Conference: Albania and National, Ethnic and Cultural Minorities, Tirana, 13-14 February 2013

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE “ALBANIA AND NATIONAL, ETHNIC AND CULTURAL MINORITIES” TIRANA, 13-14 FEBRUARY 2013,




Organizers: Law Faculty and Albanian Institute for Public Affairs at Marin Barleti University

Organizing Committee:
Chairman: Member of the Academy of Science. Prof. Luan Omari
Members: Dr. Ilir Panda; Dr. Zamira Cavo; Dr. Artan Puto; Drnt. Ledian Droboniku

Conference secretariat
Ll.M., Msc. Edlira Lloha
Msc. Elona Bano
M.A. Jonida Lamaj





Conference Thematic
The conference will have an interdisciplinary approach and its thematic will include topics from the fields of law, politics, economy, culture and education, sociology, demography, etc. The conference thematic will attempt to encapsulate various aspects of the national, ethnic and cultural minorities, putting a particular emphasis on the following topics:




- Juridical regime of the national, ethnic and cultural minorities in the Albanian legislation and/or in a comparative approach with that of other countries;
- The role of minorities in the development and modernization of the country (respective countries) addressing in particular their contribution in the economic and cultural sphere;
- The relations between various ethnicities in Albania;
- Patriotism and nationalism from an historic viewpoint;
- the situation of minorities as reflected in various population censuses held in the Albanian state;
- the situation of the Albanian communities in Macedonia;
- the rights of minorities in the international acts;
- International organizations and the issue of minorities in Albania;
- Republic of Albania and its commitments deriving from international acts;
- the issue of minorities’ language in the international acts;
- Economic situation of minorities in Albania;
- Issues concerning minorities’ education;
- Media and minorities;
- Other issues referring to the minorities rights, in particular in view of minorities’ rights for: a) education; b) association and gatherings; c) the prohibition of discrimination in the working relations;
- Minorities and electoral law of the Republic of Albania;
- European Court of Human Rights case concerning minorities, with special consideration of the following rights: a) right to life, b) the prohibition of torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and punishment, c) the right for private and family life, d) the right of association and gathering, e) the right of property, f) the right of education, g) the right for fair and free elections, h) freedom of religion, etc.

We invite all the researchers that are involved in the studying of the national, ethnic and cultural minorities, as well as other professionals that have been active in the realization and protection of minorities’ rights to participate in this conference, and in particular: members of scientific institutions, NGO, think-tanks, academia, Universities, ministries, associations of minorities in Albania, and abroad, representative of minorities’ in Albania and abroad, groups of interest, etc.





Requirements for the presentations delivered in the conference:
The presentation shouldn’t exceed 20 minutes.
Persons that are interested in the preparation of a presentation are required to submit, within the 30 of November 2012 the title of the presentation, together with an abstract not longer than 300 words, to the following address: e.lloha-aipa@umb.edu.al.
The conference’s organizing committee will confirm the presentation within the 15 of December 2012.
The complete presentation should be delivered to the same electronic address within the 1st of February 2013.





For more information ...
http://aipa.umb.edu.al/pdf_docs/Announcement_Conference_on_Minorities_organised_by_MBU_eng.pdf

Conference: 3rd Island Dynamics Conference, Famagusta, North Cyprus, 14-18 May 2013‏

3rd Island Dynamics Conference (with Performing Island Identities)

14-18 May 2013, Gazimagusa (Famagusta), North Cyprus




The 3rd Island Dynamics Conference explores maritime and island studies worldwide. The events theme is islands of culture and practice. Although talks are welcome on any island or maritime topic, we particularly encourage presentations on how traditions whether artistic, religious, economic, political, etc.; develop in culturally and geographically insular communities and on what island and mainland communities can tell us about one another.

At the 3rd Island Dynamics Conference, representatives from academia, government, business, and the third sector will explore island issues, past and present, worldwide. Although the conference will include talks on all aspects of maritime and island studies, this year’s conference theme is islands of culture and practice.

Islands are often home to unique artistic, social, economic, and political traditions. They both preserve traditions that have been lost on the mainland and function as meeting places for traditions, the mingling of which result in new traditional forms. We can even speak of archipelagos of culture and practice, where traditions flourish in dispersed geographical areas. How do traditions develop in such circumstances, and what can island and mainland communities tell us about one another?


Alan Jabbour, Owe Ronström, Philip Hayward, and Stephen A. Royle will act as keynote speakers.


The deadline for abstracts is 1 December 2012.



More information available at

http://www.islanddynamics.org/3idc.html

Conference: The external implications on EU Internal Security Strategy, Panel at 20th International Conference of Europeanists Amsterdam, 25-17 June 2013‏

20th International Conference of Europeanists

Crisis and Contingency: States of (In)stability

Amsterdam, The Netherlands • June 25-27, 2013



The external implications on EU Internal Security Strategy



Daniela Irrera

University of Catania



Since its foundation and through its various adaptation process, the EU has always been concerned with the strengthening of security. The need to secure its internal borders and to assure adequate protection to its own citizens has been combined, over the years, with the urgent necessity to face external threats, to be part of strategic alliances, to build stable regional partnerships, to satisfactorily follow and to adapt to the constant changes occurring to global security.

From the Solana document, issued in 2004, to the last Security Strategy, the EU has envisaged its list of priorities and has focused on terrorism, organised crime failed states, and more recently, cybercrime and natural disasters.

The last documents illustrates that debates about security are still necessary either for practical and theoretical reasons. This panel is based on the abovementioned assumption and aims at discussing current and future implications of the EU Internal Security Strategy. It addresses to papers based on theoretical analysis as well as to those presenting case studies and/or empirical studies of the present threats. If you are interested, please send a short abstract (no more than 250 word) together with your full affiliation to dirrera@unict.it by October 3rd.

Conference: 9th Kosovar and Regional Student Conference about Social Issues, Pristina, 7-8 December 2012‏

9th Kosovar and Regional Student Conference about Social Issues

This letter is an invitation for high school students to participate in the 9th Kosovar and Regional Student Conference about Social Issues. This conference—a continuation of the eight (8) other highly successful Student Conferences on Social issues—gathers youth from around Kosova and the region to discuss important social issues. Ultimately, The Kosovar and Regional Student Conference about Social issues aims to bring students from different ethnicities and regions together in the effort to:

• provide an opportunity for youth to present scientific studies in a professional manner.
• create an environment in which the professional exchange of student ideas can occur.
• create an environment in which youth can engage in discussions and debate about issues important to Kosova and the region.
• generate new ideas and offer potential solutions to social issues.
• encourage youth to be active participants in society.
• build ‘cooperative bridges’ among young people from different municipalities, regions and ethnic groups.
• inform public opinion about issues facing youth and the need to solve these problems.

ASK cordially invites students from high schools all over Kosova, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovenia to participate in this conference. It is our hope that students from different schools throughout region, regardless of their ethnic, religious, or cultural background, will gather together and create an environment in which participants of the conference can exchange views about issues facing society in the spirit of respect and cooperation.

Yes, I Wish to Participate. What does the Conference look like?
Students will research any social issue they believe is both relevant and pertinent to society. After choosing a topic of research, each student/group of students must then write an original, well-researched and well-argued research paper examining their chosen issue. The final reports will then be submitted and reviewed by a panel of experts. The panel of experts will select the best reports, which will then be presented at the Conference. The selected students will present their in the format of a 15 minute presentation. Following each presentation 15 minutes will be allotted for questions, answers and debate. Throughout each presentation there will be simultaneous translation in all of the languages participating in the conference. At the end of the conference, students who participated in the conference will receive a “Certificate of Excellence”. Those who submitted reports but were not asked to present will receive a “Certificate of Appreciation”.

The Conference will be held in Prishtina at the American School of Kosova. Participants from municipalities other than Prishtina will be accommodated in the ASK dormitories free of charge. ASK will pay both transportation (by bus) and accommodation expenses necessary for the participants.

What I Need to Know

For those interested in participating in this conference, here is a list of the most important information:

-The final date of submission is November 9, 2012. Reports should be original and authentic. Each report must be submitted by email. Please use the following address conference@askosova.org
-A maximum of three people in each group.
-Those selected for presentation at the conference will be notified on November 30, 2012
-The Conference will be a two day event, held on December 7 and 8, 2012, at ASK Amphitheater in Prishtina, Kosova.
-Transportation costs (by bus) and accommodation expenses for those outside Prishtina will be covered by the Conference.
-Studies can be submitted in your native language; however, the official language of the conference is English. We will provide simultaneous translation from the local language into English and vice versa.

