News Archive February 2010
24/02/2010
Nueva cita del ciclo Actualidad Tres Culturas en colaboración con la Universidad de Cambridge
La Fundación Tres Culturas y el Centro Bin Talal Alwaleed de Estudios
Islámicos de la Universidad de Cambridge presentan, el jueves 25
de febrero a partir de las 10:00 h, dos nuevas conferencias sobre temas
de actualidad.
24/02/2010
Civil society can triumph where politics fails in the Mediterranean
The European Economic and Social Committee and heads of Economic and Social Councils (ESCs) from across the Euromed region met in Brussels to identify priorities and lay the foundations for more robust cooperation between civil society organisations on both sides of the Mediterranean in the framework of the Union for the Mediterranean.
To read more visit: http://www.enpi-info.eu/mainmed.php?id_type=1&id=20803&lang_id=450
24/02/2010
Seminario internacional ¨Medios de comunicación y Diálogo en el Mediterráneo¨
La Fundación Tres Culturas, en colaboración con la Fundación
Anna Lindh, organiza el seminario internacional ¨Medios de comunicación
y Diálogo en el Mediterráneo¨ que se celebrará
en la sede de la Fundación los próximos 7 y 8 de abril 2010.
24/02/2010
Tourism and Hospitality: Planning & Development : CALL FOR PAPERS: Special Issue on: The changing paradigms of tourism in international development: Placing the poor first – Trojan Horse or Real Hope?
GUEST EDITORS: PROFESSOR ANDREW HOLDEN (University of Bedfordshire, UK) and DR. MARINA NOVELLI (University of Brighton, UK)
The aim of this special edition of THPD is to critically evaluate the place of tourism as a strategy for international development. A decade after the engineering of the UN Millennium Development Goals, it is timely to assess the extent to which tourism development policy has shifted from a focus on macro- to micro-economic implications, aimed at benefiting local economies and the poor rather than maximising foreign exchange earnings and international tourist arrivals. For instance, whilst it is advocated by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) that tourism can contribute to poverty alleviation, there is a lack of robust evidence to support this assertion.
Understanding the merits and limitations of tourism in this context is important not only within the academic community but also to resource policies of governments, non-governmental organisations’ agendas, industry and communities’ practices.
Subsequently, we welcome papers that will contribute to furthering and enhancing the understanding of the changing role of tourism in development with a focus on the relationship between tourism and poverty. Specifically, papers are welcomed that:
1) Analyse the evidence of extent of changing paradigms of the role of
tourism in international development;
2) Contribute to the theoretical frameworks of the interaction of tourism
and international development;
3) Contribute to the theoretical frameworks of the interaction between
tourism and poverty;
4) Present reflective, logical and substantiated discourses on tourism
and poverty reduction;
5) Identify policy and strategies to advance the use of tourism for poverty
reduction; and
6) Present case studies that provide a critical evaluation on the effectiveness
of tourism as an agent of poverty reduction.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:
•The call is open and competitive
•The editors encourage the submission of abstracts from academics, policy makers, non-governmental organisations and consultants, especially those in developing countries.
•The guest editors will select the papers for publications in the special issue
•Selected papers will be blind reviewed in line with journal policy
•Submission implies that the article constitutes original material that has not previously been published or under consideration elsewhere
•Manuscripts should be between 6,000 and 8,000 words.
•It is expected that Tourism and Hospitality: Planning and Development Journal guidelines are adhered to (paper length, style, etc)
http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/authors/rthpauth.asp <http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/authors/rthpauth.asp>
•Papers, reviews, case studies should be submitted as a word document and sent to andrew.holden@beds.ac.uk and m.novelli@brighton.ac.uk
SUBMISSION DATES:
Abstracts (max 350 words) to the guest editors by 30 April 2010
Full papers for review by 31st August 2010
Final Papers by 31st December 2010, for special issue publication in Spring 2011
Any questions about the special issue should be directed to the guest
editors:
Dr. Marina Novelli
Centre for Tourism Policy Studies
University of Brighton
Darley Road
Bedfordshire East Sussex
Tel. +44 (0) 1273 643300
Fax. +44 (0) 1273 643949
Email: m.novelli@brighton.ac.uk
23/02/2010
Workshop for young researchers and postgraduates on the creative economy and the city
The Globalization and World City Research Centre (GaWC), based in theGeography Department at Loughborough University is hosting a workshop foryoung researchers and postgraduates on the creative economy and the city onthe 28th April 2010 at Loughborough University. We will be looking forpresentations that explore the role of the creative economy in the production of cities through globalization, and the outcomes that this has on those who occupy the urban environment. Please email o.mould@lboro.ac.uk ora.watson@staffs.ac.uk to submit an abstract for presentation (no more than 250 words) and the deadline is the 5th March 2010.
On the day of the workshop, GaWC will also host their annual lecture, which this year will be delivered by Andy C Pratt, Professor of Culture, Media and the Economy from the Centre for Culture, Media and Creative Industries (CMCI) at King’s College London. Professor Pratt is a leading academic and international policy advisor on cities and the creative economy and his talk will complement the themes of the workshop.
