PhD opportunities at Free University of Bozen Location: Bozen - Italy

Public Competition Announcement for PhD courses 27th cycle, 2011/2012 academic year Public Competition Announcement 2011

Published in the "Bollettino Ufficiale della Regione Trentino Alto-Adige" no. 27/IV, 18/07/2011.
Published in the "Gazzetta Ufficiale della Repubblica Italiana, IV Serie Speciale Concorsi ed Esami", no. 58, 22/07/2011.

Beginning of the PhD courses: 9th, January 2012
Application forms for admission to the Public Competition for PhD programmes (deadline for applications is: 14 October, 2011)

PhD programme in General Pedagogy, Social Pedagogy and General Education
PhD programme in Computer Science
PhD programme in Management of Mountain Environment
PhD programme in Sustainable Energy and Technologies
PLEASE, do not send the application form by e-mail. Applications have to be submitted by hand or by post to the addresses indicated at page 20 and 21 of the public competition announcement 2011. Deadline for applications is: 14th October 2011.

For more information about the content of the PhD programme, please visit the faculties' websites:

PhD programme in General Pedagogy, Social Pedagogy and General Education
PhD programme in Computer Science (NEW)
PhD programme in Management of Mountain Environment
PhD programme in Sustainable Energy and Technologies

PhD in Linguistics: Cooperation with the University of Pavia
Call for applications XXVII cycle 2011/2012 (in Italian only)
Deadline: July 18, 2011, for more information  visit this link.

ECMI Workshop, Ethnic Minorities and New Social Media, Flensburg, Germany, 4 November 2011‏

The interconnectedness of contemporary societies is facilitated to a great extent by the diffusion of modern digital technologies. New internet tools, such as facebook or twitter, offer platforms for contact, cooperation and socialization for social media users. While the role of internet and of new social media has begun to be studied, little research has been done on the internet's implications for the situation of a specific group: ethnic minorities. Given the relatively easy access to new social media and taking into account that minorities cannot often freely use their languages in the official national public spheres, one would expect that ethnic groups' members would seize on the opportunities provided by the internet. Also, one would expect that the usage of new social media has broad implications for ethnic group members' identifications, perceptions and actions.

The workshop aims to discuss the following topics: theoretical and methodological paradigms that help uncover ethnic online activism; trends in minorities' usage of new social media at the national (particularly in Poland and Germany) and transnational levels; linkages between the usage of new social media and political participation; impact of the new social media on different categories of members of ethnic communities (e.g. women, youth) and their participation in public life.

We invite papers exploring one or more of the research agendas above, but the workshop is also open to discuss other topics that relate to the patterns of usage and the impact of new social media on minority groups. Please send your abstracts to Joanna Jasiewicz at jasiewicz@ecmi.de by October 10th 2011. You will be informed about the acceptance of your paper soon after. Abstracts should include a title, your email address and institutional affiliation. We cover travel and accommodation costs as well as lunch and dinner on the day of the event. The workshop will take place in Flensburg, Germany. European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI), Flensburg, Germany International Centre for Research and Analysis (ICRA), Warsaw, Poland http://tinyurl.com/5s39lqb

Nationalizing the dynasty - dynastizing the nation, University of California, LA, 12-14 April 2012‏

International Graduate Conference
NATIONIZING THE DYNASTY – DYNASTIZING THE NATION
Call for Papers
Organizers:
Milinda Banerjee, Ulrike Büchsel, Verena Gander, Elise Wintz (Heidelberg University, Germany); Julia Schneider (Ghent University, Belgium)
In cooperation with:
Prof. Patrick Geary, UCLA Center for Medieval & Renaissance Studies
Keynote Speakers:
David A. Bell, Princeton University
Joseph Esherick, University of California, San Diego
Nile Green, University of California, Los Angeles
Date and place:
April 12th-14th, 2012, University of California, Los Angeles, Royce Hall 306

