ABOUT US, FROM US

“No one is born a good citizen; no nation is born a democracy. Rather, both are processes that continue to evolve over a lifetime.Young people must be included from birth. A society that cuts itself off from its youth severs its lifeline; it is condemned to bleed to death.” 

- Kofi Annan.

It is the youth of today that moulds the future of tomorrow. It is them who have to live through the consequences of policies taken today and this makes it unconditional, but imperative to give their words a voice and equip them with few skills that good governance of tomorrow calls for, namely, critical thinking, analytical flair and research capabilities which shall enhance their prudence as torch bearers of the better future envisaged by all. And the responsibility for this falls on the shoulders of centres of education which impart excellency to the youth blooming under their wings.

Miranda House has never left a stone unturned in realising its goal of preparing the young women to emerge as leaders charged with new ideas and capacity to make a difference. It would be pertinent to say that as an institution Miranda House strives to contribute to nation building by harnessing the rich demographic dividend of brilliant young minds of our women students as well as dedicated faculty. Miranda House is colossally blessed with an extremely dedicated, competent and solicitous faculty of Professors and Teachers, who primarily aim at, proficiently shaping young lasses into exceptionally evolved, accomplished and empowered women of modern India. In continuation with its stimulating and prodigious legacy, giving life to our Principal's potent, the "Policy Centre and Gender Lab" was inaugurated, to act as a whetstone against which the young budding researchers and philosophers can hone their skills.

Who are we?

We are the Policy Centre and Gender Lab at Miranda House. We are ‘you’ in the process of becoming an impactful and knowledgeable 'us'.In continuation with Miranda House’s stimulating and prodigious legacy, the institution seeks to open an extremely fresh opportunity by introducing  the threshold of - Policy Centre and Gender Lab. The Lab is a boulevard for those who intend to willingly explore the realm of research at multifarious echelons and want to learn about strategic planning in context of the contemporary backdrop. As faculty members, researchers and concerned citizens we would like to respond to the need of the hour and be a part of solutions for optimal rational and development oriented public policy. The centre would be a creative space where students, faculty and other stakeholders can develop the knowledge and skills to develop policy in a more open, discussion oriented, and research based data-driven, digital and user-centered way with implications for society.

Who inspires us?

“Knowledge is like an ever-flowing stream of water, and where you stop to drink from it, is where you will become quenched.” And we at Miranda House have not stopped, ever. Miranda House is colossally blessed with an extremely dedicated, competent and solicitous faculty of Professors and Teachers, who primarily aim at, proficiently shaping young lasses into exceptionally evolved, accomplished and empowered women of modern India. The Lab is on board to provide an overarching structure to research activities in the sphere of Gender Studies and coping contemporary Social Evils of the society. To come with efficacious solutions is our prime motive.

What do we do?

We are more than just a platform of dissent and discussion. We learn together. We teach, harmoniously. We grow, infinitely. We inspire, everyday. We build each other. We shatter the ceilings and walls. We give freedom. We take hard work and commitment. We are a package which is for a lifetime and most importantly ‘free’. Why did we select Policy and Gender as the twin planks to build the research lab on? The key to the answer lies in the importance accorded to both by our social and hence, academic fabric. While no social structure is exempt from the penetration of gender dimensions which serve as an excellent lens for scrutinizing society, public policies serve as a course of action that guides a range of related actions in a given field. They rarely tackle one problem, but rather deal with clusters of entangled and long-term problems.

We are more than just what is necessary, we are the need of the hour.

Public policies are essential to address society’s concerns in every sphere including poverty and other issues of marginalisation and exclusion —where the market has failed, for instance, or where societies face collective action challenges, or where public goods need to be produced. The world is in trouble if public policies targeting such issues fail routinely, and we do exactly that. The current research strategy and work is aimed at developing a critical analysis about “Impact of Lockdown on Women”. Various webinars have been successfully organised to incubate the understanding of Gender in the times of COVID-19, including some in collaboration with the University of Gothenburg.

What do we aim for?

The Lab seeks to encourage and promote interdisciplinary analysis and thinking to provide a holistic and an all-round research model which helps to cater the deficits of society. It also aims at initiating new research activities and groupings and also works towards consolidating existing research activities in the field of Social Sciences. The Lab seeks to provide education and training in research and related skills, especially for undergraduate students and young scholars, thereby assisting flowering learners to explore the ambit of academia and the power of knowledge. In bringing home the techniques and strategies of research methodology, the students were given exposure to numerous professionals in the field of study to guide them on the path of delving deeper into understanding of the subject. Workshops aiming at skill development worked in carrying forward the process to a next level. Multi-stakeholder research requires not only technical and social knowledge, but also leadership, facilitation skills, the ability to manage partnerships, and to use and communicate knowledge and research outputs widely. Therefore, our centre shall focus on diverse learning through a multi-channel framework established through collaboration with different institutions, organisations, and expert’s network.

Who do we work with?

Internationally collaborating and organising workshops with the University of Gothenburg, University of Birmingham, University of Guelph and University of Oxford, the Lab has provided for a space to ideate and innovate on policy issues and concerns ultimately. At home front, collaborating with ‘Stree Shakt’ and ‘ActionAid’, the assimilation of ideas and visions of these empowering organisations has established a range of ideologies and research possibilities. Looking forward, the Lab is working tirelessly to form a collaboration with ‘Her World’. All the events and seminars have been a great success. How do we know that? Remember, we are you and you are us. That’s how we know. We will take this journey of proficiency and accomplishment with you, hand-in-hand.

What is in it for you?

The Centre would work hand-in-hand with partners from the public and private sector. Students will benefit from the space’s flexible and experimental approach, that combines research and action, mobilises skill sets from different disciplines. We are keen on setting up a centre for policy research on these same lines in our college and this will be the first attempt of its kind in the University to engage with our students- young women who are leaders in their own possesses right to discover, design and evaluate public policies. This is an initiative to expand the boundaries of education to a point where there are no boundaries. ‘You’ can help us do that and we can help you to grow.

What is our journey so far?

Policy Centre and Gender Lab began its arduous task of equipping the students with promising research skills by organising a series of disquisitions on research methodology which was initiated on 4th February 2020, by Dr. Jill Steans, prominent researcher on issues of gender and sexuality and senior lecturer on International Relations Theory at University of Birmingham. The lecture series on research methodology was continued by Dr. Sharda from University of Guelph and Dr. Ashutosh Jha and Dr Hong, the facility members of Miranda House. Meanwhile we also expanded our outreach when, in collaboration with The Delhi Times, we organised a session with Tapsee Pannu (actor) on 'Existence with dignity is equal to empowerment' and a street play was organised on the occasion of International Women's Day depicting diverse aspects of  femininity.

What is our achievement?

The chains imposed by lockdown measures taken as response to COVID-19 failed to succeed in slowing down our efforts. Workshops and events continued to be held in collaboration with University of Gothenburg, Sweden, the Bud Foundation, School of Government & International Relations and Griffith Asia Institute, School of Social Sciences at University of Hyderabad, Delhi State Legal Service Authority, Juvenile Justice Board Synergy Lead and Delhi Management Association. Our students are moving forward with their research on 'Impact of lockdown on women' and our efforts have been appreciated by the ETV Media, the Hindustan Times and the Navbharat Times.

WRITTEN BY SHALLU AND MANJIMA