Should you have any additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact us by using the emails shown below.

conference@askosova.org

Conference: Annual World Convention of the Association for the Study of Nationalities (ASN), Columbia Universtiy, New York, 18-20 April 2013‏

18th Annual World Convention of the

Association for the Study of Nationalities (ASN)



International Affairs Building,

Columbia University, NY

Sponsored by the Harriman Institute

18-20 April 2013

www.nationalities.org



***Proposal deadline: 17 October 2012***

[Please note that the deadline is earlier than in previous years]



Contact information:

proposals must be submitted to:

darel@uottawa.ca and darelasn2013@gmail.com



Over 140 PANELS on the Balkans, Central Europe and the Baltics, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Central Asia and Eurasia, the Caucasus, Turkey, China,

and Nationalism Studies



SPECIAL SECTIONS on

History, Politics, and Memory

Ethnicity and Violence

Migration and Globalization



THEMATIC Panels on

Islam and Politics, Genocide and Mass Killing, Language Politics, Post-Conflict Reconstruction, Autonomy, Gender and Identity, EU Integration, Migration, Borders and Diasporas, War Crimes and International Tribunals, Political Economy, Nation-Building, and many more…



SCREENING of New Documentaries



SPECIAL ROUNDTABLES on New Books



AWARDS for Best Doctoral Student Papers,

the ASN Harriman Joseph Rothschild Book Prize

the ASN Audience Award for Best Documentary



The Nationalities Papers Opening Reception



The ASN Convention, the most attended international and inter-disciplinary scholarly gathering of its kind, welcomes proposals on a wide range of topics related to nationalism, ethnicity, ethnic conflict and national identity in Central Europe, the Balkans, the former Soviet Union, and Central Eurasia (including Central Asia, the Caucasus, Turkey, China, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, and Iraq).



Prospective applicants can get a sense of the large thematic scope of ASN Convention papers by looking at the 2012 Final Program, which can be accessed at

http://nationalities.org/convention/pdfs/ASN-2012-final-program.pdf



The Convention also invites proposals devoted to comparative perspectives on nationalism-related issues in other regions of the world, as well as theoretical approaches that need not be grounded in any particular geographic region. Disciplines represented include political science, history, anthropology, sociology, international studies, security studies, geopolitics, area studies, economics, geography, sociolinguistics, literature, psychology, and related fields.



The Convention is also inviting paper, panel, roundtable, or special presentation proposals related to three special themes:

•“History, Politics and Memory,” on the construction and contestation of the memory of historical events in particular sites, political discourse and historical research;

•“Ethnicity and Violence,”on the conditions, mechanism, construction, implications and global perspective of violence perpetrated against “ethnic” or culturally-defined groups;

•“Migration and Globalization”, on the social and political challenges related to the causes of migration, border dynamics, and the integration of immigrant communities in modern societies.



Papers presented at the Convention will be made available for $10 on a CD to Convention attendees, but will neither be posted on the ASN website, nor be sold to Convention non-attendees.



Nationalities Papers, the ASN flagship journal, will hold a Nationalities Debate, a high profile discussion on the state of the art, as well as the consistently popular roundtable “How To Get Your Article Published”, which features the editors of some of the leading journals in the field. Nationalities Papers will also sponsor the opening reception.



For several years, the ASN Convention has acknowledged excellence in graduate studies research by offering Awards for Best Doctoral Student Papers. The ASN 2012 Eighth Annual ASN Doctoral Student Awards were given to Yuval Feinstein (Sociology, UCLA, US – Nationalism Section), Evgeny Finkel (U of Wisconsin, US – Ukraine/Russia/Caucasus Section), Maj Grasten (Political Science, Copenhagen Business School, Denmark – Balkans Section), Christopher Molnar (History, Indiana University, US – Central Europe Section), and Alp Eren Topal (History, Bilkent University, Turkey –Eurasia/Turkey Section). Doctoral student applicants whose proposals are accepted for the 2013 Convention, who will not have defended their dissertation by 1 November 2012, and whose papers are delivered by the deadline, will automatically be considered for the awards. Each award comes with a certificate and a $500 cash prize.



The ASN Convention inaugurated in 2010 an annual ASN Harriman Book Prize—the Joseph Rothschild Prize in Nationalism and Ethnic Studies. In 2012, the Third Annual Harriman ASN Book Prize went to Roger Petersen for Western Intervention in the Balkans: The Strategic Use of Emotion in Conflict (Cambridge University Press, 2011). An honorable mention was given to Theodora Dragostinova for Better Two Motherlands: Nationality and Emigration among the Greeks of Bulgaria, 1900-1949 (Cornell University Press, 2011). The award comes with a certificate and a $500 cash prize. For information on how to have a book considered for the 2012 Book Prize, please contact Dmitry Gorenburg at asnbookprize@gmail.com, or go to http://www.nationalities.org/convention/rothschild.asp.



The 2013 Convention is also inviting submissions for documentaries made within the past few years and available in DVD format (either NTSC or PAL). The documentaries selected for the Convention will be screened during regular panel slots and, in several cases, will be followed by a discussion moderated by an expert on the topic area. Films on the 2011 Program included My Perestroika (US, 2010), Putin’s Kiss (Denmark, 2011), Khodorkovsky (Germany, 2011), Who Killed Natasha? (France, 2011) and Brother Numer One (New Zealand, 2011). The full 2012 film lineup can be accessed at http://nationalities.org/convention/films-2012.asp. In 2012, the Convention inaugurated an ASN Documentary Audience Award. The award went to the French film Qui a tué Natacha? (Who Killed Natasha?), from director Mylène Sauloy, a wrenching investigation on the murder of human rights activist Natasha Estemirova in Chechnya. A runner-up, also the most attended film of the Convention, was My Perestroika, from US director Robin Hessman. The award comes with a certificate and a $500 cash prize.

The 2013 Award Guidelines can be accessed at http://nationalities.org/prizes/asn_best_doc.asp.



The full composition of the Program Committee, responsible for the selection of proposals and films, the construction of the program, and the awards selection for doctoral papers and books, will be announced shortly on the ASN website, http://nationalities.org.



Proposal Information



The 2013 Convention invites proposals for individual papers or panels. A panel includes a chair, three or four presentations based on written papers, and a discussant. The Convention is also welcoming offers to serve as discussant on a panel to be created by the Program Committee from individual paper proposals. The application to be considered as discussant can be self-standing, or accompanied by an individual paper proposal.



In order to send proposals to the Convention, the three mandatory items indicated below (contact information, abstract, biographical statement) must be included in a single Word document (PDF documents will not be accepted) attached to an email message.



Each applicant – single or multiple authors in individual proposals, all members of a panel proposal – must also fill out a Fact Sheet online that can be accessed at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ASN2013_FactSheet.




IMPORTANT: Applicants can only send one paper proposal -- whether as an individual proposal, or as a paper part of a panel proposal. At the Convention, each panelist can only appear on a maximum of TWO panels, only one of which can be in the capacity of a paper presenter. For example, a panelist can chair a panel and present a paper on another, or chair a panel and be discussant or another, and so forth. This rule applies to co-authored papers, thus a co-authored paper presentation counts as one appearance.



Individual paper proposals must include four items:

*Contact information: the name, email, postal address and academic affiliation of the applicant.

*A 300- to 500-word abstract (shorter abstracts will not be considered) that includes the title of the paper.

*A 100-word biographical statement, in narrative form (a text with the length of one paragraph). Statements in standard CV format will be rejected.

Individual proposals featuring more than one author (joint proposal) must include the contact information and biographical statement of all authors and specify whether all co-authors intend to attend the Convention. Only joint presenters attending the Convention will have their names in the official program.

*A Fact Sheet, to be filled out online (see above). In the case of co-authors, only those intending to attend the Convention must send a Fact Sheet. The Word document proposal must indicate that the Fact Sheet has been filled out online.



Panel proposals must include four items:

*Contact information (see above) of all proposed panelists.

*The title of the panel and a 200- to 300-word abstract of each paper.

*A 100-word biographical statement (see above) for each proposed panelist. Statements in standard CV format will be rejected. The rules on joint proposals are the same as with individual proposals (see above).

