Transregional Research Junior Scholar Fellowship: InterAsian Contexts and Connections & Global Summer Semester Residency at the University of Göttingen

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS

Transregional Research Junior Scholar Fellowship:
InterAsian Contexts and Connections
&
Global Summer Semester Residency
at the University of Göttingen

Applications due September 19, 2016

The Social Science Research Council is pleased to invite preliminary applications for its recently expanded and enhanced Transregional Research Junior Scholar Fellowship, funded with generous support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Following on three successful grants cycles, through which more than fifty individual fellowships totaling nearly 2 million USD have been awarded, the SSRC is continuing its transregional grants program, offering a 2016 Junior Scholar grants competition and awarding approximately twenty grants of up to $45,000 to researchers in any world region. 

In addition, working closely with the CETREN Transregional Research Network at the University of Göttingen in Germany, the SSRC is pleased to offer a new category of fellowship in 2016 – the SSRC Global Summer Semester Residencyat the University of Göttingen (residency dates April 15, 2017–July 15, 2017).Note: this award is subject to final grant approval from the German Ministry of Education and Research.

These fellowships are aimed at supporting transregional research, strengthening the understanding of issues and geographies that do not fit neatly into existing divisions of academia or the world, and developing new approaches, practices, and opportunities in international, regional, and area studies. These fellowships help junior scholars (those at the postdoctoral stage, up to five years out of the PhD) complete first books and/or undertake second projects. In addition to funding research, the fellowships will create networks and shared resources that will support fellows well beyond the grant period through intensive workshops and activities that promote transregional perspectives on individual campuses. The Transregional Research Junior Scholar Fellowship and Global Summer Semester Residency will thus provide promising scholars support at critical junctures in their careers, advance transregional research, and establish structures for linking scholars across disciplines in the arts, the humanities, and the social sciences.

The broad intellectual thrust of the fellowships will continue to be InterAsian Contexts and Connections, or the reconceptualization of Asia as an interlinked historical and geographic formation stretching from West Asia through Eurasia, Central Asia, and South Asia to Southeast Asia and East Asia. In addition, applications that explore the networks that connect Asia with Africa are encouraged for the 2016 awards cycle. Proposals should bear upon processes that connect places and peoples across the boundaries of regions and countries (such as religion, migration/diaspora, media, literature and other arts, shared access to natural resources, cultural and economic continua, and resource flows), those that reconfigure local and translocal contexts (such as shifting borders, urbanization, and social movements), and those that are situated at the nexus of the global/regional/local (such as youth culture, tourist arts, illicit flows).

Invitational priorities for the 2016–2017 Transregional Research Junior Scholar Fellowship include:  

·         Afro-Asian Connections

·         Environmental Humanities

·         Religious Networks

·         Migration & Refugees

·         Resources & Archives

This does not preclude proposals on other topics.

Invitational priorities for the 2017 Global Summer Semester Residencies include:

·         Movements of Knowledge

·         Media, Migration, and the Moving Political

·         Religious Networks

This does not preclude proposals on other topics that engage with existing research expertise at the University of Göttingen.

Transregional Research Junior Scholar Fellows will be selected through a two-part application process. Upon review of the preliminary applications submitted in September, the Selection Committee will invite select applicants to submit full narrative proposals in fall 2016. Fellowships will be awarded in spring 2017, and fellowship funds can be disbursed flexibly over the sixteen month period betweenApril 1, 2017 and August 1, 2018.

Global Summer Semester Residency fellowships will be awarded in fall 2016.

The application processes, eligibility criteria, and award amounts vary across competitions. Applications and additional fellowship details, including former fellows’ research abstracts and answers to frequently asked questions, are available on the program website at:

http://www.ssrc.org/fellowships/transregional-research-fellowship.

Regional Journal of Southeast Asian Studies (RJSEAS) - Call for Papers

The Southeast Asian Studies Regional Exchange Program (SEASREP) Foundation has launched the inaugural issue of its Regional Journal of Southeast Asian Studies (RJSEAS), an online, open access, peer-reviewed journal in English that aims to feature the work of scholars in the humanities and social sciences in the region.

