Events

On November 7 and 8th, the project Health is Politics funded and hosted the inaugural graduate conference (“Narratives and Counter-Narratives”: Decolonizing Science & Medicine) in the histories of science, technology and medicine. The idea is to create a space for PhD students from across North America to present their research, share ideas and create new communities. Students came from Harvard University, University of Pennsylvania, University of Oklahoma, and Binghamton University. UH Graduate students showcased their outstanding research as well. Together, they discussed vaccine hesitancy, racialized healthcare, fisheries and global capitalism, and the epistemological and political framing of death and dying. Further details can be found here: https://healthispolitics.my.canva.site 

Organized entirely by UH Graduate students of the History Department particularly, Katie Truax and Muthuvel Deivendran, under the guidance of Pratik Chakrabarti, these were two intense days of stimulating discussions, camaraderie, and fun.

Here are some snippets. 

Narratives and Counter-Narratives: Decolonizing Science and Medicine is a graduate student conference to be held in 7th-8th November 2025 at the University of Houston. Narratives and Counter-Narratives is an inaugural conference organized by and for graduate students at the University of Houston. The goal of the conference is to foster conversations and provide a supportive interdisciplinary space for emerging scholars to present research, receive feedback and mentorship in this crucial time for our fields. The graduate conference is organized by the Project on Health is Politics, and funded by the NEH Cullen Chair in History and Medicine, Department of History at the University of Houston.

Politics of Women’s Health

In Spring 2025, the Project on ‘Health is Politics’ hosted The Politics of Women’s Health, a panel lecture showcasing the scholarly contribution centering on the gendered nature of the politics of health. The event took place on April 22 with three talks given by following scholars: Dr. Matty Hemming, Rice University, on ‘Beyond Empathy: Literature and the History of Healthcare,’ Dr. Pratik Chakrabarti, University of Houston on ‘Hormones and Women’s Health’ and Dr. Beth Merfish, University of Houston on ‘The Crisis of Reproductive Healthcare and Women’s Well-being in Houston.’ The Panel was moderated by Dr. Sue Ferguson and Chaired by fellow grad student Ms. Katie Truax. 

Project Launch & Two Day Conference

The launch event followed by a two-day conference of the Project on “Health is Politics” of the NEH-Cullen Chain in History & Medicine, will be held on April 18th to 20th, 2024 at the Hilton, University of Houston.

Conference Program Schedule