*A Fact Sheet, to be filled out online (see above), for each panelist attached to the proposal. The Word document proposal must indicate that all panelists have filled out their Fact Sheet online.



Proposals can also be sent for roundtables and book panels. Roundtables include a chair, four presenters, but no discussant, since the presentations, unlike regular panels, are not based on written papers. Roundtable proposals include the same four items as a panel proposal, except that the 200- to 300-word abstracts are presentation abstracts, rather than paper abstracts.



The Convention is also inviting proposals for Book Panels, based on books published between January 2012 and February 2013. The proposal must include the Chair, three discussants, as well as the author. A Book Panel proposal must include the same four items as a panel proposal, except that the abstract is limited to a 200- to 300-word abstract of the book. The discussants need not submit an abstract.



Proposals for documentaries must include four items:

*Contact information (see above)

*A 300- to 500-word abstract of the documentary

*A 100-word biographical statement (see above). CVs will be rejected.

*A Fact Sheet filled out online (see above).

Two copies of the documentary on DVD (in NTSC or PAL format) will also need to be sent to the Convention. More information will be provided upon receipt of the film proposal.



Proposals for a roundtable following the screening of a film are most welcome. In these cases, the requirements of a panel proposal apply, in addition to the 300- to 500-word abstract of the film.



Proposals to serve as a discussant must include four items:

*Contact information (see above)

*A 100-word statement about your areas of expertise

*A 100-word biographical statement (see above). CVs will be rejected.

*A Fact Sheet filled out online (see above)

Proposals for applicants already included in an individual paper or panel proposal need only include the 100-word statement on areas of expertise.



IMPORTANT: All proposals must be sent in a single email message, with an attached proposal in a Word document (PDFs will not be accepted) containing contact information, an abstract, a biographical statement, as well as a confirmation that the Fact Sheet has been filled out online (or multiple Fact Sheets, in the case of co-authors and/or panel proposals). Proposals including contact information, the abstract and the bio statement in separate attachments, or over several email messages will not be considered. The proposals must be sent to darel@uottawa.ca AND darelasn2013@gmail.com.



The receipt of all proposals will be promptly acknowledged electronically, with some delay during deadline week, due to the high volume of proposals.



IMPORTANT: Participants are responsible for covering all travel and accommodation costs. Unfortunately, ASN has no funding available for panelists.



An international Program Committee will be entrusted with the selection of proposals. Applicants will be notified by January 2013. Information regarding registration costs and other logistical questions will be communicated afterwards.



The full list of panels from last year’s convention can be accessed at http://nationalities.org/convention/pdfs/ASN-2012-final-program.pdf



The programs from past conventions, going back to 2001, are also online at http://nationalities.org/convention/past.asp



Several dozen publishers and companies have had exhibits and/or advertised in the Convention Program in past years. Due to considerations of space, advertisers and exhibitors are encouraged to place their order early. For information, please contact Convention Executive Director Lydia C. Hamilton (lch2111@columbia.edu).



The ASN Facebook page will post regular updates on the ASN 2013 Convention. To become a follower of ASN on Facebook, go to http://www.facebook.com/pages/Association-for-the-Study-of-Nationalities/116040015082264?ref=ts and click on the “Like” option.



We very much look forward to hearing from you and receiving your proposal!



The Convention Organizing Committee:

Dominique Arel, ASN President

Lydia C. Hamilton, Executive Director

Sherrill Stroschein, Program Chair

Florian Bieber, Zsuzsa Csergo, Julie George, Dmitry Gorenburg, Lisa Koriouchkina, and Harris Mylonas, ASN Executive Committee



Deadline for proposals: 17 October 2012 (to be sent to both darel@uottawa.ca AND darelasn2013@gmail.com)



The ASN Convention’s headquarters are located at the:



Harriman Institute

Columbia University

1211 IAB

420 W. 118th St.

New York, NY 10027

212 854 6239 tel

212 666 3481 fax lch2111@columbia.edu

Conference: Orthodox Christianity in Russia and Eastern Europe: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives, Havighurst Center for Russian & Post-Soviet Studies, Oxford OH, 28-31 March 2013‏

Orthodox Christianity in Russia and Eastern Europe: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives

12th Annual International Young Researchers Conference
Havighurst Center for Russian & Post-Soviet Studies

Organizer: Scott M. Kenworthy
Miami University
Oxford, OH

March 28 – 31, 2013

Before the collapse of communism, religion in Russia and Eastern Europe was rarely a topic of scholarly research. The prevalence of the secularization thesis in the West, combined with the dominance of militantly atheist regimes in the East, led scholars to assume that religion no longer mattered in the region. Moreover, long held stereotypes about the Orthodox Church contributed to the dismissal of Orthodoxy’s importance as a factor in Russian or East European history; only a few pioneers in the field challenged this tendency. Since the collapse of communism, however, religion has reasserted itself in the public sphere in the former communist bloc as in many other parts of the world. There has been a renewed appreciation of Orthodoxy’s significance in the history of the region, as well as growing interest among political scientists and anthropologists who study Russia and Eastern Europe.

This conference seeks to tap into a new wave of research on Orthodoxy in Russia and Eastern Europe. It is intended to be interdisciplinary, so we invite papers from a number of disciplinary perspectives: historical, anthropological, sociological, intellectual, literary, and/or political science. We also seek to cut across geographical lines, so papers can be concerned with the Russian Empire/Soviet Union and its successor states as well as Eastern Europe (former Habsburg and Ottoman empires, Romania, Bulgaria, and the former Yugoslavia). We invite papers that tap into the transnational dimensions of Orthodoxy—ties between Russia or Eastern Europe and the new world, for example, or Orthodox missions outside traditional territories. We also invite papers that explore the relationship of Orthodoxy to other religious traditions in the region.

We encourage proposals from young researchers who have already completed their dissertation research (ABD) or have defended their dissertation within the last three years. This will be an intensive 2-1/2 day working conference (March 28-31, 2013) during which each of the selected papers will be critiqued by the other participants, including all invited presenters, keynote speakers, and a team of discussants made up of Miami University faculty. Papers will be circulated in advance, and participants are expected to be prepared to discuss other participants’ papers. The conference will include two keynote speakers: Dr. Lucian Turcescu (Concordia University, Montreal) and Dr. Gregory Freeze (Brandeis University).

The Havighurst Center will provide accommodation in Oxford, ground transportation to and from the airport, and partial travel funding ($300 for domestic travel and $800 for international travel).

To be considered for the conference, submit an abstract of approximately 250 words and a short CV tohavighurstcenter@muohio.edu by October 1, 2012. Please type "2013 Young Researchers Conference" as the subject of the email. Selected papers will be announced by December 1, 2012. If selected, participants must submit completed papers for circulation to other conference participants by March 1, 2013.

Questions can be directed to:

The Havighurst Center for Russian & Post-Soviet Studies
Miami University
Harrison Hall, Room 116
Oxford, OH 45056
(513) 529-3303
havighurstcenter@muohio.edu

Conference: The Euroacademia Convention of European Studies Naming the Crisis of Europe and Assessing its Impact, Prague, 18 – 20 October 2012‏

Call for Panels and Papers: The Euroacademia Convention of European Studies ‘Naming the Crisis of Europe and Assessing its Impact’

18-20 October 2012,
Grand Majestic Plaza Hotel
Prague, Czech Republic
Deadline for Panels 1 September 2012
Deadline for Papers 15 September 2012

Euroacademia cordially invites you to The First Euroacademia Convention of European Studies: Naming the Crisis of Europe and Assessing its Impact

Description and aims:
The expression ‘crisis of Europe’ used to be reserved for profound and elaborated cultural diagnoses coming from various reflective attitudes of concerned intellectuals. Now it is becoming part of common sense and one of the most used discursive or explanatory elements for a diverse variety of events. Governments, politicians, economists, intellectuals, institutions, civil society actors, and most of all the European citizens, they all invoke in a quotidian fashion the crisis. A general agreement seems to install that Europe and even more the European Union, are no longer the same. Commonality, solidarity, unity, cooperation, shared values and the future of a united Europe are more often challenged and questioned since the crisis emerged and the questioning proliferates as the crisis has deepened. Many scholars claim that new ways of looking at Europe and the EU should be formed as old models are no longer sufficient or efficient in showing a path out of the crisis. Others indicate to existing paradigms that should only be reframed and applied more consistently for better outcomes. Anyone agrees however that is the right time to seriously think the future of Europe.