For the past 21 years, SEASREP has worked with and supported the development of many scholars in the region as Southeast Asian specialists. By offering this journal, SEASREP hopes to make a more tangible contribution to the body of work on Southeast Asia. The journal is published twice a year (January and July) and features:

• Papers based on current and latest research (6,000 to 8,000 words per paper including footnotes and references); 
• Abstracts of dissertations (200-250 words per abstract);
• Bibliographic essays or commentaries on research projects/works about a given theme, national or regional; and
• Announcements of conferences or conference reports.

The theme for the July 2016 issue of RJSEAS is Plural Identities in Southeast Asia. The journal may be viewed and downloaded fromhttp://www.rjseas.org/current

Postgraduate students can submit abstracts and journal articles based on their research and dissertations. Inquiries and submissions may be sent to editor@rjseas.org.

Association for Asian Studies - Director of Outreach and Strategic Initatives

Director of Outreach and Strategic Initiatives
The Association for Asian Studies (AAS) seeks an individual to work with the AAS executive officers, board of directors and secretariat to develop specific plans for concepts outlined in the AAS strategic plan; seek foundation and other funding support for these initiatives; and develop connections with relevant institutions and individuals (universities, institutes, and scholars) to advance these initiatives.

Responsibilities cover a broad range of planning and hands-on project management tasks, including the following current initiatives and activities.

Seeking Financial Support from Institutions, Funding Agencies and Individuals: 
• Identifying possible foundation and other funders for AAS strategic plan initiatives and ongoing activities;
• Developing concept papers with AAS board, secretariat, and others that advance AAS goals and address the selected foundation’s funding priorities;
• Discussing concepts with foundation program officers to determine appropriateness, ascertain formats, deadlines, etc.;
• Drafting grant proposals in consultation with board and secretariat;
• Maintaining close contact with funding agencies and submitting follow-up reports for successful grant proposals;
• Working with AAS Councils or other entities to determine needs of the field and create named funds;
• Making personal visits or sending letters to top prospects to solicit donations;
• Organizing annual funding solicitation to AAS members and overseeing Legacy Society;
• Organizing a President’s Reception at the annual conference for individuals who have been exceptionally supportive and involved in AAS activities
Organizing AAS-in-Asia conferences and related matters: 
• Working with AAS executive officers and secretariat to identify and visit potential hosting institutions for future AAS-in-Asia conferences;
• Exploring foundation funding and sponsors for the conferences;
• Working with the AAS secretariat and host institutions in creating conference budgets, websites, call for papers, etc.;
• Helping organize program committees, as well as finalizing dates, agenda, and attending the program committee meeting;
• Working closely with host institutions on final plans/preparations/details for conferences (e.g., keynote speaker arrangements, travel subsidies, special additions to the program such as banquets, tours, etc.)

Organizing Elements of Annual Conference:
• Asia Beyond the Headlines Roundtables: With JAS editor and members of the board, seeking topics for ABH panels, suggestions for presenters to invite, and managing the logistics of their travel, publicity, etc.
• Keynote Speaker: working with Past Presidents to identify keynote speakers; drafting proposals to seek outside funding; managing travel logistics, publicity in the conference program, etc.

Planning and Coordinating Workshops:
• Emerging Fields in Asian Studies Summer Workshops, including working with board to identify themes, appropriate conveners and participants, coordinating logistical arrangements, soliciting funding support, overseeing reports and eventual publications from the workshops.
• Dissertation Workshops, liaison with board, workshop organizers, organizational partners and funding agencies.

Qualifications:
Candidates are expected to have a graduate degree in Asian Studies, have significant experience in developing and managing complex projects and in writing grant proposals, and be effective in developing and maintaining relationships with funding agencies and institutions.  Depending on location, a significant amount of domestic and international travel will be required to attend various board and committee meetings, meet with funding agencies, attend conferences and meetings in Asia, etc.

The DOSI is expected to work independently to a large degree, but consulting with the AAS executive officers and board in developing initiatives, and maintaining regular communication and collaboration with the AAS secretariat in Ann Arbor is absolutely essential to effectively implement and carry out the association’s many activities.