The flyer can be found at http://goo.gl/t52V. Please feel free to distribute
itthrough your own networks.
23/02/2010
17th International DAVO Congress / 31st German Congress for Oriental Studies
Marburg, 20-24 September 2010
DAVO will combine its 17th Annual Congress with the 31st German Conference of Oriental Studies. On behalf of the board of the Deutsche Morgenlaendische Gesellschaft (DMG, German Oriental Studies Society), the organization team invites you to participate in this academic event.
The congress is organized by the Center for Near and Middle Eastern Studies of the Philipps-Universität Marburg. The organization team consists of Leslie Tramontini, Stefan Weninger and Christoph Werner.
Programme: Traditionally, the papers during the Congress are structured in various sections which have been planned and conceptualized by the head of each section. Within each section, it is possible to register both for panels and for a single paper. Papers and panels with interdisciplinary approach which cut across the borders of the above mentioned sections should be registered under the forum "Interdisciplinary Issues".
The main language of the Congress will be German; English and French contributions are welcome, if they take place in pre-organized panels.
Please register your participation in the Conference and the presentation
of papers and panels via the web-site of the Conference: http://www.dot2010.de.
- Deadline for registration of panels: 1 May 2010
- Deadline for registration of papers: 1 July 2010
Conference fees depend on the date of registration:
- Early registration (till 1 April 2010): 80 Euro
- Normal registration (till 1 July 2010): 90 Euro
- Cash at the registration desk: 100 Euro Students will receive 50 % discount
if they can prove their status through a student ID. It is also possible
to pay by credit card, please contact the organizers for further information.
Please address any requests to:
Philipps-Universitaet Marburg, Centrum fuer Nah- und Mittelost Studien
- DOT 2010, Email: info@dot.2010.de;
http://www.dot2010.de
22/02/2010
Call for Articles on "East Asian Transnational Flows in the Middle East and Africa" in "Encounters: An International Journal for the Study of Culture and Society"
Guest Editor Nobuko Adachi of Illinois State University invites papers focusing on East Asian transnational flows in the cultural, social, political, and economic development of Africa and the Middle East.
Ethnographic studies related to migratory flows will receive particular attention, though perspectives from all disciplines and theoretical perspectives will be considered. Topics include --but are not limited to-- economic development, political empowerment, identity, ethnic community, education and acculturation, and internationalization and transnationalism.
Please submit your paper (5,000 to 10,000 words) electronically to encounters@zu.ac.ae
with copy to nadachi@ilstu.edu by June 15, 2010. For further information
see http://encounters.zu.ac.ae.
20/02/2010
Announcement for a two year postdoc position at Aalborg University
The project partly connected with a Swedish VINNOVA financed project
'Innovations for sustainable public transport in Nordic regions - integrated
planning, political processes and institutional preconditions '. Please
circulate this, and encourage anyone who might be interested to get in
touch
for a talk about the position.
Postdoc in urban and transport planning (position no. P29028):
http://stillinger.aau.dk/vis.php?nr=5047
15/02/2010
Interdisciplinary Workshop: "Where are the Intellectuals? Culture, Identity and Community in the Modern Middle East"
University of Edinburgh, 7-8 May 2010
The role of the Middle Eastern intellectual has long constituted an object of study and fascination for scholars, particularly in colonial and post-colonial contexts, where the intellectual was often seen as the main bridge - or interpreter - between the modernity of the West and the 'traditional' culture of the East. But the study of Middle Eastern intellectuals has come a long way since Albert Hourani's seminal Arabic Thought in the Liberal Age, with much work now examining such complex dynamics as the relationships between intellectuals and publics, the role of popular intellectuals within national and transnational social movements, and the significance of secondary or 'organic' intellectuals; as much as the philosophical innovations of great luminaries. Intellectuals have long been acknowledged as shapers of nationalism, but how have Middle Eastern intellectuals articulated other identities, such as gender? What role do intellectuals play, in the age of global and mass media, in the formation of culture, identity and community?
Proposals are invited from any and all disciplines that reflect on the role of the intellectual - including writers, novelists, filmmakers and artists, as well as political and social thinkers and academics - in modern Middle Eastern cultural, social and political life. Possible topics include, but are not limited to:
. Intellectuals and the construction of identities and histories
. Minority intellectuals
. Non-elite or popular intellectuals
. Intellectuals and the state
. Intellectuals and religion
. Intellectuals and revolution, war and resistance
. Intellectuals and globalization
. Intellectuals and social change
. Theoretical frameworks for studying intellectuals in the Middle East
Please send a 300-word abstract as well as brief biographical statement,
and any enquiries, to:
Maryam Ghorbankarimi: m.ghorbankarimi@sms.ed.ac.uk
Deadline for proposals: Tuesday 9 March, 2010
This event is funded by the British Society for Middle Eastern Studies (BRISMES) with contributions from the Center for the Advanced Study of the Arab World (CASAW) and the Department of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Edinburgh.
