June 4th 2008, Newcastle University, Beehive 2.22, 11am - 4.15pm
In June 2007, Reed Elsevier, parent company of academic publishers Elsevier, bowed to pressure from academics and announced its withdrawal from the arms marketing industry. This debate around the campaign raised wider questions over links between the military and the university: what are the multiple interconnections between the military and the academy, and what ethical questions do these raise? This one-day roundtable is intended to provide space to address both of these questions. The format will be on short presentations, with plenty of opportunity for open discussion and debate.
10.15 - 11am Arrival, refreshments
11am - 1pm Session 1: Mapping the terrain
Introduction: Nick Megoran; Chair: Kyle Grayson
The purpose of this session is get a sense of the multiple ways in which the military and the academy are interconnected, and how and why these are changing. Talks will outline spaces of interaction, panellists addressing topics such as institutional links between universities and the military; security/defence research funding; military activities, sponsorship and recruitment amongst students; military training.
Panellists are: Dr Jocelyn Mawdsley (Newcastle), Dr Anna Stavrianakis (Sussex), and Dr Rachel Woodward (Newcastle).
1pm-2pm Lunch (provided)
2pm-4:15pm Session 2: Ethics of engagement
Chair: David Murakami Wood
Having established a picture of the military-academic complex, this session asks what ethical questions it raises. Should we be encouraging, opposing or seeking to modify some or all of these interactions? What, if any, is the legitimate role of the military in the society at large and the university in particular? In the light of these discussions, what practical steps should we consider to take this further?
Panellists are: Dr Paul Chatterton (Leeds), Professor Anthony Forster (Durham), Mr Tim Street (Co-author of 2007 report 'Study War No More: Military Involvement in UK Universities'), and Professor Matthew Uttley (Kings College London / Joint Services Command and Staff College, Shrivenham).
4.15 - 5 Refreshments
Follow up
Those who wish to pursue this further may adjourn to a local restaurant bar for further discussion/planning.
Organisation
This event is organised by the Territory, Culture, and Politics Research Cluster, School of GPS, Newcastle University, in conjunction with the Northern Network of Critical Global Scholars and Newcastle University's Global Urban Research Unit. It is part of a series of events in 2008 to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Newcastle's geography department, which, fittingly, began operating in a post-World War 1 Nissen Hut.
Costs
The conference fee, including lunch and refreshments, is £10 (£5 for postgraduate students).
Registration
To register please visit http://www.ncl.ac.uk/niassh/Military/index.htm. For enquiries about registration and logistics, please email Melanie Kidd at military@ncl.ac.uk or telephone her on +44 (0) 191 222 5807 (Monday - Wednesday 8.30am - 4.30pm).
--
On behalf of the organisers, Dr Kyle Grayson (kyle.grayson@ncl.ac.uk), Dr Jocelyn Mawdsley (jocelyn.mawdsley@ncl.ac.uk), Dr Nick Megoran (nick.megoran@ncl.ac.uk), Dr David Murakami Wood (d.j.wood@ncl.ac.uk), Dr Rachel Woodward (r.e.woodward@ncl.ac.uk), Newcastle University.
Thursday, May 08, 2008
Thursday, March 13, 2008
New Sciences of Protection Conference
New Sciences of Protection: Designing Safe Living
Conference
An interdisciplinary international conference to be held at Lancaster University
Thursday, 10 July – Saturday, 12 July 2008
This conference investigates ‘protection’ at the intersections of security, sciences, technologies, markets and design. It considers three central questions:
How is ‘safe living’ conceived of by designers, artist-writers, policy makers and regulators, scientist-engineers, social scientists and humanities scholars, and how do these conceptualisations of ‘safe living’ engage with sciences and technologies of protection?
Is ‘safe living’ achievable, and how do conceptual, practical, political and cultural practices of design engage with sciences and technologies of protection to achieve ‘safe living’?
And if ‘safe living’ were achievable, would it be desirable – as a politics, as an ethic, as a day-to-day way of life? Would ‘new sciences of protection’ make us safe or would they commodify us and/or multiply our fears and anxieties?
Keynote Speakers
Professor Anthony Dunne (Royal College of Art, London, UK and dunneandraby designs
Fiona Raby (Royal College of Art, London, UK and dunneandraby designs)
Professor Susan Silby (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, USA)
Professor Lucy Suchman (Lancaster University, UK)
Professor Richard Buchanan (Carnegie-Mellon University, Pittsburgh, USA)
Lynn Hershman Leeson (Director of ‘Strange Culture’)
Benjamin H. Bratton (Director Advanced Strategies Group at Yahoo!, SCI_Arc and UCLA DesignMedia Arts)
Papers
We invite papers and presentations on such topics as:
Designing safe life/designing safe living (e.g., synthetic biology, genetics, designing safe citizens);Designing safe places (environmental futures, workplace safety, home/homeland security, the built environment); Distributing protection and 'safe living' (RFID and the design of safe borders, targeting unsafe citizens/environments/species/systems/procedures, designing 'the exception'); 'Design noir' ; Designer security: fashion and new sciences of protection
Performing 'protection' and 'safe living' ; Design, law, justice; Global brands and new spaces of consumption and control design methodologies; Protocols, and procedures the safety of design as a practice and a method; Designing safe images/images of safety and protection; The codes and conduct of 'safe living'; Control, sustainable security, and the emergence of eco-cities safe/unsafe futures; Design, emotion, protection the pleasures of (un)safe design; Design and public engagement -- where should the design debate take place?
