International Conference on Sustainable Development, Rome 2015

 Members, please see the post below on behalf of Ladakh Studies member Vladimiro Pelliciardi 

Dear Friends, on the behalf of the International Steering Committee I am very pleased to announce the 3° International Conference on Sustainable Development, June 2015 in Rome. http://www.ecsdev.org/index.php/conference

During the last conference two papers regarding Ladakh have been presented, both published on the European Journal of Sustainable Development: Emergy evaluation of a traditional farming system. Case study: Leh District (Ladakh - Indian Trans-Himalaya), Vladimiro Pelliciardi, Leonardo Varvaro, Federico Maria Pulselli, it can be downloaded at: http://www.ecsdev.org/ojs/index.php/ejsd/article/view/171
and TECHNOLOGY, EXCRETION AND THE GOOD LIFE, Tanushree Biswas it can be downloaded at: http://www.ecsdev.org/ojs/index.php/ejsd/article/view/150
moreover several other scientist from India was present.

I think that the Conference can be a good opportunity for other scientists and for researchers from Ladakh to present their works; thus, I hope you can post this announce whatever you like.

All the best. Vladimiro

Leh Workshop Report

A pre-conference workshop on “Research in Ladakh: Sharing experiences and research method” for youths and those interested in research was organised by the International Association for Ladakh Studies (IALS) in collaboration with Moravian Mission School, Leh on 2^nd November, 2014. Around 40 people, including students from Eliezer Joldan Memorial College, Leh and members of IALS participated in the workshop, which was in preparation for the 17^th IALS conference in Kargil in 2015.

The workshop started with an introductory presentation by Sonam Wangchok, secretary, IALS. He gave an overview of IALS and its objectives, after which he provided details of the 2015 conference. The workshop was then divided into three distinct sessions. In the first session, Dr. Sonam Wangchok spoke about research methodology and methods followed by a talk by Sunetro Ghosal, editor of IALS’ journal Ladakh Studies, on research methodology and ethics.

The second session included talks by senior researchers, who shared their own experience in conducting research and how they overcome various challenges they faced. This included talks by Abdul Ghani Sheikh, Dr. Thupstan Nurboo of Cultural Academy, Prof. Mohammed Saleem of Sher-e-kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir (SKUAST-K), Nawang Tsering Shakspo, Tashi Morup of Ladakh Arts and Media Organisation, Tashi Dawa Tsangspa of Eliezer Joldan Memorial College, Leh, Muzaffar Hussain from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi and Dr. Tsewang Namgail of Snow Leopard Conservancy India Trust. Each talk was followed by an interactive session, between the participants and the speaker who encouraged youth to explore their interest in research.

The third Session was chaired by Rev. E.S. Gergan, principal, Moravian Mission School, Leh. It started with feedback about the workshop from each participant. The general feedback was positive and encouraging, with the participants appreciating the initiative taken by IALS. Many of them said they used to associate research with special degrees and the workshop helped them realise there are no such requirements or age limits to conduct research. One participant was even more candid, “I used to think that only foreigners can do research and publish books but now realise that even Ladakhis can do research. I will now publish at least one book!” 

In his concluding address, Rev. Gergan said that research starts from our childhood when we inquisitively explore the world around us. He added, “Research is not only about degrees. I know many researchers who do not have doctorate degree and still supervise other scholars for their degrees. I am happy to see that IALS is organizing workshops to nurture students and new researchers.

For more information about IALS and its activities, please log onto www.ladakhstudies.org

                                                                                                       

                                                                                                     

SECMOL Ice Stupa Artificial Glacier Initiative

This may be of interest to our members: here is SECMOL's latest engineering project that aims to harvest winter water in the winter to use for irrigation purposes in the spring. Please follow the link for details of the project itself, and for details of how to provide donatations and support.


Jullay to friends of SECMOL,
As you probably know, Sonam Wangchuk has always been experimenting and designing simple solutions to problems and resources. This past year he devised an artificial glacier design to solve the annual springtime water shortages in Ladakhi villages by trapping wasted water in winter in an ice tower in the shape of a stupa. Now a high lama in Ladakh, Kyabgon Chetsang Rinpoche, has asked him to build it on a large scale to green the desert near Phyang Monastery in Ladakh

For details and contribution, please see the link below:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/ice-stupa-artificial-glaciers-of-ladakh/x/8841831
If you want to reply, please send it to icestupa@gmail.com
Thank you!
The whole team at SECMOL

Kargil Workshop Report

A pre-conference workshop on “Research in Ladakh: Sharing experiences and research method” for youths and those interested in research was organised by the International Association for Ladakh Studies (IALS) in collaboration with Government Degree College, Kargil on 26^th October, 2014. Around 50 people, including students from Government Degree College, Kargil and members of IALS participated in the workshop, which was in preparation for the 17^th IALS conference in Kargil in 2015.

