The Diversity of Geography
Call for papers, RGS-IBG Annual Conference 2003
Venue: The RGS-IBG, 1 Kensington Gore, London
Date: Wednesday 3 - Friday 5 September
This is a joint session of the Contract Research and Teaching Staff Forum
(CRTSF), the Higher Education Research Group (HERG) and the Postgraduate
Forum (PGF)
Convenors are Dr Nicola Shelton (CRTF), Dr Pauline Kneale (HERG), Prof.Brian
Chalkley (LTSN-GEES), Oliver Harmar (PGF).
To many geographers, the subject's key attribute is its sheer diversity.
Professional geographers develop their own geographies drawn from this
diversity. In the current institutional climate diversity presents many
practical difficulties. The challenge is to manage this diversity in a
climate of increasing specialism and disciplinary polarisation, and in a
growing culture of audit where disciplinary objectives have to be
rationalised and benchmarked. Some of the challenges of diversity are
generic across HE: balancing research, teaching, staff and postgraduate
supervision and administration. Other challenges are geographical: the
polarising constituencies of human and physical geography, the external
perception of the discipline, the focus of teaching areas and research
groups into a small number of departments seem to undermine traditional
diversity. The increasing casualisation of the academic labour market
further serves to challenge the diversity of geography.
This session will explore the impact of diversity on the discipline of
geography through two proposed themes. BUT this is a very wide subject and
we welcome other suggestions.
1 Diversity in Recruitment: The experiences of postgraduates and their
supervisors, contract teachers, contract researchers and their managers in
postgraduate and staff recruitment. Does specialism constrain geographers'
spatial mobility?
2 Diversity in the Discipline: The experiences of postgraduates and
their supervisors and contract teachers and researchers and their managers
in both physical and human geography in teaching, learning and research.
Does specialism constrain epistemological flexibility?
Offers of paper or alternative contributions (poster, workshop, discussion
group) should be sent with a short abstract (max 150 words) to Dr Pauline
Kneale at [log in to unmask] by January 13, 2003.
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