Deadline for applications: October 1st, 2011

Conference description:
Dynasty and nation are often considered as providing fundamentally different structures of articulating the legitimacy of political rule. It is assumed that dynastic rule, a fortiori by divine grace, has been replaced or overwritten by a national body of free and equal citizens as the principal source of political legitimation (e.g. Anderson 1983/2003; Chatterjee 1994/1999). However, there are many cases in which both systems were or still are intertwined and complement each other. The most basic of these forms are the numerous constitutional monarchies existing until today, in which the nation accepts the monarch as symbolic head of the state and role model. In other instances, which have hitherto been little studied, the monarchy might have disappeared on the surface, but is living on in different aspects. In many, but not all, instances, the ability of nascent nationalisms to appropriate past or present dynasties was facilitated by the efforts of the dynasties themselves to project themselves as model representatives of the nation. Thus, the research group "A5 – Nationising the dynasty", part of the Heidelberg University Cluster of Excellence "Asia and Europe in a Global Context", argues that the shift from dynasty to nation might not be the paradigmatic break presented by nationalist historiography, but rather a complex metamorphosis with each system adapting to, or even (re-)constructing, the other. The underlying aim behind this conference is to critique the nature of the modern national body politic by looking at it from the point of view of its putative Other: the dynasty. By doing so, and especially by locating the dynastic-genealogical nature of many of the discursive assumptions of nationalism, and also investigating the specificities of this in different polities, we hope to contribute to a better understanding of the self-formulation of nationalism as a mode of historicity and identity. A study of the ways in which royal dynasties have adapted to nationalism enables a critical understanding of the politics of representation, and destabilizes any unilinear historicity which claims that dynasties cannot represent the people. It also provokes important questions, such as on the continuities between dynastic modes of violent territorialism and national modes, or the commonalities between them as regards the creation of a monistic centre of sovereignty.
Summarily, by combining an approach `from above' (dynasties adapting to nationalism, that is, nationising of the dynasty) and an approach `from below' (nations appropriating dynastic concepts into their symbolic repertoire, that is, dynastising of the nation), we aim to present a theoretical perspective which deconstructs the category of nationalist modernity by understanding it from the point of view of one of its so-called `premodern' ancestors: the princely dynasty. We open up our perspective to all instances of interaction between dynasties and nationalisms in world history. Dynasties and monarchic forms of government were present in Asia, Africa, the Americas and Europe, and their interactions with concepts of nationhood or nationalist movements in pre-colonial, colonial or postcolonial contexts will be important fields of exploration at our conference.

Sample themes:
Papers are invited on any theme related to the dialogues between dynasties and concepts of nationhood. Possible themes may include:

• How did princely dynasties try to present themselves as both representatives and part of the nation, i.e. through the construction of new, or utilization of existing, liturgies, forms of oath-taking, iconographic conventions, representation of royal births, marriages and deaths, moments of coronation and abdication, victory celebrations and systems of honor.
• How dynasties and the public sphere communicated and what was the role played by media in this communication?
• How were dynastic concepts appropriated by nationalist thinkers, artists, historians, politicians, writers?
• What are the relationships between dynasty and religion in nationalist self-perception (such as the idea that the nation inherits from the dynasty a certain sacred heritage of national religious culture)?
• What kind of subaltern uses of dynastic concepts exist, for example among ethnic and religious minorities, or economically disempowered sections of society?
• How can gendered readings help understand the relationship between dynasties and nationalisms?
• What kind of relationship can one find between dynasties and anti-colonial movements?
• How could a multi-ethnic dynastic state be transformed into a nation-state and what would be the role of nationalism in such a transformation?

These are only a few instances, and researchers are encouraged to send papers on any other theme related to the dynasty-nation dialogue which this conference interrogates. In the process, we hope to develop more enriching conceptual histories of `dynasty' and `nation', going beyond the various definitions of these structures in existing scholarship. Such conceptual histories will also question the universality of the definitions of "dynasty" and "nation" and attempt to rather study them as rhetorical tropes legitimating diverse forms of polities which in fact share little definitional commonality. The extent to which the very usage of these concepts entails the imposition of `European' concepts (such as primogeniture and natural right) on other societies will also be investigated.

Application:

While we especially invite proposals for panels formed by three doctoral candidates or postdoctoral researchers, individual applications are also welcome. Talks should be no longer than 20 minutes . Please send your application including a proposal of no longer than 200 words and a CV until October 1st, 2011 to Ulrike Büchsel at buechsel@asia-europe.uni-heidelberg.de. In case of a joint application for a panel, the application should include a panel proposal of 200 words, proposals for the individual papers of equal length, and the CVs of all panelists. Successful applicants will be informed by beginning of November 2011.

