ve become incredibly inspired and determined to not only address social justice issues, but learn to contribute to their solutions during my time at CU.”

For those interested in applying for 2023, applications need to be submitted through AcademicWorks by May 14, 2023.

The application consists of a two-page, single-spaced letter explaining how your course of study, work in the community or interest and participation in addressing social justice issues forms an important part of your experience at ɫ��ֱ��. In addition to the written statement, provide an unofficial copy of your transcript. All applicants must have an overall GPA of at least 3.0.

The selection committee will be looking for students who have crafted a course of study that addresses social justice issues or have participated in related clubs, programs or organizations.

The selection will be announced by June 1, 2023.

Aliya Trapp

The Social Justice Scholars program seemed like an amazing and unique opportunity to get involved in activism within the ɫ��ֱ�� community with my fellow classmates. Social activism has always been an important cornerstone in my life, and I knew this program would give me the ability to increase my knowledge on being more effective and having a greater impact. I am incredibly honored to apart of the inaugural year.

Molly Fox

As a transfer student to ɫ��ֱ��, I saw the potential for a social science degree to grow my formal training in social justice and elevate my understanding of my place in the issues that I want to pursue. As I continue engaging in social justice research, public action projects and volunteering through my senior year, I hope to only grow my motivation and fascination with how social systems function to produce such ill effects in society, and how those same systems hold the answers for sustainable solutions for the future. Excited for the ways I will grow and the people I will meet through this program!

Rachel Hill

Rachel Hill is a senior studying political science and math. Originally from Littleton, Colorado, she attended Columbine High School and started gun violence prevention work when she was sixteen. Since then, she has worked to lobby and testify for common sense gun legislation at local, state and federal levels. Following the ɫ��ֱ�� King Soopers shooting, she has turned her passion toward helping her local community heal from the effects of gun violence. She is also currently serving as Student Body President here at CU.

Meenakshi Manoj

My name is Meenakshi Manoj, and I'm an international affairs and economics double major at ɫ��ֱ��. I'm excited to be part of the Social Justice Scholars program! I have previously worked with the Office of State Planning and Budget at the Governor's office in pursuing better equity goals in legislation. I'm currently hoping to establish a student organization on campus devoted to dealing with and combatting sexual assault on campus at large. I'm looking forward to the opportunities and connections this program will bring!

Shae Stokes

Hello! My name is Shae and I am a rising senior pursuing a double major in sociology and philosophy at ɫ��ֱ��, as well as a certificate in animals and society. Animal welfare is one of my greatest passions, both for its own sake and because animal agriculture is closely connected to numerous other social justice issues affecting people and our planet. I am honored to be able to further develop my skills as a social justice activist through this program!

Sibonelly Espitia Sanchez

As a sociology and psychology double major, I have developed passions to understand the world we live in and the individuals which inhabit it. My studies have confirmed the frequent occurrence of everyday social problems, exposing just how cruel the world can be and how many victims of social injustices exist in all corners of the world. I’ve become incredibly inspired and determined to not only address social justice issues, but learn to contribute to their solutions during my time at CU.

Gabriela Mejia

Gabriela Mejia is a film student based in ɫ��ֱ��, Colorado who is pursuing a BFA in Cinema Studies and Ethnic Studies with a minor in Multicultural Leadership.She works towards diversity and inclusivity both in front and behind the camera and casts women of color as leads in her films and is committed to working with a female-helmed crew.

Peri Cooper

My whole life, I’ve loved stories, from books to art to theatre. I loved the way that they can solve problems and create a world that doesn’t really exist in real life. I want to help make that a reality. We live in a world filled with prosperity and amazing things, but not everyone gets to experience those in the same way. For the world to become more equitable, that must start with us.

