Jan/Feb 2015 by SPAN magazine

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015 Rs. 20

iculating Trends Libraries Turn Into Makerspaces Transmedia Storytelling Art as Ambassador

Girl Rising he United States Agency for International Development (USAID) announced its support for a public-private partnership in India for “Girl Rising,” a global campaign to promote girls’ education, at an event at the New Delhi American Center in November. USAID had earlier announced $3 million to support the program worldwide. The Girl Rising: ENGAGE INDIA (Empowering New Generations to Advance Girls’ Education) program will work to raise awareness and change attitudes related to girls’ education through local language releases of the feature film “Girl Rising.” This partnership will reach

RAKESH MALHOTRA

millions worldwide and include teaching materials that highlight the stories of nine girls born into difficult circumstances in nine countries around the world. Actors Priyanka Chopra (third from right) and Freida Pinto (second from right), both Girl Rising ambassadors, attended the event at the American Center. “If more girls are educated, all of India stands to gain. We all stand to gain,” Chopra said. Pinto said that too often, “it is social and traditional ideas that are holding girls back. People just can’t imagine a different future for girls. Girl Rising changes that.” http://goo.gl/uqB8wh

January/February 2015

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Courtesy Madison Public Library

V O LU M E LV I N U M B E R 1

Taking the Smithsonian to the World By Steve Fox

Intercultural Education for 21st Century America By Liz Jackson and Wesley Teter

Libraries Reinvent Themselves as Makerspaces By Steve Fox

East Meets Wild West By Carrie Loewenthal Massey

Transmedia Storytelling By Candice Yacono

ReACTing to a Cause By Anne Walls

Art as Ambassador By Michael Gallant

Q&A With Daniel Markey By Giriraj Agarwal

Art

Courtesy Art in Embassies

To Lure Young Readers, Nonfiction Writers Sanitize and Simplify By Alexandra Alter

Publisher Walter T. Douglas

Editor in Chief David Mees

Editor Deepanjali Kakati Associate Editor Suparna Mukherji Hindi Editor Giriraj Agarwal Urdu Editor Syed Sulaiman Akhtar Copy Editors Raktima Bose, Shah Md. Tahsin Usmani Editorial Asssistant Yugesh Mathur

Art Director Hemant Bhatnagar Deputy Art Directors Qasim Raza, Shah Faisal Khan Production/Circulation Manager Alok Kaushik Printing Assistantt Manish Gandhi Web Manager Chetna Khera

18 Front cover: Illustration by Hemant Bhatnagar, photographs © Getty Images, courtesy DeLaMare Science and Engineering Library

Research Services Bureau of International Information Programs, The American Library

Beyond Rankings and Prestige By Don Martin and Wesley Teter

Hiking to Paradise By Michael Gallant

Reading South Asia By Paromita Pain

36 Travel

KARL JOHNSON/Courtesy Flickr

Nonfiction

Smithsonian

Makerspaces

Published by the Public Affairs Section, American Center, 24 Kasturba Gandhi Marg, New Delhi 110001 (phone: 23472000), on behalf of the U.S. Embassy, New Delhi. Printed at Thomson Press India Limited, 18/35, Delhi Mathura Road, Faridabad, Haryana 121007. Opinions expressed in this 44-page magazine do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the U.S. Government. Articles with a star may be reprinted with permission. Those without a star are copyrighted and may not be reprinted. Contact SPAN at 011-23472135 or editorspan@state.gov

Libraries Reinvent Themselves as

PETE PRODOEHL/Courtesy Flickr

Across the United States, libraries are turning into business and artistic incubators.

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Makerspaces By STEVE FOX

Barack Obama’s Educate to Innovate initiative and his call to “think about new and creative ways to engage young people in science and engineering...encourage young people to create and build and invent—to be makers of things, not just consumers of things.” While there is no official estimate of how many of America’s roughly 120,000 libraries have created makerspaces, the trend is widely recognized.

Milwaukee Makerspace Library, which aims to foster a community of makers by providing an environment—in terms of people, equipment and space—that supports creativity and personal growth.

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MAKERSPACES

ibraries are silent, solemn places where people read quietly and shush anyone who dares to talk, right? Not anymore. Academic and public libraries throughout the United States are reinventing themselves as makerspaces—gathering places where people build things; incubate businesses; create art, music and movies; develop software programs and, generally, let their imaginations run free. The rapidly growing makerspace movement aligns with President

Photographs courtesy DeLaMare Science and Engineering Library

“

A vast amount of the world’s knowledge resides in other people’s heads. Makerspaces are a way of getting that knowledge shared.

”

Tod Colegrove

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“American libraries are not just passive repositories for information. They’re becoming a lot more interactive,” says American Library Association President Courtney Young. “Our society is at a critical juncture in terms of supplying the information and skills people need to thrive in a rapidly changing world, and libraries have an increasing role as positive environments where people can learn and grow and create.” Makerspaces, also known as fablabs— shortened from fabrication laboratories— and hacker spaces, can be as simple as collections of tables and chairs where patrons work together, or as comprehensive as dedicated workshops crammed with computers, 3D printers, vinyl cutters, carpentry tools, program boards, musical instruments,

audio equipment, sewing machines, craft materials and more. Makerspaces enable libraries to move away from a transactional model of checking books out to more transformative models centered on what Young describes as “skill sharing, collaborative learning and hands-on practice.” With many books and publications now available online, libraries had to re-examine their purpose and mission, says Tod Colegrove, director of the DeLaMare Science and Engineering Library at the University of Nevada in Reno. “Libraries got engaged in this space race, all scrambling to build these enormous collections of completely identical books,” says Colegrove. “That makes sense if there’s no way to share those books, but it makes

Above left and below left: A 3D printer and 3D printed models at DeLaMare Science and Engineering Library. Above: Engineering students of Carson High School in Nevada get a hands-on experience of 3D scanning, 3D printing, laser cutting and engraving, using Google Glass, MakeyMake kits and Google Liquid Galaxy at DeLaMare Science and Engineering Library. Above right: Tod Colegrove works with a student at the DeLaMare Library. Below: The makerspace at Westport Library in Connecticut.

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no sense at all if there is a way to share them. Moreover, a vast amount of the world’s knowledge resides in other people’s heads. Makerspaces are a way of getting that knowledge shared.” The academic library Colegrove took over in 2010 had a comprehensive collection of technical journals, and a problem. “At any given time, I would see maybe three people in the library,” he says. After a study revealed that students and faculty primarily used electronic versions of the library’s publications, Colegrove’s team warehoused low-usage items, gaining room that they filled with surplus furniture. Money was tight, so they painted the library walls with whiteboard paint, encouraging students to draw and doodle. Patrons were

DeLaMare Science and Engineering Library www.delamare.unr.edu

Fayetteville Free Library http://fflib.org

President Obama’s remarks at the National Academy of Sciences Courtesy Westport Library

http://goo.gl/k89fvH

Library Makerspaces http://goo.gl/x8dg5W

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

Photographs courtesy Madison Public Library

Top: A wall covered with artwork by participants of The Big Draw, a festival that brought together people around informal art-making, at The Bubbler Room in Madison Public Library, Wisconsin. The library created a free makerspace program in 2013, called The Bubbler. The classes were initially popup events held at locations throughout Madison and taught by local artists. With the re-opening of the Central Madison Public Library in 2014, new public meeting spaces and collaborative areas were created to bring The Bubbler into the physical library space. Above: Participants at a Big Draw event. Below: An after-hours photo exhibition at the Central Madison Public Library.

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allowed to bring in food. “We developed relationships with other makerspaces and one thing led to another,” Colegrove explains. “We added equipment for 3D scanning and printing. We added computer workstations. It built from there. Now there’s a lot of creative energy and we have 200 to 250 users on any given day. We’re actively exploring what it means to be a library in the 21st century. It’s not just about books. It’s about engaging with the community.” “Students loved the 3D printers. Somebody printed out a brain and somebody printed out a little V-8 engine that was primitive but you could see the pistons rising and falling and the crankshaft turning,” says Patrick Smith, a student who visits the DeLaMare Science and Engineering Library regularly. “This place encourages you to meet the strangers next to you, and that really matters. We can learn a lot from books but the true expansion of our intellectual abilities is through others who are interested in doing similar things.” The makerspace movement, which now encompasses all types of libraries, was

pioneered, in part, by the Fayetteville Free Library, a public library in a small village in upstate New York. “We take a lot of risks in our programming,” says Fayetteville Free Library’s executive director Susan Considine, who was honored as a White House Champion of Change in 2013. “We respond directly to our community, asking them what their dreams and aspirations are and then aligning our resources to meet their goals.” Fayetteville Free Library’s makerspaces target all ages, with its Little Makers area intended to facilitate the development of critical thinking, problem solving and STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) skills in children aged 5 to 8 years. “Libraries are ideal places for this type of learning to happen,” says Considine. “Libraries serve people for their entire lifespan, from youngsters to old age. There’s no reason for us to simply be passive consumers of information when we can come to the library and make things.” Steve Fox is a freelance writer, former newspaper publisher and reporter based in Ventura, California.

