Alchemists of the Revolution? The Politics of Educated Unemployed Youth
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Oxford
Department Name: Geography - SoGE
Abstract
An increase in individuals' investment in schooling combined with a shortage of salaried employment has created a crisis of educated unemployment, which, while far from new (see Dore 1976) became much more common, visible and intense in the 1990s and 2000s in Asia (Jha 2004), Africa (Mains 2007), and Latin America (Levinson 2002). Educational levels have risen rapidly. But since the 1980s, economic change has typically failed to generate white-collar jobs within manufacturing and services (Kaplinsky 2005). The result has been endemic unemployment and "underemployment": involuntary part-time work, intermittent unemployment, and/or involvement in poorly paid labour (Prause and Dooley 1997: 245). Educated unemployment has created widespread anomie and is commonly identified as a root cause of political uprisings in South Asia, as well as in the contemporary Arab World. But scholars know little about the varied and changing politics of educated unemployed youth. Our goals for the project are thus:
1. To provide one of the first ethnographic examinations of educated unemployed young people's political practices in South Asia - a region especially affected by youth joblessness - in order to contribute to literature on educated unemployed youth, civil society, education, globalisation, and "youth" as a political category.
2. To develop a new paradigm for analysing the political practices of youth: a culturally and organisationally sensitive political economy approach that examines durable social inequalities as well as surprising cross-class mobilisation.
3. To move beyond media stereotypes of youth -for example as "heroes" or "villains" - to publicise the diverse and changing roles played by educated unemployed young people in processes of democratic change and engage with non-academics on this topic.
We will achieve these goals by conducting a comparative ethnography of educated unemployed youth politics in north India, Nepal and Sri Lanka that will become a model for future research. We will work with three experienced Post-Doctoral Researchers: Dr. Jane Dyson will work in north India; Dr. Amanda Snellinger will carry out research in Nepal; and Dr. Dhana Wadugodapitiya will work in Sri Lanka. More senior academics will support the research of the PDRs: I will work with Dr. Jane Dyson; Professor Jonathan Spencer, a distinguished scholar working in Sri Lanka, will work with Wadugodapitiya; and Professor David Gellner, a leading authority on Nepal, will work with Snellinger.
The research team will produce a series of high quality academic publications, including a research monograph and over eight articles in top academic journals across geography, anthropology, development studies, area studies, and political science, as well as broader comparative journals. We will also disseminate our findings via conferences to be held in Delhi and Oxford. Through such academic outputs, the proposed study will go far beyond the "case" of educated unemployed young people, transforming scholarly understanding of unemployed young people, civil society, education, globalisation, and youth as a political category.
We will achieve our wider impact goals through a programme of dissemination, collaboration, and network-building aimed at enrolling diverse constituencies in South Asia and the UK into our research, including policymakers, the public, students, and our research informants. We will set up a website, blog, Facebook page, and Twitter account through which we will report on the project and invite comment. We will also produce newspaper articles and radio programmes in the UK and South Asia that disseminate our findings to the wider public. In addition, we will engage closely with NGOs, government officials, and ministers, through individual meetings and a conference in Delhi. We will also enrol our informants in the research process, for example via field workshops that we organise in each of the three main research sites.
1. To provide one of the first ethnographic examinations of educated unemployed young people's political practices in South Asia - a region especially affected by youth joblessness - in order to contribute to literature on educated unemployed youth, civil society, education, globalisation, and "youth" as a political category.
2. To develop a new paradigm for analysing the political practices of youth: a culturally and organisationally sensitive political economy approach that examines durable social inequalities as well as surprising cross-class mobilisation.
3. To move beyond media stereotypes of youth -for example as "heroes" or "villains" - to publicise the diverse and changing roles played by educated unemployed young people in processes of democratic change and engage with non-academics on this topic.
We will achieve these goals by conducting a comparative ethnography of educated unemployed youth politics in north India, Nepal and Sri Lanka that will become a model for future research. We will work with three experienced Post-Doctoral Researchers: Dr. Jane Dyson will work in north India; Dr. Amanda Snellinger will carry out research in Nepal; and Dr. Dhana Wadugodapitiya will work in Sri Lanka. More senior academics will support the research of the PDRs: I will work with Dr. Jane Dyson; Professor Jonathan Spencer, a distinguished scholar working in Sri Lanka, will work with Wadugodapitiya; and Professor David Gellner, a leading authority on Nepal, will work with Snellinger.
