Online Mongolian Language Course

ANS 193: Introduction to Mongolian Language and Culture
January 21-May 6, 2010

University of Alaska Fairbanks and the American Center for Mongolian Studies are pleased to announce an online introductory Mongolian language course for the spring of 2010. The course will be offered for credit and cover beginner level competencies. The course will be taught by three instructors entirely online, so participation is open to anyone, anywhere with an internet connection. The number of participants is capped, so sign up as soon as possible to ensure a spot in the course.

For more information visit: http://www.alaska.edu/distance or call 800-277-8060
Registration and other fees: $115
No prerequisites or textbooks
Course materials available at www.mongoliacourses.org
Course description at www.mongoliacourses.org/ANS193

About Instructors:

T. Naraantsetseg is a Mongolian language instructor with over 15 years experience and 8 language book publications. She is a language instructor at the State Department Foreign Service Institute. She will be teaching from Virginia.

Brian White is a advanced-level non-native speaker of Mongolian and experienced foreign language instructor. He is the US Director of the American Center for Mongolian Studies, and lived in Mongolia for five years. He will be teaching from Wisconsin.

Curt Madison is an expert in distance education. He is the Director of eLearning Program Development at UAF. He will be teaching from Alaska.

ACMS Faculty Research Fellowship 2010

American Center for Mongolian Studies is pleased to announce the first year of the ACMS Faculty Research Fellowship. The fellowship will support faculty members from US colleges and universities to conduct short-term field research in Mongolia between May and October 2010. Applicants must be US citizens or permanent residents currently teaching at a college or university in the United States.

DEADLINE TO APPLY: March 1, 2010
APPLICATION MATERIALS AT: www.mongoliacenter.org/faculty

The program priority is to support faculty from non-research intensive universities and colleges, especially faculty who are helping guide student research projects or who can show how the experience will enhance their teaching and outreach. This grant may be paired with the US-Mongolia Field Research Fellowship (see www.mongoliacenter.org/field), which funds student field research in Mongolia, to create a student faculty research team. The faculty member and student must each submit applications to the appropriate program, and should indicate in their research statement their intention to work together. Prior experience working in Mongolia is not a requirement, and the program is open to all fields.

Applicants must have an identified Mongolian institution or individual who will serve as their Research Sponsor in Mongolia. Applicants without formal contacts in Mongolia can contact the ACMS at info@mongoliacenter.org to inquire about assistance in finding an appropriate Research Sponsor.

The fellowship award will include up to $2,500 for travel and living expenses. The funding is intended to serve as a catalyst and may be used in conjunction with funds from other sources.

More information about the program at www.mongoliacenter.org/faculty.
More information about the ACMS at www.mongoliacenter.org.

US-Mongolia Field Research Fellowship

The American Center for Mongolian Studies (ACMS), with funding support from the US Department of State Education and Cultural Affairs Bureau, is pleased to announce the fifth year of the ACMS US-Mongolia Field Research Fellowship Program to support student field research in Mongolia in summer or fall 2010. The program will provide $500-$3000 grants to approximately 5 students from US universities to conduct academic field research in Mongolia between May and October 2010. Student applicants can be at an advanced undergraduate, masters or pre-dissertation doctoral level, and all fields of study are eligible. Applicants must be either US citizens or permanent residents currently enrolled full-time in a university or college in the United States. Students graduating in spring 2010 are eligible to apply. No previous experience in Mongolia required.

DEADLINE TO APPLY: March 1, 2010
APPLICATION MATERIALS AT: www.mongoliacenter.org/field

The field research project should be conducted in conjunction with a Research Sponsor, such as a faculty member or senior researcher, and involve at least 6 weeks of fieldwork in Mongolia. Preference is given to projects in which the Research Sponsor will work directly with the student researcher in the field in Mongolia. To open the program to more potential collaborations, in 2010 the program will continue to consider funding well designed projects that demonstrate close collaboration between the student researcher and the Research Sponsor, even if the Research Sponsor is unable to travel to Mongolia to oversee the field research work. There are no eligibility restrictions with regards to the Research Sponsor's citizenship.

More information about all of ACMS fellowship opportunities at: www.mongoliacenter.org/fellowship.
For questions, contact info@mongoliacenter.org.

ACMS Research Fellowship 2010-2011

The American Center for Mongolian Studies (ACMS), with funding support from the Henry Luce Foundation, is pleased to announce the third year of the ACMS Research Fellowship Program. The ACMS Research Fellowship Program annually supports three fellows to conduct up to 12-months of doctoral dissertation or post-doctoral research in Mongolia on topics in the Social Sciences or Humanities. Natural Science research is not eligible, unless there are clear areas in which the research furthers social, cultural, political, or policy knowledge relevant to Mongolia or the region.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: March 1, 2010
APPLICATIONS AT: www.mongoliacenter.org/fellowship

The program seeks to promote research opportunities in Mongolia among scholars who have not included the country in their previous research, and to broaden the knowledge base of scholars already working in the country. Previous Mongolian Studies experience is not required, but projects should enhance knowledge of Mongolia and the Mongols within relevant academic disciplines or fields of study. Projects that link research conducted in Mongolia to research in other parts of Asia or across academic fields are especially encouraged.

Fellowship awards will include travel expenses to and from Mongolia, an accommodation and food allowance, and a stipend to cover research expenses. Awards will be adjusted based on the length of time spent conducting research in the region with a maximum award of $27,000 per fellow. Fellows will also have the opportunity to take intensive Mongolian language courses, select resources for inclusion in the ACMS Library, and participate in an annual academic seminar in Mongolia that will bring together international, regional and local scholars and students.

