As the UW community returns to campus, consider taking advantage of campus perks available to UW employees and students:

• Free admission to the and
• Discounted tickets to performances by Meany Center, School of Drama, Department of Dance, School of Music, and more

September 23, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM | , Suzzallo Library

September 26 – October 19 | , Jacob Lawrence Gallery

UW in the Community: September 26, 7:30 PM | , 18th & Union

Have an event that you would like to see featured in the ArtSci Roundup? Connect with Kathrine Braseth (kbraseth@uw.edu).

The Jacob Lawrence Gallery and the School of Art + Art History + Design present Departing Figures: BA in Art Graduation Exhibitions, featuring the work of the 2024 graduating class in the BA in Art programs: 3D4M: ceramics + glass + sculpture, Interdisciplinary Visual Arts, Painting + Drawing, and Photo/Media. Students work closely with the gallery’s curatorial team to present their senior capstones in one of three group shows that run for two weeks each.

May 23, 3:30 – 5:00 pm | Thomson Hall or Online via Zoom

May 23, 5:00 – 7:00 pm | Hans Rosling Center

This event will celebrate the release of Linh’s new book, Displacing Kinship: The Intimacies of Intergenerational Trauma in Vietnamese American Cultural Production, and she will have another author joining her to share their book and connect with UW faculty, staff, students, and the broader community.

Free |

May 23, 7:30 pm | Meany Hall

The University Singers, Treble Choir, and UW Glee Club present an eclectic program of music from around the world, folk tunes, and arrangements of popular music standards.

Tickets |

May 23, 7:30 pm | Meany Hall

The UW Percussion Ensemble, led by Director Bonnie Whiting, performs music by Caroline Shaw, Elena Rykova, and Qu Xiao-Song. The performance will also have open scores by Pauline Oliveros, George Lewis, and Stacey Bowers and feature first-year undergraduates in ragtime arrangements for xylophone and marimba.

Tickets |

May 23 – June 2, 2:00 or 7:30 pm | Floyd and Delores Jones Playhouse

In this unique adaptation of “The Adding Machine,” the unremarkable Mr. Zero, an accountant, is unexpectedly replaced by an adding machine. What follows is a series of remarkable events during and after his life that are outside of his control–or are they? In this devised adaptation, Director Ryan Purcell and student artists will examine the present-day emergence of artificial intelligence in the context of Rice鈥檚 prescient expressionistic classic of the 1920s.

Tickets |

May 24, 1:30 – 3:00 pm | Husky Union Building

For this 天美影视传媒 International Security Colloquium, PhD candidates Jessica Sciarone and Jihyeon Bae come together to discuss 鈥淒ark Visions for Society: The Spread of Extremist Ideas.鈥�

Free |

May 24, 3:30 – 4:30 pm | Smith Hall

Free |

May 24, 7:30 pm | Meany Hall

Attend this Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies panel that brings together Washington state legal professionals to discuss the variety of ways in which they work in and with the law. Representing a range of demographic backgrounds and lived experiences, the panels will talk about the paths that brought them to careers in the law, as well as how they view their work in the current legal, social, and political moment.

May 15, 3:30 – 5:00 pm | Communications Building

May 15, 7:30 pm | Meany Hall

An evening of software performances and human-machine communions, drawing lines between the worlds of immersive sound, performing arts, and experimental extended reality. The familiar, the bearable chaos and illusions of听order unfold across technologically mediated hyper-realities, temporalities, and mnemonic worlds. Performances where interactions and reactions occur across choreographies and spatial arrangements, binding the virtual with the real in unexpected knots and impossible behaviors.

Free |

May 16, 2:30 – 3:30 pm | Kane Hall

UW faculty member Shirley J. Yee (Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies department) will be in conversation with UW Women鈥檚 soccer coach Nicole Van Dyke, Courtney Gano (UW Softball 鈥�16) and Amy Griffin (UW Women鈥檚 Soccer and Executive Director of the Seattle Reign Academy). This event is part of the Jackson School鈥檚 new Global Sport Lab.

Free |

May 16 – 19, 2:30 or 7:00 pm | Meany Hall

The UW MFA candidates in dance invite everyone to the premiere of eight diverse dance works, created for 70 undergraduate dancers. Join the Department of Dance for an evening of dance in styles drawn from contemporary modern, ballet, Chinese dance, hip-hop, street, and club dances, to explore themes about humanity, homogeneity, community, and support.

Learn about the program to support the development of educators in any dance form.

Tickets |

May 16, 12:00 – 1:30 pm | Gowen Hall

Becca Peach, a Political Science Ph.D. candidate, will lecture on “Replacing the Welfare State As We Know It: Neoliberal Welfare Policy & Development of the Religious Right鈥檚 Institutional Capacity Under Charitable Choice” for the Political Theory Colloquium.

