September at the Columbia Global Paris Center

In September, the Columbia Global Paris Center hosted events emphasizing our commitment to environmental and social justice, while celebrating creative expression as a form of resilience in response to displacement and trauma.

In our podcast Atelier, we spoke with Delphine Grouès from SciencesPo, who invites artists from diverse disciplines to foster students’ creativity, and Alex Halliday, founding Dean of the Columbia Climate School, which brings together climate experts across disciplines.

Learn more about our September activities below, and stay tuned for our upcoming Fall initiatives!

Displaced Artists Festival

The Paris Global Center celebrated the 2023 – 2024 residents of the Displaced Artists Initiative, a program that provides support  for artists forced to flee their countries due to political oppression, war, or other crises.

The evening began with a celebration of this year’s Reid Hall Displaced Artist residents. Ugandan performance artist Haman Mpadire opened with a lecture-performance inspired by his creative process. He invited the audience into his artistic world with an opening sequence of movement and sound. Mpadire then invited the audience to play any song from their phones, asking them to close their eyes and experience the sensation of cacophony. After the ensuing silence, he explained that when asked to define who he is or what he does, that chaotic sound reflects how he feels: indescribable, indeterminate, and fluid. He concluded with an open question, which he plans to explore during his residency: is it acceptable to be impossible to define?

Next, we heard poetry by Palestinian poet Doha Kahlout, translated by former Institute Fellow Yasmine Seale and performed by Lina Soualem in English, and Yasmine Haj in Arabic. Before the readings, we screened a short video interview with Kahlout, who is currently stranded in Rafah, Gaza, allowing her to introduce herself to the audience remotely. She provided context to her work as a writer and poet, sharing her background as an Arabic teacher and her passion for working with children and younger generations. Kahlout also discussed her compulsion to write since October 7, despite the immense challenges in finding any peace amidst the ongoing war. The dual-language readings by Soualem and Haj beautifully conveyed the depth of Doha's poetry.

The evening continued with presentations from last year’s residents. Iranian-Afghan author Aliyeh Ataei presented her non-fiction work in progress, which explores refugee narratives. She shared video footage and photographs of refugees she has interviewed, accompanied by audio clips dubbed in English, allowing the audience to hear their stories in their own voices. Ataei's interest in borders and displacement stems from her upbringing on the Iran-Afghanistan border, a landscape she has depicted in previous fiction and essays. Her current project, however, focuses on the stories of refugees from various countries and cultures. She explained that this project has been a learning process for her, both in terms of understanding the cultural and political contexts that compel people to flee and studying refugee and asylum policies, especially those concerning minors, to whom she will dedicate a chapter of the book.

The evening culminated with a chamber music concert organized by the 1991 Project, featuring the Quatuor Bleu et Or, a group of Ukrainian musicians. They performed a program that highlighted the excellence of contemporary Ukrainian composition and its deep connection with European classical music. The program included Guillaume Connesson's Quatuor à cordes (2010) [12’], which represents the stages of life—Calme, Furieux, Triste—and Zoltan Almashi's String Quartet No. 4 "Poltava" (2018/2022) [11’]. The first three parts of Almashi's quartet were composed in 2018 following Ukraine’s unsuccessful defense against Russian attacks, with movements titled Chant, Battle, and Emptiness. The final movement, Chant. The Second Attempt, was composed in 2022 at the onset of the current war.

Anna Stavychenko, founder and artistic director of the 1991 Project, opened the performance and closed the event with a poignant statement about the significance of seeing these performers in Paris, while their friends and colleagues are being killed daily on the front lines of the war with Russia and in bombings of Ukrainian cities. We paused to remember writer Victoria Amelina, who was killed in a Russian shelling in July 2023, just weeks before she was scheduled to participate in this residency.

The evening was a powerful reminder of how art can transcend borders, uniting people through shared narratives of displacement and hope.

Interdisciplinary Discussions on Climate and the Environment

The Paris Global Center is deeply engaged in sustainability and climate-related initiatives, with a variety of events, conferences, and sustainable practices at Reid Hall. To keep our community informed about these efforts, including upcoming public events, we’ve launched the *Climate Talks* mailing list. If you’re interested in staying up-to-date, we encourage you to sign up.

In September, as Paris reflects on the recently concluded Olympic and Paralympic Games, we partnered with the City Diplomacy Lab, the U.S. Embassy, and the United Nations Environment Program to explore the role of sustainability in major global events. This collaboration brought together experts from Paris, Los Angeles, and Brisbane to discuss the evolving legacy of the Olympics. No longer just a sports event, the Games have become a platform for urban renewal and cultural inclusivity. Sustainability, a key goal of the Paris Games, was at the forefront, and the discussion emphasized the importance of future collaboration between host cities to promote green innovation. Read more about our takeaways here.

We also hosted author and sociologist Kaoutar Harchi, who shared insights from her latest book, Ainsi l’animal et nous (Actes Sud, 2024). Harchi’s exploration of the concept of animalization—the process of dehumanizing both animals and marginalized groups—sparked a thought-provoking conversation on the systemic violence faced by women, workers, and racial minorities. Her discussion challenged the audience to reconsider humanity's relationships with both animals and each other.

New Episodes from Atelier

This month, the Paris Global Center’s Atelier podcast released two new interviews and a special performance minisode.

Alex Halliday, founding dean of Columbia’s Climate School, discussed the school’s mission to combat climate change and prepare future leaders. He highlighted the crucial role of academic institutions in advancing climate action and promoting a just, thriving society on a healthy planet. Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all major platforms.

Delphine Grouès, Dean of the Maison des Arts et de la Création at Sciences Po, delved into the intersection of creativity and academia. She shared how creative processes can drive innovation, reshape our understanding of failure, and enrich both academic and professional experiences, underscoring the importance of integrating artistic expression into education and research. Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all major platforms.

Additionally, we shared a recording of Driftscape, a performance by Ursula Kwong-Brown and Daniel Erdberg. This piece, debuted at Reid Hall’s Nuit de l’Imagination, explored the concept of boredom and its impact on creativity, offering a thought-provoking fusion of sound and reflection that challenged traditional notions of time and productivity. Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all major platforms.

A Busy Fall Ahead

With a busy month behind us, the Paris Global Center continues to be a hub for intellectual and cultural exchange. Whether through conversations on climate action or performances by displaced artists, the events of September underscored the Center’s commitment to fostering global dialogue and community engagement.