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ASDP 30TH NATIONAL CONFERENCE
Resilient Futures: Using Asian Studies to Envision a More Humanely Shared World
9-11 March 2023
InterContinental Kansas City at the Plaza
The Asian Studies Development Program (ASDP) National Conference provides a space for interdisciplinary and insight-generating conversations among higher education teachers, scholars, learners, and leaders. In a convivial and inclusive environment, the conference promotes enhanced appreciation for the multidisciplinary field of Asian studies and how it is evolving across interdependent spheres of investigation and analysis.
CONFERENCE THEME
Resilient Futures: Using Asian Studies to Envision a More Humanely Shared World
The ever-evolving challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, climate disruption, economic inequality, identity conflicts, post-truth media, and political turmoil are opportunities for creative and collaborative thinking that draws equally on historical understanding and contemporary conceptual and technological resources to question narratives and envision more resilient communities and more humane systems of global interdependence.
The conference theme of Resilient Futures invites appreciative and critical reflection on the complexity of Asian perspectives and responses to current challenges, and how they open prospects for imagining global futures that are ecologically, economically, and culturally resilient—and also more humanely shared. How can philosophy, history, literature and the arts, natural and social sciences, and the societal formations of East, Southeast, and South Asian Studies contribute to a “planetary realism” that both sustainably and more inclusively advances visions of an ecologically and ethically responsible humanity?
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Dr. Prasenjit Duara
Presentation Title: Sacred Ecologies: Sustainability and Transcendence in Contemporary Asia
The crisis of global modernity has been produced by human overreach that was founded upon a paradigm of national modernization. Three global changes now define our condition: the rise of non-western powers, the crisis of environmental sustainability, and the loss of authoritative sources of transcendence—the ideals, principles and ethics once found in religions. The physical salvation of the world is becoming the transcendent goal of our times, transcending national sovereignty. The foundations of sovereignty can no longer be sought in tunneled histories of nations; we are recognizing that histories have always been circulatory, and the planet is a collective responsibility.
This talk reconsiders the values and resources in Asian traditions—particularly of China and India-- that Max Weber found wanting in their capacity to achieve modernity. Several traditions in Asia, particularly in environmentally marginalized local communities, offer different ways of understanding the relationships among the personal, ecological, and universal. The idea of transcendence in these communities is more dialogical than radical or dualistic: separating God or the human subject from nature. Transnational civil society, NGOs, quasi-governmental and inter-governmental agencies committed to the inviolability or sacrality of the ‘commons’ are finding common cause with these communities struggling to survive.
Prasenjit Duara is the Oscar Tang Chair of East Asian Studies at Duke University. He was born and educated in India and received his PhD in Chinese history from Harvard University. He was previously Professor and Chair of the Dept of History and Chair of the Committee on Chinese Studies at the University of Chicago (1991-2008), and Raffles Professor of Humanities and Director, Asia Research Institute at National University of Singapore (2008-2015). His book, Culture, Power and the State: Rural North China, 1900-1942 (Stanford, 1988), won the Fairbank Prize of the AHA and the Levenson Prize of the AAS. His other books include Rescuing History from the Nation (Chicago, 1995); Sovereignty and Authenticity: Manchukuo and the East Asian Modern (Rowman, 2003); and The Crisis of Global Modernity: Asian Traditions and a Sustainable Future (Cambridge, 2014). He has edited Decolonization: Now and Then (Routledge, 2004) and co-edited A Companion to Global Historical Thought with Viren Murthy and Andrew Sartori (Wiley, 2014). His work has been widely translated into Chinese, Japanese, Korean and the European languages.
CONFERENCE PROGRAM
To view the Conference Program:
CONFERENCE FIELD TRIP
Thursday, March 9, Guided Tour of The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
There will be a guided tour of highlights of the Nelson-Atkins Museum's famed Asian Collection on Thursday, March 9. This event will be free of charge. The route to the museum is walkable from the conference hotel and we will also be providing transportation for those who would rather ride. The tour will be led by Sarah Aptilon, Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Johnson County Community College, and will focus on the Museum’s Hindu and Buddhist art and its Japanese collection.
Since its opening in 1933, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art has become a nationally and internationally recognized museum with a collection of more than 42,000 art objects. The museum is known as one of the premier collections of Asian art in the United States.
For more information visit https://www.nelson-atkins.org/.
AS STRONG AS SILK WORKSHOP
Friday, March 10 (2:30 PM-4:00PM Pavilion Six), Workshop by Dr. Matthew Marone, Mercer University
The history of silk and China are inseparable. We often hear that silk is stronger than steel. Is there any truth to that? Does a silk cocoon actually unravel in a cup of hot tea as the ancient story of 嫘祖 Léi Zǔ suggests? Come and find out. In this workshop, we will perform several experiments with silk. Participants will learn how to degum silk and pull out fibers from actual cocoons. We will twist our silk fibers into silk threads and test their breaking strength. I will also discuss how I use this simple experiment in my class on Ancient Chinese Science and Technology. Note: the cocoons I use do contain dead silkworms which may be disturbing to some people.
