Einaudi Center's Sept. 11 web site aims for global understanding

By Linda Myers

To find out how people beyond U.S. borders view the war in Afghanistan, the hunt for Osama bin Laden or the latest bioterrorist threats, download this web page: http://www.einaudi.cornell.edu/9-11/index.asp.

Displaying the new web site "Terrorism and War: Context and Aftermath of Sept. 11th" are, from left, David Lelyveld, site editor and Einaudi Center executive director; Lani Peck, project team leader and assistant director of the Einaudi Center; and web master Todd Markelz. Nicola Kountoupes/University Photography

The web site "Terrorism and War: Context and Aftermath of Sept. 11th" aims for greater global understanding. Launched in late October by Cornell's Einaudi Center for International Studies, it includes links to major online newspapers around the globe, many available in English, such as Cairo's Al-Ahram, Tel Aviv's Ha'aretz and Jedda's Arab News.

"Our main perspective is international, and that includes an effort to grasp how people outside the United States understand the current world crisis," said David Lelyveld, the historian of South Asia who is executive director of the Einaudi Center. "We've pulled together a range of information and commentary to guide people to an understanding of the background and implications of the attacks and their aftermath -- the nature of international terrorism, including bioterrorism, as well as the war in Afghanistan."

The site also lists relevant Cornell resources and activities, among them such campus events as the Peace Studies Program's brown-bag lunch talk by Kathleen Vogel, "Do We Need Gas Masks? Analyzing Risk and the Current Anthrax Scare" (today, Nov. 8, 12:15 p.m., G08 Uris) and "Cultural Identities: Sept. 11 and Beyond," an interactive workshop for anyone who works with students and wants to know more about diverse cultures at Cornell (Nov. 13, 1 p.m., G10 Uris, sponsored by Professional Academic Advising Leaders).

In addition the site includes commentary by faculty and scholars. For example, it links to an Oct. 7 Los Angeles Times op-ed piece, "One War, Two Separate Missions," by David Wippman, Cornell associate professor of law, and Shibley Telhami, a Cornell senior fellow and former associate professor who is now Anwar Sadat Professor at the University of Maryland. The piece draws a sharp distinction between the current U.S. effort to find and punish the perpetrators and the global war against terrorism. On the site are titles and descriptions of related Cornell courses and links to Books for Understanding, a bibliography by university presses, among them Cornell's. And for those who want to help, the site links to the web sites of relevant international relief organizations.

"We hope the site will become a widely used resource for the Cornell community and others who look to us for guidance and understanding," said Lani Peck, assistant director of the Einaudi Center. She encouraged people across campus to post relevant Cornell events on the calendar of the center's site at http://www.einaudi.cornell.edu and include the words "Sept. 11" for automatic posting on the new Sept. 11 web site. Visiting the new site also is a fitting way to mark U.S. International Education Week, said Peck. The specially designated teaching and learning week takes place Nov. 12-16. It was established in 2000 by the U.S. departments of State and Education to call attention to the need for greater international study across disciplines.

Lelyveld is editor of the Sept. 11 site, which is a subset of the Einaudi Center web site, managed by web master Todd Markelz and team leader Peck. Permanent team members are Nancy Loncto, Southeast Asia Program; Anne Stengle, South Asia Program; and Abigail More, Cornell Abroad. Current rotating team members are Laurie Damiani, East Asia Program, and Elaine Scott, Peace Studies.

The Einaudi Center provides financial and logistical support for more than 20 programs in area, thematic and development studies related to international studies at Cornell and brings world leaders and international scholars to campus to lecture, teach and study.