Free |

May 16, 7:30 pm | Kane Hall

Join paleontologist Dr. Jingmai O鈥機onnor for a trip back in time to learn how birds became birds and the adaptations that helped them thrive. Dr. O鈥機onnor will share a new fossil discovery that tells more about the earliest birds and the dinosaurs they evolved from.

Free |

May 16, 5:00 – 7:30 pm | Husky Union Building

Join the UW Center for Human Rights for a very special 15th-anniversary edition of the annual Spring Symposium & Awards Celebration featuring stories from those deported through Boeing Field.

This year鈥檚 event features a storytelling project collaboration between UW students, immigrant rights group La Resistencia, and Hinton Publishing, showcasing stories of those held in deportation proceedings in Washington state.

Free |

May 16, 7:30 pm | Brechemin Auditorium

Free |

May 16, 7:30 pm | Meany Hall

Tickets |

May 17, 5:00 – 7:00 pm | 听Communications Building

April 30, 7:30 pm | 听Meany Hall

May 1, 12:30 pm听| North Allen Library Lobby

Students of the UW School of Music perform in this听lunchtime concert series co-hosted听by UW Music and UW Libraries.

Free |听

May 1, 3:30 – 5:00 pm | Allen Library

Join The Henry M. Jackson of International Studies for a lecture and discussion with Daniel J. Sargent, an associate professor at the University of California, Berkeley. This seminar is also part of the U.S. in the World Lecture Series.

Daniel J. Sargent holds appointments in the Department of History and the Goldman School of Public Policy and co-directs Berkeley鈥檚 Institute of International Studies. He is the author of A Superpower Transformed: The Remaking of American Foreign Relations in the 1970s.

May 1, 7:30 pm |听 Brechemin Auditorium

Associate professor of ethnomusicology John-Carlos Perea presents a concert of cedar flute songs featuring arrangements of jazz standards by Coltrane, Ellington, Ayler, and Jordan. With special guests听Jessica Bissett Perea (voice),听Rose Martin (percussion, voice),听Jess Pena Manalo (voice), and听Marc Seales (piano).

Free |

May 2, 4:00 – 5:30 pm | Gates Hall

Join the Simpson Center for the Humanities for a roundtable on pressing issues related to art and intellectual property in the age of artificial intelligence. Moderator Melanie Walsh (Information School) will be joined by Kelly McKernan, an artist and one of the plaintiffs in the first class action lawsuit against the major AI companies, Geoffrey Turnovsky (French), a historian of copyright, Kat Walsh, legal expert and the General Counsel at Creative Commons, and Takiyah Ward, a multidisciplinary artist based in Seattle championing fair compensation for artists.

Free |

May 2, 5:30 – 9:00 pm | Hugo House

Join the Department of Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies for the annual Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies gathering that brings leading feminist thinkers into community with local activists, allies, and alumni. 听will discuss her recent book听 in conversation with听. These scholars at the forefront of intersex and transgender studies will delve into the legacy of medical violence on intersex and gender non-conforming lives听and听the resistance and resilience of activists advocating for change, on local and global stages.

Free |

May 2, 6:00 – 7:30 pm | Husky Union Building

In Russia and Ukraine: Entangled Histories, Divergent States, Maria Popova and Oxana Shevel explain how, over the last thirty years, Russia and Ukraine diverged politically, ending up on a catastrophic collision course. Russia slid back into authoritarianism and imperialism, while Ukraine consolidated a competitive political system and pro-European identity. As Ukraine built a democratic nation-state, Russia refused to accept it and came to see it as an 鈥渁nti-Russia鈥� project. These irreconcilable goals, rather than geopolitical wrangling between Russia and the West over NATO expansion, are 鈥� the authors argue 鈥� essential to understanding Russia鈥檚 war on Ukraine.

Free |

May 3, 7:30 pm | Meany Hall

Julia Tai leads the Seattle Modern Orchestra and members of the UW Modern Music Ensemble, led by Director Cristina Vald茅s, in a program featuring the West Coast premiere of Clocks for Seeing听by guest composer听Anthony Cheung听and world premieres听by UW graduate students听Justin Zeitlinger, Joe Krycia, Melissa Wang, and听Yonatan Ron.

Tickets |

May 3 – 4, 9:00 am – 5:00 pm | 听Intellectual House

Join the Department of American Indian Studies for the 12th annual “Living Breath of w菨色菨b蕯altx史” Indigenous Foods Symposium. The symposium has become an important venue for bringing together people from diverse communities and organizations who share the same commitment to protecting Indigenous homelands and the environment. It serves to foster dialogue and build collaborative networks as Indigenous peoples strive to sustain cultural food practices and preserve healthy relationships to the land, water, and all living things.

Free |

May 3, 3:30 – 5:00 pm | Gowen Hall

Join the Department of History for a talk and discussion with , Professor in the Department of Political Science and School of Public Policy at University College London, along with graduate student discussant Jana Foxe, from the UW Political Science Department.