This workshop will be limited to 20 people. Please sign up when you check-in for the conference.
CONFERENCE LOCATION & HOTEL ACCOMMODATIONS
The conference will be held in Kansas City, Missouri at the InterContinental Kansas City at the Plaza. The group room rate is $169 per night and applies from check-in on March 8 to check-out on March 12. Make your reservation by the February 17, 2023 deadline to guarantee booking at the group rate.
HOTEL & CITY:
InterContinental Kansas City at the Plaza
401 Ward Parkway
Kansas City, Missouri 64112
Located in the famous Country Club Plaza district of Kansas City, the InterContinental Kansas City at the Plaza is within walking distance to a wide variety of restaurants and shopping, as well as the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, and the historic Westport District.
Learn more about Kansas City here.
CONFERENCE REGISTRATION
All presenters and attendees must register for the program. Registration covers an opening reception, two lunches, and breaktime refreshments (Please note that it is not possible to guarantee meals if registering after Friday, March 3, 2023 at 12PM HST).
Registration Fees:
- Late registration: US$350 (After January 20, 2023)
- Student registration: US$175 (ID Required at Check-in Location)
CALL FOR PAPERS AND PROPOSALS GUIDELINES - CLOSED
The ASDP committee is now accepting proposals for the 2023 National Conference. Proposals can be for individual papers, panels, poster sessions, or round-table sessions and should not exceed 250 words. Proposals addressing some aspect of this year’s theme, Resilient Futures: Using Asian Studies to Envision a More Humanely Shared World, are encouraged, but we welcome any that touch on issues in Asian Studies broadly construed. All proposals must be submitted by February 1, 2023. Early submissions greatly facilitate putting together meaningful panel sessions. No late proposals will be accepted.
--- CLOSED ---
COVID-19 PROTOCOLS
The ASDP National Conference is currently being planned as an in-person event. We understand that you may have concerns about traveling, especially given the rise of new COVID-19 variants and uncertainty surrounding the potential number of COVID-19 cases in March 2023.
We will be releasing any necessary COVID-19 protocols prior to the conference start date. We will be diligent in following all local, state, and federal (CDC) guidelines for pandemic precautions. Additionally, we will be closely monitoring pandemic conditions in the Kansas City area and will consider alternatives should that become necessary.
ASDP 30TH NATIONAL CONFERENCE
Resilient Futures: Using Asian Studies to Envision a More Humanely Shared World
9-11 March 2023
InterContinental Kansas City at the Plaza
The Asian Studies Development Program (ASDP) National Conference provides a space for interdisciplinary and insight-generating conversations among higher education teachers, scholars, learners, and leaders. In a convivial and inclusive environment, the conference promotes enhanced appreciation for the multidisciplinary field of Asian studies and how it is evolving across interdependent spheres of investigation and analysis.
CONFERENCE THEME
Resilient Futures: Using Asian Studies to Envision a More Humanely Shared World
The ever-evolving challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, climate disruption, economic inequality, identity conflicts, post-truth media, and political turmoil are opportunities for creative and collaborative thinking that draws equally on historical understanding and contemporary conceptual and technological resources to question narratives and envision more resilient communities and more humane systems of global interdependence.
The conference theme of Resilient Futures invites appreciative and critical reflection on the complexity of Asian perspectives and responses to current challenges, and how they open prospects for imagining global futures that are ecologically, economically, and culturally resilient—and also more humanely shared. How can philosophy, history, literature and the arts, natural and social sciences, and the societal formations of East, Southeast, and South Asian Studies contribute to a “planetary realism” that both sustainably and more inclusively advances visions of an ecologically and ethically responsible humanity?
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Dr. Prasenjit Duara
Presentation Title: Sacred Ecologies: Sustainability and Transcendence in Contemporary Asia
The crisis of global modernity has been produced by human overreach that was founded upon a paradigm of national modernization. Three global changes now define our condition: the rise of non-western powers, the crisis of environmental sustainability, and the loss of authoritative sources of transcendence—the ideals, principles and ethics once found in religions. The physical salvation of the world is becoming the transcendent goal of our times, transcending national sovereignty. The foundations of sovereignty can no longer be sought in tunneled histories of nations; we are recognizing that histories have always been circulatory, and the planet is a collective responsibility.
This talk reconsiders the values and resources in Asian traditions—particularly of China and India-- that Max Weber found wanting in their capacity to achieve modernity. Several traditions in Asia, particularly in environmentally marginalized local communities, offer different ways of understanding the relationships among the personal, ecological, and universal. The idea of transcendence in these communities is more dialogical than radical or dualistic: separating God or the human subject from nature. Transnational civil society, NGOs, quasi-governmental and inter-governmental agencies committed to the inviolability or sacrality of the ‘commons’ are finding common cause with these communities struggling to survive.
