In the Fall 2025 semester, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) Center for Global Studies (CGS) focused its programming lens on the Global South, hosting nine lectures that collectively engaged various global challenges across broad geographical contexts, and diverse fields and scholarship.
The talks covered a wide range of themes: climate change and decarbonization, offshore finance and global capitalism, digital monopolies and AI governance, youth participation in global agendas, and struggles for land, water, and recognition. They span diverse geographic contexts, from the Navajo Nation and the Colombian Amazon to the Caribbean and broader Global South–Global North dynamics. Speakers drew from fields including sociology, political science, engineering, computer science, and information studies, while engaging transformative frameworks such as decolonization, contextual and community-led design, political economy and ecology, and postcolonial and feminist science and technology studies. These events showcased scholarship that is deeply interdisciplinary, critically engaged, and globally grounded.
At a moment marked by profound political, social, economic, and environmental uncertainty, these lectures not only highlighted cutting-edge research on interconnected global challenges but also offered critical reflection alongside grounded pathways for hope and action. Below is an overview of CGS’ Global South-focused programs and events hosted this semester.
September 4 – Claudia Grisales Bohorquez (PhD candidate, UIUC), "Aligning the Stars: an Ethnography of Digital Networks and Campesino Struggles in the Colombian Amazon."
This talk examined how digital technologies shape land struggles and environmental governance among campesino communities in the Colombian Amazon. Drawing on ethnographic research, Grisales showed how forest governance technologies often frame forests as assets and campesinos as beneficiaries, while also highlighting moments where grassroots appropriation of technology opens possibilities for more just political and ecological futures.
September 17 – Emily Lawson-Bulten and Jess Mingee (PhD candidates, UIUC), "Decolonizing Relationships: Moving from an Empowerment to Agency Mindset in International Engineering Interventions."
Challenging practitioner-centered models of development, this talk proposed a shift from “empowerment” to affirming community agency in international engineering projects. Through case studies in Zambia and Honduras, the speakers illustrated how engineers can act as facilitators who support local autonomy and long-term sustainability.
September 23 – MillerComm: Allison Stanger (International Politics and Economics, Middlebury), "Who Elected Big Tech?”
This MillerComm lecture explored the growing power of major technology corporations in shaping global governance, democracy, and public discourse. Professor Stanger examined the political, legal, and geopolitical challenges posed by AI and digital monopolies, raising critical questions about accountability and democratic control.
September 25 – Southern Voices, "Catalysts for Change: Youth Participation and the Future of Global Agendas."
This virtual event focused on youth participation in global development and policy-making, centering Global South perspectives. Drawing on research from Bolivia and practitioner experience, the discussion examined how youth engagement can become more meaningful, influential, and transformative in shaping global agendas.
October 1 – Jose Atiles (Sociology, UIUC), “Islands of Exception: Law, Empire, and Offshore Finance in the Caribbean.”
Previewing his forthcoming book, Professor Atiles traced the colonial and imperial foundations of offshore finance in the Caribbean and Puerto Rico. The talk argued that tax havens are central, not peripheral, to global capitalism, and examined how legal and financial infrastructures reproduce colonial logics while evading accountability.
October 9 – Xiomara Ortiz (MA candidate, Agricultural and Biological Engineering, UIUC), "Context Before Engineering – Learning from a Community-Led Water Project in the Navajo Nation.”
Focusing on a water project in Bodaway Gap, Navajo Nation, this talk highlighted the limits of purely technical solutions to water access. Ortiz emphasized the importance of community engagement and contextual engineering, showing how local priorities, such as water for livestock, reshape engineering design and outcomes.
October 21 – Gino Pauselli (Political Science, UIUC), "Critical Ties: How Reliable Information Suppliers Influence International Organizations' Propensity to Criticize States."
This presentation examined how relationships between NGOs and international organizations shape human rights accountability. Using data from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Professor Pauselli showed that trusted information suppliers play a crucial role in prompting international organizations to publicly criticize states.
October 30 – Sharifa Sultana (Computer Science, UIUC), "Human-AI Interaction in the Global South."
Drawing on ethnographic and participatory research, this talk explored how communities in the Global South engage with and repurpose AI systems within fragile infrastructures. Professor Sultana highlighted design approaches that center local knowledge, linguistic justice, and community well-being to envision more equitable AI futures.
November 19 – Matthew Soener (Sociology, UIUC), "Global Capitalism, Climate Change, and Emerging Fault Lines."
Situating the climate crisis within historical political economy, this talk examined how export-led growth, global value chains, and international financial institutions have shaped emissions growth in the Global South. Professor Soener also discussed emerging shifts in global capitalism and their uncertain implications for decarbonization.
Together, these talks underscore the role of the Center for Global Studies as a critical hub for intersectional challenges, geographically expansive topics, and interdisciplinary dialogues at UIUC. By convening scholars, practitioners, organizations, and students working with power, governance, economy, technology, justice, and community insights, CGS continues to cultivate spaces for critical and transformative scholarship.
We would like to express our heartfelt thanks to all the speakers and collaborators who contributed their time, insights, and expertise, as well as to all the audience for their participation, support, and care. We look forward to continuing these conversations and upholding our mission in future programs.