Natasha Panepinto

Social justice is something I have cared deeply about long before I arrived at ɫ��ֱ��. I was lucky enough to have parents who shared my passion and took me to marches and protests whenever they had the chance. Throughout my last three years at CU, I have continued to pursue this passion, taking every opportunity offered, despite the complications of the COVID-19 pandemic. Although it was constantly changing and interrupting things, I was able to take numerous courses that gave me a better understanding of social justice and why we need it. These courses combined with my participation in CU in DC, establishment of the student organization Leading Women of Tomorrow, and service on the Appellate Court have given me an extremely memorable and meaningful experience at CU. That said, I can't think of a better opportunity to finish out my time here than serving as a social justice scholar. I am excited to see not only what this experience has to offer me, but to learn how I can leave an impact on both the program and the university and ɫ��ֱ�� community that has given me so much.

Blen Abamecha

I am interested in the Social Justice Scholars Program because I want to be in a space alongside other scholars who not only want to make a change but are taking steps to end racial injustice by actively doing social justice work. As a Black woman in ɫ��ֱ��, I feel like this is a community where I would feel a sense of belonging and collaboration on campus which is really important to me. I love that we will also be working with alumni and leaders because I'd love to build connections with them and hopefully be inspired by the work they have contributed to their communities. I am excited to meet and form/strengthen relationships with other students in this program who have similar values as me.

Isla DePuy-Bravo

I was born and raised in North Denver to two very unique parents whose engagement with political/social issues inspired my interest in social justice issues from a young age. My studies at ɫ��ֱ�� have aligned with and prompted further interests regarding socioeconomic injustices and inequities facing those less privileged than I. As the daughter of an immigrant from Central America, issues pertaining to immigration and the harsh realities faced by immigrants have led to my eager desire to develop the skills to advocate for those in vulnerable and unsafe circumstances. I am eager to continue my academic and life journey to make tangible improvements in the lives of others and feel that with the guidance and knowledge from the Social Justice Scholarship program I will be even better equipped to do so.

Makayla Sileo

My name is Makayla and I hope to spend my life seeing, listening, learning and advocating for those on the fringes of society. I love art, reading, writing, hiking, camping, being active and, most importantly, spending quality time with quality humans. My parents raised my sister and I to “leave the campsite better than we found it” and I believe this is how we make the world a more compassionate place. I cannot wait to take this idea and bring it to the Social Justice Scholars community.

Maymuna Jeylani

I was very interested in the Social Justice Scholar program because my experience at CU has been one rife with racial and social hardships and I think of my being at CU as an act of resistance in which there are many ways I engage in social justice. I'm interested in seeing how this program can engage me and help me address social justice problems, especially those with personal diasporic meanings as I am Black and Somali.

This new program, headed up by the social sciences division, recognizes students that are taking a stand

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Education on the quarter pipe

Anonymous — Tue, 21 Jun 2022 22:23:15 +0000

Education on the quarter pipe Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 06/21/2022 - 16:23

Doug McPherson

Alumnus is working with nonprofit to help kids across the globe achieve academic goals through skateboarding

For Rory Burke (IntlAf), sports are about much more than just stats and scores.

“Sports can have a really big impact in youth development on many levels, and in certain communities, sports can give children access to opportunities not normally offered and often through a medium that’s approachable for children,” says Burke, who played lacrosse for ɫ��ֱ�� before graduating in the early 2000s.

“Personally, for me, sports provided new opportunities that I don’t think I would’ve ever experienced and explored without them. I was not only able to travel the country while playing lacrosse at CU, but also globally afterward (as a coach), which was quite mind opening to how big a factor of change sports can be.”

At the top of the page: Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You're a Girl), a documentary won an Academy Award in 2019, highlights the impact Skateistan is making on children in Afghanistan (Photo courtesy A+E Networks). Above: Rory Burke (pictured at Band-e-Amir national park in Bamyan, Afghanistan) and Skateistan’s work focus on youth development in Afghanistan, Cambodia and South Africa.

After coaching, Burke learned about a nonprofit in 2012 called Skateistan, which offers skateboarding and education programs for about 3,000 youth between 5 and 17 years old in Afghanistan, Cambodia and South Africa. Skateistan focuses on groups who are often excluded from sports and educational opportunities, giving them safe spaces to have fun, build confidence, break down social barriers and access educational resources.