CfP: CEU Political Science Journal, vol. 7, no. 1 [DL: 01.12]‏

CEU PSJ accepts now submissions for its February 2012 issue. Manuscripts
from Political Science and related fields are welcome. Authors should
ensure that their submissions are original contributions and should not be under consideration for any other publication at the same time. Full guidelines for the presentation of the papers are available at the
guidelines for submission section from the website (www.ceu.hu/poliscijournal).

All submitted articles are subject to a rigorous peer review process,
based on initial editor screening and double-blind refereeing by a
minimum of two reviewers.

Authors should send their articles to ceu_polsci@yahoo.com before 1 December 2011.
Further enquiries should be sent to the editorial board at ceu_polsci@yahoo.com.


The Editorial Board
CEU Political Science Journal
www.ceu.hu/poliscijournal
Nador ut. 9, 1051 Budapest,
Hungary

Annual Conference on International Political Economy: Challenges to the Welfare State, Gediz University, Izmir, 23 May 2012‏

Gediz University (Izmir, Turkey), Florida International University (Miami,
USA) and Leeds Metropolitan University (Leeds, UK) cordially invite paper,
panel, and roundtable proposals for a joint annual multidisciplinary
conference on International Political Economy, entitled "Challenges to the
Welfare State". The conference seeks to provide an intellectual forum for
scholars of political economy, politics and international relations. We
welcome participation from faculty, graduate students, independent scholars,
and practitioners analyzing the issues confronting the welfare state (i.e.
unemployment, global economic governance, regional integration, comparative
country case studies, trade policy, environment, sustainable development,
multinational corporations and corporate responsibility) from a variety of
disciplines.

Submission Guidelines and Deadlines

Both individual paper proposals and pre-organized panel proposals are
considered. The submission deadline for paper, panel and roundtable
proposals is November 15, 2011. Proposals received after this date will not
be considered.

1. All abstracts should be submitted to: ipeconference@gediz.edu.tr
2. For paper proposals, abstracts of maximum 250 words should be sent
together with a current CV of the author(s).
3. For panel proposals, an abstract of maximum 250 words should be sent
together with a 250 word abstract for each paper (maximum of 4 papers per
panel). Please also include a chair and a discussant for the panel and a
current CV for each panelist.
4. All proposals will be peer reviewed. The Organization Committee's
decision regarding proposals will be communicated by January 25, 2012.

Conference Registration (via the conference website):

Registration fee: € 90.00 (by February 15, 2012)

Late registration fee: € 150.00 (after February 15, 2012)
Graduate Student registration fee: € 45.00 (by February 15, 2012)
Graduate Student Late registration fee: € 75.00 (after February 15, 2012)
On-site registration fee: € 200.00
Practical information

Participants are expected to cover their own travel and accommodation costs.
Practical information about hotels and travel indications will be found in
the conference website: http://ipeconference.gediz.edu.tr
Venue

Gediz University Seyrek Campus (23 May 2012) http://www.gediz.edu.tr
Crowne Plaza Hotel, Inciraltı, Izmir (24-25 May 2012)
http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/h/d/cp/1/en/hotel/izmtr
Travel Grants

A limited number of travel and accommodation grants are available,
especially for graduate students who cannot receive financial assistance
through their home institutions. If your participation depends on such
assistance please send an informed letter of request, including the amount,
to ipeconference@gediz.edu.tr (travel grants in the subject line) after the
abstract has been accepted and no later than February 15, 2012.
Contact

All inquiries should be addressed to:
Gaye Güngör, Assistant Professor, Department of International Relations,
Gediz University
gaye.gungor@gediz.edu.tr

Çiğdem Üstün, Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science and
Public Administration, Gediz University
cigdem.ustun@gediz.edu.tr

Arzu Alvan, Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, Gediz University
arzu.alvan@gediz.edu.tr

Conference: Dilemmas of Religion and Secularity in Contemporary European Cinema, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, 7-8 October 2011‏

INTERDISCIPLINARY CONFERENCE: "Dilemmas of Religion and Secularity in Contemporary European Cinema" Universitat Pompeu Fabra Barcelona 7-8 October, 2001 will be help open to public and without participation fee.