Organiser: Dr. Ewan Stein, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Centre for the
Advanced Study of the Arab World
Coordinator: Ms. Maryam Ghorbankarimi, Doctoral Candidate, University
of Edinburgh
Funds will be available to cover travel and accommodation expenses.
14/02/2010
Theorising the Sea
RGS-IBG Annual Conference, London, 1-3 September 2010
Organisers: Jon Anderson (Cardiff University) and Kimberley Peters (Royal Holloway University of London)
The oceans and seas cover approximately two-thirds of the Earth’s surface, not to mention the watery worlds which lie below, forming the largest percentage of our planet. Rachel Carson wrote of the sea, “it lies all about us” (1950, 216), yet it has strangely failed (until recently) to gain much attention in social and cultural geography. The sea is a space often invisible, forgotten (Lambert et al, 2006), marginalised, ‘out there’ (Steinberg, 1999) mystical and strange (Westerdahl, 2005). Yet paradoxically, it has been, and remains, fundamental to the making of the world as we know it (Lavery, 2005, Rediker, 2007). As a “scholarly turn towards the ocean” currently develops (Connery, 2006), this session seeks to consider how we might theorise the sea – this strange, liquid, undulating space which is often credited as being entirely different from the land (see Jackson, 2005, Langewiesche, 2004, Steinberg, 1999). In particular, this session will endeavour to theorise oceanic, maritime and sea spaces not only in terms of interconnections and networks, but also as spaces of power, society, imagination, emotion, materiality, mobility and enchantment. This session invites papers concerned with (but not limited to) the following themes:
The tensions, contradictions, relationships between the land and sea
The sea as a ‘place’
Materiality and sea
The sea as space of emotion
Ocean and seas spaces as magical, mystical and enchanted
Society and the sea
The fluid, undulating, mobile nature of the sea
The space of underwater
Abstracts (250 words maximum) should be submitted to Kimberley Peters
(k.a.peters@rhul.ac.uk) by February 19th 2010, including the following
information: name, affiliation, contact email, and technical requirements
(data projector, audio equipment, etc...).
13/02/2010
BEYOND BACKPACKER TOURISM
Mobilities and Experiences
Edited by Kevin Hannam (University of Sunderland) and
Anya Diekmann (Université Libre de Bruxelles)
This excellent edited collection by international scholars clearly demonstrates
the ongoing research agenda of backpacking. It offers a critical contribution
by engaging with the changing dynamics of backpacking and examines a range
of complex issues. A delightful find in this book is that, not only are
the mainstream destinations discussed but lesser known areas (such as:
Mongolia, Tanzania and Norway) are evident and add to the book's richness.
Angela Benson, University of Brighton, UK
Building on previous work on backpacking, this book takes the analysis
of backpacker tourism further by engaging both with new theoretical debates
into tourism experiences and mobilities as well as with new empirical
phenomena such as the rise of the ‘flashpacker’ and alternative
destinations.
Contents
1. From Backpacking to Flashpacking: Developments in backpacker tourism research - Kevin Hannam and Anya Diekmann
2. Not such a rough or lonely planet? Backpacker tourism: an academic journey - Mark P. Hampton
3. Flashpacking in Fiji: Reframing the ‘global nomad’ in a developing destination - Jeff Jarvis and Victoria Peel
4. The Virtualization of Backpacker Culture: Virtual Mooring, Sustained Interactions, and Enhanced Mobilities - Cody Paris
5. Re-Conceptualising Lifestyle Travellers: Contemporary ‘drifters’ - Scott Cohen
6. Backpacker Hostels: Place and Performance - Michael O’Regan
7. Euro-railing: A Mobile-Ethnography of Backpacker Train Travel - James Johnson
8. Budget Backpackers Testing Comfort Zones in Mongolia - Claudia Bell
9. Lesbian Identities Backpacker Travel Experiences in New Zealand - Linda Myers
10. Backpackers as Volunteer Tourists: Evidence from Tanzania - Kath Laythorpe
11. Backpackers in Norway: Landscapes, ties and platforms - Gareth Butler
12. Town of 1770, Australia - The Creation of a new Backpacker Brand - Peter Welk
13. A Clash of Cultures or Definitions? Complexity and backpacker tourism in residential communities - Robyn Bushell and Kay Anderson
14. Towards Strategic Planning for an Emerging Backpacker Tourism Destination: The South African Experience - Christian Rogerson
Kevin Hannam is Chair of the ATLAS Backpacker Research Group (BRG). He
is currently Professor of Tourism Development at the University of Sunderland,
UK. He has published widely on tourism theory and is co-author of the
text Understanding Tourism and co-editor
of the journal Mobilities.
Anya Diekmann is coordinator of ATLAS Europe. She is Assistant Professor
at the IGEAT and co-director of LIToTeS (Laboratoire interdisciplinaire
Tourisme, Territoire et Sociétés), Université Libre
de Bruxelles, Belgium. Her publications include work on social tourism
and
aspects of cultural tourism with a particular focus on heritage and ethnic tourism.
