Images of Research – Linder

3rd place winner Benjamin Linder, Anthropology
“Cosmopolitan Space in Kathmandu”
My research examines Thamel to better understand the relationship between globalization, urban space, and cultural transformation. This photo attempts to capture the dynamic energy of Thamel on a Friday night, when young Nepalis come to transgress cultural (and physical) boundaries. The three Nepali teenagers in the photo’s center are at an intersection that challenges binaries like local/global, East/West, and traditional/modern. Put simply, as global flows circulate around them, they exemplify a generation rethinking—often through spatial practices in Thamel—what it means to be Nepali.