Salary:
This will be a .75 to 1.00 FTE position depending on eventual job description, with competitive salary and extensive benefits.

Timeframe:
We hope to interview selected candidates in the fall and make a hiring decision shortly thereafter. The expectation is for the appointee to be available for training and attending various meetings and conferences in early 2017, and be able to fully assume the position upon the retirement of the current Director of Outreach and Strategic Initiatives in June, 2017. Interested candidates should send a CV and letter of interest detailing their experience and qualifications via email bySeptember 1, 2016 to:

Michael Paschal
Executive Director
Association for Asian Studies
mpaschal@asian-studies.org
 

Fall 2016 Analyst Opportunities at The Asia Group

Burmese Language Course - Northern Illinois University Distance Learning Opportunity

Northern Illinois University (NIU) is offering beginning Burmese via distance learning, a live class conducted by Burmese language professor Tharaphi Than starting September 1, 2016. This is a non-credit course and is designed for students, professionals or others who want to learn Burmese. There are three 10-week modules, roughly equivalent to a conventional beginning Burmese course. All you need is access to the internet and the book, Colloquial Burmese by San San Hnin Tun, available through Amazon and other booksellers (ISBN-13: 978-0415517300).

Call for Papers - 2016 Council on Thai Studies Conference

Call for Papers deadline for the 2016 Council on Thai Studies conference, which will be held at Northern Illinois University Oct. 28-29. The deadline for papers is Friday, July 1. They can be submitted through Easychair (https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=cots2016).

Call for Papers: Modernity’s ‘Other’ – Disclosing Southeast Asia’s built environment across the colonial and postcolonial worlds

2nd SEAARC (Southeast Asia Architecture Research Collaborative) Symposium

5-7 January 2017

National University of Singapore

Convenors: Dr. Lee Kah-Wee, Dr. Imran Tajudeen, Dr. Chang Jiat-Hwee

Web announcement: blog.nus.edu.sg/seaarc/symposium-2017-3/

Abstract Submission Deadline: 5 July 2016

Across various disciplines, attention on the category of the “Other” has shone light on women, minorities, the poor, profane, criminal and mundane. But what and where is the category of “Others” in architectural studies? Is it to be attached to the spaces and buildings associated with these marginalized social categories? Or are there intrinsically architectural “Others” – subjects within the discipline that undergird its internal discourse through contrast and opposition – that should be opened up to interdisciplinary scrutiny? Finally, what can Southeast Asia offer to the larger intellectual debates in which the category of the “Other” has played a critical role in the last few decades?

Call For Papers - Liberalism and Empire in Southeast Asia

December 16, 2016

Australian National University

Convening committee: Anthony Milner, Gareth Knapman, Mary Quilty

Submit abstracts to Gareth.Knapman [at] anu.edu.au.

Deadline: July 18, 2016

This symposium collects the leading scholars on British colonial thought in Southeast Asia to consider the question of the relationship between liberalism and the British Empire in Southeast Asia. The empire builders in Southeast Asia: Lord Minto, William Farquhar, William Leyden, Thomas Stamford Raffles, and John Crawfurd - to name a few - were fervent believers in a liberal free trade order in Southeast Asia. Three stand out events shaped the British liberal approach to Southeast Asia: the establishment of the colony on the island of Penang, the British occupation of Java between 1811 and 1816, and the founding of Singapore. All of these events have been discussed as defining elements in the making of Southeast Asia, but have rarely been discussed as embodying the tension between empire and  liberalism. The convening committee invites abstracts broadly on the topic of liberalism and the British Empire in Southeast Asia between 1750 and 1900. There is no funding available to support airfares and accommodation. The convening committee will be publishing a selection of papers as part of an edited collection after the symposium.

Call For Papers - 15th Northeast Conference on Indonesia, In Memory of Benedict Anderson: Imagining Indonesia Across Disciplines

October 28-29, 2016

Cornell University

Keynote speaker: Mary Steedly (Harvard)

Web announcement: media.wix.com/ugd/4b9372_af11093197ec4d459cd884f2fae91c39.pdf

Deadline: July 22, 2016

The Cornell Indonesian Association invites submissions of abstracts for this conference on Indonesia, hosted in cooperation with the Yale Indonesian Forum. The organizers welcome abstracts for the following four areas of studies: science and technology; sociology, anthropology, and history; economics and politics; and language, arts, culture and religion. 

