Events
Past Event
WED@NICO SEMINAR: Sera Young, Northwestern University "A cross-culturally equivalent measure of household water security"
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
12:00 PM
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Lower Level, Chambers Hall
Details
Speaker:
Sera Young, Assistant Professor, Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University
Title:
A cross-culturally equivalent measure of household water security: experiences in scale development and implementation from 30 sites worldwide
Abstract:
The 2019 World Economic Forum report estimates that 9 of the 10 worst global risks are linked to water, but measurement of water insecurity is still in its early days. Sera Young will be discussing the development and use of the Household Water Insecurity Experiences (HWISE) scale, the first cross-culturally equivalent way of measuring household water insecurity (hwise.org). She will conclude by articulating the opportunities that the inclusion of this module in the 2020 Gallup World Poll could have for research, policy, and the global prominence of Northwestern.
Speaker Bio:
Dr. Sera Young is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology and a Fellow at the Institute for Policy Research at Northwestern University. In her research, she focuses on reducing maternal and child undernutrition in low-resource settings, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. Currently, she has ongoing studies in Tanzania and Kenya, investigating the causes and physical, psychological, and social consequences of food and water insecurity. She is also leading the development of a cross-culturally valid scale to measure household water insecurity in 30+ sites around the world. For her efforts, she has received a number of awards and honors, including the Margaret Mead Award for her book about pica, called Craving Earth.
Further reading:
Check out Professor Young's op-ed in Scientific American on this topic.
Live Stream:
Time
Wednesday, February 27, 2019 at 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Location
Lower Level, Chambers Hall Map
Contact
Calendar
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
Fall 2026 Classes Begin
University Academic Calendar
All Day
Details
Fall 2026 Classes Begin
Time
Wednesday, September 23, 2026
Contact
Calendar
University Academic Calendar
NICO Reading Group - Fall 2026 First Meeting
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
6:00 PM
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Chambers Hall
Details
The NICO Reading Group meets for the first this fall on Wednesday, September 23, 2026. Please contact Jaeseon Ha if you are interested in joining our group.
About:
The NICO Reading Group brings together people across disciplines to read and discuss important ideas in modern AI. We focus on topics such as AI agents, tuning, harnesses, evaluation, AI for scientific discovery, and applications of AI across different fields. The goal is to understand important ideas in AI more deeply by learning and thinking across disciplines.
Leadership:
Jaeseon Ha, a Kellogg MBA + AI student, will lead the reading group during the Fall 2026 term. Please contact Jaeseon with any questions or reach out to us at nico@northwestern.edu.
Meeting Times:
Date: Biweekly on Wednesday evening, starting on September 23, 2026
Time: 6-7pm
Location: NICO main office, Chambers Hall,
600 Foster St, Evanston, IL 60208
Time
Wednesday, September 23, 2026 at 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Location
Chambers Hall Map
Contact
Calendar
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
WED@NICO Seminar Series returns on September 30, 2026
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
12:00 PM
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Lower Level, Chambers Hall
Details
The Wednesdays@NICO seminar series returns September 30, 2026, running through November 11, 2026, with the following speakers.
9/30/2026 - Luis Amaral, Northwestern University
10/7/2026 - Kristina Lerman, Indiana University
10/14/2026 - Tim Tangherlini, University of California, Berkeley
10/21/2026 - Andreia Sofia Teixeira, Northeastern University London
10/28/2026 - Rafael Prieto-Curiel, Complexity Science Hub, Vienna
11/4/2026 - Hamsa Bastani, University of Pennsylvania
11/11/2026 - Mayank Agrawal, Proof of Human
We will share detailed speaker information, talk titles and abstracts, in the coming weeks.
Location:
In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option TBA
About the Speaker Series:
Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, networks, and artificial intelligence. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.
Time
Wednesday, September 30, 2026 at 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Location
Lower Level, Chambers Hall Map
Contact
Calendar
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)