Current Conference Calls For Papers

Please consult this resource for iniformation on conferences you might wish to present at or attend.  Deadlines for calls for proposals are listed first; conferences of interest have dates of the actual conference listed first.  If you would like to submit a call for papers to be posted, please email Amy McIntyre, ASLE Managing Director.

Calls for Proposals

August 1, 2008.   2008 Film & History Conference: Film & Science: Fictions, Documentaries, and Beyond.  October 30-November 2, 2008, Chicago, Illinois.  AREA: Nature and the Environment in Feature Films. This area investigates the uses and representations of nature and the environment in feature films, rather than the more often discussed use of documentaries to reflect on the natural world. Thanks to Al Gore, and others, we expect and respect documentary films that address environmental issues, but feature films can also speak to environmental issues or provide nuanced representations of nature. Can feature films provide a forum for discussion on environmental issues?  Is such a message always sensationalized with Hollywood stars and big budget special effects? Is this always an intersection of box office revenue and message, with box office the only hoped for winner?

Consider films like Day After Tomorrow or There Will Be Blood. How do these films, and many others, represent the natural world and/or the misuse of that world? What feature films do you identify as overtly or more subtlety environmental? Are there directors who can tell a cinematically good story while making environmental statements? How does shot selection affect a response to the natural world? Can feature film stories be more effective at sending an environmentalist message because of the larger audiences they may reach?

Re-screen your favorite films with an eye to the natural world and environmental considerations.  Submit a brief (200 word) abstract to Deborah Carmichael, carmic28 [at] msu [dot] edu, by August 1, 2008.  Panel proposals for up to four presenters are also welcome, but each presenter must submit his or her own paper proposal.  For updates and registration information about the upcoming meeting, see the Film & History website: www.uwosh.edu/filmandhistory.

Sept. 10, 2008.  The Society of Early Americanists’s 6th Biennial Conference, Hamilton, Bermuda, March 4-7, 2009.  Storm Stories: Literature and Environment in Early America Panel.  Environmental or eco-criticism encourages scholars to examine nature as an active component, not simply the background or setting, of a literary work. How did storms seep into the fabric of colonial American culture? How might early American accounts of natural catastrophes, such as hurricanes or tornados, yield new insights into the field of ecostudies? Both traditional papers and short polemic-blasts are welcome. Send inquiries and/or proposals with c.v. to Thomas Hallock (thallock@stpt.usf.edu), U. South Florida St. Petersburg, by Sept. 10, 2008. This panel is co-sponsored by the Society of Early Americanists and the Association for the Study of Literature and Environment (http://www.asle.org). For more information about the SEA's biannual conference, go to: http://www.societyofearlyamericanists.org/conference/2009/index.shtml.

September 15, 2008.  Ecocritical Sessions at 40th Anniversary Convention, Northeast Modern Language Association (NeMLA).  Feb. 26-March 1, 2009, Hyatt Regency - Boston, Massachusetts.

Nature in Italian Literature and Cinema. The panel invites papers
(in Italian and English) that explore the role of nature in the literary and cinematic works of European authors in the Nineteenth and Twentieth century. Papers should focus on the exploration of the philosophical implications that have sustained the representation of nature in modern European literature and cinema. Theoretical, comparative as well as literary investigations are welcome. Send proposals to: eocchipi@drew.edu

Pining for Nature: Representations of Nature in Early Modern Texts. Often at the center of new movements in theory and criticism, early modern texts have the capacity to re-energize eco-critical approaches to literature; the reverse is likewise true of eco-criticism’s potential to stimulate fresh readings of early modern literature.  We are seeking papers which treat the ethics and politics of representing nature in early modern texts, particularly those building on the work of critics such as Robert N. Watson, Anne McClintock, and Sylvia Bowerbank. Please submit abstracts to Elizabeth Gruber at egruber@lhup.edu and Jennifer Forsyth at forsyth@kutztown.edu.

Connections and Community: Reinhabitory Principles in Bioregionalism and Literary Field Studies.  Bioregionalism and literary field studies have revolutionized the investigation of connections between human beings and their environments in the study of literature. This panel focuses on the relatively new field of Bioregionalism and Literary Field Studies, taking into consideration the seminal work of environmental writers like Aldo Leopold, Gary Snyder, Jim Dodge and Corey Lee Lewis.  Papers are invited which analyze bioregional literature, though preference will be shown to those which demonstrate first-hand personal experience of specific locales. Please send 250 word abstracts and contact information via e-mail to: Chris Hall, Teaching Associate, Humboldt State University; cgh11@humboldt.edu

Globalizing Ecocriticism.  Co-Sponsored by the Association for the Study of Literature and the Environment (ASLE). Taking up the call of ecocritics who point out that the field needs to continue broadening its approach beyond localisms, this panel seeks papers that foreground the global (broadly conceived) as a productive site for ecocritical thinking.  Potential topics might include: exploring linkages between postcolonial and ecocritical approaches, theorizing transnational ecocriticisms, examining supranational environmental movements, interrogating discourses of global risk, thinking about diasporan ecological subjects, and probing the possibilities of glocal ecocriticism. Send 750-1000 word proposals to Nicole Merola: nmerola@risd.edu.

