September 21, 2017
Location: John Dewey Lounge, University of Vermont
Pakistan is a large and strategically important country in south Asia. It is in the news frequently due to its tumultuous politics, volatile mix of ethnicities and religions, possession of nuclear weapons, proximity to Afghanistan, and strained relations with India. It also faces significant challenges in meeting its considerable potential for increased living standards and levels of economic growth. Pakistan’s future development will be reflected in large part in how well it addresses the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) recently approved by the UN General Assembly.
This seminar is a forum for consideration of challenges and prospects for addressing key SDGs in the complex Pakistani context. It will provide information and perspective on two key issues, each of which are anchored in specific SDGs, but which also cut across others. Prof. Asim Zia, of the Department of Community Development and Applied Economics will provide perspective on environmental SDGs — Goals 6 (Clean Water), 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), 13 (Climate Action) and 15 (Life on Land). Maria Khan, a Pakistani national who is a doctoral candidate in Education at the State University of Albany, will focus on Goal 4 (Education). Ms. Khan also participated in a US State Department program at UVM in 2007.
In their remarks Zia and Khan will address the following themes:
• How is their issue defined in the Pakistani context?
• What particular challenges exist regarding addressing it?
• How can we tell if progress is being made?
Included in the seminar will be a short mini-documentary from a Haya Iqbal, a Pakistani documentary film-maker relating to women’s rights and Goal 16 (Just and Peaceful Societies). Haya’s work received an Academy Award last year and has recently been nominated for three Emmys.
A question and answer/discussion period will follow the presentations.