The workshop began with a welcome speech by Amjad Ali, senior assistant professor at Government Degree College, Kargil. This was followed by an introductory presentation by Sonam Wangchok, secretary, IALS, who spoke about the objectives of IALS and gave an overview of the conference. Kargil district administration was represented by ADC Moses Kunzang. In his opening address, he said, “I was interested in research but did not have many opportunities to pursue it. This is an opportunity for students and new researchers to grasp the opportunity provided by IALS and learn how to conduct research.”

The workshop was divided in two sessions. In the first session, Sonam Wangchok spoke about research methodology and methods followed by a talk by Sunetro Ghosal, editor of IALS’ journal Ladakh Studies, on research methodology and ethics. In the second session, senior researchers from Leh and Kargil shared their research experiences and encouraged youths to explore their interest in research and Ladakh Studies. This included talks by Abdul Ghani Sheik, Kacho Mumtaz Ali Khan, Tashi Morup, Tashi Dawa Tsangspa, Ajaz Hussain Munshi, Tsewang Rigzin and Amjad Ali. Each talk was followed by an interactive session, between the participants and the speaker.

A meeting of IALS members took place after the workshop, where it was decided that a meeting would be held in Kargil after the Muhharam to finalise the date and venue for the conference and also form the organising committee for 17^th IALS conference in Kargil. For more information about IALS and its activities, please log onto www.ladakhstudies.org

                                                                                                                               Sonam Wangchok

Anthropology of Gilgit-Baltistan, Northern Pakistan 16-1 (2014)

This may be of interest to Ladakh Studies members, particularly those interested in Gilgit, anthropology, and German speaks. The Department of Anthropology, Hamburg University has published a special special edition examining the anthropology of Gilgit Baltistan, It looks like a fascinating volume, with many interesting contributions in both English and German. The link is below,
http://www.ethnologie.uni-hamburg.de/de/forschung/publikationen/ethnoscripts/es-16-1.html

ANTHROPOLOGY OF GILGIT-BALTISTAN, NORTHERN PAKISTAN

This may be of interest to some of our readers, particularly those with an interest in Baltistan, Ladakhi anthropologists, or German speakers. The Anthropology Department of Hamburg University has published a special edition document the Anthropology of Gilgit Baltistan. It looks like an extremely interesting volume, with many interesting articles in English and German. Follow the The link is below to access the special edition. http://www.ethnologie.uni-hamburg.de/de/forschung/publikationen/ethnoscripts/es-16-1.html. 

Kargil Workshop

As mentioned earlier about the one-day workshop in Kargil ahead of the conference, we are happy to inform that this is scheduled for Tuesday, 16th September 2014. The aim of the workshop is to share experiences, findings and research methodologies with new researchers. It will be attended by president, secretary, members and  youths from Kargil. If any member or adviser wish to participate/contribute, please let me know at the earliest. It will help us to organize transportation etc from Leh.

Sonam

The Other Kashmir: Society, Culture and Politics in the Karakoram Himalayas, Professor K. Warikoo

Ladakh Studies Member Professor K. Warikoo of Jawaharlal Nejhru University has recently published this edited volume, which may be of interest to our members. For more information, please follow the link below for more details and for the list of contributors:

http://www.idsa.in/book/OtherKashmir.html

The book is priced at INR 1495

The Karakoram Himalayas have unique geo-political and geo-strategic importance as the boundaries of South and Central Asian countries converge here. Abutting the borders of Afghanistan, China, Pakistan, and India; and being situated in close proximity to Central Asia, the Karakoram-Himalayan region has been an important constituent of India's trans-Himalayan communication network in the continent and beyond. This region is the cradle from where ancient Indian culture including Buddhism spread in different directions to Central Asia, East Asia and South East Asia. The Karakoram-Himalayan region—what has also been called 'Northern Areas' of the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir and comprising Hunza, Nagar, Gilgit, Baltistan, Yasin, Astore, Chilas, Koh-Ghizar , Gupis , Punial and Ishkoman—is the single largest territorial unit of the State. This area constitutes about two-thirds of the total area of 84,471 sq. miles of the entire Jammu and Kashmir State.

The region displays a wide diversity of cultural patterns, languages, ethnic identities and religious practices. The entire region has been a melting pot of different cultures and faiths—Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam. Whereas a variety of languages—Ladakhi, Balti, Shina, Burushaski, Gojali, Khowar etc. exist in the region, the cross-border linkages between various ethnic-religious groups turn this frontier into a complex vortex of geopolitics. The induction and settlement of Punjabis, Pakhtoons and the Taliban cadres by Pakistan as its calculated policy to colonise the Shia/Ismaili dominated region has not only changed its demographic balance but also led to the rise of sectarianism and religious extremism often leading to violence and conflict. At the same time, the region has been witnessing a new urge for revival of its indigenous languages, cultural heritage and social practices. The social and political aspirations of different indigenous ethnic-religious groups in Karakoram-Himalayas have remained suppressed due to the geopolitical and religious factors. The book is a collection of papers contributed by area specialists and experts from the region-Gilgit-Baltistan, Mirpur-Muzaffarabad and Indian State of Jammu and Kashmir, as well as well-known academics and strategic analysts.

