Harry Aveling

This is the fourth time Dr. Harry Aveling has been invited to teach at Ohio University as a visiting scholar. He was here previously in Winter 2002, 2004, and 2007.

Dr. Aveling has particular interests in modern Indonesian, Malay, and Vietnamese literature. When asked what brought him to Southeast Asia, he said he first learned about the region when he was 8 years old. His aunt gave him a map of Borneo in hopes that he would become an expert on Indonesia. The opportunity came as he entered University of Sydney and got his BA in Indonesian and Malayan Studies. His first trip to Southeast Asia was more than 40 years ago. The first impression as an Australian student in Jakarta was overwhelming. He said, 'there were a lot of people around me, coming and going.'

Dr. Aveling received his Ph.D. in Malay Studies from the National University of Singapore. He also holds a Doctor of Creative Arts degree in Literary Translation from the University of Technology, Sydney. He has taught for many years at a variety of universities in Australia and Southeast Asia, including schools in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Vietnam. Each time traveling to different places, he has experienced the diversity of Southeast Asian countries and people. Everywhere he sees the local people expressing their own flavor and culture. For example, in Indonesia, he found his favorite drink, 'Alpukat,' which is avocado juice with coffee and chocolate syrup. While living in Southeast Asia, he enjoys walking around during his free time, and going to bookstores to understand more about local life. His favorite book is Kill The Radio, an anthology of poems written by Indonesian author Dorothea Rosa Herliany.

For Dr. Aveling, Ohio University is a special place because of the Southeast Asian Studies Program and the library's extensive collection on the region. He particularly appreciates the multiple perspectives of students from both the US and Southeast Asia.

Written by Southeast Asian Studies graduate student Huong Nguyen.

Altaf Ullah Khan

Dr. Altaf Ullah Khan, a visiting Fulbright Scholar from Pakistan, will spend this year at Ohio University researching how to transform FM radio station broadcasts in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) of the northern frontier of Pakistan into forums for development.

Khan received his M.A. in Journalism from the University of Peshawar, and his Ph.D. from the University of Leipzig. He was the first non-German member of the German Society for Journalism and Communication Science, a renowned European research organization and the first Pakistani to get a German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) grant in social sciences.

Khan's research focuses on radio station content in the Northern Areas of Pakistan. He hopes to alter the perception of the radio, showing its potential to contribute to development strategy and bring radio owners into a communal dialogue that would "serve the community in a very positive way."

"The content in many cases spread hatred - so Islamic fundamentalism and things of that sort - that is not healthy for their own immediate environment, Pakistan, or even the whole world," Khan said.

Radio is often the first media experience for people residing in the FATA - an area that has historically been denied access to all forms of media. Community radios can be created for under 200 U.S. dollars and owners have complete control over the content.

Khan is jointly sponsored at OHIO by the Center for International Studies and the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism.

"We are delighted to have Altaf with us this year. His interaction with our students and our faculty will add depth and texture to our Institute for International Journalism," Thomas Hodson, director of the E.W.Scripps School of Journalism, said. "He brings a timely and critical perspective from a part of the world that both journalists and average citizens need to know much more about."

While Khan feels his research will be his legacy from his stint as Fulbright Scholar, he would also like to engage students and faculty in discussions about misperceptions between Pakistanis and Americans - a topic on which he intends to write in the future.

"I think that the images that we get on both sides of the divide are not the true images of people," he said.

Khan welcomes contact from faculty, students, and the media. He can be reached at khana1@ohio.edu.

Written by Center for International Studies Communication Assistant Jackie Zimmerman.