Center for Latin American Studies

Center for Latin American Studies

Upcoming Events

 

 

Latin American Social and Public Policy Student Conference

 

The annual Latin American Social and Public Policy conference features presentations on social and public policy research in Latin America by students from the University of Pittsburgh and other universities, with comments by University of Pittsburgh faculty.

Dates: February 24-25, 2012

Location: University Club, 123 University Place, Pittsburgh, PA 15260

KEYNOTE ADDRESS:

"Latin America: Where Next?," by Janet Ballantyne (USAID)

Date & Time: Friday, February 24, 2012 at 4:00 p.m.

Janet Ballantyne is a Senior Advisor to the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). She is a Career Minister in the Senior Foreign Service, with over 30 years of USAID experience. Currently she is serving as Senior USAID Advisor to the Foreign Service Institute of the Department of State. From 2009 to late 2010, she was USAID Acting Assistant Administrator for Latin America and the Caribbean. She served as USAID Mission Director in Nicaragua (1990-1994), Russia (1996-2000), and the Central Asia Republics (2008-09). She also served as Deputy Director for USAID missions in Morocco and Nepal. Dr. Ballantyne holds a BA from Cornell University, an MPA from Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, and a PhD in International Development from Cornell University's School of Management. She is an adjunct faculty member of Syracuse University (Washington D.C. campus) where she teaches a graduate seminar on Development Theory and Practice to students from the universities of Syracuse, Denver, and Pittsburgh.

Faculty Speaker:

“The Puzzle of Civil Society Weakness in Mexico: A Comparative Perspective,” by Nuno Themudo (GSPIA)

Date & Time: Friday, February 24, 2012 at 1:00 p.m.

Nuno S. Themudo is Assistant Professor at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, University of Pittsburgh. Previously, he taught at the London School of Economics, where he earned his PhD. His research has been published in several prestigious scholarly outlets including Governance, World Development, Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, and the Global Civil Society Yearbook. In 2010, Nuno’s article on Gender and the Nonprofit Sector received the award for Best Article in Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly. He has also written reports for agencies such as Amnesty International and The World Bank. Nuno is the current Secretary of ARNOVA, the Association of Researchers in Nonprofit Organization and Voluntary Action.

For more information or a complete schedule of the conference, please visit: http://www.ucis.pitt.edu/clas/events/laspp.html

 

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32^nd Annual Latin American and Caribbean Festival

 

Date: Saturday, March 31, 2012

Time: 12:00 p.m. - Midnight

Location: William Pitt Union, 3959 Fifth Avenue, University of Pittsburgh

For more information: contact Luz Amanda Hank, 412-648-7394, lavst12@pitt.edu or please visit: http://www.ucis.pitt.edu/clas/events/festival.html

Sponsored by the Center for Latin American Studies, the Latin American Cultural Union, and Med Health Services & Pittsburgh Cardiovascular Institute

 

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Lectures & Workshops

 

Afro-Latin American Teacher Workshop by G. Reid Andrews (History, University of Pittsburgh)

Date: Saturday, February 25, 2012

Time: 8:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Location: 5604 Wesley W. Posvar Hall, University of Pittsburgh

Cost: $50/person (Act 48 credit workshop)

(http://www.worldhistory.pitt.edu/saturdayworkshop.php)

Sponsored by the Department of History, School of Education and the World History Center

 

“Border Intellectual: Performing Identity at the Crossroads,” a lecture by E. Patrick Johnson (Northwestern University)

E. Patrick Johnson is a performer, scholar, and activist, who has taught at Northwestern University for the past twelve years. Recently, he was honored with the Carlos Montezuma endowed chair of Performance Studies. He has published widely on race, gender, class, and performance. In 2010, he was inducted into the LGBT Chicago Hall of Fame as recognition for his contributions and activism on behalf of the LGBT community. He describes his own personal navigation of the “border” between academy and “homeplace,” where the knowledge produced in both do not always converge. He offers reflections on how he has tried to negotiate these borders in his own career as scholar, performer, and activist.

Date: Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Time: 2:30 – 4:00 p.m.

Location: The Humanities Center, 602 Cathedral of Learning, University of Pittsburgh

Sponsored by The Theatre Arts Department at the University of Pittsburgh, in conjunction with the Department of Sociology, The Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, Graduate and Professional Student Assembly, the Humanities Center, The Performance Collaborative, and the Duse Society

 

"Signs of Violence: Messaging, Media and Politics in Mexico’s ‘Drug War’" a lecture by Paul K. Eiss (Anthropology and History, and Director, Center for the Arts in Society, Carnegie Mellon University)

In this talk Eiss will explore some of the linkages between violence, political representation, and the new media in contemporary Mexico. Eiss considers the implications of a variety of new medial forms that have arisen in connection with drug- and drug-war related violence, which he terms the “narcomedia.” Debates over the narcomedia, and diverse attempts to control or censor them, quickly move from discussion of the drug traffickers or of the “war” against them to complicated discussions of the far-reaching implications of globalization in contemporary Mexico: of the beleaguered sovereignties of state and pueblo; of rights and the rule of law; and of the tenuous claims of history and nation in the conflict’s wake.

Date: Friday, March 2, 2012

Time: 3:00 p.m.

Location: 3106 Wesley W. Posvar Hall, University of Pittsburgh

Sponsored by the Department of Anthropology, University of Pittsburgh

 

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Amigos del Cine Latinoamericano

Spring 2012 Film Series

 

FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Films will be presented at 6:30 p.m. at the Frick Fine Arts Auditorium

As usual, we will give a short introduction to the film, and after the presentation you are welcome to stay for a discussion.

