Our Goals and Objectives:

Our goal is to develop the symposium – “Translating the Human: Rights, Ethics and Practices Across Cultures” – to fulfill UHM’s continued vision to sustain its place as a Hawaiian center of learning while building on its tradition of excellent Asia-Pacific scholarship and showcasing our innovativeness through interdisciplinary conversations.

1.  Engage faculty and students across disciplines to discuss how diverse 
perspectives of humans and humanism affect ethics, politics, and cross-cultural dialogue; the symposium will act as a catalyst for scholarly work amongst students and faculty;

2.  Highlight Hawaiian and Pacific Islander cultures to emphasize the interaction between people and place in the debate surrounding political and social issues, such as land, language, and law;

3.  Intervene in the lively discussion regarding humanism and the human across the globe from a Hawai’i-based perspective;

4.  Bring perspectives on the human from elsewhere to Hawai’i-based scholars and communities;

5.  Develop a website that can continue to be a forum for scholars and community members with like-minded interests in humanism and the human after the symposium;

6.  Develop interdisciplinary and community connections to continue an ongoing discussion on the role of the human in the world.

Symposium Program Committee:

1. Vilsoni Hereniko, Director, Center for Pacific Islands Studies
2. Jonathan Kamakawiwo'ole Osorio, Professor, Center for Hawaiian Studies
3. Cynthia Franklin, Professor, Department of English
4. Subramanian Shankar, Professor, Department of English
5. Cheryl Naruse, Graduate Student, Department of English
6. Keala Francis, Graduate Student, Department of English

Sponsors:

The Symposium is made possible with the generous support of the following at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa:
1. Center for Pacific Islands Studies
2. Comparativism and Translation in Literary and Cultural Studies
3. The Hawai'inuiakea School of Hawaiian Knowledge
4. The Joseph Keene Chadwich Fund of the Department of English
5. Gladys Brandt Endowment
6. Office of the Dean, College of Languages, Linguistics, and Literature
7. SEED Equity and Diversity Initiative Grant

Co-sponsored by:

1. Department of American Studies
2. Center on Disability Studies
3. Graduate Student Organization