Abstracts should include a title, medium of presentation, contact details of the author(s) (name, postal address, email), and a summary of no more than 300 words.
Please submit them to Anne-Marie Mumford at a.mumford@lancaster.ac.uk no later than 15 April, 2008.
Registration
To benefit from early-bird registration fees, please register before 15 May, 2008.
Please complete booking form and return to a.mumford@lancaster.ac.uk, then register and pay online at the same time. Your booking will not be guaranteed until we have received payment.
Registration Form
Register and pay online
Exhibition Space
If you would like to exhibit materials relating to the theme of the conference please contact a.mumford@lancaster.ac.uk. Please note that any costs incurred for hiring equipment are to be paid by the exhibitor.
Conference
An interdisciplinary international conference to be held at Lancaster University
Thursday, 10 July – Saturday, 12 July 2008
This conference investigates ‘protection’ at the intersections of security, sciences, technologies, markets and design. It considers three central questions:
How is ‘safe living’ conceived of by designers, artist-writers, policy makers and regulators, scientist-engineers, social scientists and humanities scholars, and how do these conceptualisations of ‘safe living’ engage with sciences and technologies of protection?
Is ‘safe living’ achievable, and how do conceptual, practical, political and cultural practices of design engage with sciences and technologies of protection to achieve ‘safe living’?
And if ‘safe living’ were achievable, would it be desirable – as a politics, as an ethic, as a day-to-day way of life? Would ‘new sciences of protection’ make us safe or would they commodify us and/or multiply our fears and anxieties?
Keynote Speakers
Professor Anthony Dunne (Royal College of Art, London, UK and dunneandraby designs
Fiona Raby (Royal College of Art, London, UK and dunneandraby designs)
Professor Susan Silby (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, USA)
Professor Lucy Suchman (Lancaster University, UK)
Professor Richard Buchanan (Carnegie-Mellon University, Pittsburgh, USA)
Lynn Hershman Leeson (Director of ‘Strange Culture’)
Benjamin H. Bratton (Director Advanced Strategies Group at Yahoo!, SCI_Arc and UCLA DesignMedia Arts)
Papers
We invite papers and presentations on such topics as:
Designing safe life/designing safe living (e.g., synthetic biology, genetics, designing safe citizens);Designing safe places (environmental futures, workplace safety, home/homeland security, the built environment); Distributing protection and 'safe living' (RFID and the design of safe borders, targeting unsafe citizens/environments/species/systems/procedures, designing 'the exception'); 'Design noir' ; Designer security: fashion and new sciences of protection
Performing 'protection' and 'safe living' ; Design, law, justice; Global brands and new spaces of consumption and control design methodologies; Protocols, and procedures the safety of design as a practice and a method; Designing safe images/images of safety and protection; The codes and conduct of 'safe living'; Control, sustainable security, and the emergence of eco-cities safe/unsafe futures; Design, emotion, protection the pleasures of (un)safe design; Design and public engagement -- where should the design debate take place?
Abstracts should include a title, medium of presentation, contact details of the author(s) (name, postal address, email), and a summary of no more than 300 words.
Please submit them to Anne-Marie Mumford at a.mumford@lancaster.ac.uk no later than 15 April, 2008.
Registration
To benefit from early-bird registration fees, please register before 15 May, 2008.
Please complete booking form and return to a.mumford@lancaster.ac.uk, then register and pay online at the same time. Your booking will not be guaranteed until we have received payment.
Registration Form
Register and pay online
Exhibition Space
If you would like to exhibit materials relating to the theme of the conference please contact a.mumford@lancaster.ac.uk. Please note that any costs incurred for hiring equipment are to be paid by the exhibitor.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Conference: The Politics of Virtual States
To register go to
http://www.dur.ac.uk/sgia/events-new/virtual/
Conference Program
DAY 1 (Thursday 20th March)
8:45 – 9:30 am Registration/Coffee
9:30 – 9:45 am Opening/Welcome
9:45 – 10:30 am Keynote Speech – Prof. Nick Rengger, University of St. Andrews
On the characters of modern virtual states: Two Questions
10:30 am – 12 pm Panel 1
THE ROLE OF THE STATE – Challenging traditional perceptions of statehood
· Nina Caspersen (Lancaster)
Democratisation in virtual states: a contradiction in terms?