EastMeets WildWest By CARRIE LOEWENTHAL MASSEY

Nina McConigley

Courtesy Nina McConigley

writes of Indian life in Wyoming.

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LITERATURE

he contrast couldn’t have been starker. A 15 degree Celsius, breezy fall day gives way, 24 hours later, to a minus 27 degrees Celsius freeze. “We skipped a season!” says Nina McConigley, a writer, professor and resident of Laramie, Wyoming—the site of the dramatic temperature drop. The disparate temperatures are a fitting metaphor for the contrasts with which McConigley grew up. The daughter of an Indian mother and an Irish father, McConigley looks and identifies as Indian. But, she spent her childhood in the American West, in this land of sudden, temperature changes. And, she writes about the seeming 180-degree difference between the Eastern culture and Western lifestyle that juxtaposed to define her life. “I think because we were so isolated in Wyoming—there were hardly any other Indians and it’s the least populated state—my mom worked pretty hard to bring Indian culture. We ate with our hands, ate Indian food every day; and our house was very Indian, filled with tapestries and Ganesh statues,” says McConigley. “But I’m also a really rural person. I’m actually not even so much American as I am Wyoming.” McConigley’s aptly-titled collection of short stories, “Cowboys and East Indians,” which won the 2014 PEN Open Book Award, explores the themes unique to her perspective: what it’s like to look different from everyone else, yet feel more at home in the place you live than in the place of your roots; how it feels to travel back to your family’s home country; what Indian family and relationship values look like against a rural American backdrop. Her new work is in progress: a novel set in 1980s’ Wyoming in which two families live together and a murder transpires. “It’s perhaps

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Nina McConigley http://ninamcconigley.com

2014 PEN Open Book Award http://goo.gl/2FwWN1

Hyderabad Literary Festival Courtesy Nina McConigley

http://www.hydlitfest.org

“

I don’t know what the real India is though, because everyone has a unique experience of it, of any place. I think you’ll never know what the real of anything is.

”

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an immigrant story—with a mystery,” she says. In January, McConigley will participate in the Hyderabad Literary Festival, where she will share more about her background, her journey as a writer and her literary works. The journey she’ll speak of has taken her around the globe, but has always taken her back to her home state, where she currently teaches Indian literature at the University of Wyoming. McConigley began writing seriously in her 20’s as she worked a series of odd jobs—barista, waitress and insurance agent, to name a few. She ultimately decided to pursue a Master of Fine Arts degree in creative writing at the University of Houston. “I purposely went to Houston to work with the writer Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, who was my thesis advisor. I wanted to work with her because I didn’t want to spend any time in workshops explaining what dal was or other aspects of Indian culture. She helped me figure out what story I wanted to tell, which was being an Indian in Wyoming,” McConigley says. Before she finished her story collection, McConigley spent a year being Indian in India. She lived in Chennai, where she worked at a publishing house called Tara Books. She describes the first few months as a major adjustment: walking to work,

riding a bicycle in traffic and bargaining for food on the street were all new. But the rest of the experience was “amazing.” It formed the basis for her story, “Curating Your Life,” in which the protagonist struggles with her identity as an Indian American living in India. “The character has a much harder time than I did, but she is always yearning to see the real India, which is something I’ve thought about,” says McConigley. “I don’t know what the real India is though, because everyone has a unique experience of it, of any place. I think you’ll never know what the real of anything is.” McConigley’s visit to Hyderabad will give her the chance to read in India for the first time, which is “pretty much my life dream,” she says. Spending a bit more time in India on a regular basis would be nice too, though she doubts she could ever completely leave Wyoming, even with its drastic temperature changes. “I love love love love the Wyoming landscape. I can’t imagine living in a place where I can’t see mountains everyday and have open space,” McConigley says. “But if I could spend January through May in India and the rest of the year in Wyoming, that would be the perfect life.” Carrie Loewenthal Massey is a New York City-based freelance writer.

To Lure Young Readers,

Nonfiction Writers Sanitize and Simplify

f all the horrors Louis Zamperini endured during World War II—a plane crash into the Pacific, 47 days stranded at sea, two years in a prisoner-of-war camp—the one experience that truly haunted him was when a Japanese guard tortured and killed an injured duck. The episode, recounted in Laura Hillenbrand’s best seller “Unbroken,” also traumatized many readers, Hillenbrand said. So when she was writing a new edition aimed at young adults, she left that scene out. “I know that if I were 12 and reading it, that would upset me,” Hillenbrand said. Inspired by the booming market for young adult novels, a growing number of biographers and historians are retrofitting their works to make them palatable for younger readers. Prominent nonfiction writers like Hillenbrand, Jon Meacham and Rick Atkinson are now grappling with how to handle unsettling or controversial material in their books as they try to win over this impressionable new audience. And these slimmed-down, simplified and sometimes sanitized editions of popular nonfiction titles are fast becoming a vibrant, growing and lucrative niche. Publishers are unleashing a flood of these books. Meacham recently published his first children’s book, a version of his 759-page biography of Thomas Jefferson tailored to readers 10 and older. Atheneum

Books for Young Readers will publish a photo-heavy, four volume version of Oliver Stone and Peter Kuznick’s controversial and revisionist 750-page book, “The Untold History of the United States,” aimed at fifth to ninth graders. [In November 2014], Mark Kurlansky, who has published illustrated children’s editions of his best-selling nonfiction books “Cod” and “Salt,” [released] a 10-and-up version of his 2012 biography of Clarence Birdseye, the frozen food pioneer. It can be hard to maintain the drama and nuance of historical narratives while targeting the under 13 crowd. Meacham said he had a lengthy debate with his publisher over how to describe Jefferson’s sexual relationship with his slave Sally Hemings. “For a fifth or sixth grader, how do you explain an illicit relationship between master and slave, and be honest, but not send them screaming?” said Meacham, a Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer. “It’s hard From The New York Times, October 7, 2014. Copyright © 2014 The New York Times Company. All rights reserved. Used by permission and protected by the Copyright Laws of the United States.

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NONFICTION

By ALEXANDRA ALTER

enough to do it for grown-ups.” “D Day,” a recent children’s title carved out of “The Guns at Last Light,” Atkinson’s 877-page history of World War II, omits explicit descriptions of the carnage on the Normandy beaches. “Sure, it lost some of its impact,” Atkinson said of the book, recast for 8 to 12-year-olds. “But that was the point.” Despite such hurdles, more of these titles are coming [in 2015], including young readers’ editions of “The Boys in the Boat,” Daniel James Brown’s No. 1 best seller about an American rowing team at the 1936 Berlin Olympics; “Far From the Tree,” Andrew Solomon’s lengthy, wrenching study of how families cope with children who suffer from disabilities like deafness, dwarfism, Down syndrome and schizophrenia; and “Quiet,” Susan Cain’s best-selling study of introverts. (While the adult version of “Quiet” focused on challenges introverts face at work and as parents, the children’s edition will feature advice for introverts on how to handle school and extracurricular activities.) Still, some educators and literacy experts question whether dedicated children’s editions of best-selling adult titles are really necessary, or even a good idea. Before such books existed, avid young readers would often just pick up the adult version, and many still do. “A well-rounded teen who reads on a high level would probably do well to read the adult version of these books,” said Angela Frederick, a public school librarian in Nashville. Some librarians continue to push the adult version of a book even when a children’s edition is available, if the adaptation oversimplifies things. “If they’re cutting out controversy and assuming that teens aren’t able to absorb some of these bigger ideas, we go back to the adult version,” said Chris Shoemaker, president of the Young Adult Library Services Association. In migrating into children’s publishing, nonfiction authors are following blockbuster novelists like James Patterson, John Grisham, Carl Hiaasen and David Baldacci, who have already made the jump into the children’s book market with original novels. 10 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