Free |

May 4, 10:00 am | First Lutheran Church

Have an event that you would like to see featured in the ArtSci Roundup? Connect with Kathrine Braseth (kbraseth@uw.edu).

Recent recognition for the 天美影视传媒 includes a Rising Star Award, honors for distinguished ornithological work and a Gold Medal Award for Impact in Psychology.

Karen Thomas-Brown receives Rising Star Award

, UW associate dean of diversity, equity & inclusion (DEI) for the College of Engineering, was given the in March by the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education.

NADOHE鈥檚 Inclusive Excellence Awards recognize and honor achievements and contributions to guide higher education toward inclusivity and institutional transformation through research, leadership or service.

鈥淭his award is a significant acknowledgment that the body of work we pursue in the Office of Inclusive Excellence is on point as it informs the policies and practices of the college as a whole and is relevant to research,鈥� Thomas-Brown said.

The Rising Star honoree is a NADOHE member who has been a chief or senior diversity officer for at least three years but no more than 10 years. A nomination statement details the person鈥檚 contributions to advance the understanding of DEI in higher education.

Thomas-Brown leads the College of Engineering鈥檚 efforts to be an accessible, welcoming and inclusive community. The award recognizes her contributions to advancing DEI initiatives, including developing best practices and guidelines and working to implement programs that increase participation of underserved groups.

Thomas-Brown holds a doctorate in geography from the University of West Indies and certificates in DEI, change management and leadership from Cornell University.

Professor of biology honored for 鈥榙istinguished ornithological work鈥�

, UW professor of biology, received the British Ornithological Union’s听 during the Pacific Seabird Group鈥檚 annual conference banquet in February. BOU Council awards honor an individual鈥檚 distinguished ornithological work.

鈥淭o have the British honor me is high听praise,鈥� Boersma said. 鈥淚 just hope we can reduce the impact of听people on the natural world.鈥�

Boersma was selected for excellence in scientific research, practical conservation, scientific monitoring and dissemination of science for public awareness. The committee particularly noted her devotion to documenting varying aspects of penguins鈥� lives and her contribution to understanding the conservation of all species.

Boersma directs the Center for Ecosystem Sentinels and is a member of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature SSC Penguin Specialist Group. As a scientific fellow for the Wildlife Conservation Society, she also leads research on Magellanic Penguins.

Affiliate professor receives Gold Medal Award

, UW affiliate professor of psychology and gender, women & sexuality studies, received a from The American Psychological Foundation (APF). The award recognizes work that is impactful, innovative and transformational.

Freyd is known as a pioneer in the fields of trauma psychology and institutional courage. An activist in the realm of sexual violence, Freyd is also a professor emeritus of psychology at the University of Oregon and the founder and president of the Center for Institutional Courage. Her work has influenced approaches, policy frameworks, legal considerations and social attitudes.

鈥淚 am grateful for this award,鈥� Freyd said in an APF release. 鈥淚 am also hopeful that this acknowledgement will help in our efforts to investigate and prevent betrayal trauma and institutional betrayal while discovering how to nurture institutional courage.鈥�

UW study named finalist for Cozzarelli Prize

A study from the UW was named a finalist for the 2023 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , which “acknowledges papers that reflect听scientific excellence and originality.”

The paper, published in听Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, was written by lead author听, assistant professor at Utah State and former UW postdoctoral researcher in the Abrahms Lab; senior author听, assistant professor of biology;听, professor of biology;听and听, research scientists/engineer of biology, using听long-term data collected by the Center for Ecosystem Sentinels.

The paper focuses on how climate change will reshape ecosystems worldwide through short-term, extreme events and long-term changes. Ecologists call the short-term events 鈥減ulses鈥� and the long-term changes 鈥減resses.鈥� The study shows how different presses and pulses impacted Magellanic penguins 鈥� a migratory marine predator 鈥� over nearly four decades at their historically largest breeding site in Punta Tombo, Argentina.

鈥淔or conservation to be most effective, we need to know where, when and how to apply our limited resources,鈥� Abrahms told UW News last year. 鈥淚nformation generated by this study tells us which climate effects we need to worry about and which ones we don鈥檛 鈥� and therefore can help us focus on measures that we know will have a positive impact.鈥�

Su-In Lee receives Ho-Am Prize in Engineering

, UW professor in the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering, was selected as the 2024 Samsung Ho-Am Prize Laureate in Engineering听for her pioneering contributions to the field of explainable artificial intelligence.

Established in 1990, the honors people of Korean heritage who have contributed to academics, the arts and social development, or who have furthered the welfare of humanity in their respective field.

Lee is the first woman to receive the engineering prize.

Lee pioneered the innovative SHAP framework, revolutionizing the ability to interpret the results of machine learning models, along with subsequent algorithms. Her extensive contributions span foundational AI, computational molecular biology and clinical medicine.

