The United States Chapter of the Śramani Institute is looking for
creative and enthusiastic interns for the Spring 2014 semester.
Interns will earn 3 credits for 135 hours of work with the Śramani
Institute that is evaluated as being original and of high quality.
Under the guidance of Śramani Institute supervisors interns will work
individually and as part of an inter-disciplinary team, which will
meet once weekly. Interns will also have the opportunity to work
jointly on projects with our research-analysis-implementation team in
Bhārat (India), as well as with members of marginalized communities
with whom the Śramani Institute collaborates.

The Śramani Institute is a nonprofit organization with registered
chapters in the United States, Canada, and Bhārat (India). The mission
of the Śramani Institute is to realize the inter-connected wellbeing
of all human beings, especially those marginalized, within the context
of their local ecologies and cultures, as well as the global economy.
The Śramani Institute achieves its mission through initiatives that
are: (a) locally relevant, e.g., that support marginalized peoples to
self-sufficiently and sustainably use and preserve their own local
resources to enjoy a high quality of life; and (b) have global impact,
e.g., that inform global policies and practices so that cultural and
ecological diversity is preserved and the economic wellbeing of all
human beings, especially those marginalized, is promoted. For our work
we have received a National Geographic Grant.

In the Spring 2014 semester, we are focusing on three projects having
global impact and that draw from one or more of the following Śramani
Institute initiatives: (1) Justice in Laws & Policies Governing
Innovation & Creativity; (2) Origins of Knowledge & Science; (3)
Wellbeing of Girls & Women; (4) Diversity in Language, Culture, and
Knowledge; and (5) Artistic creations that aesthetically manifest
expressions and contemplations of living.

Project 1
We are writing a ground-breaking book, entitled “Promoting Diversity
in Creativity & Innovation – Part I: Origins,” that begins to
elucidate the links between (a) private Intellectual Property (IP)
rights, e.g., copyrights, patents, trademarks, that have become vital
assets in concentrating and accumulating wealth and (b) the rich
heterogeneity of creativity and innovation that different human
societies have generated across time and geography to enable
biodiversity, ecosystems, languages, cultures, art forms,
philosophies, symbiotic exchange, knowledge systems, and technologies
to thrive. Interns will assist with preparing this book and with
conducting research from various inter-connected perspectives to
answer questions, such as: What is the cultural and historical origin
of the current IP law & policy system and whom does the system
benefit? Do IP rights stimulate innovation and the economy and promote
technology transfer? Do IP rights encourage socially & ecologically
sustainable & equitable (SESE) trade? Do IP rights promote cultural
and economic diversity? Is the current IP law & policy system tenable
in the long run?

Project 2
We are creating a new initiative, entitled “Wellbeing of Girls &
Women,” that seeks to not only address the violation of women’s rights
and dignity, but also the loss of language, culture, knowledge, and
ecological health that is associated with such violation in many
marginalized communities around the world. Interns will help create
the framework for this initiative by working jointly with women from
marginalized communities and our Bhārat (India) team. We anticipate
that interns will work on projects that will make communities safer
for and more respectful of women and girls, while simultaneously
promoting the languages, cultures, knowledge systems, and ecological
health of these communities.

Project 3
We are creating a visually arresting interactive website for the
Śramani Institute that will incorporate the latest in technological
trends to vie with the most creative websites currently in virtual
space. The clever interplay of each technical and visual element will
intuitively and elegantly relay the vision of the Śramani Institute,
which is to create a world that is Socially & Ecologically Sustainable
& Equitable (SESE) by promoting diversity in language, culture, and
knowledge in a manner that is artistic, entertaining, and
thought-provoking. Interns will work as part of a team of designers
and programmers to incorporate the latest developments in programming
(HTML5, CSS, JavaScript), animation (Adobe Flash, Adobe Illustrator),
content management (WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, etc.), and relational
database development to create a website that is trendy, tech-savvy,
interactive, innovative, artistic, and functional. Interns will also
develop tools to enable secure internal access to content (secure file
and mail transfer) on the website.

Interns selected to work for the Śramani Institute may choose to
contribute to more than one project. To apply for an internship,
please send by February 20th, 2014, to [log in to unmask]
your detailed resume and a 500 word original essay in your own words:
(a) describing why you are interested in working with the Śramani
Institute, (b) identifying which project(s) you are interested in
working on, and (c) explaining how your background is relevant to the
project(s) you would like to work on. Application essays will be
evaluated based on originality, logical flow, relevance, and language.
Orientation for interns will take place on Sunday, February 23rd, 2014
from 1PM to 5PM, in the Maryland office of the Śramani Institute.

LOCATION
Nation Wide
no
City
Glenmont
State/Province
Maryland
Country
United States
POSITION TYPE
Internship (Fall or Spring Part-Time)
DESIRED CLASS LEVEL(S)
Senior, Masters Candidate, Doctoral Candidate, Recent Grad (up to 3
years out), Alumnus/a (beyond 3 years out)
DURATION
Spring 2014 semester