Rohit Negi

I spent three wonderful months at IIAS in March-June 2014 as part of the exchanges under the Urban Knowledge Network Asia (UKNA) program. These were extremely productive months of meeting other scholars in residence, knowing better people at IIAS I knew from before, and to explore the Netherlands. While there were a couple of other UKNA scholars at IIAS with whom I shared substantial interests, the diversity of areas that Fellows pursue meant that conversations were as fascinating as they were enlightening. I remember learning about the music of Northeast Asia, history of Christianity in Sri Lanka, and the Chinese diaspora in South Africa from some of the excellent Fellows. 

As a short-term Leiden resident, I came to appreciate its past, urban form, architecture, and, of course, the museums. Speaking of the latter, one of the IIAS colleagues generously loaned me their Dutch Museum Pass, and I could use it to visit museums not only in Leiden but also Amsterdam and Utrecht. Since the Netherlands is a (relatively) small country that is well-connected by its train system, Leiden is a convenient launchpad to explore different parts. One of my favorite memories of the summer was convincing a Japanese IIAS fellow to accompany me to a field hockey game that India played against Belgium in a village at the other end of the country. The poor fellow did not quite know what field hockey was, let alone having ever watched a game, but was a good sport to come anyway. We ended up journeying by multiple trains, exploring the beautiful village, witnessing a close game, and chatting with the Indian team players and coaches after. 

On the academic front, I spent my time at IIAS working on a literature review for an area (urban ecology of Delhi) that I was just about dipping my toes into. The review has been extremely valuable; contributing not only to research work, but also feeding into teaching. My courses have since then had a much stronger ecological component, much to the appreciation of students. I also had the opportunity to present the work towards the end of the visit at the Delft University of Technology. 

Over the years, many of the relationships forged during that time have only strengthened. I have come to participate in and contribute to IIAS initiatives such as Asian Studies in Africa, ICAS, and Humanities across Borders, and I look forward to continuing these collaborations in the coming years.