Announcing the Cotsen Speaker Series

We are excited to announce the Cotsen Speaker Series, a new program beginning this quarter that will replace the Friday Seminars. The Cotsen Speaker Series is designed to promote meaningful dialogue with a scholar beyond a single talk or topic through a new format. Once a quarter, the Cotsen will host a speaker for two days. The first day the speaker will deliver a talk on one area of their research. On the second day, the speaker will be joined by members of the UCLA community in an informal panel that touches on  different aspects of their scholarship. In the spirit of the Cotsen’s commitment to interdisciplinary discourse, the panel will include individuals from outside archaeology. We hope that by hosting two separate events, we will give members of the entire UCLA community an opportunity to join. This format also encourages scholars to showcase a range of intellectual, theoretical, and research perspectives while facilitating the development and strength of relationships between the Cotsen community and scholars from around the world.

The theme for the 2019-20 academic year is “Challenging Archaeology,” stemming from our aim to question current practices as archaeologists and put forward ideas for the future. Our first speaker, in the fall quarter, will be Alison Wylie, professor of Philosophy at the University of British Columbia. Her work looks at evidential reasoning, gender studies, as well as ethics and equitability within the field of archaeology. In the winter, we will be joined by Uzma Rizvi, associate professor of Social Science and Cultural Studies at the Pratt Institute, whose interests include postcolonial theory, critical heritage studies, and the intersection of art and community development. Finally, in the spring, Tim Ingold, professor of Anthropology at the University of Aberdeen, will present his work on technology, the relationship between humans, animals, and the environment, as well as the relationships between biology and psychology with anthropology and culture.