Burke immediately liked what he saw and began volunteering in Cambodia. Today he’s Skateistan’s projects and operations director based in Cape Town, South Africa, where he supports all of the organization’s programming which, he says, prepares kids for adulthood.

“Skateboarding is pretty unique in a way that it literally teaches you that you will fall, and most likely fall down a lot, and you will need to get back up,” Burke says. “It’s also an individual sport in a way that allows for creativity and for each student to sort of make it on their own. It’s just a really interesting way to engage children and allow them to experiment and learn through play.”

And on the academic side, Burke says Skateistan offers education programs that focus on creative learning and learning through play.

“In Afghanistan, we offer more formal programming through our back-to-school program, which is an accelerated learning program for children supported and approved by the ministry of education. It’s aimed at getting children who’ve been displaced by conflict or are engaged in street working and equips them with the skills and educational level to either get back into school or potentially join school for the first time.”

In 2019, a documentary about Skateistan, Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (if you’re a girl), won an Academy Award. The film highlights the impact Skateistan is making in communities.

“Quite often as a sport-for-development organization, people see just the sport part and think of the programs as simply skateboarding with kids, which is the opposite of the day-to-day operations,” Burke says. “The film wonderfully highlights the educational aspect our work, especially our back-to-school program in Afghanistan.”

Burke adds that the most gratifying part of his job has been working with Skateistan’s teams.

It’s been amazing watching them deliver opportunities to the children in our programs. We work really hard to support the communities as best as possible.”

“It’s been amazing watching them deliver opportunities to the children in our programs. We work really hard to support the communities as best as possible, so most of our staff are from the communities where we work, so the programming and support comes driven from the community. It’s great to see how things are contextualized and adapted locally and making an impact.”

As for the future, Burke says he’s optimistic that Skateistan will continue to grow. He explains Skateistan has created The Goodpush Alliance, a global platform that shares knowledge with social skateboarding projects worldwide to broaden their impact.

“We’re also looking at lighter models for program delivery as our skate schools are quite comprehensive, but they can also be expensive to build and operate,” he says. “Longer term, I hope to see Skateistan grow in a variety of ways, providing more educational access to children in different areas, and to see Skateistan alums make an impact in their local communities.”

Alumnus is working with nonprofit to help kids across the globe achieve academic goals through skateboarding.

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Graduate completes triple major while leading student government

Anonymous — Tue, 03 May 2022 17:28:54 +0000

Graduate completes triple major while leading student government Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 05/03/2022 - 11:28

Clint Talbott

Kavya Kannan graduates with a BA in political science summa cum laude and majors in economics and international affairs; she is the A&S outstanding graduate for spring 2022

Kavya Kannan translates her values into action. Lots of action.

She is the first person of South Asian descent to serve as student-body president at the ɫ��ֱ��. In that role, she championed efforts to increase women’s access to tampons and pads on campus, and she created a fund for sexual-assault survivors, which was supported by a 5-kilometer footrace that she organized last month.

As she researched her honors thesis, she created an original dataset of sex trafficking and other indicators in India, research that can help explain varying rates of sex trafficking in India. On Thursday, May 5, she will graduate with a degree in political science, summa cum laude.

At the top of the page: Kavya Kannan will graduate with a triple major in political science, economics and international affairs (Photos by Ellie Johnson). Above: Kannan enjoys a sunny day below the Flatirons. Photos courtesy of Kavya Kannan.

Kavya is also a triple major, so she will graduate with majors in economics and international affairs in addition to political science. And she has been designated as the spring 2022 outstanding graduate of the College of Arts and Sciences—the first outstanding graduate to complete her degree with a triple major.

In a recent interview with James W.C. White, acting dean of the college, Kannan noted that she began her ɫ��ֱ�� college career as a double major—in political science and economics, both disciplines that captured her interest.

But her advisor noted that she was only two classes away from earning a major in international affairs.

“I was like, OK, sure. I have the time,” she recalled, adding that she’s grateful that she heeded the advice.