Through her advancements in explainable AI technology, Lee has played a pivotal role in the development of clinical AI systems capable of predicting and elucidating various diagnoses and outcomes.听Furthermore, her work has led to significant AI-driven discoveries aimed at enhancing our understanding of the origins and treatment of complex disease, such as cancer and Alzheimer’s.

“This is truly an extraordinary honor for me, and I’m profoundly grateful for the recognition,鈥� Lee said. 鈥淎mong countless deserving researchers, I feel deeply humbled to have been selected. Receiving an award of this magnitude entails not just privilege but also a significant responsibility. One of the most fulfilling aspects of my role as a faculty member and scientist is being able to serve as an inspiration for young individuals. As AI continues to revolutionize both science and society, my hope is that this achievement will inspire others to tackle crucial challenges aimed at enhancing science and health for all.鈥�

April 22, 3:30 – 5:00 pm | Thomson Hall

The Jackson School of International Studies invites Research Scholar Kim Brandt, Columbia University, to discuss the significance of the Hiroshima Maidens.

“Hiroshima Maidens鈥� loosely translates to “genbaku otome”, a phrase used to refer to young women who were scarred by injuries during the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Ten years later, 25 such women were flown to New York to undergo extensive reconstructive surgery. The 鈥淢aidens鈥� received wide publicity in the U.S. and Japan, where the story resonated with growing anxiety about nuclear weapons, public fascination with new forms of beauty culture, and the potential of postwar technology.

Free |

April 23 – May 3 | Jacob Lawrence Gallery

April 24, 4:00 – 5:30 pm | Communications Building

April 24 – May 28 | Allen Library North Lobby

In partnership with the听, the UW Taiwan Studies Arts & Culture Program welcomes everyone to celebrate Taiwan鈥檚 pop music through the 鈥淢usic, Island, Stories: Taiwan Calling!鈥� pop-up exhibition on the UW campus.

Free |听

April 25, 3:00 – 4:30 pm | Husky Union Building

Join The Jackson School of International Studies for Modern Abortion Around the World, a panel discussion on the history of abortion in Bolivia, China, Kenya, South Asia, and the U.S.-Mexico Borderlands over the past 60 years, and听what those histories reveal about technopolitical developments, reproductive governance, and transnational social movements.

April 25, 5:30 – 7:00 pm | Kane Hall

The 2024 Griffith and Patricia Way Lecture will interrogate two sets of fourteenth-century hell paintings owned by the temples Gokurakuji in Hy艒go Prefecture and Konkaik艒my艒ji in Kyoto, which both posit the possibility of early escape from the infernal realms, albeit in seemingly contradictory ways. This talk will uncover the ways people in premodern Japan transformed hell from a place solely retributive in nature into one that had liberating powers.

Free |

April 25, 7:30 pm | Meany Hall

The UW Wind Ensemble, led by Director Timothy Salzman, and Symphonic Band, led by Director Shaun Day, present 鈥淪potlight,鈥� performing music by Nancy Galbraith, Michael Daugherty, Henk Badings, and others. This performance features winners of the 2024 Winds Concerto Competition: Devin Foster (tuba), Kelly Hou (harp), and Cole Henslee (tuba).

Tickets |

April 26, 12:00 – 1:30 pm | Suzzallo Library

Guest speaker Dr. Melvin Rogers, professor of political science at Brown University, is invited to speak about “The Darkened Light of Faith: Race, Democracy, and Freedom in African American Political Thought.”

Free |

April 26, 3:30 pm | Denny Hall or Online via Zoom

The Department of Classics invites Glynnis Fawkes, cartoonist and archaeological illustrator, who will analyze the way a cartoonist adapts history. Fawkes will specifically look into Eric H. Cline’s 1177BC: A Graphic History of the Year Civilization Collapsed? to describe the process of interpreting Cline’s text in comic, an exercise where Fawkes repeatedly asks: how might she tell this story visually, and how can she put Eric鈥檚 words into the mouths of characters involved in the story?

Free |

April 26, 3:30 – 5:00 pm | 听Smith Hall

Dr. Keston K Perry, who researches race, reparations, and climate change for the University of California, Los Angeles Department of African American Studies, is invited to speak for the Geography Colloquium on 鈥淏eyond Repair? The Crisis of Ecological Imperialism and Reparative Ecologies in the Caribbean.鈥�

Free |

April 26, 7:30 pm | 听Meany Hall

David Alexander Rahbee conducts the UW Symphony and winners of the UW Concerto Competition鈥擪ai-En Cheng, violin; Rachel Reyes, flute; and Ella Kalinichenko, piano鈥攊n a program including winning concerto excerpts. This performance will feature a UW student composition by graduate student Yonatan Ron, Silvestre Revueltas’s Sensemay谩, and Overture to Le roi d’Ys,听by听脡duard Lalo. 听听

Tickets |

April 27, 7:30 pm | 听Meany Hall

Renowned bassist Todd Sickafoose headlines this special performance as a part of the 2024 Improvised Music Project Festival (IMPFEST). Sickafoose will be performing sets with UW Jazz Studies students and UW faculty Cuong Vu, trumpet, Ted Poor, drums, and Steve Rodby, bass.