PROGRAM
Friday, 7 October, 2011 (Mercè Rodoreda)
14.00-14.10: Welcome
* Camil Ungureanu (Universitat Pompeu Fabra) & Costica Bradatan (Texas Tech University, USA)
 

14.10-15.20 Key-note address
* Geoffrey Nowell-Smith (University of London, UK): “Pasolini, the Sacred, and the Politics of Negation”
* Moderator: Jolyon Mitchell (University of Edinburgh, UK)

15.30-16.40 Key-note address
* Alexander Düttmann (University of London, UK): “Seeing the Others?”
* Moderator: John Caruana (Ryerson University, Canada)
* Jolyon Mitchell (University of Edinburgh, UK): “All Quiet on the Cinematic Front: Searching for Peaceful Religion in European Cinema”.
* Sofia Sjö (Åbo Akademi University, Finland): “Conflict or Community?: Religion in Contemporary Nordic Film”
* Moderator: Ivan Pintor (Universitat Pompeu Fabra)

18.20-19.45 Film showing
* Ten years of terror followed by a debate with the film’s co-director, Simon Critchley (New School for Social Research, USA)
* Moderator: Costica Bradatan (Texas Tech University, USA)

Saturday, 8 October, 2011 (Jaume I)
10.00-11.30
* Camil Ungureanu (Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Spain): “Radical evil, gratuitous violence and the refusal of reconciliation: interpreting Lars von Trier´s Antichrist”
* Nathan Abrams (Bangor University, UK): “The Banality of Evil: Kubrick, Polanski and the Reinvention of Horror”
* Moderator: Costica Bradatan (Texas Tech University, USA)

11.50-13:00 Key-note address
* Simon Critchley (New School for Social Research, USA): “The Faith of the Faithless”
* Moderator: Ana Devic (Dogus University, Turkey)

14.30-16.00
* Costica Bradatan (Texas Tech University, USA): “Trapped in History. A Reading of Kieslowski’s Blind Chance.”
* John Caruana (Ryerson University, Canada): “Bruno Dumont’s Cinema: Nihilism and the Collapse of the Christian Imaginary”
* Moderator: Nathan Abrams (Bangor University, UK)

16.15-17.45
* Ana Devic (Dogus University, Turkey): “Individualized Ethics and Religious Collectivism in the Cinema of Yugoslavia and Its Successor States”
* Erminia Passannanti (Brunel University, UK): “Representations of Christ and gender in European cinema”
* Moderator: Sofia Sjö (Åbo Akademi University, Finland)
 

20.15: Dinner
Participation is free and open to the public.
Organizers:
Universitat Pompeu Fabra (Spain) in collaboration with Texas Tech University (USA)

International Fellowship Opportunities for Eastern Europe and Eurasia 2012-2013‏

2012-2013 Fellowship opportunities Individual Advanced Research Opportunities Program (IARO)
Short Term Travel Grants Program (STG)*

IREX is pleased to announce that applications are now being accepted for the
2012-2013 Individual Advanced Research Opportunities Program and Short Term
Travel Grants Program.

These research support programs offer US scholars and professionals the
opportunity to conduct policy-relevant research in Eastern Europe and
Eurasia. Researchers are also able to increase their understanding of
current regional issues, develop and sustain international networks, and
directly contribute to the formation of US public policy by conducting
research on topics vital to the academic and policy-making communities. The
fellowships provide logistical support, international airfare, a
living/housing stipend, visa support, emergency evacuation insurance, and,
in many countries, field office support.

The *Individual Advanced Research Opportunities Program (IARO)* provides
students, scholars and professionals with support to conduct policy-relevant
field research in the countries of Eastern Europe and Eurasia.

**Eligibility: Master�s students, predoctoral students, postdoctoral
scholars, and professionals with advanced degrees are eligible. Applicants
must be* US citizens*.

** Information and application:
http://www.irex.org/project/individual-advanced-research-opportunities-iaro

**Deadline: *5 p.m. EST on November 16, 2011*

**Contact: By email at iaro@irex.org or by telephone at 202-628-8188

The *Short-Term Travel Grants Program (STG)* is a short-term, flexible
program for postdoctoral scholars and professionals to conduct targeted,
policy-relevant research in Eastern Europe and Eurasia.

**Eligibility: Postdoctoral scholars and professionals with advanced degrees
are eligible. Applicants must be* US citizens*.

** Information and application:
http://www.irex.org/project/short-term-travel-grants-stg

**Deadline: * 5 p.m. EST on February 1, 2012*

**Contact: By email at stg@irex.org or by telephone at 202-628-8188

Countries Eligible for Research:

Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria,
Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kosovo,
Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Poland,
Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,
Ukraine, and Uzbekistan