This is a message from the BISA working group on Religion, Security and IR. Summary of seminars, calls for papers, and jobs in this message:
1. PANEL discussion on Middle East and launch of new book by group member Dr R.Hollis, 21 April, City University London
2. SEMINAR on religion and public sphere by Prof. A. Salvatore, 4 May, Cambridge
3. ISA CONFERENCE 2011, call for papers now papers on religion encouraged.
4. CONFERENCE, Responsibility to Rebuild workshop in June 2010, call for papers by 30 April 2010
5. SEMINAR on Christianity and American Foreign Policy by Jim Wallis, 30 June, King's College London
6. CONFERENCE, Terrorism and new media, September 2010, Dublin.
7. CONFERENCE, Catholicism and Fascism, Sept 2010
8. TEMPORARY JOB IN FLORIDA
9. TENURE TRACK POSITION in Islamic Studies, Univ. North Carolina Chapel Hill
Sara Silvestri and Rosemary Durward
co-convenor, BISA Working Group on religion, security and IR, http://relwar.wordpress.com/bisa-working-group/
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1)
A new initiative at City University, the Olive Tree Middle East Forum will commence with a panel discussion on:
Britain and the Middle East in the 9/11 Era
An important area for discussion in the run-up to the British elections
Wednesday 21 April from 5-7pm College Building, 280 St John Street, London EC1V 0HB
On the panel: 3 scholars who bring practitioner experience to their policy analysis and research: " Dr Rosemary Hollis (City University) who has just published a book on 'Britain and the Middle East in the 9/11 Era' see http://eu.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-1405102985.html " Dr Maha Azzam (Chatham House) whose specialization is Political Islam " Dr Shane Brighton (University of Sussex) where he teaches on 'The Politics of Fear' and 'New Security Challenges'
To register contact: olivetree@city.ac.uk
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2)
Seminar organised by BISA working group on Religion Security and IR in collaboration with VHI and CIS, Cambridge.
Prof. Armando Salvatore (Univ. of Naples)
Title: "Ways of the Secular: from Sovereignty to Connectedness"
4 June, 12.30pm, Cambridge
Venue: Centre of International Studies, (room tbc)
First floor, 17 Mill Lane, Cambridge
For further details contact: ss384@cam.ac.uk
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3)
The Call for Papers for the Annual Convention of the International Studies Association (ISA) to be held in Montreal from March 16 to 19 next year is now out. Please see the link: http://www.isanet.org/montreal2011/call-for-papers.html
As working group on RELIGION, SECURITY AND IR, we encourage members of the group to organise panels and present papers. In addition, it might be useful to know that the Global Development Section (GDS) if ISA also welcomes any panel or paper proposals on the following or related themes:
1. Religion(s) and Development
2. Religion(s), Conflict and Security
3. Religion(s) and Global Governance
4. Religion(s) and International Political Theory
5. Secularism in International Relations
In order to ensure a greater chance of acceptance, it is recommended that you join GDS first. Please see http://www.isanet.org/gds/ which is coordinated by Dr G.Shani
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4)
Workshop organised by the UNIVERSITY OF SURREY, INSTITUTE OF ADVANCED STUDIES "Responsibility 2 Rebuild: Linking infrastructure, Governance & Democratisation", 18-19 June 2010
CALL FOR PAPERS The "stabilisation" agenda is now a major priority for the UK government and the wider international community. Whether in a situation of conflict such as Afghanistan, or following a major natural disaster such as in Haiti, securing a stable environment for the process of international development is crucial to recovery. In responding to the challenges posed by complex political emergencies and modernisation projects, intervening governments have committed to the "Responsibility to Rebuild", one of the three key elements of the "Responsibility to Protect", adopted by the United Nations in 2005. Civil engineering projects play a key role in achieving the wider objectives of stabilisation, democratisation and state-building. The field of international intervention in situations of underdevelopment, insecurity, and state failure is particularly suited to multi-disciplinary research. The aspiration of the workshop is to establish links between academics; policymakers from different branches of government; the military and civilian practitioners from the armed services, the UN, and international NGOs; and representatives from the private sector. The aim will be to map out, through presentation and debate, an interdisciplinary research agenda bringing together social sciences, law, and natural sciences/engineering.
The workshop seeks to address three questions: 1) How can the "Responsibility to Rebuild" be delivered in practice? 2) What should international intervention post conflict or natural disaster look like? 3) How can the different strands of physical infrastructure, governance, and civil society participation be woven together? The organisers invite contributions that explore different dimension of:
*R2P
*Humanitarianism
*Infrastructure-stabilisation nexus
*Policy approaches (IGOs, Government agencies, etc) *Democratisation
*Conflict Management *Industry's involvement in stabilisation projects
*Post-conflict recovery/reconstruction *State building
We are particularly interested in papers and panels that draw links between these areas and introduce a new research agenda using both mainstream and critical approaches. In particular, answers will be sought to the following questions: what is the role of engineering and physical infrastructure projects in the delivery of both development and security; how do these projects interact with the wider socio-political and human rights agenda; how can they best be linked to ensure successful achievement of policy aims?