· Nkolika E. Obianyo (Nigeria)
Reconstructing the State in Africa: Good Governance, Market Reform and Virtual governance-Is the State still Relevant? - The Experience of Nigeria
· Tim Montgomery (Sheffield)
Virtually real – on the political fluidity of sovereignty
12:00 – 1:00 pm Lunch
1:00 – 2:30 pm Panel 2
IDENTITY AND DIASPORA – Exploring the world from a virtual base
· Athina Karatzogianni (Hull)
Media representations of small states, cross-border interests and local violence in an era of fast virtual communications
· Joanne Wallis (Cambridge)
Roots and Routes: Transnationalism and the development of the deterritorialized Tongan nation-state
· K. Luisa Gandolfo (Exeter)
The Influence of Socioeconomic Conditions on the Palestinian Diaspora Identity: the Case of Jordan
2:30 – 3:00 pm Coffee
3:00 – 4:30 pm Panel 3
SECURITY, TERRITORY AND LEGITIMACY – New locations of power and influence
· Veronique Barbalet (York)
Rebellious diplomacy: the socialisation of armed non-state actors into the Westphalian state system
· Laura Khor (St. Andrews)
A Terrorist Diagnosis for “Failed States”
· Roger MacGinty (York)
Reconstruction in the absence of the state: The case of post-July 2007 war Lebanon
4:30 – 6:00 pm End of Panels for Day 1, participants to settle into accommodation for
the evening
6:00pm Documentary and Dinner at Josephine Butler College
DAY 2 (Friday 21st March)
10:00 – 10:30 am Coffee
10:30 am – 12 pm Panel 4
BIG POLITICS, SMALL STATES – The virtual state as a means to an end
· Michael Strauss (Paris)
Guantanamo Bay as a Westphalian Laboratory
· William Vlcek (London)
Behind an offshore mask: the nomad and the sovereign in global finance
· Scott Littlefield (Cambridge)
Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Transdniestria: Virtual States towards Other Ends?
12 – 1pm Lunch
1 – 2:30pm Panel 5
CASE STUDY: KURDISTAN
· Denise Natali (Exeter)
The Logic of the Kurdish Quasi-State
· Natalie Hausknecht (St. Andrews)
Is a virtual state enough? Autonomy, federalism, and sovereignty in Kurdistan
· John Myhill (Haifa) (to be confirmed)
Virtual states in the `Arab world’
2:30pm Closing Remarks by the DIAC Committee
http://www.dur.ac.uk/sgia/events-new/virtual/
Conference Program
DAY 1 (Thursday 20th March)
8:45 – 9:30 am Registration/Coffee
9:30 – 9:45 am Opening/Welcome
9:45 – 10:30 am Keynote Speech – Prof. Nick Rengger, University of St. Andrews
On the characters of modern virtual states: Two Questions
10:30 am – 12 pm Panel 1
THE ROLE OF THE STATE – Challenging traditional perceptions of statehood
· Nina Caspersen (Lancaster)
Democratisation in virtual states: a contradiction in terms?
· Nkolika E. Obianyo (Nigeria)
Reconstructing the State in Africa: Good Governance, Market Reform and Virtual governance-Is the State still Relevant? - The Experience of Nigeria
· Tim Montgomery (Sheffield)
Virtually real – on the political fluidity of sovereignty
12:00 – 1:00 pm Lunch
1:00 – 2:30 pm Panel 2
IDENTITY AND DIASPORA – Exploring the world from a virtual base
· Athina Karatzogianni (Hull)
Media representations of small states, cross-border interests and local violence in an era of fast virtual communications
· Joanne Wallis (Cambridge)
Roots and Routes: Transnationalism and the development of the deterritorialized Tongan nation-state
· K. Luisa Gandolfo (Exeter)
The Influence of Socioeconomic Conditions on the Palestinian Diaspora Identity: the Case of Jordan
2:30 – 3:00 pm Coffee
3:00 – 4:30 pm Panel 3
SECURITY, TERRITORY AND LEGITIMACY – New locations of power and influence
· Veronique Barbalet (York)
Rebellious diplomacy: the socialisation of armed non-state actors into the Westphalian state system
· Laura Khor (St. Andrews)
A Terrorist Diagnosis for “Failed States”
· Roger MacGinty (York)
Reconstruction in the absence of the state: The case of post-July 2007 war Lebanon
4:30 – 6:00 pm End of Panels for Day 1, participants to settle into accommodation for
the evening
6:00pm Documentary and Dinner at Josephine Butler College
DAY 2 (Friday 21st March)
10:00 – 10:30 am Coffee
10:30 am – 12 pm Panel 4
BIG POLITICS, SMALL STATES – The virtual state as a means to an end
· Michael Strauss (Paris)
Guantanamo Bay as a Westphalian Laboratory
· William Vlcek (London)
Behind an offshore mask: the nomad and the sovereign in global finance
· Scott Littlefield (Cambridge)
Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Transdniestria: Virtual States towards Other Ends?
12 – 1pm Lunch
1 – 2:30pm Panel 5
CASE STUDY: KURDISTAN
· Denise Natali (Exeter)
The Logic of the Kurdish Quasi-State
· Natalie Hausknecht (St. Andrews)
Is a virtual state enough? Autonomy, federalism, and sovereignty in Kurdistan
· John Myhill (Haifa) (to be confirmed)
Virtual states in the `Arab world’
2:30pm Closing Remarks by the DIAC Committee
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Political Interdisciplinary Studies Conference (Call for Papers)
POLIS Newcastle Conference 2008
(Political Interdisciplinary Studies Conference)
Post-graduate Conference in Politics
Newcastle University
School of Geography, Politics and Sociology,
Date: May 24th 2008
Venue: Newcastle University: Law School Lecture Theatre and Politics Building
Call for Papers
Politics, in the School of Geography, Politics and Sociology, is holding a one day conference for post-graduate students on the 24th of May 2008. This inter-disciplinary event will provide a forum for the exchange of perspectives on a range of politically relevant issues allowing post-graduates the opportunity to present, and receive feedback on, their work in an informal, open environment. The topic and content of papers should be constrained only by the 20 minutes allocated for each presentation. Examples of topical areas include:
- Time, history and change
- Space, migration and insularity
- Diversity, relativism and universalism
- Narration, representation and theory
- Structures, institutions and organisations
- Resistance, authoritarianism and terrorism
- Media, communication and society
In addition to post-graduate papers, Dr Martin Weber, University of Queensland, Australia, will give a keynote speech to open-up and illuminate the inter-disciplinary possibilities of the field, while Dr Sarah Liebermann, University of Kent, will draw on her recent experiences at post-graduate level to discuss means by which career progression can be achieved.
