India and America’s governments see technology playing a defining role in their bilateral relationship. Key developments in the partnership include The U.S.-India Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET), the launch of the India-US Strategic Trade Dialogue (IUSSTD), and joint statements between President Biden and Prime Minister Modi. The two nations aim to enhance collaboration in research and development and the manufacturing of key technologies, including semiconductors, AI, telecommunications, and defense systems. While this partnership holds potential for national growth and global problem-solving, challenges related to regulation, market access, data privacy/security, and geopolitics may impact its full benefits.

Join us on Thursday, June 13 from 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. PT for an in-depth discussion with Consul General Prakash Gupta on the progress and prospects of U.S.-India technology and innovation collaboration. Joining him will be Sital Kalantry, Professor of Law and Associate Dean of the School of Law, and Director of the RoundGlass India Center at Seattle University; and David Roth, Director for International Public Policy at Amazon.

This is a private, off-the-record event, and it is free for Asia Society Seattle members. Lunch will be served. Registration and confirmation of registration is required.

 Virtual access is available for Asia Society Northern California members. Zoom link for virtual access will be provided 24 hours before the event.

Non-members should email [email protected] for membership and registration inquires. 

AGENDA

Date: Thursday, June 13, 2024 Pacific Time

11:00 a.m.     Event Registration and Networking (lunch will be served)

11:30 a.m.     Event and Q&A Discussion (ASNC Zoom Livestream Starts)

12:45 p.m.     Networking (ASNC Livestream Ends)

1:00 p.m.       Event Concludes

Location in downtown Seattle will be emailed to registered attendees 24 hours before the event.

Zoom link for virtual access will be provided 24 hours before the event. 

SPEAKER BIO

Prakash Gupta is a career diplomat from the Indian Foreign Service, who has served in various capacities in Beijing, Shanghai, Indian Mission to the United Nations in New York and in Jakarta. He currently serves as the Consul General in India’s first Consulate in Seattle. His recent assignments included his stewardship of India’s tenure at the UN Security Council (2021-22) and he was pivotal in piloting the International Day of Yoga Resolution at the United Nations. He was a joint secretary for the planning for India’s hosting of the successful G20 Summit in New Delhi. He also served as the Consul General of India in Shanghai from 2015 to 2017. Consul General Gupta is a post-graduate and gold medalist in English Literature. He is fluent in Mandarin, English, and Hindi, and has beginner-level proficiency in Bahasa Indonesia.

Consul General Gupta’s detailed assignments are listed below:

• August 2020 – November 2023: Joint Secretary (United Nations – Political issues), covering India’s UN Security Council innings for 2021-22 and matters related to NAM, Commonwealth, IPU and Democracy related multilateral issues; 
• May 2020 – Feb 2022: Joint Secretary (Summits), coordinating Logistical preparations and planning for India’s G20 Summit and Presidency; 
• 2017 – 2020: Deputy Chief of Mission at Indian Embassy in Indonesia
• 2015- 2017: Consul General of India in Shanghai
• December 2011 – October 2015: Counsellor at the Indian Mission to the United Nations in New York, handling issues related to the reform of the UN Security Council, cyber, all Funds and Programs, development operational activities, IBSA Fund, along with media and outreach for the Indian Mission; 
• 2009 – 2011: Officer on Special Duty (Press Relations) for Ministry of External Affairs, handling media relations and visits of media delegations for Prime Minister’s visits abroad; 
• 2006 – 2009: Consul at the Indian Consulate in Shanghai, handling commercial, consular, administrative, visa and political matters; 
• 2004 – 2006: Indian Embassy in Beijing, handling political and cultural work & learning Mandarin;
• 2002 – 2004: Policy, Planning and Research Division of Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi

Sital Kalantry is a tenured professor, associate dean, and founder of the India Center at Seattle University. She is an expert in comparative law, business and human rights, feminist legal theory, and contract law. Her latest book, Court on Trial, uses originally developed data to improve transparency and the function of the court. Her prior book, Women’s Rights and Migration, explores the consequences of the use of acontextual information to develop laws relating to reproduction in the United States. She has written over a dozen articles and book chapters that have been published in major legal journals such as the Cornell Law Review and the Stanford International Law Journal as well as peer-reviewed social sciences journals including the Forum for Health Economics and Policy. Her work has also appeared in the New York Times, Slate, and the Hill (among others). She is a regular media commentator on reproductive rights, law in India, and human rights issues. Her writing has been cited by the U.S. Supreme Court and Indian Supreme Court.

Professor Kalantry teaches business and human rights, comparative constitutional law, and contract law. Her teaching is informed by her scholarship as well as her seven years of experience as a corporate lawyer at two major U.S. law firms, Milbank and O’Melveny & Myers, and by her litigation experience in international and foreign courts, including the Indian Supreme Court, Inter-American Court of Human Rights and Constitutional Court of Colombia.

She founded the Cornell International Human Rights Clinic, the University of Chicago International Human Rights Clinic, the Avon Global Center for Women & Justice at Cornell Law School, the Cornell India Law Center, and the India Center for Law and Justice at Seattle University School of Law. She is the founding faculty director of an online Master’s in Legal Studies Program at Cornell Law School. In that role, she designed the curriculum, recruited tenured and adjunct professors to teach courses, created admissions criteria, and coordinated with instructional designers and other administrators for this new master's program at Cornell Law School.

She has won awards for her book, for her public interest work (from the South Asian Bar Association), and for her mentorship and support to women students at Cornell University. She has received several grants, including a $1.5 million grant to start the Avon Center for Women and Justice, a grant from NYC Visioning Committee, and teaching innovation grant. She received the Fulbright Scholarship to teach at Jindal Global Law School in India and to conduct empirical research on the Indian Supreme Court.

Professor Kalantry has degrees from Cornell University (A.B.), the London School of Economics (MsC), and the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School (J.D).

David Roth is a Director for International Public Policy at Amazon’s headquarters in Seattle, Washington. David oversees a team of several dozen professionals that advocate for policies throughout Europe, the Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Asia-Pacific region that facilitate cross-border trade and investment, spur innovation, and promote economic development. Over the last six years, David has worked with governments in these regions to support their consumers and help their small businesses engage in online retail. From 2012 to 2016, David served as a Senior Policy Advisor at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), where he provided the agency’s leadership with advice on a range of initiatives, including the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (T-TIP) and the Trade in Services Agreement (TISA). David joined USTR from Holland & Knight, where his practice focused on international trade and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) matters. David has also served as an International Trade Specialist within the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Middle East Office. He holds a J.D. from Georgetown Law and a BA from the University of Michigan