The Euroacademia Convention of European Studies ‘Naming the Crisis of Europe and Assessing its Impact’ aims to address the ongoing challenges, to map the current state of reflection on the topic of the European crisis and to look at available scenarios for the future of Europe. No other field than European Studies has a larger portfolio of available disciplinary instruments, models and paradigms that are expected to provide answer to unfolding realities. If no single disciplinary trend can provide neither sufficient explanations of the ongoing events or reasonable predictions, a dialogue between schools, trends, paradigms and models in European Studies could forward a mosaic of alternatives for reflection at hand.

Euroacademia aims to bring together a wide and worldwide network of academics, researchers, practitioners and activists that identify their concerns and practices with the generic field of the European Studies. Contested in epistemological terms as an autonomous field, the European Studies generated however starting the 20th century disciplinary and inter-disciplinary scientific communities, particular interests, methodologies and puzzles, schools, specializations, interests and academic events that indicate a dynamic framing of its particular identity.

The First Euroacademia Convention of European Studies aims to bring in an open floor for discussions, debates, reflection and sharing the features, topics, puzzles, methods, trends, schools and heresies within the field of European Studies that can account for the state of the field in times of crisis. The conference searches to address the European Studies identity as a field of studies through providing a framework for researches and practitioners to present their certitudes and dilemmas, their topics and inquiries, their claims and counter-claims that bring to live the European specificity of exposing itself to constant constructive criticism and reevaluation.

The Convention of European Studies starts from the assumption that in the 21st Century, Europe preserves its long-lasting saliency for researchers and practitioners, that specific dynamics of change and/or resistance to change inside Europe influences contemporary manners of addressing social, political, cultural or any other type of reflection. However, the formation of the European Studies as a more or less autonomous field for research relied and often still does on substantial conceptual imports from a wide variety of established fields and often of non-European provenience. These imports and the specific way of reshaping the research apparatus opened the way for both assertive attitudes and contestation. It is the aim of The Convention of European Studies to create an opportunity for assessing the state of the art today, the pros and the cons, the added value and also the question marks that might strengthen or weaken the profile of European Studies as a distinctive field in confronting current events.

The conference is opened to the widest variety of topics understood or perceived as being connected with the field of European Studies from meta-analytical views, to on-going puzzles, methodological proposals and/or assessments, specific topics, issues or shared experiences. The Convention of European Studies aims also to become a meeting point and an opportunity for dissemination, valorization, socialization, contact making and research agenda shaping that will to generate a future collaborative framework for all those involved in understanding Europe in its past, present and future dimensions. The Convention of European Studies is intended as a pretext to provide a dialogical opportunity and experience for all the participants to address and express their views, works, puzzles or criticisms regarding the state of the art and the specific concerns for European Studies today. It is also a good chance to see whether European Studies are able to provide consistent solutions to ameliorate or reasonable ways out of the crises.

The conference is organized yet by no means restricted to the following panels:
- Debating the Identity of the European Studies as a Field of Research
- Conceptual Imports Versus Specific Vocabularies for European Studies
- Epistemological Assessments
- Puzzles and Trends inside European Studies
- Re-Defining the Field
- Failures in European Studies or Questioned Accomplishments
- Distinctiveness of Europe/EU as Regional Integration Project
- Europeaness: Mirroring Europe in Terms of Norms and Values
- Towards a European Identity
- Political Organizations and Distinctive Logics of Appropriateness in Europe
- Insights of Practitioners: Putting Europe on the Map
- Europe East and West, North and South
- Europe in the World
- European Union and Challenges for Research
- EU as a Sui Generis Type of Polity
- Addressing New Puzzles Inside European Studies- European Studies and its Power to Shape Policies
- EU as an Empire
- Europe and its Constitutive Others
- Europe and Globalization
- EU and the Process of Europeanization
- EU and Models of Regional Integration
- International Relations and the European Studies
- Comparative Models for European Studies
- Constructivist Approaches in European Studies
- Addressing the Quantitative/Qualitative Nexus Inside European Studies
- EU Enlargements and Their Lessons
- The Future of EU Enlargement
- The Impact of Theories of EU Enlargement on European Studies
- EU’s External Influence and Democratization
- EU and Foreign Policy
However, if you are willing to propose and/or chair a particular panel we welcome you to do so on the conference website until the deadline on 1st of September 2012: http://euroacademia.eu/conference/the-first-global-convention-of-european-studies/

Participant’s Profile
The conference is addressed to academics, researchers and professionals with a particular interest in Europe from all parts of the world. Post-graduate students, doctoral candidates and young researchers are welcome to submit an abstract. Representatives of INGOs, NGOs, Think Tanks and activists willing to present their work with impact on or influenced by specific understandings of Europe are welcomed as well to submit the abstract of their contribution. Abstracts will be reviewed and accepted based on their proven quality. The submitted paper is expected to be in accordance with the lines provided in the submitted abstract.

A specific spot in the conference program will be dedicated to social networking and therefore all the participants interested in setting or developing further cooperation agendas and prospects with other participants will have time to present and/or promote their project and express calls for cooperation. A specific setting for promotional materials connected with the topic of the conference will be reserved for the use of participants. Books authored or edited by the participants can be exhibited and promoted during the whole period of the conference and can also be presented within the conference package based on prior arrangements.

Selected papers will be published in an electronic volume with ISBN after the confirmation of the authors and a double peer-review process based on an agreed publication schedule. All the papers selected for publication should be original and must not have been published elsewhere. All participants to the conference will receive a copy of the volume.

Venue and Directions

The conference will take place in the conference premises of the exclusive 4 stars deluxe design Grand Majestic Plaza Hotel<http://www.hotel-grandmajestic.cz/en/>, centrally located in the heart of Prague, easily accessible from the historic center and within a walking distance from all the major tourist attractions: just few steps away from the famous Municipal House, Gothic Powder Gate, significant Republic Square and the most attractive shopping centre Palladium.

DEADLINE FOR 300 WORDS ABSTRACTS SUBMISSION IS 15TH OF SEPTEMBER 2012

The 300 word abstracts and the affiliation details should be submitted in Word, WordPerfect, or RTF formats, following this order:
1) author(s), 2) affiliation, 3) email address, 4) title of abstract, 5) body of abstract 6) preferred panel or proposed panel

The abstract and details can be sent to application@euroacademia.eu<mailto:application@euroacademia.eu> with the name of the conference specified in the subject line or through the on-line Application Form available on the conference website http://euroacademia.eu/conference/the-first-global-convention-of-european-studies/

We will acknowledge the receipt of all proposal and answer to all paper proposals submitted.

IMPORTANT DATES: If your paper was accepted a notification of acceptance will be sent to you by 17th of September 2012. Your confirmation of attendance through registration form will be expected until 20th of September 2012 and until the 25th of September 2012 the payment of the participation fee through bank transfer is requested. No paper will be introduced in the program without confirmation and payment of the participant fee. By 5th of October 2012, the full paper is to be sent in accordance with the style standards provided to the accepted participants by organizers. All papers will be uploaded on the website as drafts available for consultation for other participants and the public.The conference will be held in English and will focus on the discussion of 5,000–6,000-word, pre-circulated papers.

Euroacademia is a non-profit organization, based and registered in Paris and Vienna, aiming to foster academic cooperation, networking and a platform for dissemination and valorization of academic research results, trends, and emerging themes within the area of concern for European studies, political science, critical studies, cultural studies, history, anthropology, social psychology, semiotics, philosophy, sociology and wider and inclusive interdisciplinary and trans-disciplinary approaches that contribute to a better understanding of the ‘self-organizing vertigo’ (Edgar Morin) of the European realm. Euroacademia’s goal is to become a hub for academic interaction on and about Europe .
For more information visit www.euroacademia.eu

Conference: Beyond the East-West Divide: Rethinking Balkan Music’s Poles of Attraction Belgrade, 27-19 September 2013‏

Beyond the East-West Divide:
Rethinking Balkan Music’s Poles of Attraction

Institute of Musicology of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts
BASEES Study Group for Russian and Eastern European Music

Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Belgrade, 27–29 September 2013

http://www.music.sanu.ac.rs/English/ConfIntroduction.htm

CALL FOR PAPERS

The Institute of Musicology of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts and the BASEES Study Group for Russian and Eastern European Music are pleased to invite proposals for an international conference to be held in Belgrade in September 2013 under the title Beyond the East-West Divide: Rethinking Balkan Music’s Poles of Attraction.