Tourism and Cultural Change February 2010 256pp
Hbk ISBN 9781845411312 £59.95 / US$109.95 / CAN$109.95 / €79.95
Pbk ISBN 9781845411305 £29.95 / US$54.95 / CAN$54.95 / €39.95
Click here to view book page: www.channelviewpublications.com/display.asp?isb=9781845411312
This book (and all Channel View Publications books) can be ordered via
our secure, fully searchable website www.channelviewpublications.com.
This offers 20% discount to any address in the world, plus shipping (airmail
where appropriate). Alternatively, it can be ordered through any bookshop
or in case of difficulty contact the publisher for further details of
how to order.
12/02/2010
People Like Us
A 1 Day Conference
Friday 16th April 2010 | Manchester Conference Centre
This free to attend conference will examine and discuss the origins and implications of ethnic concentration, or ethnic density. Four sessions, (Migration, mobility and deprivation; Social capital and civic participation; Racism and tolerance; and Health and health inequalities) will cover key topics, each with two papers, a response from a discussant and plenty of time for broader discussion among the conference attendees, who will include academics and those working in the policy arena from central and local government and from NGOs.
If you would like further information and to book please visit http://www.ccsr.ac.uk/events/peoplelikeus/
Or contact Margaret Martin, margaret.martin@manchester.ac.uk
10/02/2010
Recreation and Society in Africa, Asia & South America: Special Issue on ‘Leisure, Tourism and Risk’
Guest editors: Dr Paolo Mura (Taylor’s University College Malaysia)
Dr Scott Cohen (Bournemouth University)
Call for papers
Perceived risk and safety are often regarded as factors that have the potential to influence leisure and tourism decisions. In particular, risk is referred to as a constraint to leisure and tourism participation, namely as a reason for not participating in a leisure activity or tourism experience. However, research work in the area of adventure tourism and high-risk leisure activities reveals that risk is actively sought by some individuals. Whilst a wide array of studies have been published that focus attention on risk, the motivations, behaviours and experiences of individuals who voluntarily seek and/or avoid high-risk activities and experiences in leisure and tourism environments remain relatively unexplored. Moreover, there exists a paucity of data concerning perceptions of risk within leisure and tourism environments and experiences in Africa, Asia and South America.
The limited quantity and variety of studies of risk within leisure and tourism contexts in Africa, Asia and South America stands at odds with a central position that risk often occupies both directly and indirectly within leisure and tourism experiences. Consequently, this special issue of ‘Recreation and Society in Africa, Asia & South America’ aims to provide a forum for expanding current understandings of the linkages between leisure, tourism and risk and the implications of these links for wider society.
The guest editors invite interested researchers to contribute theoretical and/or empirical papers related to the theme of this special issue. The topics of potential manuscripts include, but are not limited to:
The role of risk in the construction of leisure and tourism environments
and experiences
The social and/or cultural construction of risk in leisure and tourism
experiences
The relationship between risk and emotion (e.g. fear, anxiety, panic,
thrill, happiness, etc.)
The role of risk in the construction of cultural, sub-cultural and personal
identities
The role of risk in the construction and/or deconstruction of gendered
identities
Risk and destination marketing in Africa, Asia and Latin America
Submission Guidelines
In the first instance authors are invited to submit a 400 - 500 word
abstract for consideration for the special issue. Selected authors will
then be asked to produce a full paper based on their abstract for potential
publication subject to a favourable review process.
Electronic submissions should be sent by e-mail attachment to both Paolo.Mura@taylors.edu.my
and scohen@bournemouth.ac.uk
Ideally, abstracts and papers should be sent as Microsoft Word files.
Articles will be 5000-6000 words in length.
All submissions will be anonymously reviewed by two independent assessors.
Important Dates:
Abstract deadline: 30th April 2010
Notification of acceptance of abstracts deadline: 17th May 2010
Submission of first drafts: 31st August 2010
Submission of full paper deadline: 5th November 2010
Special issue publication: December 2010
08/02/2010
Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants, Digital Asylum-seekers: The Clash of Cultures
22-24 June 2010 - Sibiu, Romania
an international conference hosted by a consortium of eight institutions, including University of Bucharest, University of Ankara, Free University Brussels, and Polytechnical Institute of Porto - running DIGITAS, a Grundtvig Multilateral Partnership (2008 – 2010)
Digital media and the internet have transformed the way young people learn,
play, socialize, and even participate in civic life. Children today have
access to media, be it through their computers, mobile phones or mp3 players,
much more readily than their parents ever could. Consequently, digital
technologies facilitate young people's creation of media environments
and associated literacy practices that their parents find particularly
difficult to perceive or understand, and from which they are effectively
excluded.
Such media environments and their respective specific literacy practices are fundamental for mapping a ‘digital divide’ operating along inter-generational lines. For some time, researchers and practitioners alike have shown that ‘ICT training’ of (older) adults, focusing exclusively on the use of various ICT tools, both hardware and software, is ultimately pointless in the absence of an adequate cultural orientation to such new territories – worth exploring, exotic as they may seem, but also fraught with unimaginable dangers.
