About Dr. Radha Balasubramanian:
I was born in Jabalpur, India because my father was working there. But I come from South India and speak the language, Tamil. At home we speak both Tamil and English fluently. After my Bachelor in Russian from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, I was employed in Madras University in Madras teaching Russian in the evening. In 1980 I after having worked a few years and having finished my Master’s in Russian from Central Institute of English and Foreign Languages, Hyderabad, I decided to pursue a Ph.D. in Russian literature and came to the US. I joined the Slavic Department at Bloomington, Indiana University, Indiana as a graduate student.
After high school all my degrees (BA, MA, Ph.D.) were all in Russian language and literature. My area of specialization was nineteenth-century Russian literature with an emphasis on short fiction. My first book was on the works of a Russian writer called, Korolenko called "Poetics of Korolenko’s Short Stories." For my second book I took up Leo Tolstoy's works and India's interest in Tolstoy, and published: “The Influence of Leo Tolstoy and India" and "India on Leo Tolstoy: The Reciprocal Receptions.” Besides this I have numerous publications on well-known Russian authors, like, Dostoevsky, Bulgakov, Sholokhov, Tokareva, and others. I continue to be active and am invited to talk on Indian religion, philosophy and culture as well as Russian literature and culture by nationally and internationally at meetings and conferences.
Just looking at my biography you can see that my life is connected to huge countries: India, Russia and the U.S. As I like to joke: “My head is in Russia, my heart is in India while I live in the U.S.”, meaning I research about Russia, while passionately read and understand India’s thought and spirit, while love my life and occupation in an university setting in the U.S. I feel that at this stage in life, given my long work experience at UNL, I can make a difference for the students by making them more globally aware as they pursue their higher education in any field. I am interested in exploring and making study abroad, service learning and internships available in various fields for UNL students and making Global Studies the center of students’ learning experience at UNL.
Contact: rbalasubramanian1@unl.edu | 402.472.3827
About Dr. Emira Ibrahimpasic:
I am the Assistant Director for Global Studies. I can help students with scheduling their classes, graduation plans, academic standards, career advisement, college and university requirements, policies and procedures, and many other questions regarding their major/minor in Global Studies. In addition to advising I am also going to be teaching GLST 201, 395, and 494 (capstone). I am also responsible for helping schedule events for Global Studies and I welcome any ideas you may have. I work with Dr. Balasubramanian to help organize events, study abroad trips, and global internship opportunities to help our majors gain skills that will make them powerful candidates once on the job market.
I am originally from Bosnia and Herzegovina and I moved to Lincoln when I was in high school. My undergraduate degree is in Anthropology and Philosophy from Hamline University in St.Paul, MN. While in college I studied abroad 4 times and fell in love with travel and study. After college I spent a year teaching English in Japan with JET Programme and got to travel Southeast Asia extensively. My love of travel, cultures, and global issues led me to complete a Ph.D. in Cultural Anthropology at University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. My dissertation titled "Women Living Islam in Post-War and Post-Communist Bosnia and Herzegovina" was one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my academic career. As you can see, my research experience and interests are centered around religion, Islam, women and gender, post-conflict development and non-governmental organizing. I specialize in Eastern Europe, but my research interests extend to Middle East, Asia and North Africa. When not at work (or working on my courses towards another advanced degree, Masters of Business Administration right here at UNL) I enjoy bike riding, gardening, and reading.
Contact: eibrahimpasic3@unl.edu | 402.472.2150