Free |

Have an event that you would like to see featured in the ArtSci Roundup? Connect with Kathrine Braseth (kbraseth@uw.edu).

February 26, 7:30 pm | Brechemin Auditorium

The UW Baroque Ensemble, led by director Tekla Cunningham, will perform works by Telemann and Couperin, including two of Telemann’s Paris quartets, the orchestral suite La Bizarre听and Fran莽ois Couperin’s L’apoth茅ose de Corelli.

Free |

February 27, 2:00 pm | 听Brechemin Auditorium

February 27, 5:00 – 6:20 pm | Architecture Hall

Join the Jackson School of International Studies for a talk and discussion on Israel-Hamas: Will this be the Last War? The lecture features Daniel C. Kurtzer, retired Ambassador to Egypt and Israel and Professor of Middle East Policy Studies at Princeton University.

This event is part of听War in the Middle East, a series of talks and discussions on the aftermath of October 7, the war in Gaza, and responses worldwide.

Recordings of past lectures are available on the .

Free |

February 27, 7:30 pm | Meany Hall

The UW Concert, Campus, and Symphonic Bands will present “Winds of the World,鈥� performing music by Percy Grainger, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Samuel Barber, Jan Van der Roost, Yasuhide Ito, John Mackey, and others.

Free |

February 28, 11:30 am – 12:30 pm | Parrington Hall

The Department of Sociology invites Dr. LaTonya Trotter, Associate Professor in the Department of Bioethics and Humanities, to explore what it means to be a nurse in terms of crafting a nursing a career and balancing competing obligations in the pursuit of being “a good nurse.”

February 28, 4:00 – 5:00 pm | 听Johnson Hall

Professor Gred Voth is invited to the Weston and Sheila Borden Endowed Lecture in Theoretical Chemistry to speak about “Overcoming the Multiscale Challenge for Biomolecular Systems.”

Free |

February 29, 2:00 – 4:30 pm | 听Denny Hall

The Department of German Studies is hosting a film screening of The Nasty Girl for the Winter Film Series. Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film, it mischievously tells the story of a young woman who sets out to research the altruism of her Bavarian town and the Catholic Church during the war, and ends up deeply confused by what she finds out.

Free |

February 29 – March 3 | 听Meany Hall

The annual Dance Majors Concert will present 6 student-choreographed works in the styles of contemporary ballet, hip-hop, and modern dance. Exploring themes of femininity, self discovery, love, and forgiveness, the students conceive their own visions and then collaborate with lighting and costume designers to bring their pieces to life onstage. Come and experience the premieres of these creative original works.

Tickets |

February 29, 7:00 – 8:30 pm | Brechemin Auditorium

Join the Department of Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies for an enriching evening of songs and historical insights as Dr. Sumangala Damodaran, Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence and Stice Lecturer, takes the stage. Drawing upon extensive research on the Indian People鈥檚 Theatre Association, a progressive group of artists integral to the anti-colonial struggle, she will present a musical journey with annotations.

Free |

February 29, 12:00 – 2:00 pm | Savery听Hall

Professor Elizabeth Korver-Glenn is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Washington University in St. Louis. Her research focuses on racial inequality within the urban community. Professor Korver-Glenn studies how contemporary cities and markets reproduce racial inequality as well as how public policy maintains or can mitigate such inequality. To date, her research has focused on urban housing and rental markets using qualitative research methods.

Free |

March 1, 12:00 – 1:30 pm | Gowen Hall

Join the Department of Political Science for the Duck Family Colloquium Series with Patricia Bromley, Associate Professor at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Education, on “Higher Education and Sustainability.”

Free |

March 1, 7:30 pm | Meany Hall

Tickets |

March 2, 3:00 pm | Meany Hall

The Campus Philharmonia will present its Winter Quarter concert. Daren Weissfisch and Ryan Farris conduct.

Free |

March 2, 7:30 pm | Brechemin Auditorium

The UW Composition Program presents听a concert of works听by UW student and alumni composers.

Free |

Have an event that you would like to see featured in the ArtSci Roundup? Connect with Kathrine Braseth (kbraseth@uw.edu).

January 26, 10:00 – 11:00 am | Zoom

UW Textual Studies will host a virtual book talk event with Dr. Alexander Bubb on his latest book, Asian Classics on the Victorian Bookshelf. There will be a featured presentation and Q&A session that follows.

Free |

January 26, 12:30 – 1:30 pm | 听Denny Hall

The Department of Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures invites Semih Tareen, the Seattle Turkish Film Festival Director, to give a talk on viruses, biotechnology, and horror movies.听

Free |

January 29, 6:30 pm | 听Brechemin Auditorium

UW keyboard performance students perform concerto movements for outside judges for a chance to perform with the UW Symphony.

