Yamuna/Anacostia: Rivers and Environmental Justice

From the Yamuna River in northern India to the Anacostia River running through Washington, DC, and Maryland, the fate of rivers in urban centers reveals that the consequences of industrialization are often felt most intensely by those already marginalized along racial, religious, caste, and socioeconomic divisions. This program will draw on key themes from the current exhibitions "A Splendid Land: Paintings from Royal Udaipur" and "Unstill Waters: Contemporary Photography from India," creating dialogue with the National Museum of Asian Art’s environs in Washington, DC. Artists and scholars will explore the parallel histories of the Yamuna and Anacostia Rivers, contemporary community-led efforts to address the harm done to the rivers and the communities that rely on them, and the role of image-making as a tool for environmental justice.

Speakers include:

Ravi Agarwal, artist, environmental campaigner, writer, and curator

Katrina Lashley, Program Coordinator, Anacostia Community Museum

Dr. Anne Rademacher, Professor of Environmental Studies, New York University

Dr. Bishnupriya Ghosh, Professor of English and Global Studies, University of California, Santa Barbara

This event will take place in the museum's Meyer Auditorium and will be streamed live online. In-person attendees must register here on eventbrite. Online attendees must register on Zoom: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_wsJQbjdKQmiwD5VRgA87-A

This event is part of the series Water, Climate, Culture.