Cynthia Stephen is a researcher, writer, activist and legal counsel who has worked on issues related to the rights of the minorities - women and dalits - in India for the past 30 years. She has served as a member in several national, and international committees including the UN's Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and Commission on the Status of Women (CSW).

In this talk, she will focus on the relevance of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar's ideas on center-state relations, socialism and justice in today's increasingly complex globalized world.