2019 International Conference of the Consortium for Comparative Research on Regional Integration and Social Cohesion (RISC)
4-5 November 2019
Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Johannesburg, South Africa
Organized by the UJ Department of Politics and International Relations, the University of Helsinki, the University of Luxembourg (Migration and Inclusive Societies Group), and INECOL (GAMMA)
The Consortium for Comparative Research on Regional Integration and Social Cohesion (RISC) promotes the comparative examination of the human and environmental impacts of various aspects of regional integration across geographic areas. The movement of human beings across borders is a serious international concern, becoming increasingly more so in recent years, and has potentially devastating consequences not only on the scattered communities fleeing hazardous circumstances but also for policymakers, health practitioners, the environment and ecosystems, local communities, urban planners, social activists and national governments alike. Border and migration issues generally continue to challenge policymakers in states and regional bodies across the globe. Similarly, the conversation around the nature and role of the state, including the open-border debate, in a continuously globalizing and increasingly complex international system continues too. The implications of human movement that characterise evolving trends in 21st century societies, are so great and all-encompassing that an interdisciplinary lens is almost a necessity in attempting to grapple with their consequences and to measure their impacts. These discussions underscore mainstream theoretical arguments and highlight regional thinking on people versus resources; society-specific values versus universal norms; access to land; the definition of ‘illegal’; impact on economies, the value of human capital, and fundamentally the question that demands constant societal reflection: Who decides what, where, when and why? The conference will include both keynote panels (by invitation) and panels organized by the consortium’s working groups.
The deadline for the submission of paper proposals is 20 March 2019. All proposals should be sent to riscuj2019@gmail.com including 1) Proposed paper title, 2) Author name(s) and contact information, 3) Author affiliation(s) and position(s), 3) A 100-200 word abstract and 4) The name of the panel for which the paper is being proposed. All papers presented at the conference can be submitted for publication in the RISC Consortium’s peer-reviewed journal Regions & Cohesion (Berghahn Journals) and may also feature in a special edition of Politikon (South African Journal of Political Studies). The RISC Consortium values proposals from early-career scholars which can be combined with participation in the consortium’s doctoral/postdoctoral school on “Barriers and Borders: Human Mobility and Building Inclusive Societies” that will be held from 6-8 November in association with this conference (see call for applications at www.risc.lu).