PhotosNormandie/Courtesy Flickr

seller “Fast Food Nation,” has sold more than 300,000 copies. Publishers have another potential audience in mind for these books: adults who have embraced children’s fiction and may be too intimidated or busy to read a 900-page nonfiction tome. “Adults are now so used to reading young adult books that there may be some nice crossover,” Horowitz said. A book like Hillenbrand’s “Unbroken,” which is written in straightforward prose and tells the dramatic story of Mr. Zamperini’s repeated escapes from death during World War II, seems like a story that both adults and teenage readers could readily digest. Since its publication in 2010, the book has sold nearly four million copies. Hillenbrand said she often hears from teenagers and children as young as 10 who read and liked it. “Some kids dive right into the adult edition,” she said. But she still saw a need for a

dedicated children’s book two years ago after hearing regularly from teachers, librarians and parents who wanted a simpler version of the story. While many authors who publish young readers editions team up with children’s book authors who act as ghostwriters, Hillenbrand spent about a year writing the young adult version of “Unbroken” herself, cutting the story in half. Zamperini, who died in July [2014] at age 97, didn’t live to see the children’s version of “Unbroken,” which [was published in November 2014]. But he helped shape it. Hillenbrand solicited around 200 questions from teenagers and posed 40 or so to Zamperini during an interview that lasted about two hours. The questions ranged from how to deal with bullying at school to how to survive a shark attack. She also asked teachers and librarians how to handle the darker chapters from Zamperini’s life. With a few exceptions, she kept most of the violence, but edited down the torture scenes and cut the occasional profanity. “The biggest question I had was: How do you deal with really tough material like someone getting beaten up in a P.O.W. camp?” she said. “They all said, leave it in, the kids are ready for this.” Alexandra Alter is a publishing-industry reporter with The New York Times.

Young Adult Library Services Association http://www.ala.org/yalsa/

Association of American Publishers http://www.publishers.org/

Louis Zamperini http://www.louiszamperini.net/

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They are also following the money. While the publishing industry overall remains in a slump, sales of children’s books have exploded, driven in part by adult readers who devour series like “Harry Potter” and “The Hunger Games.” Revenue from children’s and young adult books jumped 30 percent in the first quarter of [2014] compared with the same period [in 2013]. Meanwhile, adult fiction and nonfiction sales dipped nearly 4 percent, according to the Association of American Publishers. The number of new children’s and young adult titles has surged, to nearly 12,000 in 2013, up from 5,944 a decade ago, according to Bowker, which tracks releases. But until fairly recently, trade publishers focused on fiction and largely overlooked the market for nonfiction books aimed at young adults, ceding subjects like history, science and biography to textbook publishers. “You used to go to the nonfiction children’s section in a bookstore and often they just had dinosaur books and potty books,” said Beverly Horowitz, vice president and publisher of Delacorte Press. Nonfiction books for kids now take on a wider range of topics and literary forms, with memoirs, self-help, narratives, and portraits of complex contemporary figures like the Apple co-founder Steve Jobs and the Pakistani teenager Malala Yousafzai, who was shot by the Taliban for her activism on education for girls. “Not everybody wants to read about vampires and dystopia,” said Steve Sheinkin, who has written original children’s books about the Civil War and the atomic bomb. “Some kids want to read about World War II or spies, and that was an underserved area for young readers.” Young readers editions of popular titles offer publishers and writers a way to squeeze out more sales and extend their brands. One of the earliest breakout books in this category, “Chew on This,” a kids’ version of Eric Schlosser’s best-

Transmedia By CANDICE YACONO

Sharing a story across multiple platforms using the latest digital technologies. ne of the most unifying developments of the Internet age has been the rise of transmedia storytelling—a way in which entertainment franchises have been able to immerse fans in their universes across a seemingly limitless array of media. From “Game of Thrones” to tiny indie games, transmedia has become a pillar of marketing and storytelling efforts. Henry Jenkins, professor of communication, journalism, cinematic arts and education at the University of Southern California, defines the term transmedia as a set of relationships across multiple media platforms. “Ideally, this creates a context where each medium makes a distinctive and unique contribution to our understanding of the whole,” he says. “It is narrative in concert: the process of

Courtesy Henry Jenkins

O Henry Jenkins

“

A key trend right now has been the

internationalization of transmedia, and

India, we suspect, will play a major role there, given the size and reach of the Indian media industries.

”

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Illustration by HEMANT BHATNAGAR. Photograph © Getty Images

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Prelude to Axanar http://goo.gl/Uh0WfM

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The Lizzie Bennet Diaries

Case study of “The Matrix” http://goo.gl/VQ8RLE

The Maester’s Path

DIGITAL MEDIA

http://vimeo.com/29285256

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Courtesy Jeff Gomez

The Maester’s Path BO hired Campfire Media to build a marketing campaign to persuade fans of the “Game of Thrones” book series the TV show wasn’t going to spoil their literary experience, and Campfire Media hired Andrea Phillips to help develop the campaign. “We got lots of reference material from the show to work with—pictures, video, scripts, even some real props,” says Phillips. The project was titled “The Maester’s Path.” “That was an unusual situation; we weren’t allowed to invent characters or story ourselves because it might eventually contradict or conflict with the main story.” Instead, Phillips and her team developed games and apps which allowed visitors to explore the realm,

search for raiders, and take part in a 3D audio experience and glean gossip. Some influencers were given the opportunity to taste dishes from the books, through food trucks in Los Angeles and New York. “We even made real wooden chests to send to a few lucky people,” Phillips says. “They had scents in them, and you could mix together three to evoke the scent of a place in the story world—pear brandy, wood beams and crusty bread for the Inn at the Crossroads, for example.” Within two days of receipt, bloggers and influencers had blasted on their social networks about the show. By the time the show premiered, a strong fan base had locked in to the concept and was ready to view and share it. —C.Y.

Jeff Gomez

conveying messages, themes or storylines to a mass audience through the artful and well-planned use of multiple media platforms,” says Jeff Gomez, CEO of Starlight Runner Entertainment. His company’s projects have included the worlds of “Pirates of the Caribbean,” “Avatar” and “Transformers.” “This method is distinguished by the fact that each piece of content has something of importance to add to the audience’s experience of the story world. Also, the audience is invited to respond to the narrative in some way,” Gomez adds. “I think we’ve always enjoyed the feeling of being a part of something,” says Andrea Phillips, transmedia writer and author, whose work has included introducing the world of “Game of Thrones” to audiences before the TV show’s release. “There is an even greater hunger now than when I started transmedia practice, for story content to express itself the way that young people have come to consume it,” Gomez says. “We can’t simply repeat our stories everywhere any more because there is so much choice that our audiences are no longer forced to sit down and watch the same thing over and 14 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

over again. We need to be more powerfully and immersively engaged.” Jenkins, Phillips and Gomez cite “The Lizzie Bennet Diaries” as an example of a successful transmedia campaign. The web series retold “Pride and Prejudice” to modern audiences using several social media platforms, and won the first Primetime Emmy ever awarded to a web series. “The main platform was Lizzie Bennet’s video diary, but over the course of the project, a few other characters did their own videos as well. Several characters were on Twitter or Tumblr,

and a couple of websites went up for companies that existed in the story,” says Phillips.

A long history The term transmedia was invented in 1991 by professor Marsha Kinder at the University of Southern California. “There has been a long history of combining media in telling stories,” says Jenkins. “In many cases, we had transmedia characters who had discrete stories in each media—say, cartoon characters who appear in comics, television or radio series, and big screen features, but who

One connected world “The Internet has everything to do with how powerful transmedia techniques have become at engaging mass audiences,” says Gomez. “Young people are no longer content with experiencing tiny portions of their favorite aspirational

Courtesy Andrea Phillips

story worlds. They want to dive deep into them, learn new things about them, speculate, gossip, argue and express themselves creatively about them.” In some cases, viewers create their own original works based in established universes, such as fan fiction and character art on sites like deviantart.com, or even entire computer games or films, such as the upcoming short film “Prelude to Axanar,” based in the “Star Trek” universe. The film’s creators crowdfunded its production and hired actors who have already appeared in “Star Trek” episodes. Jenkins describes two models that U.S. creators have adhered to in their transmedia work: the mothership model, in which a film or television show is central to the experience, while being promoted through other media, and the alternate reality model, in which many media outlets are used to share fragments of an unknown world, while the viewer collects these pieces and assembles them into a whole. “ ‘The Matrix’ is a key example which excited the industry about the potential and risks of transmedia,” says Jenkins. The franchise was one of the first in the United States to adopt the mixed media model, but turned out to be ahead of its time. Major plot details had to be gleaned from other sources, so less hardcore viewers felt left in the dark because they did not locate all of the other plot elements. Kevin Feige’s Marvel Cinematic Universe has become a juggernaut in the transmedia industry, with a web of characters that extends across film, TV and mini-series, comics, and a web series. “For example, a character in ‘Captain

Andrea Phillips

America: Winter Soldier’ walks onto the TV screen in ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ a day later in story time to continue her work,” says Phillips.

