The Department of Sociology & Centre for Research, St. Teresa’s College (Autonomous), Ernakulam, organised the Dr. Ramola B. Joseph Memorial Lecture Series – National Webinar on “Being Human, Being Social: Theory of Everyday Reality” on 16 January 2026. The webinar was conceived as an academic tribute to Dr. Ramola B. Joseph, an eminent sociologist, teacher, researcher, and former Head of the Department of Sociology, whose intellectual, pedagogical, and institutional contributions have left a lasting imprint on sociological scholarship at the college.

The Memorial Lecture Series aims to honour Dr. Ramola B. Joseph’s legacy by fostering critical sociological engagement with contemporary social realities, encouraging reflexive and theoretically informed inquiry, and foregrounding the significance of lived experience in sociological analysis. The 2026 lecture focused on the sociology of everyday life, examining how routine practices constitute the foundations of social order, power, and meaning.

About the Memorial Lecture Series

The Dr. Ramola B. Joseph Memorial Lecture Series was instituted in honour of Dr. Ramola B. Joseph, who served the Department of Sociology, St. Teresa’s College, from 1973 to 2006, including her tenure as Head of the Department. A recognised research guide at Mahatma Gandhi University, she supervised several doctoral theses on themes such as adaptation to diabetes, ageing, professionalism among women teachers, migration, and sociological theory.

Her scholarly contributions include the book Asian Indian Kerala Couples Immigrants in the United States: A Sociological Analysis. In addition to her academic work, Dr. Ramola B. Joseph played a significant role in institutional development, serving as NAAC Coordinator during the period when the college was awarded Five-Star Status (1999) and during its Re-accreditation (2006). The Memorial Lecture Series commemorates her enduring commitment to sociological inquiry, academic excellence, and institutional leadership.

Theme and Objectives of the Webinar

The theme “Being Human, Being Social: Theory of Everyday Reality” explored how social reality is continuously produced, negotiated, and sustained through everyday interactions and routine practices. Drawing from interpretive, phenomenological, feminist, and critical sociological traditions, the webinar foregrounded the analytical significance of the ordinary, the routine, and the taken-for-granted dimensions of social life.

The objectives of the webinar were to introduce participants to the sociology of everyday life as a critical analytical lens; to examine symbolic interactionism and processes of meaning-making; to explore identity construction, negotiation, and social interaction; to analyse how social norms and power relations are embedded in daily practices; and to encourage reflexive engagement with lived experience and routine social action.

The memorial lecture was delivered by Prof. Nilika Mehrotra,

Professor, Centre for the Study of Social Systems,

School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).

Prof. Mehrotra is a distinguished sociologist known for her scholarship on family, ageing, gender, disability, and everyday life. Her work is deeply informed by interpretive sociology, feminist theory, and qualitative methodologies, making her lecture particularly relevant to the theme of everyday social reality.

The programme began with the Welcome Address by Dr. Leela P. U, Head, Department of Sociology. This was followed by a Tribute to Dr. Ramola B. Joseph delivered by Dr. Claramma Thomas, Former Lead, Department of Sociology. The Inauguration and Memorial Lecture were delivered by Prof. Nilika Mehrotra, and the programme concluded with the Vote of Thanks proposed by Dr. Dora Dominic, Sociology Association In-charge, Department of Sociology.