The research team will produce a series of high quality academic publications, including a research monograph and over eight articles in top academic journals across geography, anthropology, development studies, area studies, and political science, as well as broader comparative journals. We will also disseminate our findings via conferences to be held in Delhi and Oxford. Through such academic outputs, the proposed study will go far beyond the "case" of educated unemployed young people, transforming scholarly understanding of unemployed young people, civil society, education, globalisation, and youth as a political category.
We will achieve our wider impact goals through a programme of dissemination, collaboration, and network-building aimed at enrolling diverse constituencies in South Asia and the UK into our research, including policymakers, the public, students, and our research informants. We will set up a website, blog, Facebook page, and Twitter account through which we will report on the project and invite comment. We will also produce newspaper articles and radio programmes in the UK and South Asia that disseminate our findings to the wider public. In addition, we will engage closely with NGOs, government officials, and ministers, through individual meetings and a conference in Delhi. We will also enrol our informants in the research process, for example via field workshops that we organise in each of the three main research sites.
Planned Impact
Our project will benefit the following non-academic users:
1. The public. Through this project, we will improve public understanding of youth and politics in the global south by offering in-depth insights into the political practices of educated unemployed youth. We will move beyond media stereotypes of educated unemployed youth - for example as "the problem" or "panacea"- by charting in ethnographic detail how they navigate economic and political uncertainties.
We will achieve this goal by constructing a website, blog, Twitter account and Facebook page for the research; writing blogs on the London Review of Books and The Guardian; developing short insightful pieces for BBC Radio Four's From Our Own Correspondent; producing a documentary on educated unemployed youth in south Asia for BBC Radio Four; and collaborating with journalists in the publication of articles for local newspapers and South Asian newspapers and magazines (see Pathways to Impact for more details).
2. Local NGOs and government officials. Our research will benefit policymakers and practitioners by providing new material and insights on educated unemployed youth in markedly different social and political contexts. We will publicise out findings, seek feedback, and develop ideas for future policy with a range of NGOs and government officials (detailed in Pathways to Impact).
Prior to our field research we will construct a list of NGOs in our regions who are interested in issues around youth, unemployment and politics, and we will use this to expand our set of contacts. We will visit NGOs and officials during the main period of fieldwork. We will also invite interested parties to a research conference in Delhi. In the longer term, we seek to build lasting connections with policymakers and practitioners, for example through developing a field course in which students can do internships in local NGOs and through the production of action-oriented summaries of our research findings that NGOS and officials can act upon. We will also work to disseminate our findings and explore comparative opportunities with NGOs working with unemployed youth in thre UK (see Pathways to Impact for more detail).
3. Local people. Participants in our research will benefit from the project by being able to obtain in-depth material on how their own lives are related to those of people in other parts of South Asia and the world. In C. Wright Mills' (1959) terms, we will encourage young people to develop a "sociological imagination" wherein they compare and contrast their own experiences and strategies with those of young people in other settings. We will disseminate interim concluding statements at "field workshops" in each of our research areas. All those who participated in our research will be invited to these events, and we will encourage critical discussion of our ideas, methods, and analysis. We will also organise an international conference in Delhi on the politics of educated unemployed youth. In the long-term, we will produce an accessible, non-academic book on the individual lives of nine of our informants, which we will also arrange to be translated into South Asian languages. We will then provide copies of the book to all of our key informants in India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.
4. Students. Students will benefit from this project by being able to take field-based courses on youth and politics in South Asia. We will design a course on this theme for Oxford University, and also link this to courses at Delhi University, Nepal Institute of Social Sciences and the Humanities, and Colombo University. In the longer term, we will introduce an outreach component into the courses we teach so that students can volunteer in local NGOs. We will also examine how we might introduce reciprocity into the Oxford field course, so that Indian students can come to the UK.
1. The public. Through this project, we will improve public understanding of youth and politics in the global south by offering in-depth insights into the political practices of educated unemployed youth. We will move beyond media stereotypes of educated unemployed youth - for example as "the problem" or "panacea"- by charting in ethnographic detail how they navigate economic and political uncertainties.
We will achieve this goal by constructing a website, blog, Twitter account and Facebook page for the research; writing blogs on the London Review of Books and The Guardian; developing short insightful pieces for BBC Radio Four's From Our Own Correspondent; producing a documentary on educated unemployed youth in south Asia for BBC Radio Four; and collaborating with journalists in the publication of articles for local newspapers and South Asian newspapers and magazines (see Pathways to Impact for more details).