Potential in India “The Bollywood industry in India has been slow to develop transmedia narrative practices, but music in Indian media has always had a transmedia or at least cross-media logic, where songs often circulate far in advance of the films...and where amateur performances of those musical numbers play a very vital role in the culture,” says Jenkins. “So, a key trend right now has been the internationalization of transmedia, and India, we suspect, will play a major role there, given the size and reach of the Indian media industries.” Candice Yacono is a magazine and newspaper writer based in southern California. Courtesy Axanar Productions

do not seem to remember what happens to them from episode to episode.” However, Phillips adds, simply broadcasting the same episode of a TV show across multiple devices, like a tablet, TV and phone, doesn’t count as transmedia. Jenkins cites creators like Walt Disney, who added amusement parks to allow fans to immerse themselves in the Disney universe, and George Lucas, whose LucasArts video and computer games have allowed fans of his franchises, like “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones,” to explore additional stories and become favorite characters since the 1980’s. “More recently, doing transmedia work was very much a function of marketing,” says Phillips. “For a period of several years, starting in the late 2000’s, there were a lot of alternate reality games or expanded experiences for films like ‘The Dark Knight’ and ‘District 9,’ the TV show ‘Heroes,’ my own work on ‘Game of Thrones’ and the movie ‘2012,’ etc. But, that creative work appears to be steadily moving out of the hands of the marketing department and into the same writers and producers who conceived the main show itself.” Gomez adds that the storyteller is and always will be at the heart of transmedia content development.

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

Right: A student of Hope College in Michigan introduces the ReACT! actors before a performance. Bottom: ReACT!’s cast of actors for Fall semester 2014.

ReACTing to a By ANNE WALLS

ith the huge increase in reported sexual assaults across college campuses in the United States, students are being encouraged to speak up. But one university in Michigan is asking its students to act up—in front of their peers. The students have formed a theater group called ReACT! to make sexual assault and gender-based violence topics the whole campus not only sees, but is forced to react to. Grand Valley State University is by all accounts like any other academic institution— lots of sports teams, campus events and majors ranging from accounting to writing. But there’s something a little out of the ordinary brewing in its theater department. It’s all due to a creative professor named Alli Metz. In 2009, when assistant professor Metz was relatively new to both the university and the theater department, she came up with an idea for a program designed to raise awareness about interpersonal violence, stalking and sexual assault, all onstage. Metz helped secure a grant from the U.S. State Department as part of the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 and the new program, which her first class of students

named ReACT!, was born. Inspired by a similar program at The University of Texas at Austin, called Voices Against Violence, ReACT! classes cover both violence prevention and theater technique. Don’t mistake ReACT! for “drama therapy.” Metz makes sure all participants are comfortable covering and often acting out the sensitive subject material, and are not forced to relive what may be painful memories. “My challenge is to do as the grant requires, to cover certain content, avoid just communicating correct answers in a presentation-like format, and raise questions—which is natural to theater—while recognizing that this can create tension with what the grant specifies. We’re all about raising questions to get the audience to come up with their own answers,” Metz says. According to a Grand Valley State University newsletter, “When trained students join the actual ReACT! performing group, they receive payment, which aids accountability, enhances professionalism and, for some, incentivizes the taking of the course in the first place.” This means students have to first take a ReACT! class as part of their regular course

We’re all about raising questions to get the audience to come up with their own answers. 16 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

Photographs by ALLISON MANVILLE METZ

Cause University theater raises awareness on gender-based violence. ReACT! http://goo.gl/mMYQ5R

Violence Against Women Act, 1994 http://goo.gl/T5rSNf

Voices Against Violence http://goo.gl/BsIBx7

Guerilla Theater http://goo.gl/7vWRQs

Grand Valley State University newsletter http://goo.gl/B5oKXp

Anne Walls is a writer and filmmaker based in Los Angeles, California.

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GENDER VIOLENCE

Now that ReACT! has established itself as a barrier-breaking class on campus, they’re taking their show on the road. A new program called Guerilla Theater has grown out of ReACT!. Participating student actors engage in public performance art in various places on campus, buses or anywhere else the actors can secure a captive audience. Once their performance begins, the actors interact on sexuallycharged subject matter, often building to an explosive result, which leaves unsuspecting audience members deeply affected by what they’ve just seen. One bus performance, for example, “had to do with a ‘rape joke,’ ” says Metz. “It really had to do with the power of language.” Two actors rode on the bus, one of them speaking loudly about a difficult test. At one point, she declared the test had “raped” her. Her “friend”—another actor—argued with her, saying she shouldn’t use that sort of language. All of this played out in a very small environment where other riders couldn’t help but hear—and react. “The audience all thought it was real. Conversations that were happening after the scene really sparked a dialogue,” says Metz. “We’re getting people to think about it,” she adds. “We like to raise questions; we don’t necessarily even say that we know the answers.”

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curriculum, and it’s for all students, not just theater majors. Then they’re able to audition for the ReACT! performing group and get paid for their art. Since 2010, ReACT!’s peer theater educators have performed before thousands of college students and social service providers across Michigan. At Grand Valley State University, “we see increased reports of sexual assault, which may not seem like a good thing, but it is. Addressing under-reporting is important,” says Metz. She hopes that getting exposure to a program like ReACT! will enable students to be resources and support systems for their friends, maybe even prevent many of these instances from happening. “When someone discloses to an individual about an assault, lots of people tend to want to ‘rescue’ the survivor and give them a ‘to do’ list that includes seeking medical attention, pressing criminal charges, etc.,” says Metz. “Although that rescuer’s intentions are good, the best and most empowering thing you can do for a survivor is simply listen to them, empathize, and support any action that the survivor wants to take.”

Art as Ambassador By MICHAEL GALLANT

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Five decades strong, the Art in Embassies program builds bridges within communities around the world.

Photographs courtesy Art in Embassies

or Virginia Shore, international diplomacy is about more than treaties and trade agreements, speeches and summits. Rather, when it comes to building bridges between nations, paintings, drawings and sculptures are her tools of choice. Shore serves as the chief curator for Art in Embassies, an expansive program that places a diverse array of visual artworks

in American diplomatic buildings. In fact, she and her team oversee the installation of artworks in U.S. embassies, consulates and ambassador’s residences around the world, curating meticulouslyplanned exhibitions—both temporary and permanent—with each space and host country in mind. To create its exhibits, Art in Embassies

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ART

Left: Kiki Smith’s “Moon with Stars II,” 2004 (left), and Vibha Galhotra’s “Untitled (Veil),” 2011 (right) exhibited at the U.S. Consulate in Mumbai. Below: Installation of Kiki Smith’s “Moon with Stars II,” a striking sculpture of the moon edged by much smaller stars. The bronze lends itself well to the aged, beautiful surface of the moon.

Yamini Nayar’s photograph, “By a Thread,” is a temporary architectural installation at the U.S. Consulate in Mumbai. Image fragments are combined to create visually striking works that blur the boundaries between sculpture, collage and installation art.

Image courtesy of the artist. Yamini Nayar (born 1975, Detroit, Michigan), By a Thread, 2009, C-print.

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Art in Embassies www.art.state.gov

Mari Gardner http://www.marigardner.com/

Subhankar Banerjee http://www.subhankarbanerjee.org

commissions and chooses works from both American artists and those who call a host country home. The result? Eyecatching collections for sure—but, more importantly, ones that, in Shore’s words, provide international audiences with a sense of the quality, scope and diversity of both countries’ art and culture. Take, for example, a wall sculpture created by Sanford Biggers at the American Embassy in Madagascar. Hewn from metal and shaped in the form of a lotus, the sculpture reveals a deeper meaning upon closer examination. “The petals of the flower are laser cutout rows of figures resembling paper dolls and based on diagrams of the hull of a ship,” says Shore. Similarly, works installed in buildings within India carry their own deeper meanings. “For the consulate in Mumbai, we worked with Indian-born artist, Subhankar Banerjee, who calls himself an eco-critical photographer, artist, educator and activist,” says Shore. “His images of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and other Alaska wild lands have received attention globally. His landscapes document the changes in the migratory patterns of the animals as a result of climate change and oil drilling in the Refuge.” “These are examples of the ways the art can inspire conversation about issues and concerns in our country and the host country,” Shore adds. Often, Art in Embassies provides opportunities for cultural exchanges that go deeper than the artwork itself. During a trip to Swaziland, American artist Mari Gardner worked with local residents from the AIDS Support Center to record their stories and capture photographic selfportraits. The audio recordings were then played back as the portraits were projected as part of an installation at the U.S. Embassy in Mbabane. “This screening allowed for an immediate impact as well as an unusual opportunity for Swazi artists to interact with rural women,” said Gardner. “The advancement of democracy and human rights in Swaziland is a key priority. Gender-based violence continues to erode

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

Image courtesy of the artist. Subhankar Banerjee (born 1967, Berhampore, India), Snow Geese II, photograph 2002, print 2010, Digital Chromogenic print.