As an incentive to participate, we aim collectively to publish selected papers from the conference.
The authors of the 10 most promising abstracts will be encouraged to submit full papers of 5-6,000 words by May 9th. The author of the best paper will be awarded a prize of £100, while the second best paper will be awarded £50, and the third £25.
There will be no fees for attendance, lunch or refreshments, but those attending will be expected to cover transport and any accommodation costs. Details of suggested accommodation and means of transport will be provided well in advance of the event by email or on the conference website:
http//:www.ncl.ac.uk/gps/POLIS.html
We invite abstracts of no more than 350 words from post-graduate students throughout the social sciences on any area of politics. Please send abstracts to Matthew Johnson (M.T.Johnson@ncl.ac.uk) or Mark Edward (M.D.Edward@ncl.ac.uk) by March 7th 2008 at the latest.
(Political Interdisciplinary Studies Conference)
Post-graduate Conference in Politics
Newcastle University
School of Geography, Politics and Sociology,
Date: May 24th 2008
Venue: Newcastle University: Law School Lecture Theatre and Politics Building
Call for Papers
Politics, in the School of Geography, Politics and Sociology, is holding a one day conference for post-graduate students on the 24th of May 2008. This inter-disciplinary event will provide a forum for the exchange of perspectives on a range of politically relevant issues allowing post-graduates the opportunity to present, and receive feedback on, their work in an informal, open environment. The topic and content of papers should be constrained only by the 20 minutes allocated for each presentation. Examples of topical areas include:
- Time, history and change
- Space, migration and insularity
- Diversity, relativism and universalism
- Narration, representation and theory
- Structures, institutions and organisations
- Resistance, authoritarianism and terrorism
- Media, communication and society
In addition to post-graduate papers, Dr Martin Weber, University of Queensland, Australia, will give a keynote speech to open-up and illuminate the inter-disciplinary possibilities of the field, while Dr Sarah Liebermann, University of Kent, will draw on her recent experiences at post-graduate level to discuss means by which career progression can be achieved.
As an incentive to participate, we aim collectively to publish selected papers from the conference.
The authors of the 10 most promising abstracts will be encouraged to submit full papers of 5-6,000 words by May 9th. The author of the best paper will be awarded a prize of £100, while the second best paper will be awarded £50, and the third £25.
There will be no fees for attendance, lunch or refreshments, but those attending will be expected to cover transport and any accommodation costs. Details of suggested accommodation and means of transport will be provided well in advance of the event by email or on the conference website:
http//:www.ncl.ac.uk/gps/POLIS.html
We invite abstracts of no more than 350 words from post-graduate students throughout the social sciences on any area of politics. Please send abstracts to Matthew Johnson (M.T.Johnson@ncl.ac.uk) or Mark Edward (M.D.Edward@ncl.ac.uk) by March 7th 2008 at the latest.
Baudrillard and International Politics Workshop
Baudrillard & International Politics
Geography, Politics, and Sociology Workshop
28th November 2007
1-6pm
Bedson Building Room 1.48
Newcastle University
Plenary Speakers:
Paul Hegarty (University of Cork),
author of ‘Jean Baudrillard: Live Theory’
William Merrin (University of Swansea),
author of ‘Baudrillard and the Media’
Aim: To consider the (ir)relevance of Jean Baudrillard for understanding international politics. A selection of presentations, from academics and postgraduate candidates, will be given on the topic. In addition, after the presentations, there is time scheduled for a roundtable discussion.
The workshop is free to attend, and we envision a lively interaction between participants. Due to a limited capacity, could you please contact Mark Edward (m.d.edward@ncl.ac.uk) if you would like to attend. Deadline for registration is 22nd November 2007.
Geography, Politics, and Sociology Workshop
28th November 2007
1-6pm
Bedson Building Room 1.48
Newcastle University
Plenary Speakers:
Paul Hegarty (University of Cork),
author of ‘Jean Baudrillard: Live Theory’
William Merrin (University of Swansea),
author of ‘Baudrillard and the Media’
Aim: To consider the (ir)relevance of Jean Baudrillard for understanding international politics. A selection of presentations, from academics and postgraduate candidates, will be given on the topic. In addition, after the presentations, there is time scheduled for a roundtable discussion.
The workshop is free to attend, and we envision a lively interaction between participants. Due to a limited capacity, could you please contact Mark Edward (m.d.edward@ncl.ac.uk) if you would like to attend. Deadline for registration is 22nd November 2007.
Friday, March 23, 2007
North-Net Conference
The Northern Network of Critical Global Scholars (North-Net) in conjunction with the School of Geography, Politics, and Sociology (Newcastle University) and the British Academy present:
From Dissidence to Defiance: Resisting the Disciplines of Global Politics
April 19-20th, 2007
Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne UK
Rm. 2.29, The Research Beehive, Old Library Building
From perspectives that transcend disciplines, this conference will consider how dissidence, defiance, and resistance are being conceptualized and materialized within the theories and practices of contemporary global politics.
