Symposium: Contemporary issues in a land of climatic extremes
In the middle of the Eurasian continent, the Mongolian Plateau is subject to climatic fluctuations, including the phenomenon of extreme weather events in winter (dzud), or heat and drought in summer (gan), with heightened levels of extremity in recent years due to the impacts of a changing climate.
On this second day of the Mongolia Update, we feature a symposium with scholars focusing on Mongolia and Inner Asia more broadly, with an emphasis on aspects relating to the environment and climate change.
Program Details
9.00am Keynote Address
- Assistant Professor Takahiro Tomita, Kobe University, Japan
Severe winter disasters (dzud) between the socialist era and the present: what can we learn from past disasters?
- Dr William Taylor, University of Colorado, Boulder
Melting mountain ice, cultural heritage, and pastoral lifeways in Mongolia, past and present
- Discussant: Associate Professor Natasha Fijn (ANU)
10.30am Morning tea
11.00am Panel 1
- Associate Professor Byambabaatar Ichinkhorloo, National University of Mongolia
Zud and Khorshoo: herder's perspective and political dimensions
- Dr Uchralt Otede, Australian National University
Challenges of citizen participation in addressing local environmental issues in Inner Mongolia and Mongolia
- Saren Tuoya, Inner Mongolia University
The relationship between herders and water in drought: A case study of G Soum in Eastern Inner Mongolia
- Discussant: Professor Li Narangoa (ANU)
12.30pm Lunch
1.30pm Panel 2
- Dr Rebekah Plueckhahn and NGO colleagues in Mongolia, University of Melbourne
Mapping resident's experiences of climatic weather events and perceptions of climate change in Ulaanbaatar
- Byambagerel Suren, National University of Mongolia
What can history of Mongolian forest fires teach us?
- Associate Professor Natasha Fijn, Australian National University
A multispecies anthropological approach to influenza in Mongolia
- Discussant: Undargaa Sandagsuren (ANU)
3.30pm Afternoon tea
4.00pm END OF SYMPOSIUM
Please register and select the appropriate ticket type (in-person or online).
The Update is organised by the ANU Mongolia Institute, the only dedicated hub for Mongolian studies in the Southern Hemisphere.
The Mongolia Update is hosted by the College of Asia and the Pacific at the Australian National University, supported by the Embassy of Mongolia and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Canberra.