Methods of Literary Ecology in American Literature: The Constitution of Place. This session invites studies of American literature of any period that highlight authorial and/or scholarly methods of doing literary ecology through a focus on place.  Papers that consider means of representing environments and places as inextricable from economic, social, and cultural factors of human habitation are especially welcomed. Send abstracts to Karen Waldron, College of the Atlantic at waldron@coa.edu.

Queer Ecocriticism and Theory Seminar. This panel will bring together
scholars seeking to explore the productive conjunction between queer theory and ecocriticism.  It will take seriously queer theorists historical frustration with the naturalization of nature, but it will also take seriously ecocritics’ call to figure the other-than-human world into our ethico-political theory and praxis. Please send 250-word abstracts to Robert Azzarello at razzarello@gc.cuny.edu

Please include with your abstract: Name and Affiliation, Email address, Postal address, Telephone number, A/V requirements (if any; $10 handling fee)

The complete Call for Papers for the 2009 Convention is available at:
www.nemla.org.  Interested participants may submit abstracts to more than one NeMLA panel; however panelists can only present one paper.  Convention participants may present a paper at a panel or seminar and also present at a creative session or participate in a roundtable.

September 15, 2008.  22nd Annual Meeting of the Society for Literature, Science, and the Arts (SLSA). Charlotte, North Carolina, November 13-16, 2008. There will be two ecocritical panels at the 22nd Annual Meeting of the SLSA in Charlotte:

"Ecocriticism and Science"
This is a call for papers for a panel on the role of science in ecocritical work and theory co-sponsored by ASLE. Papers on ecocriticism and biology are especially welcome.

Please send 500 word abstracts by September 15, 2008 to:
Helena Feder, East Carolina University, Email: federh@ecu.edu

"Animal Cultures"
This is a call for papers for a panel on ideas of nonhuman animal cultures or animal cultural studies in the biological sciences.

Please send 500 word abstracts by September 15, 2008 to:
Helena Feder, East Carolina University, Email: federh@ecu.edu

October 3, 2008. The Green Nineteenth Century: 30th Annual Conference of The Nineteenth Century Studies Association.  Milwaukee, Wisconsin, March 26-28, 2009.  We welcome paper and panel proposals concerning any aspect of “green” studies in the long nineteenth century, including, but not limited  to “ecocriticism” in nineteenth-century studies; history of ecological science, environmental ethics, and environmentalist activism; nineteenth-century studies and animal welfare; ecofeminist philosophy and gender politics; contemporary discourses on nature; nineteenth-century  ecotourism; Romantic “ecopoetics” and the politics of nature; “green” program music and tone poems; sustainability, including sustainable architecture and interior design; landscape painting; dramatic scenery; gardening and farming; conservation movements; and the idea of the “natural” or “unnatural.”  Equally welcome are proposals for papers and panels on Irish studies, earth-centered religions, the idea of the “new,” and other understandings of “green” studies in the nineteenth century.

Abstracts (no longer than 250 words) for 20-minute papers that provide author's name and paper title in heading, as well as a one-page c.v., due by Oct. 3, 2008 to Christine Roth, Program Chair, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh.

Graduate students whose proposals are accepted can, at that point, submit
a full-length version of the paper in competition for a travel grant to  help cover transportation and lodging expenses. Bringing people together for conferences can impact the environment  through the smog and greenhouse gas emissions associated with air and  ground travel, as well as the paper, plastic, and food waste associated with the event. For this reason, the 30th annual meeting of the Nineteenth Century Studies Association will also incorporate as many “green” options and resources as possible to reduce the conference-related environmental impact.

January 1, 2009.  Earth Matters On Stage: Symposium on Ecology and Performance 2009.  May 21-31, 2009, University of Oregon.  Ecology is at the heart of burgeoning creativity and interdisciplinary scholarship across the arts and humanities. This Symposium, together with the concurrent Festival, invites artists, scholars and activists to share their work, ideas, and passions with one another and with the larger community who attend the Festival.  See http://www.uoregon.edu/~ecodrama/welcome/ for information.

We welcome creative and innovative proposals for workshops, round-tables, panels, working sessions, installations, or participatory community gatherings that explore, examine, challenge, articulate, or nourish the possibilities of theatrical and performative responses to the environmental crisis in particular, and our ecological situatedness in general. The form and format is wide-open and we will schedule and shape the Symposium around the types of proposals received and selected. We encourage proposals that go beyond a recitation of ideas or positions, and instead bring presenters and participants together as they engage the driving question of how theatre has or might function as part of our reciprocal relationship with ecological communities.

Some possible topics for exploration include: land and body in performance; representations of bioregionalism; eco-literacy; representation of/and environmental justice; green theatre production; old cultural narratives/new stories; indigenous performance; community-based performance/ecological communities; sensing place/staging place; the ecologies of theatrical form and/or space; animal representation; and application of ecocriticism to plays, performance and culture.