In its engagement with Balkan music, musicology has largely conformed to the dominant cultural historiographical model of a divide between ‘East’ and ‘West’. Marked by core binary concepts, under the spell initially of theories of modernity, and subsequently of critical theories that aimed to deconstruct these oppositions, musicology on Balkan music still remains within the confines of the ‘East-West’ paradigm. Theories such as Edward Said’s Orientalism and Maria Todorova’s Balkanism have served as key methodological tools in conceptualizing Balkan music and analysing the ways in which stereotypical and ideologically-charged images of ‘the West’ and ‘the East’ are reproduced in musical praxes. Powerful as they have been, analyses of the Balkans solely with reference to ‘East’ and ‘West’ surely do not do justice to the diversity of relationships that have shaped its variegated musical space, and have inevitably rendered a distorted image of its musical landscape.

The conference aims to contribute to a widening of our critical understanding of a historically and spatially diverse cultural network that embraces Balkan music, and therefore invites proposals for papers that challenge and/or move beyond the ‘East-West’ paradigm. An examination of a network that would not be restricted to the West-East perspective should lead to a richer and more complex understanding of the Balkans and its interconnectedness with other regions, such as the Mediterranean and Russia. By analysing these as well as other spheres of influences, we hope to reveal affinities that have rarely been explored, and will yield a richer understanding not only of Balkan music (‘art’, ‘traditional’ as well as ‘popular’) but also of music history in general.

Contributions could fall under – but do not need to be restricted to – one of the following subtopics:
– Musical Relations between the Balkans and Russia
Russia has acted as an influencing agent on the Balkans over several centuries and ties between these two regions were often highly charged politically. Importantly, Moscow was perceived as the ‘Third Rome’ by the Orthodox Balkans, while the Russian Empire was deeply involved in matters of the so-called ‘Eastern Question’. The great influx of Russian émigrés following the Russian revolution played a significant role in shaping the Balkan cultural elite. Last but not least, the Russian national school and the Soviet model of socialist realism had a profound impact on Balkan music over the last two centuries.
– Interactions with the Mediterranean
Both the Balkans and the Mediterranean figure more as imaginary cultural spaces than firm geographical entities. Yet the way these spaces correlate musically has barely been explored. How did the culture of the Mediterranean, with its shifting empires and perpetual migrations, engage with the Balkans musically? What could be learned, for example, by exploring the great hub of Constantinople, which has been perceived both as a gateway to the Balkans and a symbol of the Eastern Mediterranean? Could a scrutiny of Balkan music’s interaction with Mediterranean music enrich our understanding of musical life of the broader area of South Eastern Europe?

The conference’s official language is English. Proposals for 20-minute papers (of no more than 400 words) and short biographical notes (of up to 200 words) should be sent both to Srđan Atanasovski (musicinst@music.sanu.ac.rs, Institute of Musicology SASA) and Katerina Levidou (reemstudygroup@gmail.com, REEM Study Group) by 1st of December 2012 (receipt of proposals will be acknowledged by e-mail). We also encourage session proposal; please provide a short description of the session in addition to individual abstracts and biographical notes. Proposals will be reviewed by the conference committee and results will be announced by 1st of February 2013. A selection of papers will be considered for publication in the form of conference proceedings. Conference fee: 50 Euros (Students are exempted).

Keynote speakers
Danica Petrović, Institute of Musicology SASA, Belgrade
Danica Petrović specializes in the Byzantine foundations of Serbian church music, post-Byzantine Greek-Serbian and Russian-Serbian cultural connections in the 18th century, traditional Serbian folk church chant and the links between Serbian music and European music in the 19th century.
Timothy Rice, University of California, Herb Alpert School of Music, Los Angeles
Timothy Rice specializes in the traditional music of the Balkans, with a special focus on Bulgaria in both the socialist and post-socialist periods. In terms of research themes, he has written, among other things, on musical cognition, politics and music, meaning and music, mass media, and music teaching and learning.

Conference: Minorities, Nations and Cultural Diversity, Queen's University, Belfast, 9-10 November 2012‏

Minorities, Nations and Cultural Diversity
The Challenge of Non-Territorial Autonomy
9-10 November 2012, Queen's University, Belfast, Northern Ireland

Deadline for paper proposals: 21 September
http://www.conferencepro.eu/nta

The European Centre for Minority Issues (Flensburg, Germany), jointly with The School of Politics, International Studies and Philosophy at Queen's University Belfast, and the Department of Central & Eastern European Studies, University of Glasgow call upon interested scholars to participate in a multidisciplinary conference on the challenges of Non Territorial Autonomy (NTA) in a world of nation-states.
Cultural diversity is the norm in a world of nation-states. A recurrent problem is how to organise what are in fact, multi-ethnic and multi-nation states so that majorities and minorities are able to coexist and effectively participate in the life of the state, bolstering allegiance without suffering cultural alienation and without resorting to territorial secession. Multicultural liberal democracies sincerely champion equality and individual human rights, but often have considerable difficulties in accommodating culturally diverse minority communities. Territorial representation is only possible when minority communities inhabit a compact territorial space, yet in the majority of cases, minority communities do not reside compactly, making any territorial representation impossible. This situation often causes intractable problems for the functioning of democratic polities, and requiring modalities of non-territorial autonomy (NTA) as a solution.

The aim of this conference is to examine in theory, empirically and through the work of legal practitioners, the challenges, and possible solutions offered by different models of NTA for the effective participation of minorities in public life. Non-Territorial autonomy takes variety of different forms, such as Consociationalism and National Cultural Autonomy, but also forms of representation that de-territorialises self-determination, as in the case of indigenous communities, the juridical autonomy as with religious communities, or in the practice of some models of multiculturalism. We invite theoretical and comparative papers and case studies on NTA models that build upon theoretical consideration and/or consider empirical case studies.
The organising committee would like to welcome papers addressing the following issues:

Can NTA serve the goals of European integration? Can such models be incorporated into the EU minority protection framework?
Does NTA help resolve protracted territorial conflicts? Examples include, but are not limited to Bosnia, Kurdistan or Israel/Palestine?
What are the limits and/or possibilities of implementing NTA models in liberal democracies?
Can NTA models rejuvenate multiculturalism?
Can models of NTA enhance the integration of Diasporas?
What are the opportunities for Indigenous self-determination within the NTA framework?
Can models of NTA help the effective participation of minorities in post-colonial states? And, can NTA models help eliminate the cultural residues of colonialism?

This list is not exhaustive.

MODE OF APPLICATION
Applicants should submit a 300 word abstract and a short biographic statement (max 300 words) indicating institutional affiliation and if they wish to be considered for the early career subsidy at the website http://www.conferencepro.eu/nta

THE DEADLINE FOR THE SUBMISSION OF PAPER PROPOSALS IS FRIDAY 21 SEPTEMBER 2012.
The selection committee will confirm the selection of speakers and make an offer and early career grant to selected candidates by 10 October 2012

CONFERENCE ORGANISATION
We aim to attract innovative contributions that develop theoretical arguments while embedding these in the context of case studies, thus we particularly welcome early career scholars to apply. For more information on the conference see http://www.conferencepro.eu/nta
Please note that the organisers would like to limit the number of presenters to around 40, presenting in a total of 14 panels in simultaneous 2 hour slots of two or three panels over the two days of the conference.
Plenary speakers will be nominated by early September and their names will appear in the conference web page.
An optional conference dinner will take place on Friday 9 November 2012.
The proceedings of the conference will be published in an edited volume.
Please note that the conference WILL NOT organise accommodation. The list of hotels, hostels and Bed & Breakfast will be placed at the conference website in the second half of August.
EARLY CAREER TRAVEL GRANTS
We will be able to offer £400 travel/accommodation grant to between 8 and 10 paper givers to support early career scholars, i.e. doctoral students within six months of submission and the holders of PhDs, awarded after September 1 2009. The preference to access grants will be given to affiliates of institutions outside the EU, although relevance and innovation of the paper will principally inform the decision of the selection panel.
If you would like to apply for a travel/accommodation grant, please state this clearly when submitting your paper proposal.
Questions regarding research on non-territorial autonomy and the remit of the conference should be addressed to ntaconference@qub.ac.uk
indicating in the heading of your email CONFERENCE REMIT.