She also had the time and motivation to join student government. She served on its appellate court for two years but wanted “more agency to tackle issues and frustrations I had faced on campus” and decided to run for the top executive post. “Serving as student body president is a really big honor for me, to take on this responsibility and represent my community,” she observed.

“There are a lot of girls that I mentor that look just like me that don't think that leadership or politics is an area that they can influence,” she said. “So it's really important for me to break that door open and show them that these are realms that we can not only occupy but can be really influential in.”

Serving as student body president has been gratifying and has reflected the “intersection of all my identities as a woman, as a marginalized woman, and just as a student on this campus,” she added.

Kannan traced her desire to do an honors thesis on sex trafficking partly to a first-year course in Russian politics with Sarah Sokhey, associate professor of political science. Kannan wrote a policy brief on sex work and prostitution in Russia. That work eventually got published.

Later, she studied India and the United States with a comparative lens in a class taught by Tom Zeiler, professor of history, and a paper she wrote then was also published.

Sex trafficking in India garnered Kannan’s interest not just as a woman but as an Indian woman, she said. “Sex trafficking is horrible in India, unfortunately. When I go back to visit in India, I have seen victims of sex trafficking on the streets, and it's very scary because, as a woman, living in India, that that very much could have been my reality.”

Kannan was born and reared in Denver, but her parents emigrated from India. “I've had the privilege of attending higher education institutions, but not a lot of women back in India have had the privilege of doing that.”

“It's really important for me to study this problem,” she added.

Serving as student body president is a really big honor for me, to take on this responsibility and represent my community.”

In her research, Kannan found that women who lived in areas of India with lower rates of sex trafficking also lived in areas with higher education levels generally, with better anti-HIV education, and with more understanding that condoms help prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.

Additionally, women who had the ability to make decisions in the home—for instance, as indicated by their having their own bank accounts—were less likely to become drawn into sex trafficking, which, Kannan notes, is a form of slavery.

After graduation, Kannan intends to take a gap year or two as a “breather.” She’s considering several positions in the financial sector, including being part of the Leadership Fellows Program with the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. Immediately after graduation, she’s traveling to Costa Rica for a week, then Europe for a month.

In the long term, Kannan plans to go to law school, probably an Ivy League institution on the East Coast. There, she said, she might focus on international criminal law or international human-rights law.

Kavya Kannan graduates with a BA in political science summa cum laude and with majors in economics and international affairs; she is the A&S outstanding graduate for spring 2022.

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Seventeen students are named 2022 Van Ek Scholars

Anonymous — Thu, 28 Apr 2022 19:56:20 +0000

Seventeen students are named 2022 Van Ek Scholars Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 04/28/2022 - 13:56

The award, considered one of the College of Arts and Sciences' highest honors, is given to students for academic achievement and service

The College of Arts and Sciences has awarded the Jacob Van Ek scholarship, one of the college's highest honors, to 17 exceptional undergraduates.

These students were nominated by faculty at the ɫ��ֱ�� for their superior academic achievement and service to the university, the Denver and ɫ��ֱ�� communities, or larger national and international communities. The five-person Van Ek Scholars Award committee selected the winners, who receive a $230 award and a certificate of recognition.

They have done so much for the ɫ��ֱ�� community, as well as in their respective communities."

"We had amazing nominations submitted from faculty this year," says Brenda Navarrete, scholarship coordinator in the College of Arts and Sciences. "They have done so much for the ɫ��ֱ�� community as well as in their respective communities."

"They are very deserving, and I am excited to see the amazing things they will achieve after graduating!”

The award is named for Jacob Van Ek, who arrived at CU as a young assistant professor shortly after earning his doctorate at what is now known as Iowa State University in 1925. Within three years he was a full professor and, by 1929, he was dean of the College of Liberal Arts, serving until 1959.