Courtesy U.S. Embassy New Zealand

Courtesy U.S. State Department

Courtesy U.S. Embassy New Zealand

Left: “Nature no. 6: Veiled” by Anne Marie Jean was displayed at the Art in Embassies 2011 Wellington exhibition, “Encountering Place.” Below left: An Alexander Calder sculpture forms the backdrop at a meeting between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh at Villa Taverna—the U.S. ambassador’s residence in Rome, Italy—in May 2013. Below: “White Out” by Devon Tsuno was displayed at the Art in Embassies 2011 Wellington exhibition, “Encountering Place.” Bottom: Subhankar Banerjee’s “Snow Geese II,” exhibited at the Mumbai Consulate, is from his 14-monthlong journey in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in 2000. The photograph is part of a series, taken from the air, that demonstrates the immensity and beauty of the Arctic plains and the animals dependent upon them for their existence.

Photographs courtesy Art in Embassies

this tiny country.” Constance Parker, wife of the American ambassador to Swaziland at the time, further described the impact of the exhibition on the Swazi citizens who participated: “It changed them and their perceptions of their place on this earth forever,” she said. “They left the Embassy with their heads just a little higher.” Art in Embassies traces its roots to 1953 in New York City, when the Museum of Modern Art began efforts to display American art around the world. A private program at the time, the endeavor attracted the support of philanthropists and diplomats, and a public-private partnership with the U.S. Department of State soon followed. In 1963, President John F. Kennedy declared Art in Embassies an office of the State Department, launching the program into the orbit it continues to follow today. Circa 2015, Art in Embassies continues

to soar, with exhibitions in 189 countries and counting. The last decade alone has also seen over 100 artists following in Gardner’s footsteps, traveling to countries around the world to work with local artists on pieces that are then exhibited in embassies, consulates and beyond. Though it was founded over five decades ago, Art in Embassies’ mission and methods have proven themselves timeless. “[Art] reaches beyond governments, past the conference rooms and presidential palaces, to help us connect with more people in more places,” wrote former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Vanity Fair magazine in February 2013. “It is a universal language in our search for common ground, an expression of our shared humanity.”

Above: Bill Armstrong’s “Mandala,” a set of nine photographs loosely based on Buddhist mandala paintings, at the Mumbai Consulate. They are part of his ongoing “Infinity” series, which is photographed with the focus ring on his camera lens set to infinity, lending the whole body of work a distinctive blur.

Michael Gallant is the founder and chief executive officer of Gallant Music. He lives in New York City.

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

Courtesy Council on Foreign Relations

Daniel S. Markey is senior fellow for India, Pakistan and South Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations, where he specializes in security and governance issues in South Asia. Markey visited Mumbai, New Delhi and Amritsar in November 2014, where he interacted with think tanks, research scholars, youth activists and students.

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Daniel Markey Excerpts from an interview with GIRIRAJ AGARWAL

What factors do you think would shape U.S.-India ties in the next five years? Many different things will shape the relationship, but I would begin with the ability of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to succeed on some of the issues that he has identified himself here in India. Because I think that by doing so, he can energize India, and in promoting and building India’s economy, in particular, he can re-energize the American interest in and excitement about working with India. And that’s not just at a business-tobusiness level, although it starts there, but would also extend into a broader strategic vision for what the U.S. and India can accomplish. How would it be different from the last 10 years? Economic growth rates need to stay high or they need to get back up to where they once were. That’s the starting point. And in some ways, that I would say is a prerequisite for accomplishing a number of other major goals in the relationship and those goals aren’t necessarily fundamentally different from the last government. It’s a matter of actually achieving them. And so I think that beginning with that energy on the economic front then translates into an American perception that India can be a partner whether it comes to strategic issues in the Indian Ocean, or a broader diplomatic agenda, including with respect to China. How important is stability in Pakistan for peace in South Asia? What impact can it have on the economic prosperity of the region, especially India? I can’t think of any issue that’s more important to the stability of the region when you are thinking about South Asia than, of course, the India-Pakistan relationship. This relationship and the tension, the historical animosity between India and Pakistan have made it impossible for the region to integrate in the way that many other regions of the world have. So, that means that it has paralyzed one major diplomatic institution in the region—SAARC—and many of its activities

are basically hostage to the India-Pakistan relationship. A problem between India and Pakistan, whether it is along the border or a terrorist attack, of course does have the potential to derail and lead the two countries toward the path of war. There is always potential for war in different parts of the world, but India-Pakistan is significant, one of the world’s flash points. On the economic side of things, it’s my view that you cannot see Pakistan succeed unless it sees economic growth. Its population is growing very rapidly, it’s a very young population, and it’s only by economic opening, including to India, that Pakistan has a chance of success. How would you analyze the role of China in South Asia? What impact does it have on the U.S.-India, U.S.-Pakistan and IndiaPakistan relationships? It’s a very complicated question but I think it is probably one of the most important new questions. It’s not new that China would have a role in South Asia; China has had a role in South Asia for decades, but what I think is changing is China itself has changed. It’s significantly more powerful and its ambition, its global ambition is increasing, including under its new president. We are seeing greater ambition, greater energy, greater aspiration to accomplish more not just on China’s eastern front, but on its western front as well. The current pattern of the Chinese has been to encourage stability in South Asia, particularly between India and Pakistan. What does the United States think of the future of South Asia? We have some uncertainties about what China plans for South Asia. I know they are talking about trying to make their activities not just in South Asia but Central Asia and beyond, toward the Middle East and even on to Europe, something that would be a demonstration of their economic interest and of the ways that they can cooperate in the region, something that wouldn’t be necessarily too threatening to the United States. But if you think about it as a strategic play, you can see

MANDEEP KAUR

My impression is that Indians are worried. I spent some time in Mumbai, and there they are clearly concerned and still remember very deeply the terrorist attacks on Mumbai. In Amritsar, there is still a sense that the border is not secure. They are also quite concerned about other issues like drugs being smuggled across the border and deterioration or the negative consequences of that for the people of India. Do you think India’s foreign policy institutions need improvement? What would you suggest? Well, I have written about this in the past. I wrote about it in 2007 and, I am afraid, some of the things I wrote about in 2007 are still true. India has needed to expand and upgrade its foreign service simply because India is a big country and has a small foreign service. The number of people that are required to turn a foreign policy from the one that is minimal and largely regional to one that will be truly global requires significant resources and manpower, and they need to be trained effectively in Indian academic institutions. So, there are investments that are necessary there. I know that India is rapidly attempting to expand its universities and colleges and so on. But you need sort of first-class, gold quality educational institutions to train foreign policy leaders in fields—not like just IITs, which are already first class—but in fields of political science, history, languages and that sort of thing. In the U.S. system, we have something called revolving door in the government, which means that sometimes people work in government, sometimes they work out of government. I worked at the State Department for a time, now I work at a think tank, my training is academic. This is one model for how you bring in ideas and highly-trained people in and out of government, so that you can build more of a debate, a policy debate in New Delhi. Yes, the United States has great academic institutions; we could do more partnerships with Indian institutions.

Daniel Markey speaks at an event organized by Guru Nanak Dev University in Amritsar.

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FOREIGN POLICY

the Chinese expansion over the longer term as providing opportunities for China’s military and diplomatic leverage. How important is South Asia for international peace? How difficult is it for the United States to shape its policy for the region when “assumed” favors to one country of the region are seen as being against the interests of another country? My favorite policy for Washington has been so-called dehyphenation—I continue to think that’s the appropriate way to go, which is to say that the United States shouldn’t be speaking about Indo-Pakistani relations or India-Pakistan relationship. We should be thinking about India, we should be thinking about Pakistan, we should be thinking first and foremost how the United States can effectively achieve its goals with India and with Pakistan. We attempt to work with them independently. We know that the two countries see these relationships as connected, but we cannot be held hostage to the bilateral disputes between India and Pakistan—that cannot be the central focus of the U.S. policy because it’s not constructive. What scope do you see for economic cooperation in the region? Yesterday, I was in Amritsar and I was speaking with Indian businessmen who would like to do more business with Pakistani counterparts. There are things that India wants to buy from Pakistan, like cement, and things that Pakistan wants to buy from India, like auto parts. These can create interests that then would help to encourage their governments toward a more peaceful relationship across the border. There are a lot of barriers though to these types of business relationships; they are not all political. Much has to do with the practical logistical challenges of doing business across the border, like getting visas. You met a number of Indian academicians, businessmen, activists, politicians and students during your visit. What would you say about their understanding of India’s security and governance issues?