2. Local NGOs and government officials. Our research will benefit policymakers and practitioners by providing new material and insights on educated unemployed youth in markedly different social and political contexts. We will publicise out findings, seek feedback, and develop ideas for future policy with a range of NGOs and government officials (detailed in Pathways to Impact).
Prior to our field research we will construct a list of NGOs in our regions who are interested in issues around youth, unemployment and politics, and we will use this to expand our set of contacts. We will visit NGOs and officials during the main period of fieldwork. We will also invite interested parties to a research conference in Delhi. In the longer term, we seek to build lasting connections with policymakers and practitioners, for example through developing a field course in which students can do internships in local NGOs and through the production of action-oriented summaries of our research findings that NGOS and officials can act upon. We will also work to disseminate our findings and explore comparative opportunities with NGOs working with unemployed youth in thre UK (see Pathways to Impact for more detail).
3. Local people. Participants in our research will benefit from the project by being able to obtain in-depth material on how their own lives are related to those of people in other parts of South Asia and the world. In C. Wright Mills' (1959) terms, we will encourage young people to develop a "sociological imagination" wherein they compare and contrast their own experiences and strategies with those of young people in other settings. We will disseminate interim concluding statements at "field workshops" in each of our research areas. All those who participated in our research will be invited to these events, and we will encourage critical discussion of our ideas, methods, and analysis. We will also organise an international conference in Delhi on the politics of educated unemployed youth. In the long-term, we will produce an accessible, non-academic book on the individual lives of nine of our informants, which we will also arrange to be translated into South Asian languages. We will then provide copies of the book to all of our key informants in India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.
4. Students. Students will benefit from this project by being able to take field-based courses on youth and politics in South Asia. We will design a course on this theme for Oxford University, and also link this to courses at Delhi University, Nepal Institute of Social Sciences and the Humanities, and Colombo University. In the longer term, we will introduce an outreach component into the courses we teach so that students can volunteer in local NGOs. We will also examine how we might introduce reciprocity into the Oxford field course, so that Indian students can come to the UK.
Publications
Dyson J
(2018)
Love Actually: Youth Mediators and Advisors in North India
in Annals of the American Association of Geographers
Jeffrey C
(2013)
Jugad: Youth and Enterprise in India
in Annals of the Association of American Geographers
Gellner D
(2014)
THE 2013 ELECTIONS IN NEPAL
in Asian Affairs
Jeffrey, C J
(2014)
The students who feel that they have the right to cheat
in BBC Magazine
Jeffrey C J
(2014)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-25595849
in BBC Magazine
Dyson, J
(2013)
India: Living With Ghosts in the Himalayas
in BBC Magazine
Jeffrey C
(2014)
"I serve therefore I am": Youth and Generative Politics in India
in Comparative Studies in Society and History
Snellinger A
(2015)
The Production of Possibility through an Impossible Ideal: Consensus as a Political Value in Nepal's Constituent Assembly
in Constellations
Spencer J
(2016)
Securitization and its discontents: the end of Sri Lanka's long post-war?
in Contemporary South Asia
Snellinger A
(2016)
"Let's See What Happens": Hope, Contingency, and Speculation in Nepali Student Activism
in Critical Asian Studies
Title | Dreams of gld |
Description | Piece for Radio 4's From Our Own Correpondent |
Type Of Art | Performance (Music, Dance, Drama, etc) |
Year Produced | 2014 |
Impact | Enhanced understanding of India |
URL | http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03pd2mz |
Title | English words in India |
Description | Piece for BBC Radio 4's From Our Own Correspondent |
Type Of Art | Performance (Music, Dance, Drama, etc) |
Year Produced | 2014 |
Impact | Enhanced public understanding of India |
URL | http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p021ym44 |
Title | Floods in Uttarakhand |
Description | Piece for BBC Radio 4's From Our Won Correspondent |
Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
Year Produced | 2013 |
Impact | Enhanced public understanding of India |
URL | http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01crkr0 |
Title | Ghosts in India |
Description | Piece for BBC Radio 4's From Our Own Correspondent |
Type Of Art | Performance (Music, Dance, Drama, etc) |
Year Produced | 2013 |
Impact | Enhanced public understanding of India |
URL | http://www.podcastchart.com/podcasts/from-our-own-correspondent?page=6 |
Title | Jugaad in India |
Description | Radio 4's From Our Own Correspondent piece |
Type Of Art | Performance (Music, Dance, Drama, etc) |
Year Produced | 2012 |
Impact | Enhanced public understanding of India |
URL | http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01ng09d |
Title | Lifelines film |
Description | A 15 minute documentary on the life of an unemployed young man in the Indian Himalayas |
Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
Year Produced | 2014 |
Impact | This film has been awarded Official Selection at the Kendal Mountain Festival and Kathmandu Film Festival. It has led to donations for the village in which we work - and may lead to the establishment of an NGO. It is now being used in school and university curricula across the UK, US and India - and it has been viewed in over 120 countries. |
URL | http://www.lifelinesfilm.com/ |
Title | Right to Cheat |
Description | Piece for Radio 4's From Our Own Correspondent |
Type Of Art | Performance (Music, Dance, Drama, etc) |
Year Produced | 2014 |
