Kakyoung Lee’s prints, drawings, animations, and installations celebrate undervalued identities, everyday activities, and transitive processes. Drawing upon her own experience as a first-generation Korean immigrant living in the United States, she portrays varied forms of self-realization and transformation. Whether capturing the motion of a tree moving, a person walking, or a woman giving birth, Lee practices the importance of close observation, mindfulness, and interconnection.

Haben Girma was the first deafblind graduate of Harvard Law School and is the author of the bestselling memoir Haben: The Deafblind Woman who Conquered Harvard Law. She is an award-winning advocate, author, and keynote speaker. She earned the Helen Keller Achievement Award, reached Forbes 30 under 30, and President Obama named her a White House Champion of Change. In this talk, she will discuss accessibility and her journey as an advocate.

Since the end of World War II, numerous large-scale wars, particularly in the Greater Middle East, have not only redefined states but have also transformed societies and cultures in their wake. This series brings together acclaimed novelists, scholars, and journalists from around the world to discuss how war is represented historically and culturally, how the humanities address concepts of human rights in curbing the spread of war, and how lives bear the traces of history’s conflicts.

The panel discussion will feature Artistic Director Kun-Yang Lin, Executive Director Katie Moore-Derkits, Visiting Assistant Professor of Dance Maggie Zhao, Associate Professor of Dance Joe Small, and Visiting Assistant Professor of Philosophy Rosanna Picascia. The culminating performance features the unveiling of a new work in collaboration with Swarthmore taiko students and Joe Small, alongside other KYL/D acclaimed repertory. Don’t miss this transformative evening of sound, movement, and spirit. Followed by talkback with the artists.

Pico Iyer’s writing and speaking slows the pace of our ever more frenzied lives. He encourages us to find a space for silence from which we can better understand how best to act in the world. His most recent book, Aflame, is a beautiful meditation on over 30 years of retreats at a Benedictine monastery. Iyer first visited the monastery after his house burned down in a wildfire and he lost all of his material possessions.

Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson is a scientist, policy expert, writer, and teacher working to help create the best possible climate future. What If We Get It Right? maps out how to build a more sustainable and equitable world, guiding us through solutions from visionary farmers and financiers to architects and advocates.

In this performance, Mumbai-based performer, choreographer, teacher, and curator Sanjukta Wagh weaves a colourful tapestry of women’s voices across time, cultures and languages – including Noor Jahan Sarwat, Joy Harjo, Ntozake Shange, Bahinabai Chaudhari, Soyarabai, and Arundhathi Subramaniam – followed by a post-performance discussion. The next day’s workshop will use structures inspired by Kathak, Hindustani music, and Bhakti literatures to introduce improvisation as studio-based practice for a dancer, actor, or performance maker.