Teach311 + COVID-19

The Teach311 + COVID-19 Collective (www.TeachCOVID-19.org) consists of educators, researchers, artists, students, and survivors spanning disciplinary and linguistic boundaries who study and teach about disasters. The Collective uses a collaborative process of research, learning and teaching to empathically inquire into crises of the past.

The work undertaken by this collective seeks to understand both the endurance and fragility of wisdom alongside the actions that constrain or mobilize scientific and technical knowledge. These objectives are guided by the original remit to examine the past in order to make meaning out of the enduring effects of and recovery from March 11, 2011, the disastrous aftermath of the magnitude 9.0 earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disasters that occurred in Japan. Having begun with the support of Forum for the History of Science in Asia and SHOT Asia Network, the Collective continues this work in partnership with Nanyang Technology University (Singapore) and the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science (MPIWG).

The creation of pedagogically enriching material is carried through the Teach311 + COVID-19 Collective as students and scholars learn together—and with respect for those who have lived through disasters and endured trauma. Research and outreach are organized in tandem, around the goal of comprehending historical disasters in global Asia and beyond. The collaborations stemming from the Collective help to locate and responsibly amplify and learn from the voices of students and scholars located in the Global South or areas challenged by censorship, in order to help increase solidarity within and for the humanities.