This will be our third instalment in the North-Net series. The mission of North-Net is to offer an open forum to showcase the diversity of critical research in the UK, give an opportunity to network across disciplines, foster interdisciplinary and inter-paradigmatic dialogues, and provide a venue for the presentation of innovative research that is concerned with relationships between theory and practice in the study of global political dynamics
Day I: Critical Reflections on the Work of Professor Richard K. Ashley
Professor Ashley’s innovative and groundbreaking critiques have become seminal reading for three generations of scholars unsatisfied with the traditional limits placed on theorizing global politics. Using his work as a catalyst, speakers will analyze Prof. Ashley’s contributions to the critical turn in global political scholarship, lessons learned about practicing intellectual dissidence, and the links between critical research, transformation, and political practice.
Participants to include:
Richard K. Ashley (Department of Political Science, Arizona State University)
Cynthia Weber (Department of Politics and International Relations, Lancaster University)
Kate Manzo (Geography, Newcastle University)
Christine Sylvester (Department of Politics and International Relations, Lancaster University)
Mark Laffey (Politics and International Studies, SOAS, University of London)
Kyle Grayson (Politics, Newcastle University)
Rob Walker (School of Politics, International Relations, and Philosophy Keele University/UVIC)
Mustapha Pasha (Politics and International Relations, University of Aberdeen)
Day II: Resisting the Disciplines of Global Politics
From positions primarily concerned with practical policy and the difficulties of putting progressive agendas into practice within contemporary global political dynamics, these sessions will draw upon the conceptual work of the first day to identify how specific changes in individual and collective political imaginations could expand the space for political debate and action in everyday life.
Panel I: Myth, Ideology, and the Production of Contingent World Views
Panel II: Architectures of (In)security
Participants on these roundtables to include:
Richard K. Ashley (Department of Political Science, Arizona State University)
Mark Bailey (Politics, Newcastle University)
Lee Barron (Media and Communication, Northumbria University)
John Gibson (Politics, Newcastle University)
Steve Hall (Sociology and Criminology, Northumbria University)
Conference Fee
Flat fee for both days including lunches and refreshments £35
Flat fee for one day only £25
There will be a limited number of concession placements at £25 for registered post-graduates.
Please note that registration will close as of April 9th and that no refunds will be given after this time.
For further information on registration, please contact Kyle Grayson at
k.a.(at)ncl.ac.uk
For accommodation information, please see http://www.ncl.ac.uk/accommodation/about/2006%20City%20Accommodation.pdf
For information on how to get to Newcastle, please see
http://www.ncl.ac.uk/travel/info/
For a campus map, please see
http://www.ncl.ac.uk/travel/info/
Attractions and Events in Newcastle 18-22 April, 2007:
31st Annual Newcastle Beer Festival sponsored by the Campaign for Real Ale (April 18-21 in the Newcastle Student Union)
http://www.cannybevvy.co.uk/Beer_Festival/Dates/dates.html
The Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art: Exhibitions by Sora Kim, Marcus Coates, Subodh Gupta, Vik Muniz, and Joseph Havel
http://www.balticmill.com/whatsOn/present/index.php
The Henry Rothchild Collection of 20th century ceramics at the Shipley Gallery http://www.twmuseums.org.uk/shipley/
Segedunum Roman Fort, Baths, and Museum
http://www.twmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/
The Northern Stage
http://www.northernstage.co.uk/
The Sage (Gateshead)
http://www.thesagegateshead.org/index.aspx
For Attractions Events in the Northeast Region
http://www.visitnortheastengland.com/
From Dissidence to Defiance: Resisting the Disciplines of Global Politics
April 19-20th, 2007
Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne UK
Rm. 2.29, The Research Beehive, Old Library Building
From perspectives that transcend disciplines, this conference will consider how dissidence, defiance, and resistance are being conceptualized and materialized within the theories and practices of contemporary global politics.
This will be our third instalment in the North-Net series. The mission of North-Net is to offer an open forum to showcase the diversity of critical research in the UK, give an opportunity to network across disciplines, foster interdisciplinary and inter-paradigmatic dialogues, and provide a venue for the presentation of innovative research that is concerned with relationships between theory and practice in the study of global political dynamics
Day I: Critical Reflections on the Work of Professor Richard K. Ashley
Professor Ashley’s innovative and groundbreaking critiques have become seminal reading for three generations of scholars unsatisfied with the traditional limits placed on theorizing global politics. Using his work as a catalyst, speakers will analyze Prof. Ashley’s contributions to the critical turn in global political scholarship, lessons learned about practicing intellectual dissidence, and the links between critical research, transformation, and political practice.
Participants to include:
Richard K. Ashley (Department of Political Science, Arizona State University)
Cynthia Weber (Department of Politics and International Relations, Lancaster University)
Kate Manzo (Geography, Newcastle University)
Christine Sylvester (Department of Politics and International Relations, Lancaster University)
Mark Laffey (Politics and International Studies, SOAS, University of London)
Kyle Grayson (Politics, Newcastle University)
Rob Walker (School of Politics, International Relations, and Philosophy Keele University/UVIC)
Mustapha Pasha (Politics and International Relations, University of Aberdeen)
Day II: Resisting the Disciplines of Global Politics
From positions primarily concerned with practical policy and the difficulties of putting progressive agendas into practice within contemporary global political dynamics, these sessions will draw upon the conceptual work of the first day to identify how specific changes in individual and collective political imaginations could expand the space for political debate and action in everyday life.