If you have any further questions, please email ther same address putting CONFERENCE APPLICATION and YOUR NAME in the header. Emails not addressed in this way will be significantly delayed.
We are looking forward hearing from the interested candidates.

Conference: National Minorities between protection and empowerment, ECPR, Mainz, 11-16 March 2013‏

National Minorities between protection and empowerment, ECPR 2013 in Mainz
Deadline for paper proposals: 5 November 2012
http://ecprnet.eu/Joint%20Sessions/2013_Mainz/Default.aspx


ECMI is looking for papers for the workshop on National Minorities between protection and empowerment: Contemporary minority politics in Europe. The workshop is one of ECPR Joint Sessions of workshops taking place on 11-16 March 2013 in Mainz, Germany.
The workshop on National Minorities between protection and empowerment aims to look comparatively at the impact of the minority rights regime throughout Europe, paying particular attention to European organizations, member states and national minority communities.
The workshop is organized by Tove Malloy, European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI), and David J. Galbreath, University of Bath.
The comparative framework is based on the following questions:
- What is the relationship between the European approaches to minorities and the impact on the ground?
- How have the ethnic conflicts of the early Cold War period shaped national and regional methods of ethnic management?
- How can European organizations and member states move beyond management and protection towards empowerment?
Looking for papers
The workshop organizers are looking for papers that can critically engage with the relationship between minority protection and empowerment. Papers must address Europe and ethno-linguistic or ethno-cultural minorities whether 'old' or 'new'.
Papers must work within and across literatures that are closer described in the complete Workshop Outline.

Conference: The Balkan Wars (1912-1913), A Conference to Mark the 100th Anniversary, Oxford, 17-18 October 2012‏

UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD

THE BALKAN WARS (1912-13)
A CONFERENCE TO MARK THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY
Sponsored by the John Fell Fund and the University of Oxford

Modern European History Research Centre

Wednesday 17th and Thursday 18th October 2012

Rees Davies Room ~ Faculty of History ~ George Street ~ Oxford

ALL WELCOME
HOWEVER NUMBERS ARE LIMITED ~ TO RESERVE A PLACE PLEASE CONTACT
tom.buchanan@conted.ox.ac.uk james.pettifer@history.ox.ac.uk jane.cunning@history.ox.ac.uk

This conference will mark the anniversary of a formative event in the modern history of
Europe and open up fresh avenues for reflection on how these conflicts affected the subsequent development of Yugoslavia and the Balkans.
It will thus assist clear thought about the ways in which the historical legacy affects
the present in a troubled region of Europe

Speakers to include:
Keynote Speaker: Sabrina Ramet (Trondheim) ~ Robert Pichler (Graz) ~ Bernd J Fischer (Indiana)
Biljana Vankovska (Skopje) ~ Christian Promitzer (Graz) ~ Michael Llewellyn Smith (Oxford)
Helen Katsiadakis (Athens) ~ Nada Boskovska (Zurich) ~ Eric Weaver (Debrecen)

Conference: Judicial reforms and and their implications in Central and Eastern Europe, Iasi, 25-26 October 2012‏

The Center for the Analysis of Reforms in Justice, Society and Politics (CARJSP) from Iasi, Romania, in collaboration with the Centre d'étude de la vie politique (CEVIPOL) of Université libre de Bruxelles, Belgium, are organising an international conference entitled Judicial Reforms and their implications in Central and Eastern Europe.
After the fall of communist regimes, and in the context of the accession to the European Union, the former communist countries have initiated an ample process of judicial reforms. The independence of the judiciary and the improvement of the functioning of legal institutions are indispensable to the establishment and the development of an European area of freedom, security and justice. The good functioning of the judiciary depends on the fairness, integrity and level of competence shown in the act of justice, as well as on appropriate financial resources and professional training. The European Commission continues to assess and monitor the implementation of these reforms in Romania and Bulgaria.
The judicial reforms carried out in EU Member States and the candidate countries are an important topic for politicians as well as for citizens and the academic community. Being, for decades, a privileged object of study for law specialists, lately, these reforms have become areas of transnational and multidisciplinary research. Political scientists, law specialists, sociologists of law, experts on European studies and legal anthropologists, have all examined the recent transformations of judicial institutions and their effects.
The organisers of this international conference aim to bring together specialists of this field of inquiry and to launch an ample debate with magistrates, decision-makers and academics concerning the objectives and the impact of the reforms recently implemented in the new Member States of the EU and the current candidate countries.

The main questions addressed by the organisers are the following :
► What are the current outcomes of judicial reforms in the region?
► What are the difficulties and obstacles encountered when these reforms are implemented?
► How and in what respects are the initiators of these reforms inspired by the reforms which are underway in other European countries?
► What is the situation of the legal reforms started in Romania compared to other countries of this region?
The independence, responsibility, fairness, and professionalism are the main topics of this conference.

Researchers and practitioners are invited to submit an abstract in French or English (300 words) by August 10, 2012.
Abstracts should be submitted, along with contact information (name, institutional affiliation, department, e-mail address), to Andrei Dumitrescu (andrei.dumitrescu@euroinst.ro), jurist, counselor at the European Institute of Iaşi, Romania.
A publication of the conference papers is planned.

Schedule

Abstract submission: August 10, 2012
Notification of ac ceptance: August 14, 2012
Final paper submission: September 15, 2012
The papers will be selected by:
Ramona Coman, professor assistant in political science, Université libre de Bruxelles, Belgium
Daniela Piana, professor assistant in political science, University of Bologna, Italy
Ole Hammerslev, professor, Head of Study, Department of Law, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
Liviu Drăgănescu, public prosecutor, Prosecutor’s Office attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice, trainer of The National Institute of Magistracy, Bucharest, Romania
Vasilică-Cristi Danileţ, judge, Member of Superior Council of Magistracy, trainer of The National Institute of Magistracy, Bucharest, Romania
Mihail Udroiu, judge, Tribunal of Bucharest, trainer of The National Institute of Magistracy, Bucharest, Romania

Organizing Committee:

Ramona Coman, professor assistant in political science at Université Lib re de Bruxelles , Belgium (Ramona.coman@ulb.ac.be)
Daniel Şandru, professor in political science, president of the University Senate, “Petre Andrei” University, Iasi, Romania (danielsandru2005@yahoo.com)
Gianina Radu, counsellor for European Affairs within the National Institute of Magistracy, Bucharest , Romania(gianina.radu@gmail.com)
Andrei Dumitrescu, jurist, counsellor within the European Institute of Iaşi , Romania (andrei.dumitrescu@euroinst.ro)



"Judicial reforms and their implications in Central and Eastern Europe"

October 25 – 26, 2012, Iasi, Romania

http://conferinta.reformcenter.ro/

Conference: PRIO Cyprus Centre Annual Conference, Cyprus, 26-27 October 2012‏

In the past few years, the question of governance has become a central feature of political debate across Europe. Debates about ideology appear to have given way to discussions about the ways in which political authorities exercise their power. Is that power truly used for the greater good, or is it, will fully or otherwise, narrowly focused on serving particular segments of society? Such debates have emerged throughout the EU. In Cyprus, political authority is confronted with the challenges of the global economic crisis, the crisis in the Eurozone, as well as internal social and political tensions as regards accountability and transparency. Greece is facing widespread social unrest as people challenge the mainstream political parties; likewise in Britain, wave upon wave of political scandal has brought public trust in politicians to an all-time low. Similar patterns of public concern and popular contestation about the very nature of government can be seen in almost every other European country. Indeed, the way in which the European Union itself is governed is increasingly called into question by those who feel that it has lost touch with the citizens of the Union.

Meanwhile, questions of good governance are increasingly being raised in and around Europe's neighborhood. In North Africa and the Near East, the Arab Spring has seen decades-old regimes challenged in ways that appeared all but unthinkable just a couple of years ago. In the Western Balkans, tackling corruption and building a truly effective rule of law, especially against the backdrop of ethnic tensions, remains a pressing concern. In Ukraine, the apparent immunity of those tied to the ruling class has come under increasing scrutiny.

Taking place in Cyprus, and coinciding with the Republic of Cyprus's presidency of the European Union, this conference seeks to examine the ways in which our understanding of good governance is being shaped in the contemporary era across the European Union and its neighborhood. At a theoretical level, we seek to question what is good governance in the era of the economic crisis. Is it about building a virtuous government, or is about ensuring effective and capable bureaucratic structures? Will “good governance” become an elusive panacea like “democratization,” or does it have other substantive qualities that we may use to define and identify it? And if “good governance” was initially a term applied in the development literature to refer to countries that should take Europe as their model, does the term continue to have meaning at a time when Europe itself is called into question? At the same time, we seek to explore the empirical evidence for changing patterns of governance. What lessons can be drawn from the pan-European experience and from the experience of specific regions and individual countries?

