Caroline Nguyen Ticarro-Parker, founding director of the Catalyst Foundation, which assists women and children trafficked for sex and labor, will visit UB March 24-27 to speak about Catalyst’s work fighting human trafficking in Vietnam. All events are free and open to the public.

During Ticarro-Parker’s lectures, she will discuss Catalyst’s multi-pronged approach to preventing human trafficking that develops and empowers marginalized communities through education, housing, job training, improved health care and social services.

The lecture schedule:

• March 25, 3:30-5 p.m., 509 O’Brien Hall, North Campus: “A Catalyst for Human Rights and Dignity: Protecting Children and Building Communities in the Mekong Delta.”
• March 26, 2-3:30 p.m., 17 Norton Hall, North Campus: “Building Communities of Hope in Vietnam.” Those with an interest in gender studies, human rights, social entrepreneurship, migration and law, education, sustainable development, social work, and international volunteer opportunities are particularly encouraged to attend.
• March 27, noon to 1 p.m., 182 Farber Hall, South Campus: “Poverty and Human Trafficking in Vietnam.” This practice has grown exponentially in Vietnam, a principle source for women and children trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor.

These events are sponsored by the UB Asian Studies Program and the UB Gender institute. The visit was organized by Michael Frisch, professor of history and American studies, and Jo Freudenheim, UB Distinguished Professor and chair of the Department of Social and Preventive Medicine. Co-sponsors are the Undergraduate Academies; the Baldy Center for Law and Social Policy; the Buffalo Human Rights Center; and the School of Public Health and Health Professions as part of the Office of Global Health Initiatives’ 2013 seminar series.

For more information, contact Bruce Acker, associate director, UB Asian Studies Program, at 645-0763 or backer@buffalo.edu