Impact | Enhanced public knowledge of India, education, youth, and politics. |
URL | http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/fooc |
Description | In addition to the key findings previously noted in subsequent submission rounds, Dr. Jane Dyson has recently published a paper that explores the role of 'love' as a basis through which young people claim respect and expertise in north India. |
Exploitation Route | We have been discussing how the UN and Ford Foundation might use our work to develop more positive approaches to youth agency. |
Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy Education Environment Healthcare Government Democracy and Justice |
Description | The project has had a broad range of impacts, including reshaping school curricula, influencing government thinking on youth and education in the UK, South Asia, and Australia. We have produced a number of radio documentaries, media articles, and also produced a documentary film on our work which is now being widely used in schools in the UK and USA. has been an Official Selection at 15 major international film festivals, and has been screened in museums, embassies, and Indian villages. Dyson has now prepared curricular materials associated with the film that she made for Australian schools. Dyson's film has been downloaded 21,000 times in 128 countries. The Department of International Development in the UK praised the film for providing crucial evidence required in order to understand the challenges facing marginalised youth worldwide. In acknowledgement of the outstanding impact of the film, Jane Dyson won the ESRC's First Prize for International Impact in 2015. Dyson has also produced a 30 minute radio documentary on her work in India for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's Radio National in 2017. Jeffrey has used the research arising out of this project in engagement with the Department for International Development in the UK. He has also drawn on this research in his regular engagement with the Commonwealth Government of Australia in his new role as Director and CEO of the Australia India Institute. He has given numerous presentations to representatives from the Department of Education, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Department of Industry, Innovation and Science. Jeffrey serves on the Reference Group for a new India Economic Strategy being prepared by the Government of Australia. Jeffrey's research on education and youth has influenced government policy in Australia. His work also had a major influence on the State of Victoria's India Strategy to be launched in January 2018, which - on Jeffrey's recommendation - places particular emphasis on fostering inclusive growth (rather than simply commercial growth per se). Jeffrey has used the Alchemists research to promote the involvement of young people in policymaking and raise awareness of the need for Western governments to engage with India's regions and regional education systems. The UN have also consulted Jeffrey in association with the publication of its Global Youth Report, in which Jeffrey's work is cited. The research team of Gellner and Snellinger, working in Nepal, also planned to have impact, based on (a) Snellinger's work with policymakers in Kathmandu, (b) her fieldwork on the Youth Small Enterprise and Self Employment Fund, (c) the detailed house-to-house survey carried out in three VDCs (Village Development Committees, the lowest tier of government in Nepal) in Parsa district, in collaboration with Dibya Youth Club in Birganj and with CESLAM (Centre for the Study of Labour Migration) in Kathmandu. Based on the survey and on prior research in the three VDCs, three bilingual English-Nepali profiles were printed (and are available for download on the CESLAM website). Unfortunately, at the very time when Gellner and Snellinger were both in Nepal and in Birganj, i.e. in late August 2015, a huge political crisis engulfed the Nepalese Tarai and it was impossible (far too dangerous) to distribute the profiles in the VDCs concerned. Political tensions, though now much less, have remained. Consequently, it has not been possible to ensure that this work had the impact it deserved. Longer term, it may be possible to assess whether the results have been taken up in the VDCs themselves. Gellner drew on the research for this project when delivering the Christopher Ondaatje Lecture in Toronto on 22nd September 2016 ('Ethnogenesis and Open Borders: Nepal's Tarai-Madhesh and What went Wrong in Nepal-India Relations'). Snellinger was invited to write an article in Current History about the reaction to the constitution in the south and based on that article, Freedom House requested her to be their analyst for assessing social and political rights in Nepal for their annual publication of Freedom in the World. Spencer and Hughes work in Sri Lanka has influenced policy thinking around youth issues, and Spencer in particular has given several high profile presentations to diverse stakeholders outside academia. For example, in 2017 he gave a lecture at Harvard South Asia Institute on the politics of urban planning in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The audience included architects, planners, and leading members of Sri Lankan civil society groups. |
First Year Of Impact | 2013 |
Sector | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Education,Environment,Government, Democracy and Justice,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections,Other |
Impact Types | Cultural Societal Economic |
Description | DFID presentation |
Geographic Reach | Europe |
Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
Impact | Gave an address to the Department for International Development on youth in South Asia at the British Academy. |
Description | Directorship of the Australia India Institute |
Geographic Reach | Australia |
Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
