Professor Annabella Pitkin grew up in New York City, with its contradictions like unprecedented prosperity amidst stark poverty. As a teenager, the impact of the city’s extremes inspired Pitkin to become politically and socially active and engage with issues like hunger and homelessness. Her book, Renunciation and Longing: The Life of a Twentieth-Century Himalayan Buddhist Saint, examines how communities respond to trauma, address suffering, and renew transformative relationships through practices of memory.