Some films are adult in nature and may not be appropriate for young audiences.

March Film: Carancho (directed by Pablo Trapero; Argentina 2010)

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Description: In Argentina over 8,000 people die in traffic accidents every year. Behind each of these tragedies is a flourishing industry founded on insurance payouts and legal loopholes. Sosa is a lawyer who tours the A&E Departments of the public hospitals and the police stations in search of potential clients. Luján is a young doctor recently arrived from the provinces. Their love story kicks off one night when Luján and Sosa meet in the street. She's trying to save a man's life; he wants him on his client portfolio.

Sponsored by the Center for Latin American Studies, Department of Hispanic Languages & Literatures, and Eduardo Lozano Latin American Library Collection

 

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Call for Papers

 

The VIII Undergraduate Research Symposium on Latin America and the Caribbean

Date: March 16, 2012

Location: The University of Pittsburgh

Present your research with other undergraduate students on any topic related to the study of Latin American Literature, Artistic Culture, Linguistics or professional academic disciplines.

Submit a 150-200 word abstract to the following email address: lud3@pitt.edu

Deadline for submissions: March 1, 2012

Presentations can be made in Spanish, Portuguese, or English

For more information, please contact Professor Monasterios at elm15@pitt.edu or Lucy DiStazio at lud3@pitt.edu

Sponsored by the Department of Hispanic Languages and Literatures, University of Pittsburgh

 

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Spring 2012 Brazilian Culture and Portuguese

Language Workshops

**These workshops are not University of Pittsburgh courses, and

no University of Pittsburgh credits apply.**

 

13-Week Workshops

Beginners Portuguese Class

Dates: Every Thursday (Now through to Apr 26, 2012 (no class on March 8 – Pitt’s Spring Break)

Time: 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.

Location: 4130 Wesley W. Posvar Hall, University of Pittsburgh

Fee: non-refundable $260 per person (for the 13 weeks)

 

Advanced Beginners Class

Dates: Every Tuesday (Now through to Apr 26, 2012 (no class on March 7 – Pitt’s Spring Break)

Time: 4:30 – 6:00 p.m.

Location: 4217 Wesley W. Posvar Hall, University of Pittsburgh

Fee: non-refundable $260 per person (for the 13 weeks)

 

Intermediate Class

Dates: Every Monday (Now through Apr 26, 2012 (no class on March 5 – Pitt’s Spring Break)

Time: 4:30 – 6:00 p.m.

Location: 4217 Wesley W. Posvar Hall, University of Pittsburgh

Fee: non-refundable $260 per person (for the 13 weeks)

 

Book for all levels: Brasil! Lingua e Cultura by Tom Lathrop, Eduardo M. Dias (Text and Exercise Book). Linguatext Ltd; Third Revised Updated edition (December 2004) ISBN-10: 9780942566437; ISBN-13: 978-0942566437 (available online at Amazon, Textbooks.com, etc.)

Note: Local K-12 teachers can take these workshops for Act 48 credit (not University of Pittsburgh course credits) at no cost.

For more information: contact Prof. Lilly Abreu at lillyabreu1@gmail.com

Sponsored by the Center for Latin American Studies and the International Business Center at the University of Pittsburgh

 

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Student Club Activities

 

Brazil Nuts Portuguese Club

Bate-Papo

Bate-Papo is our “Conversation Table” where you can speak about various topics and meet people with similar interests or just enjoying speaking in Portuguese. And the most important thing to remember is that people of any level can come to talk—the only requirement is that you want to have fun and chat! You can speak about anything you wish! See you at Bate-Papo!

Date & Time: Every Wednesday at 4:00 p.m.

Location: Room 538, William Pitt Union, University of Pittsburgh

 

Grupo de Dança

Please come and bring a friend with you! It is not necessary to have a dance background. We are starting a new group now, and it is open to Pitt students and members of the community. We promise you are going to have a lot of fun!!

Date & Time: Every Friday at 4:15 p.m.

Location: Main Floor, Wesley W. Posvar Hall, University of Pittsburgh

For more information: contact Ana Paula, apc_pitt@yahoo.com

 

Capoeira Pittsburgh

Capoeira Pittsburgh offers classes in Brazilian martial arts, music, and dance on Tuesdays & Thursdays at 7:15 p.m. at Bellefield Hall (2nd floor, aerobics studio), University of Pittsburgh and on Saturdays at 11:45 a.m. at BYS Yoga (1113 E Carson St, 3rd Floor) on the South Side. Capoeira is a martial art that was developed by African slaves in Brazil in the 1500s. The art is a great work out, but also a philosophy of life teaching confidence, discipline, and respect.

For more information, please visit: http://capoeirapittsburgh.wordpress.com/ or email capoeirapittsburgh@gmail.com

 

Spanish Club

Conversation Tables/Mesas de Conversación

Spanish Conversation Tables for all levels. It's a great way to practice Spanish with native speakers and students alike - and you can have a coffee or tea on us!

Dates & Times: Every Tuesday at 4:00 p.m. & Wednesday at 7:00 p.m.

Location: Panera Bread, 3800 Forbes Avenue, Oakland

For more information, please contact: PittSpanishClub@gmail.com

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If you have an announcement related to a Latin American/Caribbean activity taking place that

you would like to share with others interested in the region, please send details

no later than Tuesday of the week prior to the event to:

Center for Latin American Studies, University of Pittsburgh,

4200 Wesley W. Posvar Hall, Pittsburgh, PA 15260;

Phone: 412 648 7392; Fax: 412 648 2199; E-mail: clas@pitt.edu

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