Impact | In my new role as CEO and Director of the Australia India institute I am in constant discussions with the Australian Government, business organisations and Third Sector institutions regarding issues related to education, skills, education, health, technology, governance, security, infrastructure and sustainability in relation to India and the Australia-India relationship. I have been able to use my understanding of youth issues, gleaned in part from my recent ESRC grant to inform and shape these discussions with a number of notable impacts, such as my capacity to influence the India strategy of the Commonwealth Government of Australia and Victoria Government. |
Description | Lifelines film |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
Impact | Jane Dyson has developed substantial teaching resources associated with the short documentary film, Lifelines, which concerns our ESRC-funded research. The film is now being widely used in universities and schools in the US, UK, and India. For example, it is now part of the Welsh Schools National Curriculum. It is being shown on television soon, on the Community Channel, has been downloaded and viewed in 125 countries, and been awarded laurels - "Official Selection" - at the Kathmandu Film Festival and Kendal Mountain Festival. The young man from north India, Makkar Singh, who is primarily featured in the film, is accompanying Jane to the Kathmandu International Film Festival. The film has also led to donations to the village and my lead to the establishment of an educational NGO in the region. |
URL | http://www.lifelinesfilm.com/ |
Description | World Bank Consultancy |
Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
Policy Influence Type | Implementation circular/rapid advice/letter to e.g. Ministry of Health |
Impact | I provided a guidance paper to the World Bank on low caste access to higher education in India. |
Description | Liberalism, Youth, and the Practice of Politics in India |
Amount | $485,000 (AUD) |
Organisation | Australian Research Council |
Sector | Public |
Country | Australia |
Start | 05/2019 |
End | 06/2023 |
Description | The nature and effectiveness of prefigurative politics among youth in India |
Amount | $315,000 (AUD) |
Organisation | Australian Research Council |
Sector | Public |
Country | Australia |
Start | 02/2017 |
End | 02/2020 |
Description | Household Survey on youth employment and migration in three villages in Parsa, Nepal |
Organisation | Dibya Jyoti Yuba Club |
Country | India |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
PI Contribution | ESRC Nepal research team (David Gellner and Amanda Snellinger) created the survey, conducted data analysis, and provided research expense to execute survey of 2,800 households on education, employment and migration. |
Collaborator Contribution | Dibya Yuba Club provided manpower for survey enumeration and data entry. |
Impact | Household Survey Profiles for: Bagwana, Biranchibarwa, and Jauwa Guthi Village Development Committees in Parsa, Nepal. Co-written with Mohammad Ayub, Sudip Gautam, David N. Gellner, Dinesh Pathak, Bandita Sijapati, and Prakriti Thami. Kathmandu, Nepal: Centre for the Study of Labour and Mobility. http://www.ceslam.org/index.php?pageName=publicationpd=43 http://www.ceslam.org/index.php?pageName=publicationpd=42 http://www.ceslam.org/index.php?pageName=publicationpd=41 |
Start Year | 2013 |
Description | Research partnership for survey of migration, Parsa District |
Organisation | Centre for the Study of Labour and Mobility |
Country | Nepal |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
PI Contribution | On the ground participation in migration survey. |
Collaborator Contribution | On the ground participation in survey, analysis of results, housing of results. |
Impact | Migration figures -- still being analysed. |
Start Year | 2014 |
Description | ASA Conference (Edinburgh): Paper entitled: Navigating Educated Youth Unemployment in Sri Lanka |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | Yes |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | The project research team convened a panel entitled "Educated Youth in Search of Enlightenment in South Asia and Beyond" at the ASA 2014 Decennial: Anthropology and Enlightenment, which encouraged a comparative understanding of the political and cultural consequences of educated unemployed youth in South Asia and beyond. The panel was very well attended and stimulated questions and debate of an interdisciplinary and comparative nature. The event raise awareness about the project and its research findings, generated further requests for information on the findings of this specific paper and the findings of the project overall. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | ASA Conference presentation: Positive Thinking for Postwar Youth: The Politics of Leadership Training in Sri Lanka |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
Results and Impact | Talk sparked questions and discussion afterwards Awaiting evidence of clear impact |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | Alchemists of the Revolution talk at Oxford |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | The talk led to widespread discussion and the establishment of research contacts - people with whom I remain in contact. Future research collaborations, includign joint publications, resulted from the talk. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
Description | Annual Meeting of the Association of Social Anthropology of the UK and Commonwealth Conference. Paper Talk: What is it all for?: Educational distinction in Nepal's precarious labor market. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Presented preliminary data findings to proffessional colleagues interested in research matter Provided colleagues an emic view of what educational distinction means to my interlocutors. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://www.nomadit.co.uk/asa/asa2014/panels.php5?PanelID=2733 |
Description | Annual South Asia Lecture at Australian National University |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Led to research collaboration n/a |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | Association for Nepal and Himalayan Studies and Social Science Baha Annual Workshop Conference, Kathmandu, Nepal. Paper Title, "Mobilizing for What?: A Discursive History of Nepal's National Youth Policy |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Talk sparked questions and discussion My paper was published in the conference proceedings. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