Prasenjit Duara is the Oscar Tang Chair of East Asian Studies at Duke University. He was born and educated in India and received his PhD in Chinese history from Harvard University. He was previously Professor and Chair of the Dept of History and Chair of the Committee on Chinese Studies at the University of Chicago (1991-2008), and Raffles Professor of Humanities and Director, Asia Research Institute at National University of Singapore (2008-2015). His book, Culture, Power and the State: Rural North China, 1900-1942 (Stanford, 1988), won the Fairbank Prize of the AHA and the Levenson Prize of the AAS. His other books include Rescuing History from the Nation (Chicago, 1995); Sovereignty and Authenticity: Manchukuo and the East Asian Modern (Rowman, 2003); and The Crisis of Global Modernity: Asian Traditions and a Sustainable Future (Cambridge, 2014). He has edited Decolonization: Now and Then (Routledge, 2004) and co-edited A Companion to Global Historical Thought with Viren Murthy and Andrew Sartori (Wiley, 2014). His work has been widely translated into Chinese, Japanese, Korean and the European languages.
CONFERENCE PROGRAM
To view the Conference Program:
CONFERENCE FIELD TRIP
Thursday, March 9, Guided Tour of The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
There will be a guided tour of highlights of the Nelson-Atkins Museum's famed Asian Collection on Thursday, March 9. This event will be free of charge. The route to the museum is walkable from the conference hotel and we will also be providing transportation for those who would rather ride. The tour will be led by Sarah Aptilon, Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Johnson County Community College, and will focus on the Museum’s Hindu and Buddhist art and its Japanese collection.
Since its opening in 1933, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art has become a nationally and internationally recognized museum with a collection of more than 42,000 art objects. The museum is known as one of the premier collections of Asian art in the United States.
For more information visit https://www.nelson-atkins.org/.
AS STRONG AS SILK WORKSHOP
Friday, March 10 (2:30 PM-4:00PM Pavilion Six), Workshop by Dr. Matthew Marone, Mercer University
The history of silk and China are inseparable. We often hear that silk is stronger than steel. Is there any truth to that? Does a silk cocoon actually unravel in a cup of hot tea as the ancient story of 嫘祖 Léi Zǔ suggests? Come and find out. In this workshop, we will perform several experiments with silk. Participants will learn how to degum silk and pull out fibers from actual cocoons. We will twist our silk fibers into silk threads and test their breaking strength. I will also discuss how I use this simple experiment in my class on Ancient Chinese Science and Technology. Note: the cocoons I use do contain dead silkworms which may be disturbing to some people.
This workshop will be limited to 20 people. Please sign up when you check-in for the conference.
CONFERENCE LOCATION & HOTEL ACCOMMODATIONS
The conference will be held in Kansas City, Missouri at the InterContinental Kansas City at the Plaza. The group room rate is $169 per night and applies from check-in on March 8 to check-out on March 12. Make your reservation by the February 17, 2023 deadline to guarantee booking at the group rate.
HOTEL & CITY:
InterContinental Kansas City at the Plaza
401 Ward Parkway
Kansas City, Missouri 64112
Located in the famous Country Club Plaza district of Kansas City, the InterContinental Kansas City at the Plaza is within walking distance to a wide variety of restaurants and shopping, as well as the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, and the historic Westport District.
Learn more about Kansas City here.
CONFERENCE REGISTRATION
All presenters and attendees must register for the program. Registration covers an opening reception, two lunches, and breaktime refreshments (Please note that it is not possible to guarantee meals if registering after Friday, March 3, 2023 at 12PM HST).
Registration Fees:
- Late registration: US$350 (After January 20, 2023)
- Student registration: US$175 (ID Required at Check-in Location)
CALL FOR PAPERS AND PROPOSALS GUIDELINES - CLOSED
The ASDP committee is now accepting proposals for the 2023 National Conference. Proposals can be for individual papers, panels, poster sessions, or round-table sessions and should not exceed 250 words. Proposals addressing some aspect of this year’s theme, Resilient Futures: Using Asian Studies to Envision a More Humanely Shared World, are encouraged, but we welcome any that touch on issues in Asian Studies broadly construed. All proposals must be submitted by February 1, 2023. Early submissions greatly facilitate putting together meaningful panel sessions. No late proposals will be accepted.
--- CLOSED ---
COVID-19 PROTOCOLS
The ASDP National Conference is currently being planned as an in-person event. We understand that you may have concerns about traveling, especially given the rise of new COVID-19 variants and uncertainty surrounding the potential number of COVID-19 cases in March 2023.
We will be releasing any necessary COVID-19 protocols prior to the conference start date. We will be diligent in following all local, state, and federal (CDC) guidelines for pandemic precautions. Additionally, we will be closely monitoring pandemic conditions in the Kansas City area and will consider alternatives should that become necessary.
