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2010 PJSA Conference: Call for Proposals

Call for Proposals

Building Bridges, Crossing Borders:
Gender, Identity, and Security in the Search for Peace

The 8th Annual Conference of the Peace and Justice Studies Association
October 1-2, 2010
Menno Simons College and the Global College
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Submission Deadline has passed -- Late Proposals placed as space permits

The PJSA Program Committee invites submissions for the 2010 Annual Meeting of the PJSA, to be held on the campuses of Menno Simons College and The Global College, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, on Friday October 1 and Saturday October 2, 2010.

We have had an excellent response to our call for proposals; however, the PJSA Program Committee wants to make sure that everyone has an opportunity to join in with this exciting conference that will feature speakers including Cynthia Enloe, Marilou McPhedran, Catherine Morris, Carolyn Nordstrom, Sherene Razack, Betty Reardon, and Sandra Whitworth. Therefore we have extended the submission deadline to April 16, and invite you to submit your proposal for the 2010 Annual Meeting of the PJSA, to be held on the campuses of Menno Simons College and The Global College, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, on Friday October 1 and Saturday October 2, 2010.

Peacemaking is in so many ways the building of bridges across divides - divides of conflict, divides of identity, divides of world view and ideology. How have the fields of peace studies and conflict resolution developed differently in Canada and the United States? What do we have to offer each other, to enrich our research, our teaching and our activism, as we hold our first conference in Canada?

We welcome proposals from a wide range of disciplines, professions, and perspectives that address issues related to gender, identity, and security in the search for peace. We encourage you to consider how your research connects to any of these four central concerns: gender – identity – security – peace. As always, while we especially welcome proposals that deal with all or part of the theme, we also welcome proposals on other topics of interest to our membership. Here are examples of what you might consider in terms of this year’s theme:

Gender: We welcome proposals related to the particular contributions of women to peacemaking, the way that gender helps us analyze conflict and its resolution, and especially how gender issues interact with and impact on related questions of identity and security. We have two special sessions already being planned for contributions that explore the legacy of great women peace advocates in the tradition of Jane Addams, and look forward to proposals and initiatives of various forms that reflect on and assess the legacy, impact, and future of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women and Peace.

Identity: We welcome proposals that explore a wide variety of questions related to identity, peace, and conflict, which could include explorations of culture, race, ethnicity, and religion. How do identity questions intersect with gender or reflect a particular site of struggle for feminist analyses? How does identity have an impact on alternative modes of security analysis?

Security: One of the key words animating many discussions in peace and conflict studies is security. We welcome proposals that explore alternative models and conceptions of security. Some have proposed the language of human security or environmental security as an antidote to prevailing militarized conceptions of security. We also welcome critiques of contemporary conceptions of security. We especially encourage the exploration of security with recognition of its relationship to gender and identity issues. In what ways does security, and the way it is framed, shape our analysis of gender and identity in the search for peace?

As we consider core concepts and practices of gender, identity, and security we are consistently framing them by the Search for Peace.

Submissions may propose offerings of various forms: research papers, presentations, round-tables, panels, hands-on workshops, posters, and creative works using a variety of media to address gender, identity, and security in the search for peace. Our goal is to create a stimulating environment where academics and activists, educators, practitioners, and artists can build bridges and cross borders. The conference will invite participants to engage with three avenues of exploration: papers and presentations, hands-on practitioner workshops, and a youth summit. It seeks to create an environment in which attendees will have multiple opportunities to meet and dialogue in both formal and informal settings.

The submission deadline for proposals has passed; LATE PROPOSAL SUBMISSIONS will be placed as space in the program permits. Abstracts should be approximately 150 words. Those greatly exceeding this limit may not be printed in the program. All proposals must be submitted electronically through the PJSA website.

We look forward to seeing you in Winnipeg!

SUBMIT A LATE PROPOSAL


Conference Description

This year’s conference has three major components that will all focus on the broad theme of “Building Bridges, Crossing Borders”: Papers and Presentations; Practitioner Workshops; and a Canada–USA Youth Summit. All conference registrants have access to any or all of these three components. By running three parallel schedules we will offer to conference attendees options to sit in on academic, activist, and educator presentations; to participate in hands-on practitioner workshops that explore a wide variety of conflict resolution techniques and practices; or upon invitation to visit the youth summit to be energized by the next generation of peace and justice social change agents.

Our 2010 conference will open Friday morning with a welcoming ceremony and initial plenary panel, all of which will be held at Thunderbird House. After opening ceremonies by local aboriginal elders, we will be welcomed by conference hosts and community representatives. Following a coffee break, the conference will begin with an opening plenary panel featuring keynote speakers. The conference will close with a banquet and awards ceremony on Saturday evening.

Papers and Presentations: Our core conference will take place on the campus of the University of Winnipeg. It will feature keynote speakers and plenary panels, eight presentation streams, and opportunities to visit installations and poster sessions. Papers and presentations by academics, activists, and educators will begin at noon on Friday and end on Saturday afternoon.

Practitioner Workshops: With help from Mediation Services, we will review proposals and coordinate streams of workshops that will run parallel to the papers and presentations in the core conference. These hands-on workshops will be of particular interest to conflict resolution practitioners in both Canada and the United States.

Youth Summit: A central component of this year’s conference is a youth summit, a parallel gathering to be held on Friday that will bring together youth ages 17—21 from the United States and Canada to dialogue on the theme of the conference. The youth summit coordinating committee welcomes cross-fertilization with all conference participants. Several of our invited speakers will be addressing the youth summit as well as the core conference. To learn more, visit the YOUTH SUMMIT BLOG today!

By bringing together youth, academics, educators, activists, artists, and practitioners we want to build bridges between these groups, and to create an environment where we all can be challenged to grow beyond our current personal, professional, and national borders to embrace others across ages, genders, and identities.

SUBMIT A LATE PROPOSAL