URL | http://soscbaha.org/conference-2013/kac2013/24july.html |
Description | Caterpillar Fungus: A Worm's Eye View |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Workshop in Yale The issue of caterpillar fungus and its impact on Himalayan communities was widely discussed by participants in the seminar and this has led to ideas for future research collaboration, media publications, and enhanced public understanding of informal economic activity in South Asia and neighbouring parts of central Asia. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | Chaired Public Seminar: Tiffan Talk |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Chaired a lunch time talk on Rebirth of Historical - Mythologiacl Historial - Fiction in India at he Australia India Institute as part to their Tiffan Talk Series |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | http://www.aii.unimelb.edu.au/news/blog-tiffin-talks/tiffin-talk-rebirth-mythologicalhistorical-fict... |
Description | Commonwealth Lecture to Australian Government |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | Professor Jeffrey gave a lecture on the changing nature of higher education in India to the Commonwealth Government of Australia. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Conducted many radio broadcasts for Radio 4 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | The BBC Magazine articles associated with the broadcasts receive numerous hits - one piece by Craig Jeffrey was the third most read of all the BBC news items online on 10th November 2014, when it was released - it had 1.2 million readers. It has generated an enormous amount of interest in our work among the public. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012,2013,2014 |
Description | Conference Speaker |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Conference Speaker Australian Anthropological Society (AAS) Conference, held at the University of Melbourne followed by Question and Answers |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
Description | Conference on Youth in South Asia |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | We held an international conference at the University of Oxford on youth in South Asia that involved academics, policymakers, and students. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
Description | Generative Politics? Youth in India |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Invited presentation at Kings India Institute, London Wider appreciation of the goals and nature of our research. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013,2014 |
Description | Guest Speaker - Queensland Universtiy of Technology |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Guest Speaker - Queensland Universtiy of Technology followed by a discussion. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | http://www.aii.unimelb.edu.au/news/aii-news/aii-partner-queensland-university-technology |
Description | In Search of Indian Viagra: Unemployment, Caterpillar Fungi, and Youth |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | The activity enhanced my research network and is leading to future research applications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | Inaugural talk to University of Toronto Tamil Worlds Initiative |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | This talk on the politics of urban planning in Colombo was the first in a series of public events organized at the University of Toronto's Scarborough campus as part of its Tamil Worlds Initiative. Scarborough is home to the single biggest population of Sri Lankan Tamils outside Sri Lanka itself, and the audience was almost entirely made up of members of the Tamil community including leaders of various community and activist groups. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://www.utsc.utoronto.ca/hcs/series-tamil-worlds |
Description | Invited Lecture, Social Science Baha. Talk Title, "Securing our future despite our State: Young educated Nepalis' quest for salaried work within political turmoil." |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Talk sparked debate on Nepal government's responsibility to young, educated unemployed youth The talk influenced regional colleagues thinking on post-conflict state restructuring and they have cited it in their own peer review articles. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://soscbaha.org/activities/lectures/lecture-series/521-lecture-series-lxxv.html |
Description | Joint Regional Conference: Governing Youth in South Asia, Social Science Baha, Kathmandu. Paper: Youth and Educated Unemployment in Post-war Sri Lanka |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | An international audience of policy makers, academics and NGO practitioners attended this conference in Nepal which stimulated knowledge exchange, debate, and thinking on the topic of youth in South Asia. Awareness was raised of the research project and its findings among an international, cross disciplinary audience. There were requests for further information on the project and the paper by practitioners in Sri Lanka. It informed and stimulated comparative thinking among people working on youth in different countries in South Asia. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
Description | Joseph W. Elder Lecture |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | Yes |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Talk sparked questions and discussion afterwards I have built links across disciplines. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://www.southasiaconference.wisc.edu/events/keynote14.html |
Description | Kathmandu International Mountain Film Festival, screening Lifelines |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | Lifelines was an official selection at this prominent international film festival with competitive selective entry. It is attended by the general public, several NGOs/international aid agencies, policy makers, academics and media. The screening was followed by discussion of research. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://kimff.org/kimff-2014 |