Panel I: Myth, Ideology, and the Production of Contingent World Views
Panel II: Architectures of (In)security
Participants on these roundtables to include:
Richard K. Ashley (Department of Political Science, Arizona State University)
Mark Bailey (Politics, Newcastle University)
Lee Barron (Media and Communication, Northumbria University)
John Gibson (Politics, Newcastle University)
Steve Hall (Sociology and Criminology, Northumbria University)
Conference Fee
Flat fee for both days including lunches and refreshments £35
Flat fee for one day only £25
There will be a limited number of concession placements at £25 for registered post-graduates.
Please note that registration will close as of April 9th and that no refunds will be given after this time.
For further information on registration, please contact Kyle Grayson at
k.a.(at)ncl.ac.uk
For accommodation information, please see http://www.ncl.ac.uk/accommodation/about/2006%20City%20Accommodation.pdf
For information on how to get to Newcastle, please see
http://www.ncl.ac.uk/travel/info/
For a campus map, please see
http://www.ncl.ac.uk/travel/info/
Attractions and Events in Newcastle 18-22 April, 2007:
31st Annual Newcastle Beer Festival sponsored by the Campaign for Real Ale (April 18-21 in the Newcastle Student Union)
http://www.cannybevvy.co.uk/Beer_Festival/Dates/dates.html
The Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art: Exhibitions by Sora Kim, Marcus Coates, Subodh Gupta, Vik Muniz, and Joseph Havel
http://www.balticmill.com/whatsOn/present/index.php
The Henry Rothchild Collection of 20th century ceramics at the Shipley Gallery http://www.twmuseums.org.uk/shipley/
Segedunum Roman Fort, Baths, and Museum
http://www.twmuseums.org.uk/segedunum/
The Northern Stage
http://www.northernstage.co.uk/
The Sage (Gateshead)
http://www.thesagegateshead.org/index.aspx
For Attractions Events in the Northeast Region
http://www.visitnortheastengland.com/
Thursday, June 29, 2006
2nd Session of North-Net 6 October, 2006
THE NORTHERN-NETWORK OF CRITICAL GLOBAL SCHOLARS (NORTH-NET)
2nd Session, 6 October, 2006 at Newcastle University
Mission:
The Northern Network of Critical Global Scholars is an initiative of the International Politics Research field at the University of Newcastle which is designed to strengthen the community of researchers in the north of the UK who engage in critically informed work with a global dimension. In bringing a community together, we do not intend to police boundaries or to develop a template of what ‘critical’ necessarily means. Our goal is to provide a safe and open forum to showcase the diversity of critical scholarship in the region and to network across disciplines. To this end, North-Net seeks to bring together professional academics, postgraduates, and independent researchers from across fields and perspectives in order to foster interdisciplinary and inter-paradigmatic dialogues as well as to informally explore the possibilities for cooperative research, teaching, and outreach activities.
In light of the success of our inaugural meeting earlier this spring, we would like to convene a second session of North-Net at Newcastle University on 6 October, 2006. Three sessions of approximately 1.5 hours will take place, followed by a strategy meeting (please see the schedule below). There will be no formal paper presentations and sessions will be in a true roundtable format. We have asked panellists to offer only brief opening comments at which point we will open up the discussion to all interested attendees with the help of session moderators. Lunch will be provided.
To register or for further information please contact Dr. Kyle Grayson at:
k.a.grayson(at)ncl.ac.uk (replace the at with @)
Introduction and Welcome 10:00-10:15
Session I: What Does it Mean to Be Global? 10:15-11:45
In its first meeting in May 2006, North-Net produced a fruitful dialogue on the use of the term critical as a mode of academic self-address. This panel will address the related concern of what it means to be a critical global scholar, along two axes. First, we need to examine our own research in its descriptive and normative dimensions of the global, and look at how dominant discourses that mask the unequal power relations therein can be challenged both epistemologically and ontologically.
Second, and more critically, the meaning of global scholarship can itself by subjected to reflexive forms of critique. The transnationalisation of the academic job market appears to offer us greater opportunities to advance our careers than in previous generations. At the same time, there are very real concerns that by becoming ‘global’ in such a fashion, we contribute to the ‘brain-drain’ from the developing world. Furthermore, as global scholars, our experiences of crossing national borders with ease are not matched by the less privileged. This is indicative of growing material chasm between critical academics sympathetic to the plight of such people, and their lived experiences, rendering any accurate identification with their predicament difficult. Additionally, the transnational nature of academic conferencing, whilst contributing to the emergence of a truly global academic profession, contributes to carbon emissions by greatly increasing academic air miles. Whilst these are obvious examples of the ambiguities and dilemmas of the globalisation of academia, they are by no means exhaustive. The panel will tackle both axes by relating dominant discourses of the global with ongoing practices within academia that reproduce uncritical notions of global space.
