Read for Action Workshop at DEVEX 2024
Can fiction help us rethink the toughest global challenges? Bruce Holsinger, acclaimed author of The Displacements, along with the cofounders of Read for Action: The Humanitarian Book Club will host an immersive workshop at DEVEX 2024 to discuss how fiction can reshape the way we think about aid.
We often struggle to frame solutions for the growing complexities of poverty, crises, and displacement. How could a novel help to inspire action in response to the world’s most pressing humanitarian challenges? Join Professors Bruce Holsinger, Kirsten Gelsdorf, and Adrienne Ghaly to discuss how fictional narratives can inspire fresh perspectives and innovative approaches to policy-making. We’ll explore how this novel’s gripping themes—climate displacement, social fractures, and community resilience—relate to real-world challenges we face in development and humanitarian work. Participants will have the opportunity to discuss the novel with the author, engage with peers in facilitated discussions, and connect the story’s themes to contemporary global challenges.
Kirsten Gelsdorf, Director of Global Humanitarian Policy, Professor of Practice of Leadership and Public Policy, University of Virginia.
Bruce Holsinger, Author, The Displacement; Professor of English, University of Virginia
Adrienne Ghaly, Assistant Professor, Department of English, University of Virginia