Description | Kendal Mountain Festival |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Lifelines was screened twice during this well known mountain festival (with competitive selective entry). Jane Dyson presented the research before the screening, and led discussion afterwards. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | Key note address - La Trobe University, Grad Student Conference |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Professor Craig Jeffrey will present three key shifts reshaping contemporary provincial India. First, the spread of education. Second, the dissemination of notions of national citizenship. Third, a rapid increase in the availability of mobile phones and smart phones. Drawing on research in a north Indian village carried out over ten years, he will reflect on the impact of this social revolution on politics, youth, schooling, corruption and the state. Session 1 Political |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
Description | Letters in The Guardian |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | n/a |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012,2013 |
Description | LiveFriday, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, screening and discussion of Lifelines |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Jane Dyson introduced Lifelines, and after screening led discussion of the research at large public event to highlight work in the Social Sciences Division, Oxford University. Several medical undergraduate students, as well as interested members of the public engaged in further discussion at the end of the event with further questions. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | http://www.socsci.ox.ac.uk/research/livefriday/lifelines |
Description | Media interview |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | Craig Jeffrey was interviewed by the BBC about the rape of a Delhi student The interview formed the basis for a BBC article |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012 |
Description | Media interview |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Craig Jeffrey has corresponded and had several interviews with Jason Burke, South Asia correspondent at The Guardian Jason Burke used Jeffrey's insights in the article he produced for The Guardian |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/mar/06/narendra-modi-india-bjp-leader-elections |
Description | Meeting - Indian Consul General Victoria |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | 30 November - Consul General for India- Victoria - Ms Manika Jain to dicussion indian related research and posible future activities in Victoria |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
Description | Meeting - Indian High Commissioner Australia |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | 20 December - Indian High Commissioner Australia His Excellency Mr Nadav Suri and Consul General Ms Manika Jain to discuss future fdirections for work undertaken by Insitute |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
Description | Meeting - Latrobe Universtiy Meeting with VC and Senior executives |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | La Trobe University Discussion to promote collabration on growing Postdoctoral India Research Capacilties |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Meeting VC Deakin |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | A meeting to promote collabration on growing Postdoctoral India Research Capacilties |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Meeting with Director IISc- Anurag Kumar |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Group and on one one meetings to dicuss posisble collabrations with IISc |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Meeting with Victorian Governer |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | meeting 19 December 2015 - Governor of Victoria with Chair of Australia India Institute Board To discuss Research in Youth and possible projects |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | National University of Singapore Asia Research Institute Workshop, "Youthful Futures?: Aspiration, Education, and Employment in Asia," Singapore. Paper Title, "Securing our future despite our State: Young educated Nepalis' quest for salaried work within p |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | My presentation informed other colleagues working on youth aspirations in Asia how Nepal's young people are grappling with underemployment We have submitted a special issue proposal to Geoforum. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://www.ari.nus.edu.sg/showfile.asp?eventfileid=809 |
Description | Ongoing field and research blog |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | My blog has informed a readership across continents about my research on the socio-political issues influence youth employment issues in Nepal. Debate and engaged commentary between my interlocutors and blog readers in the comments section. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012,2013,2014 |
URL | http://www.amandasnellinger.com/ |
Description | Oration at Australia India Institute by Craig Jeffrey |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | It led to a great deal of media interest, including an article in The Economic Times - a major Indian newspaper Research collaboration |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | Presentation at the Centre for Poverty Analysis Colombo (with Harini Amarasuriya) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | The talk took place a couple of weeks after a dramatic change of government in January 2015. Prior to this it would not have been politically safe to present a critique of the effects of central government's urban development projects on low income communities. The audience included senior policy makers from agencies involved in urban development (e.g. the World Bank) and in high-level policy making, as well as local civil society activists, and the evnt was most notable for the frank and constructive discussion that took place after the formal presentation. The relationships established on this occasion (and in other dissemination activity in Colombo) are now central to a new project funded (in 2017) under the Global Challenges Research Fund Cities and Infrastructure initiative, which will seek to build stronger chanels for communication between low income communities and planners and policy makers. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