We therefore invite contributions from educators and researchers from all scientific areas that describe, document, and analyse various forms of engagement, in inter-generational contexts and family settings, of youth and (older) adults with digital/online environments and how they relate to various forms of social and cultural capital. We are also looking forward to accounts of challenges and obstacles which encourage or inhibit engagement to various digital/online environments and their specific cultures, as well as of successful intervention strategies and pedagogical processes enabling (older) adults to exploit the opportunities for learning, playing, socializing, and participating supported by digital media.
We are looking forward to contributions submitted to one of the following
sections:
* Learning in a digital world
* Playing in a digital world
* Socializing in a digital world
* Participating in a digital world
Abstracts should be in English only and should contain a clear outline of the argument, the theoretical framework, and where applicable methodology and results. The preferred length of the individual abstracts is a maximum of 500 words. Panel proposals should consist of at least four individual contributions combining a panel abstract with individual abstracts, each abstract not longer than 250 words.
Deadline for titles and abstracts is 19 March 2010. Please register your submission at http://tiny.cc/DIGITAS_regform. Your questions are welcome at digitas.conference [at] gmail.com.
The abstract proceedings will be circulated prior to the conference and published online, while the full proceedings will be later published (with ISBN) online. A selection of papers will be considered for publication in a printed (with ISBN) version.
Conference web page, including organizational details and suggestions for funding your participation to the conference can be found at http://tiny.cc/DIGITAS_conference.
Practical information
Date: 22-24 June 2010
Location: Ibis Hotel, Sibiu, Romania
Organizers: a consortium of eight European universities and training organisations developing the LLP / Grundtvig Multilateral Project DIGITAS (2008-2010)
Conference language: English
Enrolment fee: 300 EUR (3 days) or 100 EUR (one day only) - with a 50% discount for students
Accommodation at IBIS Hotel, Sibiu: see options on registration form
Registration form: http://tiny.cc/DIGITAS_regform
Website: http://tiny.cc/DIGITAS_conference
E-mail: digitas.conference [at] gmail.com
Abstract and titles submissions deadline: 19 March 2010
Notification of acceptance: 8 April 2010
Registration deadline: 20 April 2010
Deadline for submission of full papers (for online and/or printed publication): 23 July 2010
06/02/2010
Workshop - Creative economy - Globalization and World City Research Centre (GaWC)
The Globalization and World City Research Centre (GaWC), based in the Geography Department at Loughborough University is hosting a workshop for young researchers and postgraduates on the creative economy and the city on the 28th April 2010 at Loughborough University. We will be looking for presentations that explore the role of the creative economy in the production of cities through globalization, and the outcomes that this has on those who occupy the urban environment. Please email o.mould@lboro.ac.uk or a.watson@staffs.ac.uk to submit an abstract for presentation (no more than 250 words) and the deadline is the 5th March 2010. On the day of the workshop, GaWC will also host their annual lecture, which this year will be delivered by Andy C Pratt, Professor of Culture, Media and the Economy from the Centre for Culture, Media and Creative Industries (CMCI) at King’s College London. Professor Pratt is a leading academic and international policy advisor on cities and the creative economy and his talk will complement the themes of the workshop. The flyer can be found at http://goo.gl/t52V. Please feel free to distribute it through your own networks.
06/02/2010
Colloque : "Lire les villes marocaines. Création et urbanité"
Paris, 18 et 19 février 2010
Université Paris 13, campus de Villetaneuse, amphithéâtre Euler, Institut Galilée.
Pour programme cf. http://www.univ-paris13.fr/cenel/colloques/VillesMarocprogramme.pdf
06/02/2010
“Terrorism and the Complexity of Soft Targets: The Case of the Tourism Industry”
Jointly organised workshop series in Oxford by Oxford Brookes University and the London School of Economics.
The seminar will take place at the Postgraduate Centre of the Business School (Stuart Rooks Lecture Theatre) in Wheatley Campus, Oxford on Wednesday 10 March 2010.
Confirmed speakers for the day are:
- Bernard Donoghue (VisitBritain and Tourism Industry Emergency Response
Group – TIER)
- Alan Orlob (Vice President, Global Safety and Security, Marriott International
Lodging)
- Prof Alex Schmidt (Terrorism Research Initiative - TRI) and
- Dr Dawn Gilpin, (Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication,
Arizona State University).
The seminar is partly sponsored by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and is free of charge. However, as places are limited, early application is advised.
Attached, you may find a flyer with further details and an application
form that you may send - if interested to attend- by e-mail to rnabi@brookes.ac.uk
or by post to Razia Nabi, Department of Hospitality, Leisure and Tourism
Management, Business School (HLTM), Oxford Brookes University, Headington
Campus, Oxford, OX3 0BP.
05/02/2010
International Conference: "Red Sea V: Navigated Spaces, Connected Places"
Institute of Arab & Islamic Studies, University of Exeter, 16-19 Sept. 2010
The MARES Project at the Institute of Arab & Islamic Studies (IAIS), University of Exeter, is delighted to host the tenth anniversary conference of the Red Sea Project series, founded by the Society for Arabian Studies. The conference will be held in the beautiful surroundings of the IAIS and city of Exeter, and will coincide with a Dhow Exhibition to be held at the Institute.
