RGS-IBG Annual International Conference, Manchester, 26-28 August 2009
Call for papers: Intersections of English- and German-Speaking Social and
Cultural Geographies
Sponsored by the History and Philosophy of Geography Research Group and
the Social and Cultural Geography Research Group
Session organizers: Heike Jöns (Loughborough University), Tim Freytag
(University of Heidelberg) and Marc Redepenning (University of Jena)
Over the past decade, English-speaking social and cultural geography has
developed sensitivity for geographical voices from other language areas. This
includes specific sessions for international conversations at the RGS-IBG
Annual International Conference (Hudson and Williams 2004) and an ongoing
series of country reports on geography’s state-of-the-art in the journal Social
and Cultural Geography (Kitchin 2003). There are also commentaries on the
English-language hegemony in geography and related asymmetries and
challenges of international academic exchange (Samers and Sidaway 2000;
Garcia-Ramon 2003; Berg 2004; Kitchin 2005; Paasi 2005; Aalbers and Rossi
2007), and individual reflections on the situation of non-native speakers in
English-speaking social and cultural geography (Belina 2005; Helms et al
2005). Building on these exchanges, we aim to organise two paper sessions
and a panel that focus specifically on the multiple relationships between
English- and German-speaking social and cultural geographies. We are
interested in historical interrogations of this relationship and in contemporary
analyses exploring the intersections, divergences and convergences of
theoretical frameworks, methodological approaches and topical foci. In close
association with the conference theme 'Geography, Knowledge and Society',
we hope to inspire innovative studies and vibrant discussions on the questions
of how social and cultural geography is practiced in different language
contexts and why certain concepts and topics are more successful or travel
more easily than others, thus displaying a larger connectivity across
geographical and linguistic boundaries.
If you are interested in participating in the paper sessions, please send your
title and abstract (max. 250 words) to Heike Jöns ([log in to unmask]) by
10th February 2009. More information on the conference theme and
organizational issues are available at: www.rgs.org/AC2009.
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