Description | Public Lecture at University of Melbourne |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Public Lecture at University of Melbourne. " The Youth Bulge and India's Education Conundrum". This public lecture was widely advertised as well as live streamed interstate and internationally |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=At4hB9wtUVs |
Description | Public Lecture at Univesity of New South Wales |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Public Lecture at University of New South Wales to mark founding partner event. A well promoted even with university audience and general public. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
Description | Public lecture at University of Melbourne |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Public lecture at University of Melbourne which was live streamed interstae and to India. The Lecture was to introduce research on Youth India to a new audience. The lecture was followed by Q&A whcih also included form the live srtream audience in Delhi. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_E8dpp6sr8 |
Description | Queens College Lecture |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Undergraduate students |
Results and Impact | A lecture given on Youth in India followed by questions and discussions |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
Description | Roundtable with Australia India Institute Fellows |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | 15 Fellows of the Australia India Institute attended a roundtable at which Craig Jeffrey spoke about his research followed by discussion and questions. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
Description | Seminar |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | Seminar/ Briefing for Senior Public Servants - Department of Education and Training , Canberra, followed by Question and Answers |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
Description | Social Science Regional Workshop, "Governing Youth in South Asia", Kathmandu, Nepal. Paper Title, " "Every Household will be a micro-enterprise": A discursive analysis of The Youth Small Enterprise and Self Employment Fund (YSEF) in Nepal. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Informed fellow researchers of the pros and cons of the much maligned government loan scheme, the Youth Self Employment and Small Enterprise fund. I was able to present on the ground weaknesses of the program to the Save The Children representative that was advising the YSEF fund on how to improve outputs and outcomes. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
URL | http://www.sai.uni-heidelberg.de/delhi/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1380184460&archive=&start_fro... |
Description | South Asia Conference, Madison, Wisconsin. Paper title: "Let Us Write Our Own Constitution": Public Assertions of Birganj's Frustrated Youth." |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Sparked discussion and questions I've been invited to contribute to a special issue on the panel topic in the publication Himalaya |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://southasiaconference.wisc.edu/schedule/schedule.asp |
Description | Talk |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Address to business leaders for Asialink Business State of the Nation:India |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | http://www.aii.unimelb.edu.au/events/asialink-business-state-nation-india-melbourne |
Description | Talk |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Talk for CPA Certified Practicing Accountants) Australia Indian Group - Conference, Melbourne followed by Question and Answers |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | https://twitter.com/aiinstitute/status/699334759437070338 |
Description | Talk |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Talk for Melbourne Henley Club followed by Question and Answers |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Talk |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Talk for Melbourne South Asian Studies Group (MSASG), held at the University of Melbourne followed by Question and Answers |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
Description | Talk 'Borderland Lives in Northern South Asia' at Thakur Ram Campus, Birganj on 14th Sept 2013 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
Results and Impact | Informed discussion about living in borders. Audience of academics and intellectuals in Birganj informed about the new research project on educated unemployed youth. Increased cooperation with Amanda Snellinger in research. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
Description | Talk to interdisciplinary group of researchers at Harvard South Asia Institute |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Lecture at Harvard South Asia Institute on the politics of urban planning in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Audience included architects and planners as well as academics from a range of disciplines, and leading members of Sri Lankan civil society groups. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
URL | http://southasiainstitute.harvard.edu/event/the-beautification-of-postwar-colombo-2/ |
Description | The Politics of Love: Youth in the Indian Himalayas |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | Lecture Improved public understanding of youth affective relationships in the Indian Himalayas |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | Youth and Improvisation in the Indian Himalayas |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Type Of Presentation | paper presentation |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Workshop at the Institute of Economic Growth involving an interdisciplinary set of academics and policymakers. I am currently developing research grant applications with several participants. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012 |