We call for papers that address these issues, both theoretically and empirically, in the European Union, the Western Balkans, the Caucasus, North Africa and the Near East. We are particularly interested in papers that link good governance with issues relating to social unrest and/or various forms of conflict, including themes such as:

--The role of “good governance” in the Arab Spring and its aftermath;
--Empirical and/or theoretical studies of governance in the EU crisis;
--Good governance, citizenship and practices of migration;
--Gender, equity and governance;
--The role of governance in regional conflicts and their resolutions;
--Empirical studies of governance in north and south Cyprus;
--The role of Internet and other media in governance today.

Please send a short biography and an abstract of no more than 250 words to Dr Rebecca Bryant, r.e.bryant@lse.ac.uk<mailto:r.e.bryant@lse.ac.uk>, by 20 June 2012. Only selected abstracts will be informed by 30 June. Participants may expect that part of their costs will be covered, with priority given to students and recent recipients of the Ph.D.

Submissions deadline: 20 June 2012
Apologies for cross posting
 
ANNUAL CONFERENCE
Call for papers
Good Governance in Europe and the Neighbourhood
26-27 October 2012, Nicosia, Cyprus

Conference: Alternative strategies of Romani mobilization, Cambridge, 5-8 April 2013‏

UACES sponsored collaborative research network "Romanis in Europe" is
now calling for papers for a panel on 'Alternative strategies of Roma
mobilization' at the 2013 BASEES/ICCEES European Congress "Europe:
Crisis and Renewal" in Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge 5-8 April 2013.

Looking at the present day socio-economic situation of Roma communities
across countries, discrimination and marginalization have proven to be
pan-European phenomena. In this context, the Europeanization of the Roma
'issue(s)' has also brought about a large research interest in aspects
of Roma trans-national and political organization. Yet, analyses of
local, contextual and non-political strategies of Roma mobilization have
remained peripheral within the literature.


We invite young and established scholars to submit their papers for a
panel that seeks to fill this research gap. Trying to move beyond the
existing discursive construction of a 'failed Roma mobilization', this
panel focuses on the 'localized' and alternative strategies of Roma
organization and integration, and look at the cases in which Roma
members themselves become agents of social change for the communities
they inhabit.

We invite papers spanning the fields of anthropology, social and
political science, religious studies, or other cognate disciplines.
Case studies and comparative analyses on the following topics are
particularly welcome, yet papers dealing with a wider range of themes
will also be considered:

- Contact as a pathway to integration: How does increased cultural
and/or economic contact between local Roma communities and local
majorities shape or alter negative stereotypes and perceptions coming
from behalf of local majorities? How are the opinions and stereotypes
coming from the Roma community in regards to non-Roma communities shaped
by increased communication between groups? What types of contact
(economic, social, cultural or other) between Roma groups and local
majorities foster greater awareness of similarities rather than differences?
- Roma artists as mediators: what role does artistic expression (i.e.
through film, documentaries, photography, and painting) play in
countering negative Roma stereotypes? How do Roma visual artists respond
to and address issues of discrimination and marginalization? What role
do they have as mediators of the ways in which the image of their Roma
'community' is promoted in the local majority community?
- Music as counter-discourse: what role does popular music play in
addressing the issues of Roma discrimination? What position do Roma
musicians take in lifting up political and social issues regarding Roma
minorities and what are their means to do so? How are collaborations
between Roma and non-Roma musicians shaping the image of local Roma
communities?
- Religion and social integration: What role does religion play in the
social and/or political mobilization of particular Roma communities?
What kind of relations is shaped between Roma and non-Roma members of
religious minorities and how do these shape the stereotypical images of
Roma?

The aim of the panel is to foster discussion across academic fields as
well as provide a medium for presenting the 'success' stories of Roma
integration and mobilization. Please submit your abstract of no more
than 250 words by 01 September 2012, including full contact details,
indicating your institutional affiliation and research interests on the
website: http://cms.computingpro.co.uk/romainclusion/

If you have any questions, please contact Raluca Bianca Roman at :
raluca@romanis.eu

For information on the UACES CRN "Romanis in Europe", please see
http://www.romanis.eu/contact/

Conference: Children and War, Past and Present, Salzburg, 10-12 July 2013

Second international multidisciplinary conference to be held at the
University of Salzburg, Austria, on 10-12 July 2013

Organized by the University of Salzburg and the University of Wolverhampton,
in association with the United Nations Office of the Special Representative
of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict.

This conference is planned as a follow-up to the first conference, which
took place at the University of Salzburg in 2010. It will continue to build
on areas previously investigated, and also open up new fields of academic
enquiry.

All research proposals (including panel proposals) which focus on a topic
and theme related to ‘Children and War’ are welcome, ranging from the
experience of war, flight, displacement and resettlement, to relief,
rehabilitation and reintegration work, gender issues, persecution,
trafficking, sexual violence, trauma and amnesia, the trans-generational
impact of persecution, individual and collective memory, educational issues,
films and documentaries, artistic and literary approaches, remembrance and
memorials, and questions of theory and methodology. Specific conference
themes anticipated are:
- Children as victims, witnesses and participants in armed conflict
- Holocaust, genocide and forced labour
- Deportation and displacement, refugees and asylum seekers
- War crimes, trials and human rights

A special focus will be on the ‘Changing nature of armed conflict and its
impact on children’. In the past two decades, UN reports, including the 1996
study by Graça Machel and its 10-year review, noted with concern that the
character and tactics of armed conflict are changing, creating new and
unprecedented threats to children. Characteristics of the changing nature of
warfare include the blurring of lines between military and civilian targets,
the use of new technologies and the absence of clear battlefields and
identifiable opponents. Extensive research is needed to deal with challenges
emerging from this context, including the use of children as suicide
bombers, the deliberate targeting of traditional safe havens such as schools
and hospitals, the detention and prosecution of children associated with
armed groups, and terrorism and the use of counter-terrorism measures (for
more information, please see the ‘Note by OSRSG-CAAC’ on our web site:
http://wlv.ac.uk/childrenandwar2013).

Please send an abstract of 200-250 words, together with biographical
background information of 50-100 words by 31 July 2012 to:
J.D.Steinert@wlv.ac.uk<mailto:J.D.Steinert@wlv.ac.uk>. All proposals are
subject to a review process. Successful candidates will be informed in
October 2012 and will be asked to send in their papers by the end of April
2013 for distribution among conference participants on a CD. Further
information will be made available in due time. The organizers intend to
publish a selection of conference papers.

Conference language: English.

Fee for speakers: EUR 150. The fee includes admission to all panels,
lunches, coffee and tea, and evening events.

Participants need to secure their own funding to participate in this
conference. Depending on the outcome of applications, a limited number of
grants to contribute to travel and accommodation costs will be made
available for delegates unable to obtain own funding. As these grants will
be on a refund-only basis after the conference, delegates are still required
to pay the fee, travel and accommodation costs in the first instance.

The organising team: Wolfgang Aschauer (Salzburg), John Buckley
(Wolverhampton), Helga Embacher (Salzburg), Darek Galasinski
(Wolverhampton), Albert Lichtblau (Salzburg), Grazia Prontera (Salzburg),
and Johannes-Dieter Steinert (Wolverhampton).
http://wlv.ac.uk/childrenandwar2013

Conference: OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities 20 Years On, ECMI, Flensburg, Germany, 6 July 2012‏

On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the decision to establish the office of the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM), the European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI), in co-operation with the journal European Security, is delighted to announce the "HCNM 20 Years On" Conference to be held on Friday 6 July 2012 at Flensburghus in Flensburg, Germany.