Research work under this program must begin between September 2010 and March 2011, and last for a continuous 6-12 months. Fellowship recipients must be based in Mongolia for the duration of their fellowship, but research travel in the broader region is encouraged. The 12-month term will allow recipients to stay in Mongolia for the academic year, which runs from September to June, and the summer months, which offer the best weather for field research.

More information about the program is available at www.mongoliacenter.org/fellowship or contact info@mongoliacenter.org.

Mongolia Lecture Series Inaugural Event

Co-Sponsored by the International Institute, Center for East Asian Studies, Center for Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia, and American Center for Mongolian Studies.

Thursday, October 29, 2009, 5pm-7pm
At the Alumni Lounge in the Pyle Center (702 Langdon St.) on the UW-Madison Campus.

The lecture will be followed by the American Center for Mongolian Studies opening event and reception.

Ambassador designate to Mongolia Jonathan Addleton
"US-Mongolia Relations: Looking Forward, Looking Back"

Ambassador designate to Mongolia Jonathan Addleton will offer reflections on past encounters with Mongolia during his prior assignment as USAID Mission Director in Ulaanbaatar (2001-2004) -- and provide a perspective on future opportunities and challenges that are likely to dominate US-Mongolia relations in the years ahead. Drawing to some extent on recent Senate confirmation hearings, he will focus especially on five areas: development; private investment; democracy and good governance; security; and people-to-people relationships. Scheduled to depart for Ulaanbaatar in mid-November, his participation at the opening of the American Center for Mongolia Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison marks his first appearance at an external event since being confirmed as the next US Ambassador to Mongolia earlier this year.

Mr. Addleton has been a career member of the US Foreign Service since 1984. Previous assignments include service as USAID Representative to the European Union in Belgium; USAID Mission Director in Pakistan, Cambodia and Mongolia; and USAID Program Officer in Jordan, Kazakhstan, South Africa and Yemen. During his previous three-year tenure in Mongolia (2001-2004), he traveled extensively within the country and was involved in a number of USAID-funded programs, including the revitalization of Xaan Bank as well as small business development through the Ger and Gobi initiatives.

Prior to joining the Foreign Service, Addleton worked briefly at the World Bank and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, both in Washington, DC. He has a PhD and MA from Tufts University and a BS from Northwestern University. He has written two books, "Some Far and Distant Place" (University of Georgia Press), a memoir of a childhood spent largely in Pakistan; and "Undermining the Center" (Oxford University Press), an assessment of the impact of international migration on development. In addition, he has published articles on Asia in a variety of journals, including "Asian Survey," "Asian Affairs," "Muslim World," and the "Foreign Service Journal.”

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Mongolia Lecture Series aims to promote discourse and sharing of knowledge about Mongolia and the Inner Asian Region and is organized by Center for East Asian Studies and American Center for Mongolian Studies

Online Mongolian Dictionary

A student at University of Wisconsin-Madison brought a handy resource to my attention yesterday. It is an online Mongolian dictionary which appears to derive its entries through contributions from the user community. I have only taken a cursory look at it so far, but my initial impressions are good. It is a testament to the ever growing sophistication of modern Mongolia. The dictionary is at: http://toli.query.mn/.

Oyu Tolgoi: End of the Beginning

It is official. Mongolia and Ivanhoe Mines are married. On October 6th the government of Mongolia signed the long debated investment agreement with Ivanhoe and Rio Tinto to develop the Oyu Tolgoi copper and gold deposit.

In an ideal world the government would begin or would have already begun developing policy to go along with its new found cash flow. It will be interesting to see what they come up with beyond giving cash handouts of $1,000 per person. If my opinion counted, I would suggest public works projects for a working drainage system in Ulaanbaatar, real urban planning in the city that included parks and streets in the ger districts, rebuilding of wells across the countryside, and investment in the education sector as a start. But that is neither here nor there because I can't vote.

For now, I presume, the focus will turn to developing the mine site and the infrastructure to support it--not to mention the new gold rush mentality that will sweep the country as entrepreneurs and laborers head to the Gobi to seek their fortune. The last 5 years in Mongolia were wild enough with economic growth almost exclusively built upon speculation of great riches once the Oyu Tolgoi agreement was signed. Now with the prospect of real investment and substantial cash flow on the horizon one can only imagine the mad euphoria of get rich quick schemes that will grip every last person in Mongolia. These are heady times for sure.

Over the summer I had a chance to visit the Oyu Tolgoi site with a group of 15 Fulbright-Hays fellows from the US. Ivanhoe was very accommodating, and the camp manager provided us with an extensive tour of the facilities and area around the site. Oyu Tolgoi is situated in the least densely populated province in one of the least densely populated countries in the world. It is isolated to say the least. And yet, in this isolated corner of the world first-class economic and industrial activity is occurring. Although we visited at a low ebb of operations due to tense summer negotiations between Ivanhoe and the government, I was roundly impressed by the size and sheer magnitude of the project. It is a stunning contrast to just about everything else going on in the country, and at this point it's only in the initial stages of development. There is much, much more to come.

Of course there is a lot to consider beyond the development of the site itself. Water will be a huge issue. The site will demand a lot of water in a region that has very little. In-migration unregulated and unstoppable on a level commensurate with Ulaanbaatar is another serious issue. It is a desolate place now, but soon it could be a patchwork of ger districts in the desert. Then there is the inevitable and potentially accelerated encroachment of Chinese and Russian influence on Mongolia. It's enough copper and gold to attract more than just domestic prospectors.

When you see it, Oyu Tolgoi boggles the mind. It is going to be huge. A size unlike Mongolia has any experience with, and the next few years are going to be a wild ride with both positive and negative consequences. October 6th, 2009 marked the end of the beginning. Now the real work will begin.