Please send a one-page proposal and/or abstract by January 1, 2009 to: Earth Matters Symposium 2009, Theresa May, Director, Theater Arts, VIL 216, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403.  Please include: Type of session & title; Your preferred type of space (classroom, theatre, studio, or outdoors);  Time-length (60 min; 90 min; 2+ hours; half-day); Ideal or maximum number of participants; Short bios. We encourage proposals that include more than one presenter; however, single person proposals are accepted and will be combined with others as themes and formats allow.

Conferences of Interest

October 1-4, 2008. 43rd annual meeting of the Western Literature Association, Boulder, Colorado. This year's conference theme is "Western Collaborations."  To register, please go to www.usu.edu/westlit/conference2008.htm and follow the links. Registration discounts apply until 24 August, so please register as early as you can.  Program Highlights: Plenary speakers include Charles F. Wilkinson, noted author and scholar of Native American legal and cultural issues, and William Kittredge and Patricia Limerick.  The WLA also has organized a Western Literature Week in collaboration with CU-Boulder's Center of the American West. This series of public readings will feature public readings by such notable western authors as Aaron Abeyta, Janet Campbell Hale, Linda Hogan, Teresa Jordan, William Kittredge, Patricia Limerick, Simon Ortiz, Laura Pritchett, Reg Saner, and Annick Smith.

October 16-19, 2008.  Back Down to the Crossroads: Integrative American Studies in Theory and Practice. American Studies Association Annual Meeting, Albuquerque, NM.  Encountering the Anasazi panel: The world of the Anasazi—its remnant material culture, the story of its rise and fall, its status as a usable past—has been a source of fascination for nomadic seekers, weekend tourists, independent scholars, writers, artists, and professional academics. The spaces, geographical as well as cultural, where the Anasazi can be encountered offer a unique opportunity to examine the meeting between two sets of others: the past and the present, the indigenous and the immigrant. Indeed, the very term “Anasazi,” in all its denotations and connotations, reflects the construction of a culture and of a past through the history of such encounters. Contact: panel organizer Charles Mitchell (cmitchell@elmira.edu).

Nov. 8-10, 2008. International Conference on Literature and the Environment.  Wuhan, China.  This conference is organized by the staff members at Foreign Literature Studies (an AHCI journal), Central China Normal University, in collaboration with staff members from Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and Environment, University of Nevada, Reno, USA. The general topic of the conference is “Literature and the Environment” with subtopics as follows:

1.  Literature reexamined from various ecocritical perspectives
2.  Construction / Reconstruction of ecocritical theory
3.  Chinese literature and the environment
4.  Literary writings (from any country) and environmental consciousness
5.  Ecocriticism, public consciousness, and social practice
6.  The Political, economic and cultural dimensions of environmental protection

This will be a large-scale conference in China, focusing on the study of literature and the environment but at the same time trying to look beyond the academic world. It will be attended by distinguished ecocritics, environmental writers, and environmental activists from all over the world. The official conference languages will be Chinese and English.  Outdoor activities, such as panel discussions in a local forest park and hiking in a forestry center, will be arranged as part of the conference activities to encourage deep concerns about the environment through direct experience as well as through the exchange of views among the participants.

For registration, payment, and booking, please go to our website: http://fls.ccnu.edu.cn. The deadline for online procedures is July 10, 2008. Official letters of invitation for this conference will be sent upon receipt of paper abstracts. For further information, please contact Dr. Chen Hong:
Dr. Chen Hong, Editorial Office, Foreign Literature Studies, Central China Normal University, 152 Luoyu Road, Wuhan 430079, China.  Email: fls.china@163.com, Fax: 86-27-67866042.  Phone, please contact Dr. Chen Hong at 86-13871387687 or Ms Lai Yan at 86-13317178801.

January 5-7, 2009. Fifth International Conference on Environmental, Cultural, Economic, and Social Sustainability. University of Technology, Mauritius. This conference aims to develop a holistic view of sustainability, in which environmental, cultural and economic issues are inseparably interlinked. We seek a multidisciplinary way to address the fundamentals of sustainability. As well as impressive line-up of international speakers, the conference will also include paper, workshop and colloquium presentations by practitioners, teachers and researchers. If you are unable to attend the conference in person, virtual registrations are also available, which allow you to submit a paper for possible publication in this fully refereed academic journal, as well as virtual access to the conference proceedings. See http://www.SustainabilityConference.com.

July 13-19, 2009. Minding Animals: 2009 International Academic and Community Conference on Animals and Society. University of Newcastle, Australia. Call for abstracts and registration opens July 4, 2008.  The conference will be a benchmark event in the study and interpretation of human nonhuman animal interrelationships. It will bring together a broad range of academic disciplines and representatives from universities, non- government organisations and the community, industry and government around the world. Conference delegates will examine the interrelationships between human and nonhuman animals from a cultural, historical, geographical, environmental, moral, legal and political perspectives. The conference will also bring together a number of leading scientists, philosophers and social theorists, academics and community leaders, all committed to animal protection and welfare. For further information, contact Rod Bennison (rod.bennison@newcastle.edu.au)