Radical Empathy: The Role of Compassion in Our Global Economy

A co-production with Seattle University’s Search for Meaning Book Festival

Location: Seattle University | Room: Sullivan Ct C6

Description of Presentation: We live in a radically new world, one where we practice Buddhism in California, import Texan rice to India, and watch Hollywood movies high in the Andes. Both a traveler to, and an immigrant from, Sunil Yapa will read from his novel, Your Heart Is a Muscle the Size of a Fist (2016), and discuss with novelist Peter Mountford, a globally-engaged, post-colonial literature writer. How does such work demand greater empathy? Expect a lively discussion on how American writers and readers can engage with new globalism.

Sunil Yapa holds a BA in economic geography from Penn State Universtiy and an MFA from Hunter College. The biracial son of a Sri Lanken father and a mother from Montana, Yapa has lived around the world, including Greece, Guatemala, Chile, Argentina, China, and India, as well as London, Montreal, and New York City.