Interested scholars are invited to submit abstracts to the Organising Committee on the archaeology, anthropology, ethnography, history and language of the peoples of the Red Sea region from the earliest times to the present day. Although the organisers particularly encourage papers addressing movement, navigation and land/seascape on the Red Sea, including maritime networks, seafaring, navigation and ports; boatbuilding traditions and technologies; trade and material contact across the sea; sacred space and pilgrimage and identity among maritime communities; submissions reflecting other aspects of humanities research in the region are welcome. Proposals for themed panels of four papers are also welcome.
All abstracts and proposals should be sent to redseav@exeter.ac.uk
Deadline for submission: 15 May 2010.
The Organising Committee comprises Professor Dionisius Agius, Dr John Cooper, Dr Chiara Zazzaro, Julian Jansen van Rensburg, Lucy Semaan and Ms Beata Faracik (general support).
Further information: http://projects.exeter.ac.uk/mares/conferences.htm <
04/02/2010
Fifth Beirut Exchange Program
June 14-28, 2010
In an effort to further its commitment to promoting dialogue and understanding, Mideastwire.com is pleased to announce the Fifth Beirut Exchange program. It will engage students from around the world in a multifaceted discussion of some of the key issues facing the region.
The Beirut Exchange program rests on three tracks:
Academic - Participants will attend a series of lectures and colloquia led by leading academics and public intellectuals. Topics will include: International law in theory and practice in the Middle East; The United Nations as peacekeeper and mediator; Engaging political Islam; Pax Syriana in Lebanon; Asymmetrical conflict: the July 2006 Lebanon war; The Dubai model and its impact on the Middle East.
Language - Participants will have the option of attending 20 hours of Arabic language instruction at the Saifi Institute for Arabic Language in Beirut. Modules for both colloquial and formal Arabic will be available at different levels.
Dialogue with Leaders - Participants will have the opportunity to meet, listen and engage social, political and economic leaders from across the spectrum in Lebanon - with a particular (though not exclusive) emphasis on exposure to leading Islamist and opposition currents.
Apply before April 15, 2010: To request a downloadable application or financial aid information, please email info@mideastwire.com.
To view Cal Perry's CNN report, visit:
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/world/2009/01/21/perry.lebanon.meet.hamas.cnn?iref=videosearch
04/02/2010
Europeanization and Globalization
UMR Europe Européanité Européanisation.
Colloque. 2, 3 et 4 décembre 2010.
Université de Bordeaux.
This conference purports to analyse the relationship between Europeanizationand globalization. Europeanization will be understood as the convergence ofapproaches among European countries, within the framework of EU policies,whether this process reflects a positive support for integration, or defacto convergence. Globalization will be analyzed from differentperspectives: as an objective phenomenon, a discourse, the establishment ofnorms and standards by international institutions or the epistemic communityof experts, or a geo-political phenomenon implying shifts in powerrelationships. The relationship between globalization and europeanization is a complex one,ranging from open opposition to complementary approaches. In some cases, Europeanization can be considered as a regional version of globalization,and the implementation of international norms in Europe. In many European countries, the mere prospect of a distinctive European model is clearlyrejected. In other cases, European rules and practices clearly run counterto globalization, and European identity is asserted, as an alternative toother models.
Both Europeanization and globalization harbour internal contradictions and witness heated theoretical debates as well as opencompetition between national and social interest groups. Power issues – what type of Europeanization ? for whose benefit ? for what purpose ? - overlapgeopolitical ones – Do we aim for a European framework or global one ? Such questions will be considered within several practical fields.
1. Immigration. This question will be tackled in two ways. On the one hand, we expect papersputting the policies adopted in Europe towards asylum seekers in a globalperspective, and comparing European policies, which seem to be ratherrestrictive, to international standards. On the other hand, integration policies have converged to some extent withinthe EU. Europeanization seems to derive from two sources: - a supranational one. Two directives were adopted in 2000, leading to thecreation of agencies designed to reduce discrimination, such as the Halde inFrance and the Equality and Human Rights Commission in the UK. - A more bilateral approach seems to be based on the transfer of publicpolicies and “good practices” across borders. We would like to assess the influence of globalization over Europeanintegration policies, that of European policies and approaches on globaldebates on the subject, bearing in mind the global dimension of policydiscussion within the English speaking world. The resilience of nationalmodels will also come under scrutiny.
2. Social Europe. In the social field, europeanization is a very contradictory phenomenon. Onthe one hand, it has brought about neo liberal norms, which are usuallylinked to globalization, in terms of flexibility, mobility, standards ofsocial protection. Some directives, such as the one on Services, wereoriginally a European version of WTO policies. Conversely, some discoursesor even policies, such as Directive 2002 14 on social dialogue, are based onInternational Labour Organization standards, and recommend a pluralisticapproach taking into consideration the different interests of the “socialpartners”. In some cases, the contradictions cut through the Europeaninstitutions themselves. The directive on posted workers, initially draftedin order to prevent social dumping, has systematically been interpreted inways contrary to the interests of Trade Unions by the European Court ofJustice. The analysis of European social policy, and that of the individualmember states, will tackle this contradiction.
