UoH Faculty Contribute to Dialogues on Demographic Shifts and Reproductive Futures

On 11 July 2024 the School of Science in Society (Faculty of Science) (https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/science/schools/science-in-society/about) at Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, led by Dr. Nayantara Sheoran Appleton, and the Department of Liberal Arts, Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad (https://la.iith.ac.in/) led by Dr. Anindita Mazumdar,  collaborated to host a workshop on ‘Demographic Shifts and Reproductive Futures: Entanglements of Science, Technology, Medicine, and Society’.  Bringing together a diverse range of scholars, the conference looked at the complex entanglements of Science, Technology, Medicine, and Society.

The focus was on South Asia, including a general engagement with global demographic shifts. This seminar initiated an inquiry into the complex local and global movements that have historically shaped, and will continue to shape, reproductive futures. As it is seen more often, reproductive futures are closely tied to technological, scientific, and medical innovations. While demographic shifts are well rehearsed conversations in medical anthropology (under the “demographic anxiety” umbrella), the contemporary scale of demographic shifts alongside technological possibilities (from egg donations to uterus transplants) is yet to be fully accounted for in our collective scholarships, or imaginaries.

This seminar brought together scholars in diverse disciplinary spaces (medical school, liberal arts departments, anthropology, sociology, civil engineering, and climate change) to productively talk and think about possible societal implications of not just demographic shifts, but diverse reproductive futures. The days deliberations culminated in further plans to collaborate on submission of research grants and institutionalising partnerships between participating institutions.

Prof B.R. Shamanna, School of Medical Sciences and Prof Pushpesh Kumar, Department of Sociology, School of Social Sciences, University of Hyderabad presented their research work and papers at this important meeting.