Write up about the Conference
The 1st Annual International Conference on Contemporary Cultural Studies, held at Hotel Fort Canning in Singapore from 09-10 December 2013, was organized by the Global Science and Technology Forum (GSTF). Its aim is to “understand how meaning is generated, disseminated, and produced from the social, political and economic spheres within a given culture.” The conference “tackled historical culture and how it affects the modern society.” The following papers were accepted for presentation in the conference. These are: Social Media and Youth Protests: Facebook Use in Hong Kong’s National Curriculum Debate by Dr. Celia Lam of The University of Notre Dame, Australia; “Being” in the 20thCentury: From Human to Virtual by Dr. Douglas Francis of the University of Calgary, Canada; Playing the Games, Reliving the Past: Learning from the Indigenous Games of the Davao Tribes by Dr. Genevieve Jorolan-Quintero of the University of the Philippines; Of Violence, Performance, and Pornography: Analyzing Media Texts from Assam, India by Dr. Debarshi Nath of Tezpur University, India; Amphibolies of the Postmodern: Hyper-secularity or the Return of Religion by Dr. William Franke of the University of Macau; Encountering the Mongols: the Delhi Sultanate during the 13th Century by Dr. Roohi Ahmed of the Aligarh Muslim University, India; Smudging Economy and Culture: The Commodification of Bruce Lee by Dr. Catherine Chan of Hong Kong University; Headhunter’s Cloth: Materializing Power by Dr. Marianne Hulsbosch of the University of Sydney, Australia; Performing the Quilt: Quilts as Expressions of Material Culture by Dr. Sarah Tucker of the University of Sydney;Conversation and Encounter: Tools of which to Think by Dr. Belinda von Mengersen of the Australian Catholic University, Australia; and, How does Asian Civilization Museum (ACM) of Singapore present the conceptual elements of material culture in the West Asia Galleries? by Ms. Margaret White of Australia; From Mahatma to God; Understanding the Cultural Perspectives of the Indian National Movement by Dr. Hassan Imam of the Aligarh Muslim University, India; Towards a Biological Re-Interpretation of Culture by Dr. Gabriel Herman of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel; Giving America Her Voice: Hollywood Musical Biographies and American Identity by Dr. Donald Bellomy of the Sogang University, Korea; European Portuguese as a Second Language for Cantonese Students, Influences and Complexity by Dr. Ana Nunes of the University of Macau; Heterotopias: Fruit Chan’s Hollywood Hong Kong and Ann Hui’s The Way We Are by Dr. Shengxia Huo of the City University of Hong Kong; Cultural Linkage between India and Iran: A Study of Mughal Art and Architecture by Dr. Afzal Khan of Aligarh Muslim University, India; and, Buddhist Based Coaching: Case Study CP ALL by Dr. Boonmee Poungpet of Mahidol University, Thailand. The conference culminated with a city tour of Singapore.
Feedback on paper presented
There was a consensus that virtual media can be an effective tool in promoting awareness of the values and traditions epitomized in the indigenous games. It was observed that few researches have been made about aspects of indigenous culture, like the games for instance. More researches are needed for the preservation of significant cultural legacies. And when done, these researches should not be shelved. Forums such as international conferences are relevant venues for sharing this knowledge.
Future directions of research presented
Three (3) indigenous communities of the Davao Region were the subjects of this research. There are at least ten (10) more tribes from this Region alone, whose cultural legacies are yet to be recorded and preserved.
One significant direction that this research can take is to continue to do research about indigenous games, this time involving other Davao tribes. Studying the similarities of the games can show the relatedness, the links, and the commonalities of cultural values and the historical experiences of the tribes.
The publication of a book that contains the different indigenous games of all Davao tribes is another goal of this research. Later, the research can be replicated, this time involving other Mindanao tribes.
Potential foreign collaborators
GSTF
University of Sydney (and other Australian Universities)
Hong Kong University
Short write-up of one’s participation (to be used to feature/publicize the grantee’s participation in the conference)
“Playing the Games, Reliving the Past: Learning from the Indigenous Games of the Davao Tribes” is a paper based on a research about the indigenous games of three Davao Tribes (Mandaya, Mansaka, Bagobo). When I was informed about the call for papers for the CCS 2013, the first thing that I checked was the goal of the conference: “understand how meaning is generated, disseminated, and produced from the social, political and economic spheres within a given culture…” and “tackle historical culture and how it affects the modern society.” I immediately submitted an abstract of my paper, and was among the authors/presenters of this 1st Annual International Conference. I am confident that I was able to contribute significant knowledge about a unique cultural heritage from the Davao Region, and was able to highlight how our indigenous communities are able to preserve the significant legacies of the past such as their games. Based on the informal feedbacks after the forum, I believe that the other participants realized that they too can replicate my research and initiate researches that will result to the preservation of their own countries’ cultural heritage.