Free |

January 29, 3:30 – 5:00 pm | 听Thomson Hall

Sponsored by the UW Japan Studies Program, the China Studies Program is hosting book talk with Wenkai He, author of Public Interest and State Legitimation: Early Modern England, Japan, and China.听

Free |

January 30, 6:30 pm | Kane Hall

In this Katz Distinguished Lecture Series, Sasha Su-Ling Welland, Chair and Professor in the Department of Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies, is invited to discuss “The Art of Living in the Nuclear Anthropocene.” This is a story of kinship, grief, and place that asks an impossible question. This lecture explores telling terrible stories in a way that centers relationally and compels those to seek repair instead of closure.

Free |

January 30, 6:00 – 7:00 pm | Thomson Hall

The converging forces of climate change, migration, and shifting livelihoods have thrust Nepal’s farmers into precarious positions. Join the South Asia Center and the Nepal Studies Initiative for a case study on how Sanskriti Farms & Research Centre is responding through innovative and sustainable agricultural practices at a local scale while empowering the community.

Shree Krishna Dhital is the Executive Director of Sanskriti Farms & Research Centre and Phoolbari Homestay. He has over a decade of experience in tourism, community farming, and sustainable technological implementation.

Free |

January 30, 5:00 – 6:20 pm | 听Husky Union Building

Karam Dana, Associate Professor at UW Bothell, will discuss “The Question of Palestine and the Evolution of Solidarity and Resistance in the U.S.” His research examines Palestinian political identity and the impact of Israeli occupation on Palestinian society. He also studies American Muslims, how they are racialized, and what affects their political participation in the U.S.

This event is part of War in the Middle East, a series of talks and discussions on the aftermath of October 7, the war in Gaza, and responses worldwide.

Recordings of each lecture will be made available on the . Watch or listen to the January 16, 2024, recording of .

Free |

January 30, 7:30 pm | Meany Hall

Faculty colleagues Rachel Lee Priday and Craig Sheppard present a blockbuster program, including the Faur茅 A Major Sonata and Bartok #1 and shorter works by Arvo P盲rt and Franz Schubert.

Tickets |

January 31, 7:00 – 8:30 pm | 听Kane Hall

In this History Lecture Series, Professor Elena Campbell explores the multifaceted history of Seattle鈥檚 engagement with peoples from the Romanov Empire and the Soviet Union, including trade relations and commerce, Russian emigration, the 鈥淩ed Scare,鈥� Russian studies, and citizen diplomacy.

Free |

February 1, 7:30 pm | 听Meany Hall

Lauded as 鈥渢echnically fearless with鈥n enormous, rich sound鈥� (La Scena Musicale), pianist Michelle Cann made her orchestral debut at age 14 and has since performed as a soloist with numerous prominent orchestras.

Cann鈥檚 Meany debut features a music program by luminaries of Chicago鈥檚 Black Renaissance, including Hazel Scott, Nora Holt, Irene Britton Smith, and others. A champion of Florence Price’s music, Cann also performs the composer鈥檚 Fantasies No. 1, 2,听and 4.

Tickets |

February 2, 3:30 – 5:00 pm | Gowen Hall

Join the Department of History and the Severyns Ravenholt Endowment at the UW for a conversation with Suparna Chaudhry, Assistant Professor in the Department of International Affairs at Lewis and Clark College, and Ji Hyeon Chung, graduate student in the Political Science Department at the UW.

Free |

February 2, 7:30 pm | Meany Hall

David Alexander Rahbee conducts the 天美影视传媒 Symphony and special guest Michelle Cann, piano, in a music program by Beethoven and Rachmaninoff. With acclaimed pianist Michelle Cann, performing Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18, with the orchestra.

Buy Tickets |

February 2, 7:30 pm | 听Brechemin Auditorium

Guitar students of Michael Partington perform works for solo, duo, and group arrangements.

Michael Partington is one of the most engaging of the new generation of concert players. Praised by Classical Guitar Magazine for his 鈥渓yricism, intensity, and clear technical command,鈥� this award-winning British guitarist has performed internationally as a soloist and with an ensemble to unanimous critical praise.

Free |

February 5, 7:00 pm | Walker-Ames Room, Kane Hall

Carole Terry, renowned organist and former longtime UW professor of Organ Studies presents a lecture, “How the body works when playing piano, organ, or harpsichord.鈥�

This series is made possible with support from the Paul B. Fritts Endowed Faculty Fellowship in Organ.

Free |

Have an event that you would like to see featured in the ArtSci Roundup? Connect with Lauren Zondag (zondagld@uw.edu)

Three new faculty books from the 天美影视传媒 cover wide-ranging topics: life in the Rio Grande Valley, fossils of Washington state and the colonial roots of contemporary intersex medicine. UW News talked with the authors to learn more.