The following students are this year’s Jacob Van Ek Scholar Award recipients:

Areyana Janae Andrea Proctor, journalism
Elicia Azua, psychology
Evi Judge, linguistics and speech, langauge and hearing sciences
Jack Barker, environmental studies
Julia Hoa Leone, international affairs and Jewish studies
Kelila Rose Fitch-Cook, women and gender studies
Kathryn Hoesly, Chinese
Leen Salah Eldin Abbas, integrative physiology
Mackayla Coley, political science
Morgan Knuesel, physics and mathematics
Megan Lenard, psychology and sociology
Michelle Tracy Leung, environmental studies and ecology and evolutionary biology
Nicole Bouzan, molecular, cellular and developmental biology
Noopur Naik, molecular, cellular and developmental biology
Ruth Woldemichael, ethnic studies and international affairs
Sophia Choubai, integrative physiology
Ty Donovan McCaffrey, ecology and evolutionary biology

The award, considered one of the College of Arts and Sciences' highest honors, is given to students for academic achievement and service

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Five college stars named employees of the year

Anonymous — Tue, 25 May 2021 18:14:35 +0000

Five college stars named employees of the year Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 05/25/2021 - 12:14

Winners, who were nominated by colleagues, express humility and gratitude

Five outstanding staff members have been named employees of the year by the College of Arts and Sciences at the ɫ��ֱ��.

The honorees are:

Misuhng Suh, ceramics, foundations and sculpture lab coordinator, Department of Art and Art History
Virginia Kester-Meyer, program manager, Department of Ethnic Studies
Karen Hawley, program assistant II, Department of Germanic and Slavic Languages and Literatures
Katherine Rousseau, assistant director and internship director, International Affairs Program
Mary Fentress, program manager, Department of Applied Mathematics

Suh has overseen ceramics, metal shop and sculpture since 2004. Since 2018, she has worked as lab coordinator II in the Ceramics, Foundations and Sculpture Sculpture’s Post Studio Practice areas. Her work includes maintaining and organizing art studio spaces and oversight of the maintenance of equipment, store, supplies and equipment.

Suh said she feels extremely fortunate to work with the amazing staff, faculty and students in art and art history. “I cannot begin to tell how grateful I am for this recognition from Staff Advisory Committee for selecting me and everyone who nominated me. Thank you.”

Kester-Meyer joined the Department of Ethnic Studies in December 2018. She is involved in process and policy development for many departmental activities and is responsible for departmental finance; human resources; faculty affairs; academic scheduling and curriculum; research administration; and supervision of staff and student employees. She also manages the finance and human resources elements of the department’s doctoral program and contributes to graduate program development.

Kester-Meyer also expressed gratitude for the recognition: “To be celebrated in this way by my colleagues, and by the college, is a wonderful and affirming gift.”

Hawley is the program manager and graduate program assistant in the Department of Germanic and Slavic Languages and Literatures. She has worked at ɫ��ֱ�� since March 1994.

Hawley thanked the Staff Advisory Committee and the college for the recognition: “I was so honored to have been nominated for this award by my department and feel very fortunate to work in such a supportive department.”

Rousseau has been with the International Affairs Program since 2006. She has served as assistant director of the program since 2012.

Rousseau said she appreciates that the Staff Advisory Committee has established such a significant recognition for staff. “I’m proud to be an A&S staff member and to work with such outstanding and dedicated colleagues on a daily basis.”

Fentress has been with applied mathematics for eight years but has been on campus for 21 years. She serves as the department program manager and works closely with the chair and staff to oversee the operation of applied mathematics.

“I am absolutely honored to be a recipient of this award,” she said. “I'm blessed to work in a wonderful department that has great faculty and students. I'm grateful to work with an enjoyable staff because the laughter and the camaraderie that we have as a team is the best!”

The Employee of the Year Award is presented annually to College of Arts and Sciences staff in recognition and appreciation of exceptional job performance. All A&S classified and university staff may be nominated for this award, excluding current members of the Arts and Sciences Dean’s Staff Advisory Committee (SAC).

Nominations are accepted from fellow staff, faculty or students who have firsthand knowledge of the nominee's performance. The award comes with $1,500.

Learn more

For information on how to nominate someone for the award, and to see the previous winners, see this page on the Staff Advisory Committee site.

Winners, who were nominated by colleagues, express humility and gratitude.

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