Taking the

Smithsonian to

New media and social networking tools will enable people across the globe to access the Smithsonian’s resources.

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ased in Washington, D.C., the Smithsonian Institution is one of the world’s largest museums and research complexes, attracting millions of visitors every year to its 19 museums and galleries and the National Zoo. However, despite its immense popularity, physical limitations mean that only a fraction of the Smithsonian’s estimated 137 million artifacts, works of art and specimens can be exhibited at any one time. Now the Smithsonian is broadening its reach, drawing on new media and social networking tools and technologies, to enable people around the world to share the resources of this extraordinary institution. Tasked with developing new avenues of global access for the Smithsonian is Nicholas Namba, vice president of global business development at Smithsonian Enterprises, a unit of the Smithsonian Institution. Namba, who spent three years in New Delhi as director of

professional, educational and cultural exchanges for the U.S. Embassy, says that Indians will be major beneficiaries of the Smithsonian’s outreach efforts. “India is one of our priority countries,” says Namba in an interview. “At its heart, the Smithsonian is an educational institution and Indians value education very highly. They have a tremendous natural curiosity, amazing universities, highly educated and highly skilled people. We have shared values. I know many Indians from my work in India, and I know that they are very interested in history and in other cultures.” The globe-trotting Namba, who is developing relationships in India and other countries that will facilitate sharing of the Smithsonian’s resources, says there is “extreme interest” around the world in the Smithsonian’s outreach plans. “We’re seeking opportunities to partner with

Photographs courtesy Smithsonian Education

By STEVE FOX

Photographs courtesy Smithsonian Institution, © Getty Images

o the World http://www.si.edu

Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center http://smithsonianapa.org/

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Smithsonian Institution

SPAN article on “Beyond Bollywood: Indian Americans Shape the Nation”

Above left: The Smithsonian’s X 3D Explorer is a web-based interface that allows users to explore, share and print 3D models of dozens of the Smithsonian’s most remarkable artifacts. Left: As part of Computer Science Education Week, Smithsonian Education organized a number of workshops to introduce children and adults to the world of video game development. The workshops were held during the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s Indie Arcade event.

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SMITHSONIAN

http://goo.gl/5ZVrhD

Courtesy Smithsonian Institution

Left, below left and bottom left: Screenshots of Smithsonian Institution’s websites and apps.

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government, nongovernmental organizations and the private sector, and the response has been phenomenal,” he says. “In India, we’d like to focus on how we can work with a variety of organizations to introduce the Smithsonian’s vast set of artifacts, collections and other materials into the daily educational lives of Indians.” The Smithsonian is exploring various avenues to deliver information in customized ways and bring the institution’s resources to those who cannot visit in person, Namba adds. “It could mean bringing traveling versions of our physical exhibits to India, which would be smaller, highly curated and localized for specific audiences in India. For example, just a few months ago, the Smithsonian partnered with the U.S. Embassy to bring its ‘Beyond Bollywood: Indian Americans Shape the Nation’ exhibit to five cities in India,” he says. “While we’d love to bring more physical exhibits to India, we know we can have a greater impact with digital experiences,” Namba explains, noting that about five million people already visit www.smithsonian.com every month. “We think digital access is going to be a key part of our overseas outreach,” he says. “The museums are fantastic—and admission is free—but visitors still have to find the time and financial resources to get themselves to the United States. We don’t want economic status to be a barrier to accessing the Smithsonian, and that goes for here in the States as well as overseas. The reality is that there are a significant number of people who simply can’t afford to come to Washington.” In addition to traveling exhibits and expanded online access, the Smithsonian is also exploring ways to help parents and educators around the world. “We’re looking at launching a partnership that would put Smithsonian resources into the massive open online courses (MOOC) format that many universities have developed,” Namba says. “They would be free or low-cost, provide parents with an educational opportunity for their children, as well as help teachers to incorporate some of the 137 million specimens and

Smithsonian’s

History of America ow do you sum up America’s history and its relationship with the Smithsonian Institution? It is certainly a formidable task but Richard Kurin, the institution’s under secretary for history, art and culture, has made an admirable effort in his 762-page book, “The Smithsonian’s History of America in 101 Objects.” The lyrically written and beautifully illustrated book, which is also available as a series of lectures on DVD and as downloadable videos, is the result of a comprehensive effort led by Kurin. All the Smithsonian museums and many of its top scholars and curators were involved in the selection of objects that

could collectively represent the American experience. The goal was to choose objects that, in Kurin’s words, “could act as signposts for larger ideas, achievements and issues that have defined us Americans over time.” Beginning with the Burgess Shale, a geological formation near the Montana-Alberta border, containing fossils some 500 million years old, and concluding with the Giant Magellan Telescope, being built in Chile with the Smithsonian’s leadership to peer deep into the universe, the book proceeds chronologically while also illuminating four themes of American history: America the beautiful and bountiful; life, liberty and the

pursuit of happiness; discovery, innovation, artistry and creativity; and diversity, a nation of nations. Kurin, who has visited India and Pakistan as a Fulbright-Hays fellow, provides plenty of trivia: George Washington designed his own highlyornate uniform so the British would know the American rebels were not

a “rag-tag army;” Plymouth Rock wasn’t very big; Dorothy’s slippers in the movie “The Wizard of Oz” were originally silver but became ruby-colored to take advantage of a new film technology— Technicolor. Kurin, who joined the Smithsonian as it was preparing for America’s bicentennial celebrations in 1976, has chosen wisely and well in celebrating the nation’s history. —S.F.

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

“ RAKESH MALHOTRA

India is one of our priority countries. At its heart, the Smithsonian is an educational institution and Indians value education very highly. They have a tremendous natural curiosity, amazing universities, highly educated and highly skilled people.

”

artifacts into their lesson plans. In addition to online courses, we’re also exploring how we might offer a summer camp at the Smithsonian in Washington for high school students.” Namba, who plans to visit India in 2015, says that overseas audiences will begin to see the results of the Smithsonian’s global outreach over the next two years. “We want people to know that the Smithsonian is actively engaged in broadening its reach—to India and beyond—and that we’re open to ideas and partnerships,” he says. “What we’re going to be doing will come in all shapes and sizes—there’s no set-in-stone approach.” Steve Fox is a freelance writer, former newspaper publisher and reporter based in Ventura, California.

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Intercultural Education for 21st Century America

hat type of education is required to be competitive in the 21st century? In the United States, educators face growing calls to help develop “globally competent individuals.” These calls interlink with broader movements toward identifying and developing globally valuable skills. The Global Competence Task Force has listed three competencies: using knowledge to investigate global problems, working with diverse others and translating theory into action. The task force is a group of American

state education agency leaders, education scholars and practitioners—under the auspices of the Council of Chief State School Officers EdSteps initiative and the Asia Society Partnership for Global Learning. Given the nature and complexity of challenges that we face collectively, it is becoming crucial that young people today develop abilities to critically think and act on a global stage. In the United States,

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EDUCATION

Equipping students with critical thinking, creativity and communication skills is imperative to imparting global citizenship education.

By LIZ JACKSON and WESLEY TETER

liberal arts and critical intercultural literacy are fundamental strategies.

American global citizen today. At the founding of the United States, its leaders worried about democracy’s possibility in a society where not all people were well educated and, therefore, unable to read a newspaper or speech transcript, or engage in critical analysis. Of course, this remains a problem around the world today as countries democratize while populations remain less than fully literate. With heightened stakes today, and the prevalence of the media in everyday life in the 21st century, media literacy must become an important goal once more. It can help people evaluate sources of information and evidence, compare and judge relevancy and validity, and engage in decision-making, in personal and professional life, in a more empowered way. At the national and international levels, civic participation that is meaningful and contributes to human flourishing depends on critical thinking skills related to evaluating and using information.

