Three University of Wyoming students will share their international research during an event titled “Looking Locally, Speaking Globally” as part of the Centennial Speaker Series. The presentations are scheduled for Wednesday, May 20, from 4:30 to 6 p.m. at the Centennial Library at 27 Second St. in Centennial.
The speaker series is organized by the University of Wyoming’s Center for Global Studies and the Centennial Library to bring global topics and discussions to southeast Wyoming.
Mary Rocha, a master’s student in international studies from Reedsburg, Wisconsin, will present her work on national security policy in education settings. “This research examines the Prevent strategy in the Greater Manchester area of the United Kingdom as a national security policy operating within educational settings,” Rocha says. “Drawing on interviews, policy analysis, literature review and survey data, it explores the extent to which Prevent can be understood as a policy outcome of the securitization of British Muslim identity.”
Austin Barth, a graduating senior majoring in zoology from Burns, will discuss his study on memory among chestnut-backed antbirds. “We examined if Poliocrania exsul maintains acoustic memory of previous territorial neighbors. Working in central Panama with a long-term banded population, we conducted a field playback experiment to test if territorial songs of previous neighbors — those dead at least one year — were perceived as equally threatening as current neighbors, comparing these to stranger song playbacks,” Barth says.
Misty Springer, a second-year Ph.D. candidate studying public humanities from Garden Valley, Idaho, will talk about her collaborative work with Indigenous communities in South Africa. “My project is rooted in long-standing relationships and collaborative work with the !Xun and Khwe San communities of Platfontein, South Africa,” Springer says. “Through this initiative I will preserve personal/historical narratives and San cultural practices while also addressing community-identified needs through the development of a nonprofit organization… This work is grounded in respect, reciprocity and a commitment to ensuring that cultural knowledge is honored and sustained for future generations.”
The Center for Global Studies supports internationally engaged research opportunities at UW through fellowships and partnerships.