Collection highlights life in Rio Grande Valley

鈥溾�� is a collection of short stories and comics from , professor of Slavic languages and literature at the UW. The works are mostly set in the Rio Grande Valley along the Texas-Mexico border, where Alaniz grew up as a second-generation Mexican American.

鈥淚 wanted to come up with a collection that would speak to that area,鈥� Alaniz said. 鈥淭here is Chicano literature, and there鈥檚 even literature from the valley, but it鈥檚 just not very well known. I really wanted to highlight that part of my life and material that鈥檚 been influenced by it.鈥�

Some of the collection is autobiographical, while other pieces are fiction. Alaniz also combined stories he created years ago with newer works.

鈥淚t runs the gamut in terms of genre,鈥� Alaniz said. 鈥淲hat I鈥檓 trying to do is create a sort of hybrid text where some of the same stories get repeated in the prose section and the comic section. They speak to each other. It destabalizes what we mean by memory.鈥�

A story told in comic form is typically perceived as funny or irreverent, Alaniz said. The same story told through text is often taken more seriously, even if the narrative hasn鈥檛 changed.

鈥淧uro Pinche True Fictions,鈥� published in September by Flowersong Press, opens with 鈥淕enoveva,鈥� which features Alaniz鈥檚 paternal grandfather. Much of the text was taken from interviews that Alaniz conducted with him.

鈥淎 lot of what he says is in the kind of Spanish that was spoken on the border by people from his generation that weren鈥檛 educated,鈥� Alaniz said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 translate much of it, partly to honor what made him, him. To translate him would alter that. Hopefully, people from the valley or people who speak that kind of Spanish will feel seen and heard.鈥�

Another story, 鈥淭amales,鈥� is a science fiction piece about a migrant family traveling to Mars for work in the year 2063. Their rocket ship crash lands and many of the migrants are killed. The piece is a nod to science fiction author Ray Bradbury, who often wrote about Mars. But it also tells the story of Alaniz鈥檚 maternal grandparents crossing the border and their relationship with their son, Alaniz鈥檚 uncle. Much of the dialogue is taken verbatim from Alaniz鈥檚 grandparents, whom he recorded before they died.

鈥淭his collection is a gift for the people of the Rio Grande Valley,鈥� Alaniz said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not a gift that they will always like, because it鈥檚 not a romanticized version. There鈥檚 trauma. It鈥檚 not all roses. But I hope they recognize a voice that comes from that place, which still means a lot to me. I like to think I haven鈥檛 forgotten where I came from.鈥�

鈥淧uro Pinche True Fictions鈥� is Alaniz鈥檚 second publication this year. In March, he released 鈥�.鈥� Alaniz first published the comic strip 鈥淢oscow Calling鈥� in the 1990s while working in Russia as a journalist. It was featured in the English-language newspaper The Moscow Tribune. The new collection completes the strip鈥檚 storyline as a graphic novella and adds new material, including a short story about the war in Ukraine.

For more information, contact Alaniz at jos23@uw.edu.

Uncovering the fossils of Washington state

Washington state is home to more than half-billion years of natural history. In 鈥�,鈥� 鈥痑nd鈥疍avid B. Williams dive into this rich history to tell the stories of 24 fossils found in the state.

鈥淚’ve been a paleontologist for a very long time. I started working at the 天美影视传媒 in 1992, and through all these years I have met so many people,鈥� said Nesbitt, former curator of paleontology at the Burke Museum. 鈥淭hey were all very interested in fossils from Washington. Many of them asked if they could read more and there is no book. So, I realized I had to write a book.鈥�

Nesbitt collaborated with Williams, an independent science writer, for four years to bring these stories to the public.

鈥淗e鈥檚 published a number of really exciting books, and I love the way he writes,鈥� Nesbitt said. 鈥淲hen I started writing my book, I realized it was a bit boring. Although the topics were great, I’m just not a general science writer. I write academic papers, and so I asked David if he was interested in collaborating and bringing the book to life. He was, and I was thrilled with that.鈥�

The book doesn鈥檛 just tell the story of fossils in the state. It鈥檚 also about the field of paleontology and those who work behind the scenes to bring fossils to light.

鈥淚t is about Washington, but it is not all the fossils in Washington. This is a selection of the ones that I found people were interested in, the ones that have interesting stories behind them,鈥� Nesbitt said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 also a book about the people who found the fossils and the people who worked on the fossils.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a book about how paleontology has changed and how the science has changed in the last 50 years. It鈥檚 become much more technological, much more comparative and much more integrated into the other science fields. Hopefully I’ve got all of that into the book.鈥�

For more information, contact Nesbitt at nesbittlizanne@gmail.com.

Examining colonial roots of intersex medicine

In 鈥�,鈥� recently published by Duke University Press,听听examines how colonialism and scientific racism are inherent to contemporary intersex medicine.