From liberal arts to global citizenship education

Developing critical thinking skills Education for local and global intercultural coexistence deviates from a traditional vocational education, as it aims to develop the ability of young people to think clearly about complex social issues. Such critical thinking cannot be done by rote memorization or even report writing, but requires a student-centered educational approach, wherein students learn about social problems by engaging with others around them in dialogues. Through such dialogues, rather than textbooks, students can best learn about viewpoints of diverse members of society, and attain a real-world source of evidence, which is more useful in democratic, practical decision-making. A new kind of media literacy is also required of the 32 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

Crossroads in education Today, the United States finds itself at a crossroads in education. The Common Core movement encourages education to become more similar across the country, from Hawaii and Alaska to Texas and Florida. On the other hand, the increased popularity of charter schools in the last

To move from abstract global issues to educational practice, we must recognize where society is today, in terms of human and social capital. With the development of “common” universal public schooling in American history, the country laid a foundation for global competitiveness throughout the 20th century. In line with this strength, the government still takes its role seriously, in facilitating the entry of a fresh generation of tech-savvy, creative young people into new lines of work in dynamic fields of industry and commerce, new energy and new technologies. As higher education with a traditionally broad, interdisciplinary foundation has been seen to contribute to economic success at the individual and societal levels in the United States, efforts are being made to invite more people, including less-advantaged members of society, to reap the benefits of a liberal arts education. This liberal arts education, which gives attention not only to vocational skills development but also to critical thinking, creativity and communication skills, is clearly aligned to a “global citizenship education” model. In today’s dynamic economy, math and science are not enough. The humanities, social sciences, and disciplines such as history, philosophy and sociology, can equip students with critical perspective and creative problem solving skills. To work with others in one’s own society or elsewhere in the world, people also require interpersonal and communication skills, as well as an education oriented toward greater social understanding. These skills should not only be considered vital in higher education, but should be developed at a young age, particularly in communities marked by different forms of diversity. Students at elementary levels should learn to understand their neighborhood and local community, drawing maps of their own small world, while students at higher levels should learn how to identify the characteristics and social composition of their society and those of others around the globe.

decade could potentially change the country’s historical allegiance to a public, government provided quality education. These movements may impact how we think about individual and social welfare in the future. For example, there is a risk of forgetting soft skills in favor of fast economic payoffs. Ideally, education in the United States should continue to develop globally competitive and globally philanthropic generations. This requires intercultural education, which goes beyond the basic nuts and bolts, and focuses on investigating global problems, working in diverse groups and translating theory into action. Liz Jackson is an educational policy researcher and author of “Muslims and Islam in U.S. Education: Reconsidering Multiculturalism,” published by Routledge in 2014. Wesley Teter is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Hong Kong and former regional director of EducationUSA in India and Central Asia, supported by the U.S. Department of State.

Planning Tips

hen students and parents sit down and start discussing colleges, it might be very beneficial to do the following: 1. Agree that rankings will be considered only as one of the factors during the college selection process. 2. Before looking at any information, discuss the most important factors that will be considered for each of the institutions to which an application will be submitted. 3. Conduct a wide search for college options. For example, do a search for colleges and universities offering the field of study in which you are interested, or that are located in the geographic region where you would like to enroll. One important search tool to check out is BigFuture.collegeboard.org. 4. Create a spreadsheet with the colleges to which you might apply. It would be good to start out with 10 to 20 options. 5. Thoroughly complete the spreadsheet. As you do, some will become of greater interest, and others will become of less interest. 6. Allow time to do your research. At least six to eight months is advisable. In total, the full application process typically takes 12 to 18 months.

—D.M. & W.T.

Ranking is only one of the many factors that need to be considered while searching for the right college.

ne of the biggest mistakes you can make as a prospective college student is not doing adequate research before you apply. While the current ranking of an institution is useful information, it should never serve as the basis of a decision about where you will enroll. Remember: there is absolutely no reliable evidence that the ranking of the college you attend is the predictor of your success. There are many institutions in the United States that would never appear in a ranking but have had a major impact on higher education and, in particular, on the lives of their students. In fact, there is an excellent resource available to students that will attest to this fact. It is a book, titled “Colleges that Change Lives,” by Loren Pope. Pope’s primary suggestion to students and their parents is the college search process be “student-centered.” What does a “student-centered” college search process entail? For starters, it involves the applicant doing some important

Beyond Rankings and Prestige By DON MARTIN and WESLEY TETER

research on possible options and comparing many factors, only one of which would be rankings. Here are some suggestions: 1) Size of the student body and number of international students; 2) Type of living arrangements, whether it is largely a residential or a commuter campus; 3) Thorough research on the faculty; 4) Conversations with current students and recent graduates; 5) Campus visits, either live or via virtual tours. If you and your parents take a broad approach to your college selection process, you will end up selecting an institution that will have a major influence on your life and career. Colleges That Change Lives, an organization founded shortly after the publication of Pope’s book, says that it works “to educate families that the criteria used by most college-bound students and their counselors, such as name and prestige, do not acknowledge the importance of understanding an individual student’s needs and how they ‘fit’ with the mission and identity of an individual college community.” Colleges That Change Lives consists of 44 member insti-

tutions, many of which may not appear in a national ranking, but all of which are outstanding institutions with very loyal graduates. One of the institutions highlighted by the organization is Wheaton College in Illinois. This is where this article’s co-author Don Martin earned his master’s degree. At the time, Wheaton ranked 12th among all liberal arts colleges in the United States whose graduates ultimately went on to earn Ph.D.’s. Yet, as is the case with many outstanding institutions, you may not find Wheaton College among the top institutions in a ranking. Whatever you decide, take time to do your research and think deeply about what type of college will help change your life and shape the world for the better. Don Martin is a former admissions dean at Columbia, University of Chicago and Northwestern; and author of “Road Map for Graduate Study.” Wesley Teter is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Hong Kong and former regional director of EducationUSA in India and Central Asia, supported by the U.S. Department of State.

Colleges That Change Lives www.CTCL.org

EducationUSA www.EducationUSA.info

Hiking to

Paradise By MICHAEL GALLANT

From glistening waterfalls to once-in-a-lifetime ocean views, wonders await visitors to Hawaii’s Na Pali Coast.

Courtesy Hawaii Tourism Authority/TOR JOHNSON

hen describing Hawaii’s Na Pali Coast, Noreene Fischer uses words like “breathtaking” and “stunning,” and she’s not the only one. Countless travelers have seen in the coast’s waves and waterfalls, cliffs and forests a beauty unparalleled anywhere else in the world. The Na Pali Coast is located on the northern edge of Kauai in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Fischer, a resident of New Jersey, has visited six times since 1980—and is eager to return. She lovingly describes the area’s picturesque vistas and bohemian culture, delicious food and clement weather, as well as the vivid natural colors visitors to the island can drink in on a daily basis. “On overcast days, you see deep, rich greens and browns and on sunny days, the colors are lighter and brighter,” Fischer says. “If you’re on top of one of the mountains, it’s the most

36 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

beautiful and poetic scene. You can stand there for hours, just taking pictures.” To experience the wonders of the Na Pali Coast up close, visitors would be well advised to bring a good pair of hiking boots, sunscreen, plenty of drinking water and a sense of adventure. After taking the Kuhio Highway northwest to the end of the road at Ke’e Beach, hikers enter the Kalalau Trail and follow it for just over three kilometers to Hanakapiai Beach, a popular tourist destination punctuated by cliffs and an inland waterfall. Along the way, walkers can expect to take in lookouts that soar over 300 meters above the ocean. Intrepid explorers may continue on the increasingly rugged trail, which stretches nearly 18 kilometers from start to finish. As they progress, walkers will see raw cliffs on one side

Kalalau Trail

http://kalalautrail.com

Hanakapiai Beach http://goo.gl/C1nQCE

Go Online

Na Pali Coast

http://goo.gl/nsUpVU

Waimea Canyon

The 27-kilometer Na Pali Coast features both barren and vegetation-covered peaks towering along the shoreline.

TRAVEL

http://goo.gl/AAQyjR

Courtesy Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau/TTOR JOHNSON

SALLY/Courtesy Flickr Courtesy Hawaii Tourism Authority/DAMON MOSS

38 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

Above: Wailua Falls is a popular tourist site in Kauai. Above right: Helicopter tours can show visitors scenic Na Pali areas that are not accessible by land or water. Above far right: Hikers camp at Kalalau Beach. Right: A signpost at the beginning of Kalalau Trail. MIG SONO/Courtesy Flickr

Top: The pali, or cliffs, with deep, narrow valleys end abruptly at the Pacific Ocean. Numerous waterfalls and swift-flowing streams cut through these valleys. Top center: A hiker negotiates the uneven Kalalau Trail. Top far right: The secluded Kalalau Beach is the final destination of the Kalalau Trail.

