Please take note of the following changes in the upcoming Nepal Conference at The New School on Saturday, May 19th, 2007. Also, please forward the new information to whomever you may have sent the original to. New Venue: Theresa Lang Center, 55 West 13th Street, between 5th and 6th Avenues. (The same venue where The New School has hosted previous events on Nepal). No Registration Fee: The registration fee of $10 for students and $25 for others have been scrapped. The conference is now FREE for everyone. Light breakfast will be provided, but the participants will have to arrange for their own lunch. List of local eateries in the neighborhood will be provided. For those who have already registered with the payment, full refunds will be available on the day of the conference. Changes in the list of panelists: Bimalendra Nidhi (General Secretary of NC-D, former Minister of Education, Sports, Industry, Commerce) and D.B Bishwakarma (President of Dalit National Federation, Nepal, and Fulbright Scholar at American University) will replace Suresh Ale Magar (CPN- Maoist) and Padma Ratna Tuladhar as panelists. Final Agenda: International Conference NEPAL TODAY: CHALLENGES OF INCLUSIVE DEMOCRACY SATURDAY, MAY 19, 2007, 8:30 A.M. - 5:00 P.M. The New School, Theresa Lang Center, 55 W 13tth Street, New York, NY 10011 8:30 A.M. - 9:00 A.M. Registration / Continental Breakfast 9:00 A.M. - 9:15 A.M. Opening Remarks Ashok Gurung, Director, India China Institute, The New School Bob Kerrey, President, The New School 9:15 A.M. – 10:00 A.M. Keynote Speech Subas Nembang, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nepal (15 minutes Q&A) 10:00 A.M. - 12:30 A.M. Session I: Taking Stock: Exclusion and Dissent MODERATOR: David Holmberg, Professor of Anthropology, Cornell University PANELISTS: Pramod Kantha, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Wright State University, Ohio Sumitra Manandhar Gurung, Chairperson, National Coalition Against Racial Discrimination (NCARD) D. B. Bishwakarma, Fulbright scholar, American University; President, Dalit National Federation, Nepal Krishna Bhattachan, Professor of Sociology and Anthropology, Tribhuvan University, Nepal DISCUSSANTS: Mukta Tamang, Ph.D. Candidate, Cornell University Susan Hangen, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, Ramapo College, New Jersey Kathryn March, Professor of Anthropology, Cornell University Q&A 12:30 P.M. - 2:00 P.M. Lunch Break 2:00 P.M. - 4:45 P.M. Session II: Looking Ahead: Inclusion and Democratization MODERATOR: Kul Gautam, Deputy Executive Director, UNICEF and Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations PANELISTS: Mahendra Lawoti, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Western Michigan University Murari Raj Sharma, Chairman of the United Nation’s Fifth Committee and Former Ambassador of Nepal to the United Nations Om Gurung, Associate Professor of Anthropology, Tribhuvan University, Nepal and Advisor to Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (NEFIN) Bimalendra Nidhi, General Secretary of Nepali Congress (Democratic), Legislature, & former Minister of Education, Sports, Industry, Commerce, and General Administration of Nepal Al Stepan, Wallace S. Sayre Professor of Government, and Director of the Center for the Study of Democracy, Toleration and Religion, at Columbia University DISCUSSANTS: Andrew Arato, Professor of Sociology, The New School Navin Rai, Lead Social Development Specialist, World Bank Q&A 4:45 P.M. – 5:00 P.M. Closing Remarks Ashok Gurung, Director, India China Institute, The New School