3. Language policies. In practice, globalization leads to the universal domination ofEnglish, in the fields of sciences, trade or politics. In Europe, realityhardly matches official discourse. Official commitment to linguisticdiversity is not reflected even by institutional European practices, whereEnglish is systematically used. Our goal is to understand the relationshipbetween official policies, and the disappointing state of linguisticdiversity. To what extent is Europeanization leading to Anglicization, inspite of the official intentions, and why is it the case ?
4. Geo-politics. In geopolitical terms, the relationship between europeanization andglobalization questions the ultimate objective of European integration. Thisis compounded by the new, multipolar organization of power and the newchallenges societies have to face (international terrorism, a-symmetricalconflicts, religious fanaticism, ecological catastrophes, health crises).Beyond this issue, appears the perspective of a “Greater Europe”, and thequestion of boundaries. The question of the relevant levels for public policy definition andimplementation remains central. The role of Nation-states was reassertedduring the last years. The slow pace of integration, frustration with theEuropean democratic deficit and the lack of a coherent social policy, therebirth of age old regional or global conflicts, the need for nationalresponses to the economic crisis have all converged, and highlight theimportance of old nation-sates. The function of regions varies widely fromone country to another. Even if the myth of a “Europe of Regions” is lesspowerful than it was in the past, the building up of regional power is insome cases seen as a valid democratic ideal, and as one of the specificachievements of europeanization. Two types of issues will be raised. - How do ideas and public policies circulate between the global, European,national and regional levels ? To what extent do world standards impact “European good practices”? How do culture and geography combine, in the debate between europeanization and globalization ?- What are the limits to the enlargement of the EU ? Where are the borders of Europe ? How far does this influence the European Neighbourhood Policy ?What is the geo political dimension of “European identity “ ?
The conference will be held in French and English. Abstracts are to beforwarded, by March 15th 1010, to :Jean – Paul RévaugerUMR EEE Maison des Sciences de l’Homme d’Aquitaine 10 Esplanade des Antilles 33607 Pessac France.
jp-c.revauger@wanadoo.fr
03/02/2010
"Cultures of Mobilities: Everyday life, Communication, and Politics"
Plenary speakers:
* Jonas Larsen, Roskilde University, Denmark
* Eric Laurier, University of Edinburgh, Scotland
* Mimi Sheller, Drexel University, USA
Dates: 27th - 29th October 2010
Location: Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark
Deadline for abstracts: 1st May 2010
Web site: http://www.cosmob2010.hum.aau.dk
Abstract submissions are invited for the "The Cultures of Mobilities:
Everyday life, Communication, and Politics" conference, to be held in Aalborg, Denmark, on October 27-29 2010. The conference is open to students, scholars, and professionals from various fields interested in the theoretical or applied study of mobilities.
Different forms of mobilities have increased dramatically in recent decades
and are today essential for many spheres of contemporary societies. In
various research disciplines mobility is still often thought of as a matter
of rational organization, an important competitive feature in a global
world, or as a dominant factor involved in stratification. As such, mobility
is immanently connected to material practices of movement and access -
or their opposites. However, what is less discussed in the recent debates
on mobility research is that mobilities are not just material, but also
signifying practices.
Mobilities have just as much to do with the production of meaning and
culture. The 2010 "Cultures of Mobilities" conference therefore
takes up the challenge to theorize and analyze mobilities from the vantage
point of a cultural perspective. The conference will place a particular
emphasis on how mobilities produce and re-produce norms, meanings and
cultures. The conference focus of "Cultures of Mobilities" will
encompass three different themes: Everyday life, Communication and Politics.
The Everyday life perspective considers how the organization of mobilities
in everyday life produces (and re-produces) particular sets of values
and norms relating to mobilities. It explores the ways in which everyday
life mobilities are being organized, and asks whether everyday mobilities
are generating new social communities and perspectives on social interaction,
or are instead eroding social connectivity.
The Communication perspective considers how new digital communication
technologies influence mobility practices and how they may create affordances
for particular ways of engaging with mobilities. Papers in this part may
also involve intercultural/cross-cultural perspectives on mobility as
well as the analysis of representations of mobilities in, for example,
literature, media, documentary, cinema, computer games and fiction.
Finally the Politics perspective addresses how the new mobilities are
being perceived politically. Are various political perceptions encouraging
or discouraging particular forms of mobility? Are there specific norms
and cultures related to the ways in which states and governmental systems
create policies for mobilities? Under this theme, we also encourage papers
on critical perspectives, 'the environment', 'mobility as a right' and
power/social stratification at scales from the neighborhood to global
mega-regions.
The Local Organising Committee
Ole B. Jensen, Claus Lassen, Paul McIlvenny
C-MUS: Center for Mobility and Urban Studies
02/02/2010
Call for Abstracts on the Politics of Digital Media in the Balkans and
the Middle East
Editors: Helga Tawil-Souri (New York University) and Zala Volcic (University
of Queensland)
DEADLINE : March 1st, 2010
We invite abstract submissions for an edited book on the creation,
dissemination, interpretation, and role of digital media for political
purposes in the Balkans and the Middle East. The Balkan and Middle East
contexts provide interesting case studies because of their overlapping
patterns of national and regional identification combined with the tensions
these create.