MICHAEL CAROE ANDERSEN/Courtesy Flickr

JAY BERGESEN/Courtesy Flickr MICHAEL CAROE ANDERSEN/Courtesy Flickr

of the often narrow path, while on the other side, beaches, lava arches, coves and sea caves stretch out below. For those visiting in winter and early spring, whales can sometimes be seen beyond the coast. After taking explorers through numerous climbs, descents and panoramic lookouts, the trail ends at the stark cliffs and crystal waters of Kalalau Beach. Even for experienced and agile hikers, the trip can take an entire day, and camping permits are required for those who want to spend the night here. Hikers on the Kalalau Trail must proceed with caution, and check weather and trail conditions before venturing out. Strong currents and flash floods can be deadly, as can unstable cliffs and falling rocks. In addition, the remoteness of the trail makes it difficult for emergency services to come to the rescue in case of a fall or other injury. Signaling a passing helicopter or boat may be the only way to call for help, as there is no cellphone signal reception here. Despite such risks, thousands of visitors safely navigate the Kalalau Trail every year—and return with memories to last a lifetime.

For those unable to take the hike, or those who simply prefer not to, the magic of the Na Pali Coast can be tapped in other ways. A car ride to the top of Waimea Canyon, also known as “the Grand Canyon of the Pacific,” leads visitors to several lookout points which provide breathtaking views of the coast. Numerous boating, kayaking, fishing and helicopter tours are also available to those who want to see the coast from the air, or the water itself. For visitors looking to lodge close by the trail, the Lonely Planet travel advice website recommends Hanalei Colony Resort’s rental condominiums, located a short drive away from Ke’e Beach, though nearby accommodations ranging from luxury hotels to bed-and-breakfasts present broad options for international travelers. For dining, visitors can feast on locally-sourced fish, such as the delicious but expensive sickle pomfret, as well as local fruit and vegetables. Restaurants such as the Hanalei Dolphin can make for memorable nights out, though if you’re staying somewhere equipped with a kitchen, Fischer recommends visiting farmers’ and fish markets and putting your own meals together. “Everything is wonderful and fresh,” she says. In addition to hiking gear and normal travel necessities, Fischer advises bringing some waterproof gear as it rains very often. “The rain isn’t a problem though,” she says. “It’s usually light and you welcome it because when you get rain, you also get rainbows.” “The rainbows are gorgeous,” she adds, “with such vivid colors, like an oil painting or Crayola Crayons.” Regardless of whether you want to hit the Kalalau Trail running or just sit back and enjoy the views, the Na Pali Coast has much to offer. “It’s a magical, laid-back place,” says Fischer. “Some people love to explore and others just like to relax—my husband loves to write when we visit, for example. Whatever you do when you’re there, it’s just wonderful.” Michael Gallant is the founder and chief executive officer of Gallant Music. He lives in New York City.

To share articles go to http://span.state.gov JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015 39

Books on international relations help readers understand political dynamics within and among countries.

Reading South Asia

Courtesy University of Southern California

By PAROMITA PAIN

David J. Karl

Go Online David J. Karl http://goo.gl/Yi4g5Q

C. Christine Fair http://www.christinefair.net

Carlotta Gall http://goo.gl/oiPOCm

Hassan Abbas

BOOKS

http://goo.gl/hN8uwX

Getting India Back on Track: An Action Agenda for Reform http://goo.gl/kWGAZC 40 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015

hese aren’t the books that top the usual best seller lists. Books on international relations often don’t even feature on the must-read lists of avid bibliophiles. But as David J. Karl, founding president of Asia Strategy Initiative, an analysis and advisory firm, and head of its South Asia practice group, says, “Books in this area help us understand political dynamics within and among countries….They illuminate the vital intersection between economics and politics, casting light on such things as the prospects for domestic reform and the opportunities for regional trade and commerce.” Karl, who has also served as an adjunct professor of international relations at University of Southern California, has some suggestions that even general readers might enjoy. The first two recommendations deal with Pakistan’s relationship with its immediate neighbors. “Fighting to the End: The Pakistan Army’s Way of War” by C. Christine Fair examines the Pakistani military’s fixation with seeing India as a bogeyman. An array of scholarly volumes was published in 2014 about the Pakistani army’s strategic outlook. Fair’s book has received media attention, and while its chapters dealing with academic theory might deter the general reader, the historical sections would prove interesting. “The Wrong Enemy: America in Afghanistan, 2001-2014” by Carlotta Gall is a detailed, engaging look at Pakistan’s intervention in Afghanistan. Gall reported from Afghanistan for The New York Times during most of the America-led military campaign. Her book is not without flaws though. For instance, Gall claims that Pakistan’s security establishment must have

known of Osama bin Laden’s whereabouts without providing compelling evidence. But her chronicle of the Afghan war merits attention. “The Taliban Revival: Violence and Extremism on the Pakistan-Afghanistan Frontier” by Hassan Abbas is a solid complement to Gall’s account. A former police chief in Pakistan’s Pashtun areas and now a professor at the National Defense University in Washington, D.C., Abbas provides a detailed and highly readable examination of the factors that enabled the Taliban to resurrect itself

after a demoralizing rout in late 2001. Like Gall, Abbas is relatively hopeful about Afghanistan’s future, noting that the country “has moved on and is unlikely to meekly accept a 1990’s-style Taliban takeover.” Rounding out the list is a book that focuses on India. “Getting India Back on Track: An Action Agenda For Reform,” edited by Bibek Debroy, Ashley J. Tellis and Reece Trevor, is a collection of essays mainly by Indian experts, who sketch out a wide-ranging reform agenda, and contains a foreword by Ratan Tata, former chairman of Tata Sons. Prime Minister Narendra Modi presided over its launch in June 2014. Readers will find much to ponder in this book. Paromita Pain is a journalist in Austin, Texas.

he New Delhi American Center organized a panel discussion on “Women’s Safety: It’s Not Just About Women” on December 18, in association with the Honour Our Women (HOW) Foundation. The panelists included three Members of Parliament, Supriya Sule, Kirron Kher and Anurag Thakur; and Anthony R. Eterno, global unit chief of the Political Section at the U.S. Embassy. Thakur is also the founder of HOW Foundation. The speakers voiced their opinions on how, irrespective of gender, justice is being denied to those seeking it and gave suggestions on how to make public spaces safer for women. https://www.facebook.com/HonourOurWomen RAHUL KISHORE

SCAPE

AMIT BHATT

he U.S. Consulate General Mumbai sponsored a crowdsourced short-film contest and festival, “Women’s Safety and Empowerment,” to coincide with the U.N. campaign, 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence. The festival finale, on December 5, was held in partnership with Women in Film and Television India. Nine out of 60 short films sourced from across western India were screened at the event attended by students, film professionals and NGO activists. Bollywood actor Sonam Kapoor and directors Anurag Kashyap and Onir were the guest judges at the event. http://mumbai.usconsulate.gov/pr51215.html

NATHAN SIGMAN

JUHI SHARMA

SHILPI GULATI

even ordinary women. Seven extraordinarily courageous stories. This was the theme of the dramatized reading and enactment of the internationally-acclaimed play, “SEVEN,” in Chennai on November 21 and 22. Enacted by seven Indian exchange alumni, along with members of the pandies’ theatre and the theater group Nalamdana, the performances were part of the “See Something? Say Something! Acting Against Gender-Based Violence” theater project. The aim of the project is to throw light on existing issues of violence and affirm activist attempts to eliminate gender-based violence. The play was also performed in Mumbai, New Delhi and Jammu. http://goo.gl/sxegyV

he Kolkata American Center, in association with Society for Heritage & Ecological Researches and ITC Limited, conducted an awareness-building workshop titled “Forests and Wildlife is Our Answer to Climate Change” on December 14. During the event, 100 students from 14 schools painted posters to raise awareness about climate change and pledged to help the environment with their small contributions. “Sometimes, all it takes are small steps to save your planet and address some of the environmental challenges of the day,” Greg Pardo, deputy director of the Kolkata American Center, told the participating students. http://goo.gl/goSbtZ

Photographs by RAKESH MALHOTRA

Registered under RNI-6586/60

The New Delhi American Center hosted a multidisciplinary exhibition titled “W.A.R. (Women. Art. Resistance.)” in December. The event, organized in collaboration with Engendered and Centre for Health and Social Justice, was part of the American Center’s “Lest We Forget” campaign against gender-based violence. The performers on the opening night included Vaishali Chakravarty (above), Maya Krishna Rao (right), the Nrityagram Dance Company (center right) and Monica Dogra (far right).