Recent Research: Selbst-Spiegelungen am Anderen Zur Ambivalenz kultureller Begegnungen in Ladakh (Self-reflections on the others: the ambivalence of cultural encounters in Ladakh)

Professor Dr Alfred Schäfer is a professor of education at Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Germany. His book Selbst-Spiegelungen am Anderen Zur Ambivalenz kultureller Begegnungen in Ladakh (Self-reflections on the others: the ambivalence of cultural encounters in Ladakh) is currently on sale and may be of interest to German language speakers. The book is based on recent research in Ladakh, which was conducted with the assistance of Kati Illmann since 2010.
In this book, Schäfer examines the impacts upon Ladakhi identities as a result of mutual self-reflection of tourists and Ladakhi, and the negotiation of identity in the context of a changing social landscape. The analysis details the ways in which both tourists and Ladakhi come to reflect upon themselves and the others.
Tourist discourses show an ambivalence towards the otherness of others. On the one hand the otherness is emphasized as important opportunity for their own experiences and on the other hand this otherness is simultaneously to be understood only as result of the visitors’ own creation.
The Ladakhi discourses show that people of Ladakh are offset by tourism in a challenging relationship to their own identity due to the changes. They are not only urged to conduct themselves according to their own identity in the tense field between tradition and change, but they are confronted with the impossibility of being able to do so from a shared position. The resulting ambivalence and ambiguity of the references of a Ladakhi identity are based on the constitutive problem of a self-reflecting relationship.
The book can be purchased at this site for Eur 29: http://www.schoeningh.de/katalog/titel/978-3-506-77958-8.html

New publication: Art and Architecture in Ladakh

We are pleased to announce the publication of Art and Architecture in Ladakh. Cross-cultural Transmissions in the Himalayas and Karakoram. Edited by Erberto Lo Bue and John Bray. Leiden: Brill.

The book consists of 17 research papers, mainly drawn from the 2007, 2009 and 2011 IALS conferences. Their topics range widely over time, from prehistoric rock art to mediaeval Buddhist stupas and wall paintings, as well as early modern castle architecture, the inter-regional trade in silk brocades, and the challenges of 21st century conservation. Taken together, these studies complement each other to provide a detailed view of Ladakh’s varied cultural inheritance in the light of the latest research.

A pdf of the introduction, which will tell you more about the contents of the book, is available on the IALS website: 

http://ladakhstudies.org/resources/Publications/Conference-Proceedings/01-Lo-Bue-Bray-Introduction.pdf

For information on how to order the book, please consult the Brill website at: www.brill.com/products/book/art-and-architecture-ladakh. 

The listed price is €149 or USD194. IALS members may apply for a 25% discount, valid until 31 December 2014. If you wish to make use of this offer, please send an e-mail to John Bray (JNBray1957@yahoo.co.uk) to request an application form.

Conference on sustainable development in Leh, 9-10 June

The Initiative for Social Change and Action (ISCA) in collaboration with Government Degree College, Leh, is organizing a seminar on "Ladakh: challenges and opportunities for sustainable socio-economic development" from 9-10  June, 2014.

The organisers have issued a call for papers on the following topics:

·        Opportunities for Jammu & Kashmir, particularly in Ladakh, in the new global and national geo-political context

·        Social, Cultural and Economic dimensions

·        Resources and their management for Sustainable Regional Development

·        Inter and Intra regional disparities and inequalities and their ameliorating   strategies

·        Use of new technological tools and Innovation ( GIS and RS ) towards reducing regional disparities

·        Infrastructure Development for Conflict resolution and geography of peace

For more details see www.isca.org.in/ and http://ladakhconference.wordpress.com/

PRESIDENT OF INDIA INTERACTS WITH J&K TABLAEUX ARTISTS AT RASHTRAPATI BHAVAN.

The President of India Shri Pranab Mukherjee warmly interacted with Jammu & Kashmir State Tableaux Artists today at his residence Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi.

The President appreciated the performance and Tableaux design of the J&K State which depicted the Nomadic Culture of the Jammu and Kashmir State showing Changpa of Ladakh, Gujjar-Bakkarwal of Kashmir and Gaddi of Jammu region.

The State Tableaux was presented by J&K Academy of Art, Culture & Languages and designed by eminent Artist Veer Munshi.