Swarr听developed the book from research she started as a graduate student in the 1990s when she first came across the claim that intersex was more common among Black people than white people. As she investigated the falsity,听Swarr听met Sally Gross, the founder of Intersex South Africa, the first intersex organization on the African continent. When Gross died in 2014,听Swarr听set out to finish the book as a tribute to the work of Gross and other activists.

While听Swarr听initially thought the false claim stemmed from 1970s literature, she soon discovered the roots stretched back to the 1600s when colonizers arrived in what is now known as South Africa.

鈥淚 found echoes and traces of this claim throughout history,鈥� said Swarr, associate professor of gender, women and sexuality studies. 鈥淭he ways that intersex was racialized was striking to me. I think it鈥檚 manifested in a lot of ways, over time and in how race and gender manifest in bodies that are pathologized. You see this in museum representations and in film. There is strong historical resonance.鈥�

The topic is currently most often discussed through the treatment of intersex athletes.听Swarr听opens the book by writing about听, a South African middle-distance runner who has won two Olympic gold medals and three world championships in the 800-meter event. Semenya faces continual allegations that her body is 鈥渢oo masculine鈥� for women鈥檚 sports.

Semenya was subjected to examinations of her reproductive organs and evaluations of her chromosomes and hormones. The International Olympic Organizing Committee has prohibited her from competing unless she has surgery or pharmaceutically alters her natural testosterone levels, a decision she continues to fight.

鈥淢y book offers a perspective on the ways that racism and discrimination against those in the听听are an integral part of the conversation,鈥澨齋warr听said. 鈥淲e can鈥檛 talk about contemporary sex testing without talking about colonialism and racism.鈥�

The book also highlights the growth of the African intersex social movement, particularly with the expansion of social media.听Swarr听said there is now more of an opportunity to create community and rally for intersex justice with and for intersex people who might have otherwise been isolated.

鈥淭hey鈥檝e created educational online videos and hashtag campaigns to support folks who鈥檝e been targeted, like Caster Semenya and others who have experienced violence,鈥澨齋warr听said. 鈥淭heir ability to share their strategies and reach out to change the hearts and minds of everyday people and to influence legislation and doctors鈥� protocols has been impressive. It helps to disrupt the idea that social movements are more advanced in the Global North.鈥�

Swarr听is donating all author royalties from the book to听. The book can also be accessed听.

For more information, contact听Swarr听at听aswarr@uw.edu.

The Foundation honors six scholars nationwide for their work in advancing racial and economic justice, awarding each a $250,000 unrestricted grant. The Freedom Scholar awards were created in 2020.

Reddy specializes in challenging colonial systems, with a focus on migration, and racialized genders and sexualities. Since 2022, Reddy has been a co-editor of GLQ: A Journal of Lesbian and Gay Studies. He is the author of 鈥淔reedom with Violence: Race, Sexuality and the U.S. State,鈥� published in 2011 by Duke University Press.

鈥淪o much of the economic inequality and violence we see today, especially within and by so-called liberal democratic states, derives from U.S., British and European colonialism. And like the struggle for abolition, or Palestinian and Indigenous sovereignty, anti-racist struggles for migrant justice or community efforts to build up queer and transgender of color lifeworlds are part of a larger struggle against this ongoing colonial present. And yet our structures of knowledge and universities like the UW have obscured this reality,鈥� said Reddy, who holds affiliations with the Department of Geography, the Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies, and at the South Asia Center in the Jackson School of International Studies. Reddy also is a board member of the UW Center for Human Rights.

Reddy plans to use the award to continue to work with local groups in the region, like the Massage Parlor Outreach Project (MPOP) in Seattle鈥檚 Chinatown-International District and to complete a co-authored book with Jodi Melamed at Marquette University, 鈥淥perationalizing Colonial Racial Capitalism: On Liberalism鈥檚 Command Powers,鈥� which is under contract with Verso Press.

According to the Marguerite Casey Foundation, the Freedom Scholar awards recognize scholarship 鈥渇ocused on shifting the balance of power in society to those who have long been excluded from having it and benefiting from its rewards.鈥� Past and present recipients of the award study a range of social justice issues, including immigration, prison abolition, racial capitalism and queer liberation.

鈥淭he 2023 Freedom Scholars are at the forefront of teaching, researching and writing about shifting the balance of power in society,鈥� said Carmen Rojas, president and CEO of the Marguerite Casey Foundation. 鈥淢arguerite Casey Foundation鈥檚 Freedom Scholars award is committed to providing social and economic justice scholars room to deepen their relationship with movement leaders fighting for a multiracial democracy and just economy.鈥�

The UW鈥檚 Megan Ming Francis of the Department of Political Science and Ang茅lica Ch谩zaro of the School of Law were named Freedom Scholars in 2020 and 2021, respectively.

In addition to Reddy, this year鈥檚 recipients are faculty at Barnard College; Cal State University, Long Beach; Georgetown University; the University of California, Santa Barbara; and the University of Chicago.