Agenda

Call for Papers
On the Boundaries of Here and Now
International symposium – Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, 1–2 October 2020

Today, more than ever before, interconnections, flows, interdependencies, crises and/or re-articulations of models and identity challenge the firmness of boundaries and the idea of homogeneity of presupposed, imagined identity communities that are predicated on these boundaries. In this instance, the academia across various disciplines has been facing the challenge of turning from post-colonial approaches towards a global and transcultural vision of the world.

Central to these scholarly reflections has been the question of how to conceptualize cultural encounters without falling into dichotomous categorizations such as the East/West, centre/periphery, etc. This symposium aims to reflect on and contribute to the methodological lenses introduced by the recent scholarship and is an attempt to develop a critical understanding of the disputed spaces in Eurasia. Simultaneously, it seeks to investigate how boundaries are negotiated, (re-)made, resisted and/or unmade within spaces of cultural (re)production in the contemporary world, where, for instance, a populist wave of nationalist ideologies fuels tensions and conflicts globally.

Boundaries; aesthetic, ideological, epistemic or physical boundaries that are temporal and spatial compositions and, at the same time, embody (trans-) cultural conceptions of time and space that shape socio-political sensitivities and crises. We encourage participants across different disciplines to present their research and reflect with us on how to open a passage for understanding Boundaries of Here and Now in Eurasian spheres. 

Where are boundaries located? How do they conceptualize past, present or future?

How do individuals, at the micro-level, create and /or participate in the (re)formation of boundaries, and how their acting is connected to the larger transformations at a global level? Furthermore, it is at the centre of our symposium to ask how boundaries are resisted and by whom? Are there ways, visions etc., that attempt to transcend boundaries? These are some of the questions that we would like to address at the symposium. We welcome any innovative way of approaching case studies related to the topic.

We especially welcome applications from graduate students as well as post-doc and early-career researchers, but we will also consider submissions from scholars in more advanced stages of their career.

The symposium will be opened by a keynote address delivered by Professor Joseph Massad from Columbia University.

Application Deadline: 30 April 2020

For applying please email us the following documents in PDF format:

- an abstract of 250-350 words including the title of presentation
- a short biography (max. 150 words)

Symposium official email: boundaries@unive.it

Organisers: PhD students of the Department of Asian and North African Studies, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice (34th Cycle – 2018)