The agenda of the meeting is available on-line at 

http://www.ecmi.de/fileadmin/doc/ECMI_HCNM_Event_6_July_2012_FLYER.PDF

Wishing to seize the opportunity to take stock of the first 20 years of activity of the HCNM and discuss the future challenges of minority-majority relations in Europe, the aim of the Conference is to enhance our knowledge and understanding of the HCNM's functions and role by engaging speakers and participants in a meaningful reflection of the HCNM's past, present and future activities including perceived upcoming challenges.
European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI) Schiffbrücke 12 Kompagnietor
D-24939 Flensburg
----------------------------------------------------------
phone: +49 461-14149-70 / fax: +49 461-14149-19
e-mail: mckinney@ecmi.de
web: www.ecmi.de
http://www.ecmi.de/fileadmin/doc/ECMI_HCNM_Event_6_July_2012_FLYER.PDF

Conference: International Summer Seminar “Symbols and figures of power”, Bucharest, 3-9 July 2012

ISHA Bucharest (History Students „Dacia” Association) is pleased to announce the International Summer Seminar “Symbols and figures of power” (3rd - 9th of July 2012).

We were inspired to choose this theme for the seminar by all the contemporary events that have happened in the last couple of years. Those events set our minds to think about all the types of power, about how it can be used, about the leaders that have a big role in their communities and also what are tools that give even more importance to power in all its forms. In the research for the topic of the seminar we were surprised to discover about many symbols and figures of power used throughout history and we want to create an event to share all our inputs, beliefs and researches concerning this topic and its importance for mankind.

The subscription period begins on the 30th of April and ends on the 6th May 2012. The participation fee is 80€ (includes accommodation, three meals a day, local transport, as well as bus transfers during the excursion. It does not include drinks and travel costs to/from Bucharest).

The seminar will be attended by a number of 60 participants – history and other connected sciences students that will be divided into 6 workshops (10 participants per workshop):
1. Religion in shifting the balance of power
2. Media and social media: tools of power
3. Inspiring leaders and leadership
4. Military strength and power’s enforcement
5. Leading actors of the international system
6. Art as symbol of power

History Students „Dacia” Association is a ISHA section from August, 2010, the only one with full rights in Romania. International Students of History Association (ISHA) was founded in 1989 as an international, academic and non-profit organisation, an independent students and graduates interested in history and related sciences network. International Students of History Association (ISHA) is the only non-governamental students organisation at the european level. ISHA activities promote international cooperation among history students in particular, and between youngsters, in general, considering that understanding history is an essential part in the youth development. ISHA consists of thirty students associations from fifteen countries (called ISHA sections), such as: Germany, Belgium, Croatia, Slovenia, Netherlands, Serbia, Italy, Finland, Greece, United Kingdom, Iceland, Norway, Bulgaria.

For details check ISHA Bucharest’s web page<http://ishabucharest.asid-ub.ro/> where you can also find and download the application form which you may send back to bucharestseminar2012@asid-ub.ro

Conference: International Balkan Symposium - Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow and the Change, Süleyman Şah University, Istanbul, 24-26 September 2012‏

International Balkan Symposium: Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow and the Change, Süleyman Şah University, Istanbul, 24-26 September 2012

http://www.ssu.edu.tr/ibs/index.php?callforpaper



General Frame of the Symposium
Name of the Symposium: I. International Balkan Symposium
Topic: Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow and the Change
Date of the Symposium: 24th-26th September 2012
Place: Süleyman Şah University, İstanbul, Turkey.

Important Dates
Deadline for the summary: 30th May 2012
Abstract acceptance notification: 15th June 2012
Deadline for the full paper: 27th August 2012

Areas (Topics should be related to the Balkan societies)
I. Humanities and Social Sciences:
Literature, Sociology, Folklore, History, Philosophy, Religion, Anthropology, Language, Psychology, Cultural Geography.

II. Management and Administrative Sciences:
Management, Economics, Politics, International Relations, Logistics, Finance, Public Administration, Media.

III. Educational Sciences: Psychological Counseling and Guidance, Education of Language, Education of Religion, Non-formal Education, Formal Education.

Language:
English, Turkish (in addition to the fact that paper is only accepted in English and Turkish, presenter can present his/her paper in his/her language on the condition that presenter provides his/her own translator.) Publishing of the Symposium Proceedings:
Symposium proceedings to be published will be submitted to the participants in the form of CD with ISSN

Conference: European Youth Forum PiloramaLAB, Perm, Russia, 25-28 July 2012‏

Starting from April 9, 2012, applications for the participation in the European Youth Forum “Pilorama Lab“ will be accepted, which is going to take place from July 25-28, 2012 in the City of Perm and on the territory of the Memorial Centre of the History of Political Repressions “Perm 36“ (www.perm36.ru).

The major distinctions of the “Pilorama Lab“ are, first of all, three factors – invitation of young professionals at the age from 25 to 35 years old, who obtained positive working experiences in the fields of socioeconomic, political, cultural questions and in the realm of civic education and initiatives; carrying-out of interdisciplinary master classes and discussions, as long as many problems in the globalizing world can’t be solved by using knowledge and tools of one branch only; European dimension (equal attendance of participants and experts from Russia and European states in the event – 40 participants as well as 8 experts from each party accordingly). The themes of the anticipating master classes within the EYF “Pilorama Lab“ will be “Urban Space. Ecology. Civic Participation“, “Ethnic Minorities. Access to Natural Resources. Human Rights“, “Historical Legacy. Political Education. Design“ as well as “Social Entrepreneurship. Businesses and NGOs“.

An additional synergetic effect of the Forum will be corresponded by its carrying-out in Perm, the Eastern-most city of Europe situated on the foothills of the Ural Mountains and called the civil capital of Russia, as well as on the territory of the Memorial Centre of the History of Political Repressions “Perm 36“ – the only museum from the GULAG times, located 90 km from Perm, which had been serving as a camp for political prisoners from 1946 until 1987. Since 2005, the International Civil Forum “Pilorama“ (http://pilorama.perm36.ru) has been held here, which attracts politicians, human rights activists, journalists, artists, actors, musicians, and the general public and which will take place from July 27th-29th this year.

Application form and detailed information on the event will be available at the website of the European Youth Forum “Pilorama Lab“: www.piloramalab.org. Applications should be submitted before May 15, 2012.

Co-organizers of the Forum are ANO “Civic Engagement Institute“ (Perm. Russia), Memorial Centre of the History of Political Repressions “Perm 36“, MitOst Association (Germany), Association “German-Russian Exchange“ (Germany-Russia) supported by the Civil Society Forum “Russia-EU“, the Ministry of Culture, Youth Policy, and Mass Communications of the Perm Region as well as Ombudsman for Human Rights in the Perm Region.

Conference: Middle East Technical University Balkan Conference, Ankara, 23-24 May 2012‏

The Centenary of the Balkan Wars (1912-1913):

Contested Stances

Middle East Technical University

Department of International Relations, Ankara-Turkey

23-24 May 2013



The Centenary of the Balkan Wars (1912-1913): Contested Stances



For details http://www.ir.metu.edu.tr/v2/metu-balkan-conferences.html



Conference Topic Description

As its centenary will take place in 2012-13, the Balkan Wars of 1912-13 is very important for world history and international relations, owing to its results at the beginning of the 20th century and its effects transmitted to the beginning of the 21st century. Not surprisingly, it is still a controversial issue.



Aims of the Conference



The Balkan Wars of 1912-13 have created significant migration, population and land distribution problems and have contributed to the formation of conflicting stances, even prevailing in the region today. The primary objective of the conference is to foster an academic debate on the Balkan Wars of 1912-13, shedding light on the connection between these factors with the conflicting attitudes in the region. An important number of publications and records on the subject in question suggest that the conflicting stances are mainly due to local causes. Given the fact that the most important deficiency here is the lack of proper linkage to the structural causes of the Balkan Wars that stem from the nature of the international system, the second objective of the conference is, thus, to explore the systemic, regional and national dynamics and their connections in the creation and reproduction of contested stances. The third objective of the conference is to enhance cooperation among scholars from the Balkan region and the world. Finally, it is hoped that the debate at the conference may contribute to increase in the level of analytical knowledge in the formation of regional and international actors policies towards the region.



Themes of the conference are as follows:



-National historiographies on the Balkan Wars of 1912-13

-Inward and outward migrations

-Diplomacy, formation of alliances, power distribution

-War and peace strategies

-Competitive nationalisms, irredentist claims

-Reports of NGOs on the Balkan Wars, press coverage of the Balkan Wars

-International law and the Balkan Wars

-International politics and foreign policy

-The international order at the beginning of the 20th century

-Systemic, regional and national dynamics

-Theoretical debates on the Balkan Wars

-Photographs of the Balkan Wars

-Other important aspects of the Balkan Wars