Confirmed speakers: Prof Paul Rogers, University of Bradford Prof Jennifer Welsh, University of Oxford Prof Paul Williams, George Washington University Ms Elizabeth Mullings-Smith, Former Associate Director, Sustainability and Environment Management, Halcrow Group
Guidelines for the submission of proposals: -Papers: 200 words abstract and contact information (including institutional affiliation) -Panels: 200 words abstract of rationale for panel; 150 words abstract for each paper; Contact information of chair and panellists. Send proposals to: Dr. Monika Barthwal-Datta (M.Barthwal-Datta@Surrey.ac.uk) April 30th 2010 More details: http://www.ias.surrey.ac.uk/workshops/rebuild/index.php
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5)
Seminar organised by the FAITH AND PUBLIC POLICY FORUM
Wed 30 June 2010
Jim Wallis
Title: Christianity & American Politics After Obama
Time: 17.30-19.00
Location: The Chapel, Strand Campus, King's College London
Jim Wallis is a bestselling author, public theologian, speaker, and international commentator on ethics and public life. He serves on the White House Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships. His latest book is Rediscovering Values: On Wall Street, Main Street, and Your Street `A Moral Compass for the New Economy'. His two previous books, The Great Awakening: Reviving Faith & Politics in a Post-Religious Right America and God's Politics: Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get It were both New York Times bestsellers. He is President and CEO of Sojourners; where he is editor-in-chief of Sojourners magazine. His columns appear in major newspapers, including The New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and Boston Globe. He frequently appears on radio and television in the US.
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6)
Conference: TERRORISM & NEW MEDIA
Dublin City University, Ireland
8 - 9 September 2010
WEBSITE: http://www.dcu.ie/~cis/TNM/index.html
ORGANISERS
Conference Chair: Dr. Maura Conway
Co-Organiser: Lisa McInerney
All queries and conference-related correspondence should be directed to: terrorisminternetconf@dcu.ie
PLENARY SPEAKERS
- Dr. Jarret Brachman, North Dakota State University
- Dr. John Horgan, International Center for the Study of Terrorism,
Pennsylvania State University
- Prof. Philip Seib, Annenberg School, University of Southern California
RATIONALE
The purpose of this conference is to bring together academics from a broad range of disciplines with policy-makers and security practitioners that have knowledge and/or expertise that can facilitate advances in the study of Terrorism and New Media, particularly the Internet, in novel ways.
PROGRAMME
This is the first academic conference to subject the relationship between terrorism and new media, particularly the Internet, to truly multi-disciplinary scrutiny. The one-day conference (Wednesday, 8 September) will feature a series of panels and a number of plenary addresses. The conference will be followed on Thursday, 9 September by a workshop devoted to the robust debate and analysis of currently "hot" topics in the realm of terrorism and the Internet, particularly the question of the role of the Internet in processes of radicalisation.
CALL FOR PAPERS
We welcome papers or panels reporting on innovative research into any aspect of terrorism and new media. We particularly welcome papers or panels that report novel results or describe and employ innovative methodological approaches. Papers or panels on the following topics will be of particular interest:
" Online radicalisation " The Internet and recruitment " Old terrorism and new media " Methodologies for terrorism-related Internet research " Terrorism informatics " Network analysis and online terrorist activity " New Internet tools/platforms and radicalisation/terrorism (for " example, online gaming, video-sharing, photo-sharing, social networking, " micro-blogging, online payment mechanisms, etc.) " Cyberterrorism " Violent Islamism and the Internet " The content and functioning of jihadi Internet forums " Jihadi video producers and content " Children/youth, terrorism, and new media " Women/gender, terrorism, and new media " Case studies of particular groups? use of new media (e.g. al-Qaeda, " FARC, Hamas, Hizbollah, dissident Irish Republicans, etc.) " Policy/legislative responses to terrorists? online presence " Critical responses to research on, reporting of, and governmental responses to the conjunction of terrorism and the Internet Ethical issues surrounding online terrorism-related research
Perspectives from any academic discipline are welcomed, particularly: communications, computer science, cultural studies, information science, international relations, internet studies, law, media studies, philosophy, political science, psychology, and sociology.
Authors of individual papers should submit a 300-word abstract via the conference website (http://www.dcu.ie/~cis/TNM/index.html) on or before 17 May 2010. A selection of accepted papers will be considered for publication in a special issue of the journal Media, War & Conflict.
TRAVEL FUNDING FOR GRADUATE STUDENTS
The Center on Public Diplomacy at the Annenberg School, University of Southern California (USC) will provide US$700 in sponsorship for a graduate student to attend at *and blog* from the conference for the Center. Graduate students wishing to apply for this funding should indicate same when submitting their abstract.
The conference organisers are also in a position to provide a number of travel grants for graduate students. Support may be requested for transportation and accommodation. Students should provide a breakdown of the estimated cost of travel and accommodation upon submitting an application. Graduate students wishing to apply for funding can do so when submitting an abstract. Award decisions will be made by 14 June 2010.