The overall goal of the edited volume will be to consider the relationship
between a wide array of internet uses and forms of political deliberation,
taking into consideration both the ways in which interactive media help
to
foster deliberation, discussion, and the coordination of collection action,
and the ways in which they may thwart public sphere ideals of rational
critical deliberation and public accountability. Our intent is to provide
an
overview of the spectrum of political uses of new media in these two
regions.
Contributors may come from a range of disciplinary and methodological
perspectives, attending to how political groups, practices, and
communicative genres are underwritten and sustained via engagement with
digital technology, as well as to how the political realm itself is
transformed in the age of digital media.
Relevant topics include but are not limited to the following:
- The political uses of digital media
- The uses of digital media for purposes of organizing protest and
dissent and for the construction of forums for political deliberation.
- How activists and (political) groups have used the internet to
hold state authorities accountable or challenge them, or to publish and
circulate information.
- The creation, dissemination and/or interpretation of digital media
content by communities and individuals for political purposes
- The kinds of politics that are created/expressed in the digital
media environment
- How mediated expressions and spaces connect to politics 'on the
ground'
- The kinds of political challenges that arise from digital media
use in the regions
- The shifting relationship between digital media and journalism
- How population groups use the internet to connect with one
another across national divisions (for example Serbs living in Bosnia,
Serbia, and Montenegro; Palestinians living in Israel, Lebanon, Jordan
and
Syria).
- Chapters may focus on different forms of digital media and spaces:
internet cafes, social networking sites, bulletin boards, blogs, twitter,
wikipedia, youTube, listservs, websites and other digital/social media.
- Chapters may focus on one national context or sub-context, or may
be comparative in scope.
- For the purposes of this project, the relevant geographic range of
the Balkans and the Middle East includes the following: Albania, Croatia,
Slovenia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia, Macedonia, Kosovo, Romania, Bulgaria,
Moldova, Turkey, Cyprus, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestinian Territories,
Israel, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Kuwait, UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Yemen.
- We particularly welcome contributions from scholars from the
relevant regions.
Please send a *short bio, a publication list,* and a *500 word
abstract* detailing the topic of your article, the overall context,
your material, methodology,
and theoretical argument by *March 1, 2010*. Authors will be notified
by the
25th of March 2010 of the outcome of their submissions. If accepted, full
papers, of a maximum of 6,000 words, should be submitted by* September
1,
2010*. Papers will then be reviewed individually by the editors and in
the
standard blind review process of the publisher.
Submissions and inquiries about this volume should be sent to both
mailto:helga@nyu.edu
mailto:z.volcic@uq.edu.au
31/02/2010
Lancaster University Sociology Department postgraduate funding
ESRC Quota Awards (1+3 and +3)
We welcome applications for two ESRC 1 + 3 studentships within
Sociology, a department renowned for its creative and groundbreaking
research, see (http://www.lancs.ac.uk/fass/sociology/index.php). These
studentships provide full funding for an MA degree followed by PhD
research at Lancaster. The studentships pay for full-time fees and
provide living expenses to cover one year of MA study and 3 years of PhD
study. On this programme, students take the MA in Sociological Research
which prepares them for doctoral research. They then work with their
supervisors on three years of PhD research. The studentships cover any
area of the Sociology department's expertise including Gender and
Women's Studies and Science and Technology Studies. For details of staff
expertise, see (http://www.lancs.ac.uk/fass/sociology/profiles/phd). We
also have one ESRC +3 studentship for doctoral study in Gender & Women's
Studies.
Please note:
* EU students (who are not UK citizens) may apply but successful
applicants will receive only fees and no living expenses (unless they
have UK residency status - applicants should consult Rachel Hemmings if
they are in this category about their eligibility).
(r.hemmings@lancaster.ac.uk)
* Overseas students are not eligible for this funding. However,
they may be considered for other funding opportunities.
(
http://www.lancs.ac.uk/fass/gradschool/funding/funding.htm.)
* Applicants will be assessed on academic merit.
* The deadline for applicants to be considered for the ESRC 1 + 3
and +3 studentships is Thursday 4th March 2010.
The application process:
* Applicants should initially contact Rachel Hemmings
(r.hemmings@lancaster.ac.uk) to register their interest in applying for
any of the studentships.
* Staff will help applicants identify suitable doctoral
supervisors within the department.
* Applicants for the studentships need to apply to the university
via the online system.
(http://www.postgraduate.lancs.ac.uk/Applying/Pages/applying.aspx)
* The proposal should outline the topic of the doctoral research,
key research questions, and the proposed methodology. Prospective
supervisors of applicants will help applicants shape this proposal. This
can be a lengthy process, so candidates should apply as early as
possible.
If you have any questions about this process please contact Rachel
Hemmings (r.hemmings@lancaster.ac.uk)
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