Indonesian Social Media Analyst - COLSA Corporation

Application website: colsa.silkroad.com/

Tracking Code: 857-987

COLSA Corporation is seeking applicants for a Social Media Analyst (Indonesian) position in Tampa, FL to support U.S. Pacific Command (USPACOM). The selected applicants will read, analyze, and draft daily communications in English regarding regional and ideological discussions in the Indonesian language media environments. Fluency in Indonesian reading and written communications (ILR level 3 or higher). Must possess strong English communication and writing skills. US Citizenship required and the ability to obtain and maintain a Department of Defense Security Clearance.

Research Fellowship (three years) - University of Sydney

Web announcement: sydney.edu.au/southeast-asia-centre/

Deadline: July 25, 2016

The University of Sydney Fellowships are for outstanding early career researchers. Applications are encouraged from any discipline, faculty or research area. Applicants will need to find a University of Sydney academic sponsor who is field-appropriate and contact them directly before initiating the application process through the relevant center, such as Sydney's Southeast Asia Centre.

Professional Position: Lao National Researcher, International Institute of Social Studies

Web announcement: www.iss.nl/about_iss/vacancies/

Deadline: 27 June 2016

The International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) has a vacancy for a Lao National researcher (full time, 18 months). The researcher will be working on an ESRC/DfID funded project entitled 'Education systems, aspiration and learning in remote rural settings', led by Dr Nicola Ansell (Brunel), Dr Peggy Froerer (Brunel), Dr Roy Huijsmans (ISS) and Prof Ian Rivers (Strathclyde). The overall project will examine the relationship between aspiration and schooling in remote rural areas of Lesotho, India and Laos.

University of Pittsburgh Invites Applications for Endowed Chair of Asian History

U.S. Department of State Exchange Program

“Building Think Tank Influence and Effectiveness ,” a Professional Fellows On-Demand Exchange Program funded by the U.S. Department of State and implemented by World Learning. This exchange program encourages the study of existing and emerging international bodies in Asia and their efforts to address national, regional, and global challenges. 

For more information: https://worldlearninginnovanddev.wufoo.com/forms/zo2obgd1v6i0fn/

SEA RESEARCH OPPORTUNITY: University of Sydney Fellowship Scheme

The University of Sydney Fellowships aim to attract outstanding early career researchers to the University of Sydney to contribute to and enhance its research strengths and culture.
Why join us?
Applications are welcome and encouraged from any discipline, faculty or research area. A particular objective of the 2017 round, however, is to attract talented recent doctoral graduates who can contribute to our whole-of-university multidisciplinary initiatives, broadly construed. Recipients of the University of Sydney Fellowships will be members of the Sydney Society of Fellows, and will be affiliated to a faculty and one of the University’s multidisciplinary centres (of which the Sydney Southeast Asia Centre is one).
Funding
The University of Sydney Fellowships will be available from January 2017 for a maximum duration of three years, with a starting salary at Level A8 of the University’s Academic salary scale (A$94,174 plus 17% superannuation) and research support of A$25,000.
How to apply

1.    Read the University of Sydney Fellowship guidelines (at http://sydney.edu.au/research_support/funding/sydney/postdoctoral_fellowship.shtml)

2.    Find a University of Sydney academic sponsor who is field-appropriate for you and contact them directly

3.    After sponsor approval is obtained, complete an Expression of Interest and submit to the Centre Director (michele.ford@sydney.edu.au)

4.    Await approval from the Centre Director (or nominated representative)

5.    Apply online

6.    Note: You should not commence an online application until you have been endorsed by the Centre Director

7.    A confidential referee report must be sent to j.small@sydney.edu.au by 25th July 2016

CLOSING DATE: 25th July 2016. Please note: Applicants must submit the Expression of Interest to the Centre Director or nominated representative by 17th June 2016.