REGISTRATION
The conference will open for registration from 1 June 2010. Registration Fees are as follows:
Standard: EUR130 (Late reg., post 8 July: EUR195)
Graduate Student: EUR65 (Late reg., post 8 July: EUR110)
Conference fee includes teas/coffees, lunch, welcome reception on the evening of Tuesday September 7 and the conference dinner on the evening of Wednesday September 8.
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7)
International Conference, Rome, Academia Belgica, September 15-17, 2010:
Catholicism and Fascism(s) in Europe 1918-1945: Beyond a Manichean Approach
Conference outline
The general theme of the proposed conference is the ideologisation of the relationship between Catholicism and fascism in Europe (1918-1945). The historiography in this particular field of research has often been characterised by rather outspoken and sometimes conflicting ideological currents. In extreme cases, some historians fully deny any possible convergence between catholic religion and fascist ideology, where others sustain that catholics unconditionally supported fascism. The conference intends to make a meaningful contribution to this fundamental methodological and theoretical debate, through the presentation of original research presented by a group of international scholars, each of whom will focus on a European country or region where in the interwar years a fascist movement or regime flourished, and where there was a significant catholic presence in society.
Participants will explore a wide range of relevant contexts and methodologies. More in particular, the following investigative pathways will guide a series of thematic panels:
1) the heuristic notion of fascism as a 'political religion'
2) the concept of catholic 'politicisation of religion'
3) the phenomenon of 'clerical fascism' and its manifestations
4) value and usefulness of a comparative approach
5) the various forms of reception of German, Italian and Spanish fascism by catholics in foreign contexts
6) the prospect of research based on recently discovered and/or released archival materials (cf. the Vatican interwar archives)
7) importance of the role of catholic and fascist intellectuals: towards a historiography of fascist and catholic culture?
8) the relationship between catholic and fascist 'modernism'
The conference intends to serve a double purpose: on the one hand participants will present research on the general theme of the relationship Catholicism-fascism in Europe (fundamental contribution concerning content); on the other hand the discussion will be moved to a theoretical level (fundamental methodological contribution). In addition, the aim to cover as large as possible a number of countries and regions will make for a highly complete and complex understanding of the general theme. It is hoped that this will contribute to a more refined and nuanced understanding of not only the notions 'catholic Church' and 'catholics', but also of the highly enigmatic phenomenon of 'fascism'. Much in the same way as traditional religion, as a form of 'political religion', the latter denomination could indeed cover very heterogeneous constituents. The final aim is to contribute to the development of an interpretive 'cluster' model that ideally incorporates a series of investigative matrixes, thus acting as a catalyst to future research.
Procedure
Abstracts of paper proposals will be accepted until May 10, 2010. Abstracts of 300-500 words are to be sent, as an e-mail attachment, to Jan Nelis at jan.nelis@ugent.be and/or jan_nelis@hotmail.com, with a 'cc' to nelisjanunighent@gmail.com (Word-, rtf- or pdf-format).
They should be accompanied by a title of the contribution as well as a CV which mentions the participant's most relevant publications and his/her institutional affiliation. Accepted languages will be English, French and Italian. Abstracts should clearly indicate the originality of the projected paper presentation, and situate it in the general theme of the colloquium. Proposals concerning Poland, Slovenia and Austria are particularly encouraged.
Abstracts will be evaluated in function of their relevance to the general conference theme and panel structure, as well as of the available places. Notification of acceptance or refusal will be given by June 1, 2010.
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8)
The University of North Florida has a visiting position open for 2010-2011. The specialization is open, but the candidate would likely teach two sections of Comparative Religions each semester and two upper level courses. One upper level course in the Fall is already scheduled as "Saints and Sinners," a course on religious autobiography that could be taught from within any area of specialization. The remaining upper level courses could be developed in different ways, in accordance with the candidate's expertise.
Please circulate this notice to those you think may be interested. For further information, contact Julie Ingersoll, Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Religious Studies Program Coordinator at the University of North Florida, Jacksonville, FL: jingerso@unf.edu
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9)
Tenure Track Position in Islamic Studies at UNC-Chapel Hill
for Fall 2010
The Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Religious Studies and Kenan Rifai Fellow in Islamic Studies, starting July 1, 2010.
Preference will be given to candidates who already have a PhD in hand. Area of specialization is open, and could include (but not be limited to) the study of the Qur'an, Islamic law, Islam in America, gender debates in Islam, and other topics. Research interests should include the study of Islamic spirituality and/or Sufism. We seek to complement existing regional strengths in South Asia and Iran.
Candidates should have knowledge of the relevant language(s) and demonstrate strong research potential. Teaching duties will include introductory and upper-level undergraduate courses on Islamic studies as well as graduate-level seminars. The successful candidate will also be expected to work with doctoral students, and to collaborate with faculty in the Department of Religion at nearby Duke University. Both teaching and research need to be connected to the problems and issues of religious studies broadly conceived and to the graduate concentration in Islamic studies.
*Review of applications will begin April 15, 2010.* Submit an online application including the following materials: a letter of application, a cv, and a writing sample. Submit these materials online at . In addition, arrange to have four original, signed letters of recommendation sent by mail to: Chair of Islamic Studies Search Committee, Department of Religious Studies, CB #3225, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599-3225 (http://religion.unc.edu >).
