Loyce L. Arthur, Associate Professor, Theatre Arts Department
Everyone Should Be A Work of Art: Children’s Carnival in the Caribbean
Caribbean Carnival parades are one of the ways that people of all ages exercise their human right to enjoy and celebrate their culture-- they become works of art themselves! In fantastic costumes and masks, they dance up and down the streets of their communities performing all kinds of stories from history or from everyday life. For example, people costumed as a colorful school of fish enact a story of the importance and beauty of the ocean, past and present. The participants of this workshop will learn about Caribbean cultures by becoming works of art in a story that they bring to life.
Hasti Barahmand and Kayla Casey, 2011 Kenneth J. Cmiel Human Rights Internship recipients and J.D. Candidates University of Iowa College of Law
Children's Rights are Human Rights
An interactive discussion about the rights of children as human rights transcending international borders. Students will identify how children's rights are relevant to kids around the world as well as here at home.
Dale Fisher, Director of Education, UI Museum of Art
African Art as Outreach
Fisher will give a brief description of outreach programs offered by the University of Iowa Museum of Art, focusing on the Discover Africa program. Using art objects, he will draw cross-cultural comparisons between African and Western cultures, illustrating how universal themes find expression in art.
Michelle C. Gin, Office for Study Abroad
Public Health: An unrealized human right
After extensive travels around the world to Europe, Asia, Africa, and Central America, Michelle Gin has devoted herself to a career in public health with a focus on women and the youth within a community. Experiences internationally and domestically have motivated her to make changes in the communities she lives in and to inspire and influence others to take charge of the world to make it a better, sustainable planet. Michelle will go through various aspects of public health practices seen every day to demonstrate its importance to society.
Yume Hidaka, Japan Outreach Initiative Coordinator
Manga and Anime made in Japan
Manga and Anime have become popular all over the world and it originated in Japan. Yume will talk in general about contemporary Japanese pop culture Manga and Anime and also talk about other subcultures that Anime and Manga culture brought.
Cheryl Jacobsen, freelance artist and adjunct professor for the University of Iowa's Center for the Book
The Exciting Life of a A Modern Scribe
This workshop will show what calligraphers have done in the past and what they are doing today working side by side with modern technology. I will show many kinds of letter arts from around the world, demonstrate different styles of writing for the students and let them try it themselves.
Wilson Juarez, Ph.D. Student
U.S. Intervention in Guatemala
Several social reforms were implemented between 1944 and 1954 in Guatemala. However, these progressive reforms were shattered after the United States plotted a coup d’état that deposed the democratically elected president Jacobo Arbenz in 1954. What Guatemala experienced after the overthrow of Arbenz was a civil war that lasted thirty-six years and state terror that led to the genocide of 300,000 Mayan people. In a country where the modern day Native American population is 68% and twenty-three native languages are still spoken other than Spanish, the Mayan population of Guatemala has faced consistent human rights violations.
Dr. Hani Elkadi, Teacher, Writer, Artist, Activist, with Helen Oh, Binnar Kim and Jenny Chun
Do or Die: Crisis in North Korea
North Korea is a closed and secretive country led by a government that controls virtually all activities. Human rights are violated daily; citizens who speak freely or criticize the government are jailed or even worse. Floods and drought led to immense famine and the death of over 2 million people in the 90s leaving the North Korean economy in shambles. With international aid to the country limited, citizens today are suffering more than ever. This presentation will introduce students to North Korea, discuss human rights violations there and explore the potential role of international involvement in the region.
Scott McNabb, Professor, UI College of Education
Buddhist Monks and their Daily Rounds With Their Alms Bowls: A Window into Thai Culture
Sometimes the study of daily religious practices in other countries can help us understand the complex and deep role that religion plays in the lives of the people who live there. In Thailand and several other mainland Southeast Asian countries, Buddhist monks make daily rounds to gather food in their bowls and respond to the providers with a personal blessing. This simple transaction captures some of the key concepts in the Buddhist tradition: generosity, compassion and mindfulness. In our session we will watch videos of monks making their early morning rounds in the cities and countryside of Thailand and discuss the meaning of this simple but profound ritual.
Ari Natarina, M.A. Student in Department of Linguistics
Banjar: How it preserves arts, culture and traditions in Bali, Indonesia
Bali Island is the home for Balinese Hindu minority in Indonesia, the country with the largest Muslim population. However its arts, tradition and culture which are closely related with Hindu religion can survive the influence of globalization era on account of the traditional organization of Balinese Community called Banjar. This presentation describes the role of Banjar and how Banjar enhance arts and culture in Balinese people way of life.
Henri J. Nkuepo, Research Scholar at the School of Law, UI and Associate Fellow CISDL - Canada (Research Focus: World Trade Law, Human Rights & Environment)
The Right to Culture and education of Children in a Resource Rich Country: The Congo
Natural resources played an important role in fuelling conflicts in the Congo. For instance, rebels groups got most of their equipment from the sale of natural resources like Coltan, Diamonds and Gold. This presentation will show how they enslaved children depriving them from enjoying their socio-economic rights to culture and education and how they destroyed their communities. The presentation will also argue that child slavery has contributed to developing technologies that those children are too poor to afford or uneducated to know how to use (smart phones and computers). I have chosen some short videos to show and discuss with children.
Elizabeth Shriver, Corporate Member of The Stanley Foundation
“Degenerate Art” in Nazi Germany: How a Thriving Culture was Threatened by Totalitarian Takeover
The Nazi era serves as one of the most extreme examples of cultural suppression in modern history. After Hitler’s rise to power in 1933, a severe system of censorship was imposed on all of the arts, including literature, film, music and the visual arts. Books were burned, paintings were destroyed, and artists were banned from producing their work. Some artists fled the country, while others were imprisoned. In this presentation, we will be exploring the effects of the totalitarian regime on the arts and the artists themselves. We will see samples of art that was banned in Nazi Germany, and we will speculate about Hitler’s reasons for suppressing artistic freedom of expression.
Jim Stachowiak, Associate Director, Iowa Center for Assistive Technology Education and Research
Assistive Technology
People with disabilities often struggle to do many of the things that you can I take for granted on a daily basis. Assistive Technology tools can help people with disabilities accomplish tasks they’d otherwise not be able to. In this session, we’ll look at tools used for accessing the computer including speech recognition software, a head controlled mouse, and alternative typing software. We’ll also look at how iPads have become helpful tools for people with disabilities, including looking at a way they are used by people with communication and reading disabilities.
Yashar Vasef, Executive Director, Iowa United Nations Association and Zach Curtis, Administrative Personnel, Iowa United Nations Association
1 in 7 Billion: The Challenges Facing Your Generation
According to the United Nations, the world’s population reached 7 billion people on Halloween. The 1.2 billion people comprising 10-19 year olds on Earth is the largest number ever recorded for that age group. See how you and the United Nations, more than ever before, can reach people confronted by human rights challenges across the globe from right here in Iowa. From UNICEF to Nothing but Nets, learn how the United Nations needs people like you to address human rights worldwide.
Amnesty International
Mapping Out Human Rights
Using a method called tactical mapping, students will be able to identify internal and external factors that influence human rights violations. They will be more able to identify the causes that lead to human rights violations, and by using tactical mapping, can more readily understand how these internal and external factors influence one another.