“Defining Agency, Performing Power”
14th Annual Graduate Conference
March 25-26th, 2017 -- University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, PA)
Issues such as the refugee crisis, relations between EU member and non-member states, and ongoing tensions related to political, economic, and social instability represent sources of division in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. These issues have encouraged new discussions not only of the definition - and redefinition - of geopolitical and physical borders, but also cultural, social, ethnic, linguistic, and religious divides. This year’s conference centers on topics of agency and power in the expression of physical and symbolic borders. Agency addresses ways in which individuals, groups, or factions have interacted or currently interact with systems of power as well as how these relationships have been influenced by diverse historic processes. Discussions of power relations and their performance can encompass both institutionalized and individual-based forms of power as well as overt or covert representations of power. How have agents negotiated with or (re)defined institutions, persons, or entities? How do mechanisms of power impact relations between nation-states and citizens, “elites” and “commoners”? How do agents negotiate or utilize existing power structures to maintain or redefine geopolitical, social, ethnic, linguistic, or religious borders?
This conference engages with agency and power in Eastern Europe and Central Asia in both the past and present. We encourage retrospective analyses as well as research examining contemporary issues. We also welcome submissions that investigate the influence of geopolitical borders on theoretical traditions and disciplinary practices.
Submissions are accepted from a wide range of disciplines, including but not limited to the following with comparative or interdisciplinary research also accepted.
- Literary and Cultural Studies
- Medicine and Public Health
- Military and Security Studies
- Environmental Studies
- History
- Sociology
- Gender and Sexuality Studies
- Public Policy & Law
- International Affairs
- Anthropology
- Political Science
- Economics
- Religious Studies
- Linguistics
Submission Deadline: Friday, January 6th, 2017, 11:59 PM EST
Please submit a 300 word (double-spaced) abstract and 2-page CV through our website.
The submission form is available at goseca.ucis.pitt.edu/submissions-form
Accepted papers will be notified by Sunday, January 14th, 2017.
Please contact info.goseca@gmail.com with any questions.
This opportunity has expired. It was originally published here:
http://goseca.ucis.pitt.edu/conference