Break 11:45-12:00
Session II: The Internet and the (De)Political 12:00-13:30
As symbol of global communication and connectivity, the internet represents a phenomenon of participation on a scale never experienced before. Yet, how can we position the internet in relation to the political? Does the internet offer an opportunity for political engagement transcending the limits of geography or function as a medium of exclusion, through creating a virtual class? Is the internet a means of spreading democracy, allowing freedom of speech and expression, or is it merely a vehicle for capital, culminating in a world of ‘frictionless capitalism?’ Can we understand the internet in terms of a shift away from the political, where politics has fragmented to the degree that it is no longer capable of forming a foundation to give a sense of unity? Is the political merely a simulation in the age of the internet?
Lunch 13:30-14:30
Session III: What’s the Mission? Religion, Theology, Critical Scholarship, and Progressive Politics 14:30-16:00
Within contemporary (geo)politics, religiosity has become closely identified with a series of ideological currents including conservatism and nationalism that are very often at direct odds with traditional notions of progressive social transformation. Concurrently, fundamentalist theological study has been utilized by various social forces to provide divine justification for the re-imposition of biopolitical regulations over everyday reversing the results of a long political struggles. Thus, for some critical scholars, the return of religion and theology into contemporary political debates represents a very clear threat to the potential for less confrontational inter-subjective dialogues.
On the other hand, there has been a counter-move to reclaim religion and theology as distinctly critical enterprises. For example, Slavoj Zizek has argued that Christianity should be seen as the first critical theory in the tradition of Western thought. Moreover, religion is able to offer distinct vehicles for praxis as the Latin American experience with liberation theology demonstrates. What then might it mean to be both ‘religious’ and ‘critical’? What purchase on social mobilisation can reclaiming religion and theology from forces of conservatism and fundamentalism provide to critical scholarship? Are there alliances and relationships that might be made between the critical academic and religious worlds?
Strategy Session 16:00-17:00
This session has one primary goal: to develop a collaborative strategy to financially sustain North-Net.
2nd Session, 6 October, 2006 at Newcastle University
Mission:
The Northern Network of Critical Global Scholars is an initiative of the International Politics Research field at the University of Newcastle which is designed to strengthen the community of researchers in the north of the UK who engage in critically informed work with a global dimension. In bringing a community together, we do not intend to police boundaries or to develop a template of what ‘critical’ necessarily means. Our goal is to provide a safe and open forum to showcase the diversity of critical scholarship in the region and to network across disciplines. To this end, North-Net seeks to bring together professional academics, postgraduates, and independent researchers from across fields and perspectives in order to foster interdisciplinary and inter-paradigmatic dialogues as well as to informally explore the possibilities for cooperative research, teaching, and outreach activities.
In light of the success of our inaugural meeting earlier this spring, we would like to convene a second session of North-Net at Newcastle University on 6 October, 2006. Three sessions of approximately 1.5 hours will take place, followed by a strategy meeting (please see the schedule below). There will be no formal paper presentations and sessions will be in a true roundtable format. We have asked panellists to offer only brief opening comments at which point we will open up the discussion to all interested attendees with the help of session moderators. Lunch will be provided.
To register or for further information please contact Dr. Kyle Grayson at:
k.a.grayson(at)ncl.ac.uk (replace the at with @)
Introduction and Welcome 10:00-10:15
Session I: What Does it Mean to Be Global? 10:15-11:45
In its first meeting in May 2006, North-Net produced a fruitful dialogue on the use of the term critical as a mode of academic self-address. This panel will address the related concern of what it means to be a critical global scholar, along two axes. First, we need to examine our own research in its descriptive and normative dimensions of the global, and look at how dominant discourses that mask the unequal power relations therein can be challenged both epistemologically and ontologically.
Second, and more critically, the meaning of global scholarship can itself by subjected to reflexive forms of critique. The transnationalisation of the academic job market appears to offer us greater opportunities to advance our careers than in previous generations. At the same time, there are very real concerns that by becoming ‘global’ in such a fashion, we contribute to the ‘brain-drain’ from the developing world. Furthermore, as global scholars, our experiences of crossing national borders with ease are not matched by the less privileged. This is indicative of growing material chasm between critical academics sympathetic to the plight of such people, and their lived experiences, rendering any accurate identification with their predicament difficult. Additionally, the transnational nature of academic conferencing, whilst contributing to the emergence of a truly global academic profession, contributes to carbon emissions by greatly increasing academic air miles. Whilst these are obvious examples of the ambiguities and dilemmas of the globalisation of academia, they are by no means exhaustive. The panel will tackle both axes by relating dominant discourses of the global with ongoing practices within academia that reproduce uncritical notions of global space.
Break 11:45-12:00
Session II: The Internet and the (De)Political 12:00-13:30
As symbol of global communication and connectivity, the internet represents a phenomenon of participation on a scale never experienced before. Yet, how can we position the internet in relation to the political? Does the internet offer an opportunity for political engagement transcending the limits of geography or function as a medium of exclusion, through creating a virtual class? Is the internet a means of spreading democracy, allowing freedom of speech and expression, or is it merely a vehicle for capital, culminating in a world of ‘frictionless capitalism?’ Can we understand the internet in terms of a shift away from the political, where politics has fragmented to the degree that it is no longer capable of forming a foundation to give a sense of unity? Is the political merely a simulation in the age of the internet?
