The field of International Relations studies in India is set to grow in stature and appeal as India rises as a prominent player on the global stage. On the demand side, for India’s engagement with the world to be meaningful and effective, the indispensable role of professional expertise, specialized domain knowledge, and a coherent appealing narrative means that good quality IR scholarship will be valued highly. On the supply side as well, Indian youth’s prolonged exposure to the globalized culture has translated into a higher degree of curiosity and willingness to engage with the outside world while retaining an Indian gaze.
At this potentially transformative juncture, it only makes sense to take an insider stock of the current state of IR studies in India and the future possibilities that await us but also requires making a concerted effort on part of different stakeholders for it to materialize. As a student-led initiative focused on IR discussions from an Indian perspective, the JNU IR Society is well poised to deliberate on the issue from an insider perspective of student stakeholders. Further, even though the Society is spatially located in JNU, it has striven to outreach to the wider IR student community in recognition of their importance as stakeholders.
Set in this context, the JNU IR Society is hosting a student symposium on IR studies in India on 4th December 2022 (11.00 AM to 1.30 PM) in Room number 128, School of International Studies II, JNU, New Delhi. The Society invites the participation of enthusiastic IR students from across the university campuses in Delhi. The detailed agenda of the symposium is provided below.
I. Background
IR as a discipline in India is still at its nascent stage. While many new institutions have set up centres for the study of international relations, there is still a lack of student-led initiatives for discussions and deliberations that can further the development of IR in India. JNU IR society is a unique student-led initiative intended to fill this vacuum by fostering positive engagement and the free exchange of ideas among budding young scholars in the discipline of IR in India. We also aim to create a forum to establish inter-institutional collaboration and dialogue. Embarking on these goals, we are hosting a Symposium on December 4, 2022, focusing on the inter-institutional exchange of experiences and ideas envisioning a student-led, all-inclusive growth of IR in India.
II. Themes
Some of the broad themes that we seek to deliberate upon are:
- Our motivations for pursuing IR and the aspirations that we harbor for its sustained growth.
- Sharing our unique institutional experiences in an attempt to expand our
disciplinary horizons. - Discuss the ways in which young scholars like us can contribute to the growth of the discipline and widen the
outreach of IR in India. - Deliberate on career opportunities and promotion of peer connections for possible
collaborative efforts. - Lay out ideas and chart programmatic action to sharpen the public discourse on issues relevant to our field.
- Discuss collective challenges faced by the Indian IR community and the ways to overcome them.
III. Programme
11:00 AM – 11:45 AM
Session 1 – Possibilities in Indian IR
11:45 AM – 12:30 PM
Session 2 – Indian IR: Challenges for Students
12:30 PM – 12:45 PM
< Break (15 mins) >
12:45 PM – 1:30 PM
Session 3 – Collective Reflection on Solutions
IV. Outcomes
- JNU IR Society will publish a report outlining the reflection highlights of the Symposium,
which will be shared with relevant stakeholders in the IR ecosystem, both academic and beyond.
This report will act as an anchor point for similar student-centric reflection sessions across
India. - We envision the Symposium to be a step towards building a closely-knit IR community in
India which can add depth to our academic and professional lives through collective learning and
action. - The Symposium will create useful actionable for students through discussions and debates which will be shared with everyone after the Symposium