44TH ANNUAL ASSOCIATION FOR INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES CONFERENCE: WICKED PROBLEMS
Association for Interdisciplinary Studies
44th Annual Conference
November 10 - 12, 2022
Thursday, November 11, 1:30 pm, Ballroom BCD
Land Acknowledgement, Jackie Elward, Mayor of Rohnert Park
Welcome Remarks, Mike Lee, Sonoma State President
Jennifer Dellner, AIS President
Welcome and Logistics, Jennifer Lillig, SSU Associate Dean of Academic Programs and AIS Conference Co-Chair
Welcome to the 44th Association for Interdisciplinary Studies Conference at Sonoma State University (SSU). These eventful three days will be filled with presentations, activities, and discussions about Wicked Problems and Interdisciplinarity: Sustainability, Resilience, and Designing the Future.
Sonoma State is thrilled to have you on our campus this year! SSU is a member of the 23-campus California State University CSU) system, the largest four-year public university in the nation. We are the only CSU member of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges (COPLAC) and are home to the Hutchins School of Liberal Studies, a 50-year old interdisciplinary, integrated degree program. We are a federally designated Hispanic-Serving Institution, and we honor the traditions of local indigenous people as we build partnerships to provide access to high-quality undergraduate and graduate degrees to the North Bay region. We are located in a picturesque region, with famous wineries all around, where you can explore our regional and state parks and visit the beautiful Pacific Ocean.
The road to this year’s conference coincides well with our conference theme- Wicked Problems and Interdisciplinarity: Sustainability, Resilience, and Designing the Future. SSU originally planned to host our AIS colleagues in-person in October of 2020. However, during the 43rd annual conference in Amsterdam, the wicked problem of climate change led to dry conditions resulting in the Kincade wildfire in Sonoma County. This was the third year of continuous and catastrophic wildfires in California. We flew home from the conference only to stay in hotels and with friends due to evacuations and power outages. This fire, which destroyed over 77,000 acres in the course of two weeks, led us to postpone the upcoming conference to November 2020 in an effort to by-pass “fire season.” However, in Spring 2020 we found ourselves faced with a new wicked problem, the emergence of COVID-19. This led us to pivot the conference to a one-day virtual mini-conference focused on a singular wicked problem: Interdisciplinary Responses to the Pandemic: An International Forum. Needless to say, we are so happy for this opportunity to engage with you now in November 2022 and to share perspectives and discuss solutions to these and other wicked problems that face our world today, including changes to higher education, to student populations and their needs, and to political, economic, and social environments world-wide. The struggle for racial justice and against white supremacy is real and unabated, and we need to know how we can design a sustainable, equitable future.
This year's conference has over 100 participants from 11 countries and 27 US States. We have a variety of workshops, papers, panels discussions, solution rooms, and special events that we hope will engage your intellectual and creative curiosities. We have also included two hybrid presentation rooms and a virtual gallery so that we can explore new options to increase exchange within our community while also regaining engagement through networking and in-person experiences. Our goal is that this conference drives new understanding, develops new connections, and encourages continual growth by allowing each of us to examine our own work within the context of others.
On behalf of the 2022 AIS Planning Committee - we welcome you to this year’s Association for Interdisciplinary Studies 44th Annual Conference.
Your Conference Co-Chairs,
Dr. Karen Moranski, SSU Provost and VP of Academic Affairs
Dr. Jennifer Whiles Lillig, Associate Dean Academic Programs
Thursday November 10, 2022
9:00 am - 12:00 pm - Pre-conference workshops
1:30 pm - 2:30 pm - Opening Ceremony, Ballroom BCD
3:00 pm - 4:15 pm - Concurrent Session 1
4:30 pm - 5:30 pm - Plenary Session I, Ballroom BCD
5:30 pm - 7:00 pm - Reception, Ballroom A
7:30 - Las Cafeteras, The Green Music Center
Friday November 11, 2022
7:30 am - 8:30 am - Breakfast, Ballroom A
8:30 am - 10:00 am - World Cafe, Ballroom BCD
10:15 am - 11:45 am - Concurrent Session II
12:00 pm - 1:15 pm - Lunch, Kitchens
1:30 pm - 2:45 pm - Concurrent Session III
3:00 pm - 4:30 pm - Concurrent Session IV
4:45 pm - 5:30 pm - Yoga with Kim in the Fieldhouse
5:30 pm - Dinner Circles, off campus
Saturday November 12, 2022
7:30 am - 8:30 am - Breakfast, Ballroom A
8:30 am - 9:30 am - Concurrent Session V
9:45 am - 11:00 am - Concurrent Session VI
11:15 am - 12:15 am - Concurrent Session VII
12:30 pm - 1:45 pm - Lunch, Kitchens
2:00 pm - 3:15 pm - Plenary II, Ballroom BCD
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm - Pomo Dancers, Ives 101
5:00 pm - 6:00 pm - Cocktail Hour, Ballroom A
6:00 pm - 9:00 pm - Dinner, Ballroom A
Saturday November 12, 6:30 pm, Ballroom A
Closing Remarks, SSU Provost Karen Moranski
Gretchen Schulz in Memormiam, Roz Schindler
Announcing the Board, AIS President Jennifer Delner
45th Annual AIS Conference Announcement, Marcus Tanner, Texas Tech University
Time to Go! Jenn Lillig, SSU Associate Dean of Academic Programs
Presenter: Leonardo Guzman
Abstract: At the Universidad de Concepcion and the country (Chile) there is a need to develop strategies oriented to create technical capacities and to form students putting at the center of scientific work the solution of complex problems that, today, are summarized in the Sustainable Development Goals.
Presenter: Radha Modi
Abstract: An abolitionist framework challenges us to re-think how we judge, evaluate, and support our students. As Ruth Wilson Gilmore states, “Abolition is about presence, not absence. It is about building life-affirming institutions.” How do we become more present with our students and their biographies? How do we add more opportunities into our courses to enable our students to reach their potential? The goal of my presentation will be to highlight abolitionist practices and how to utilize them in the classroom.
Presenter: Berend Barkela, Katherine Muñoz
Abstract: In an interdisciplinary approach we investigated the health risk of mycotoxins and dietary exposure and associated them to public risk communication, individual knowledge of risks, and food consumption habits. We will discuss a complex trade-off between avoiding food waste and possible health risks.
Presenter: Ghasem Darzi
Abstract: Peaceful coexistence and integration between disciplines and transdisciplines in universities is one of the goals that must be achieved in the future of universities to lead to a world free of war. In this research program, we try to explain the mechanism of such a combination by showing the details of an academic field.
Presenter: Cari L. Carter, Jorge Salazar-Bravo, Diego Chacon, Olga Moscoso Portillo
Abstract: With funding from the 100K Strong in the Americas Innovation Fund, Texas Tech University (TTU), Universidad Técnica de Honduras (UTH) and the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala (USAC), have developed a program centered on creating solutions to the wicked problem of contamination of the Motagua river basin.