Lunch 13:30-14:30
Session III: What’s the Mission? Religion, Theology, Critical Scholarship, and Progressive Politics 14:30-16:00
Within contemporary (geo)politics, religiosity has become closely identified with a series of ideological currents including conservatism and nationalism that are very often at direct odds with traditional notions of progressive social transformation. Concurrently, fundamentalist theological study has been utilized by various social forces to provide divine justification for the re-imposition of biopolitical regulations over everyday reversing the results of a long political struggles. Thus, for some critical scholars, the return of religion and theology into contemporary political debates represents a very clear threat to the potential for less confrontational inter-subjective dialogues.
On the other hand, there has been a counter-move to reclaim religion and theology as distinctly critical enterprises. For example, Slavoj Zizek has argued that Christianity should be seen as the first critical theory in the tradition of Western thought. Moreover, religion is able to offer distinct vehicles for praxis as the Latin American experience with liberation theology demonstrates. What then might it mean to be both ‘religious’ and ‘critical’? What purchase on social mobilisation can reclaiming religion and theology from forces of conservatism and fundamentalism provide to critical scholarship? Are there alliances and relationships that might be made between the critical academic and religious worlds?
Strategy Session 16:00-17:00
This session has one primary goal: to develop a collaborative strategy to financially sustain North-Net.
Monday, May 22, 2006
North-Net Agenda 5 May, 2006
The Northern Network of Critical Global Scholars (North-Net)
International Politics Research Group, University of Newcastle
Newcastle Institute for the Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities (NIASSH)
Inaugural Meeting
5 May, 2006
Mertz Court L302
University of Newcastle
Agenda
11:00-11:30 Introduction and Welcome
Barry Gills (Politics, University of Newcastle)
Kyle Grayson (Politics, University of Newcastle)
11:30-1:00 Session I: Critical Scholarship, Critical Pedagogy, and the (Counter) Production of Global Knowledge
11:00-11:30 Introduction and Welcome
Barry Gills (Politics, University of Newcastle)
Kyle Grayson (Politics, University of Newcastle)
11:30-1:00 Session I: Critical Scholarship, Critical Pedagogy, and the (Counter) Production of Global Knowledge
Traditionally the academy has been integral in the production of knowledge of the ‘global’ which has both reflected and made possible particular sets of hierarchical power relations. What roles can critical scholarship play in countering dominant narratives in academia and in popular discourse? What then might it mean to teach the ‘global’ critically? What are the prospects of 'engagement' in academic research, including with social movements or popular organizations and NGOs, indigenous peoples, and other 'subjects' or 'units' - of analysis? Have new challenges and opportunities presented themselves in the current historical context, both inside and outside the university? How can we encourage and help undergraduates and postgraduates who are interested in pursuing critical projects? Will current and proposed RAE procedures circumscribe the space for critical research?
Chair and Presenters:
Matt Davies (Politics, University of Newcastle)
Bernadette Buckley (Art Gallery and Museum Studies, University of Newcastle)
Jocelyn Mawdsley (Politics, University of Newcastle)
David Mutimer (Centre for International Cooperation and Security, University of Bradford)
1:00-2:00 Lunch
2:00-3:30 Session II: Critical Narratives of Imperialism and Empire
Jocelyn Mawdsley (Politics, University of Newcastle)
David Mutimer (Centre for International Cooperation and Security, University of Bradford)
1:00-2:00 Lunch
2:00-3:30 Session II: Critical Narratives of Imperialism and Empire
Narratives of imperialism and empire have a lengthy genealogy in critical scholarship. To what extent have these critical narratives proliferated in the post-9/11 world? What can they add to our understandings of the ‘global’? Have they changed the ways in which we perceive our own disciplines and the (imaginary) boundaries among them? What can they offer in terms of broader projects of socio-political transformation, or are strategies of direct resistance ill-advised in the current global environment?
Chair and Presenters
Barry Gills (Politics, University of Newcastle)
Hartmut Behr (Politics, University of Newcastle)
Mick Drake (Criminology and Sociological Studies, University of Hull)
Vass Fouskas (Politics, Stirling)
Mick Drake (Criminology and Sociological Studies, University of Hull)
Vass Fouskas (Politics, Stirling)
Welcome to North-Net
The Northern Network of Critical Global Scholars is an initiative of the International Politics Research field at the University of Newcastle which is designed to strengthen the community of researchers in the north of the UK who engage in critically informed work with a global dimension. In bringing a community together, we do not intend to police boundaries or to develop a template of what ‘critical’ necessarily means. Our goal is to provide a safe and open forum to showcase the diversity of critical scholarship in the region and to network across disciplines. To this end, North-Net seeks to bring together professional academics, postgraduates, and independent researchers from across fields and perspectives in order to foster interdisciplinary and inter-paradigmatic dialogues as well as to informally explore the possibilities for cooperative research, teaching, and outreach activities.
Our inaugural meeting took place 5 May, 2006 at the University of Newcastle Upon Tyne. Our second meeting will be held in early October 2006. Further details will be announced in the following weeks.
If you are interested in becoming a member of North-Net, please contact Dr. Kyle Grayson at k.a.grayson(at)ncl.ac.uk
Our inaugural meeting took place 5 May, 2006 at the University of Newcastle Upon Tyne. Our second meeting will be held in early October 2006. Further details will be announced in the following weeks.
If you are interested in becoming a member of North-Net, please contact Dr. Kyle Grayson at k.a.grayson(at)ncl.ac.uk
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