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Identities, Democracy, Borders
Identités, démocratie, frontières
Published on Friday, January 08, 2016
Abstract
Within Europe, a relatively indeterminate contours’ space, efforts to integrate and to bound the people and the political systems have yielded tangible results in political, economic, social and cultural matters. The objectives were consensual, such as to ensure lasting peace, economic growth and global security, as well as the freedom to act, to undertake and to think. Yet some may think that the integration has been made too hastily – especially to the east, creating new differentiations: East/West, adding to an older North/South. This analytical prism however is reducing because it largely ignores internal disparities in most national territories.
Announcement
Banska Bystrica, 6-7 avril 2016
Argument
Within Europe, a relatively indeterminate contours’ space, efforts to integrate and to bound the people and the political systems have yielded tangible results in political, economic, social and cultural matters. The objectives were consensual, such as to ensure lasting peace, economic growth and global security, as well as the freedom to act, to undertake and to think. Yet some may think that the integration has been made too hastily – especially to the east, creating new differentiations: East / West, adding to an older North / South. This analytical prism however is reducing because it largely ignores internal disparities in most national territories. After a relative sharing of hope and confidence in the future, the European public spaces today are described as dominated by fears, disappointments, a particular distrust towards national governments in a context of crisis and human drama, widely publicized through the media. This context can be seen as triggers or a revelation of these fears and threats
The situation seems paradoxical. Indeed, the supposedly expressed profound differences within and between Member States, with the findings of non-communications (even non-communicabilities); perceptions, representations and expressions are different, in particular during the crises times. Yet, a more and more important part of the EU’s total population (the rate of 10% of the total population is often mentioned) has become mobile, works in a other country than his own, and travels, all without developing a migrating behaviour and with an identity constructions of a new kind – a composite one. The “Erasmus generation” is not just a marketing slogan, it corresponds to a practical reality for a growing number of European students. An “other” Europe seems to be emerging, most probably a long lasting one, through also other collective developments like for example transnational networks, NGOs, social or cultural initiatives. This “other” Europe is small, common, without surprises or discoveries; mobile citizens aspire to find new participation modes and evolution of democratic functioning particularly in relation to national votes, or to a low interconnection of political parties, or local debates.
The analyses of these developments, articulating the local and the global, are consistent with an appropriation of uses, postures, as well as movements, bringing new actual elements to the European Union which is still trying to establish a more democratic functioning and to make this functioning more “invested” by citizens, with a more efficient governance. Changes of expectations, rise of social networks and social mutations within the information society contribute to the transformation of local or national public spaces using the evolutions of a new space – from the borders’ approach. How to turn constraints into opportunities, with a commitment allowing to hope that, whatever the evolution of the European construction will be, the citizen should be able to participate in community life, in the exchange and the sharing?
If many borders seem to have disappeared, even they have been lately challenged by controls related to emergency situations, others did appear. There never has been new walls built worldwide than in the last two decades. And beyond a legitimization of the “fortress” Europe, within this space, other types of borders, e. g. mental ones, were implemented. The identity mechanisms need of course some boundaries in order to stay structured, and bringing together and the existence whilst allowing in the same time permitting to consider otherness. The important question is not to wonder if the borders are a necessity or not, but to properly define what type of borders do we need: passage or wall? Now we need to try to imagine which kind of borders are acceptable, legitimate, and useful.
This conference, organized under the frame of the Jean Monnet European Research Network “Identity, Culture, and Multilingualism Exchanges” (EUROMEC), propose an exploration of realities and borders of a situation described as paradoxical, situation of openness and practices, using especially transnational networks, along with withdrawals often described as identity withdrawals. Starting from this prism, it is expected to uncover descriptions and analyses of situations, perceptions, attitudes, representations, uses and activities of European Union countries’ citizens, with respect to identity dynamics (possibly connected to an exploration of the bottom-up community building). Our aim is also to explore the impact of policies, programmes and cultural activities, educational, social, economic, geopolitical and/or geo-economic European institutions on identity mechanisms of citizens (identity building top-down).
Submission guidelines
Presentation: English, French, Slovak. Contributions: English, French
The proposals for papers (title, summary of the proposal – 150 words – 4-6 keywords, personal presentation of authors) should be sent
before the March, 15th, 2016,
both to Radovan Gura, radovan.gura@umb.sk & Gilles Rouet: gilles.rouet@umb.sk
The selected papers will be sent before May 31th, 2016 (30 to 40,000 characters). A publication will then be realised in France and/or Slovakia.
Organisation committee
- Anne-Coralie Bonnaire, Assistante, Université de Leipzig, Université Paris Descartes
- Etienne Ciapin, Assistant, UMB, Université Pierre Mendès France, Grenoble
- Thierry Côme, Maître de conférences habilité, Université de Reims-Champagne-Ardenne
- Serge Dufoulon, Professeur, Université Pierre Mendès France, Grenoble
- Radovan Gura, Maître de conférences habilité, UMB
- Christophe Lips, Assistant, ISM, UVSQ
- Dilyana Pavlova, Assistante, Université de Sofia St Clément d’Ohrid
- Stela Raytcheva, Maître de conference, ISM, UVSQ
- Gilles Rouet, Professeur, Université Matej Bel de Banska Bystrica, Université de Versailles St Quentin en Yvelines
- Maria Rostekova, Maître de conférences, Université Matej Bel de Banska Bystrica
- Maria Stoicheva, Professeur, Vice-Rectrice, Université de Sofia St Clément d’Ohrid
Scientific committee
- Stéphane Alvarez, Maître de conférences, Université Pierre Mendès France, Grenoble
- Thierry Côme, Maître de conférences habilité, Université de Reims-Champagne-Ardenne
- Serge Dufoulon, Professeur, Université Pierre Mendès France, Grenoble
- Radovan Gura, Maître de conférences habilité, Université Matej Bel de Banska Bystrica
- Igor Kosir, Professeur, Université Matej Bel de Banska Bystrica
- Stela Raytcheva, Maître de conference Université de Versailles St Quentin en Yvelines
- Gilles Rouet, Professeur, Université Matej Bel de Banska Bystrica, Doyen, Université de Versailles St Quentin en Yvelines
- Maria Rostekova, Maître de conférences, Université Matej Bel de Banska Bystrica
- Maria Stoicheva, Professeur, Vice-rectrice, Université de Sofia St Clément d’Ohrid
- Peter Terem, Professeur, Vice-doyen, Université Matej Bel de Banska Bystrica
Subjects
- Europe (Main category)
- Society > Political studies > Political science
- Mind and language > Information > Information sciences
- Society > Economics > Management
- Society > Political studies > Political and social movements
- Mind and language > Representation > Cultural identities
- Society > Geography > Geography: society and territory
- Society > Sociology > Sociology of culture
Places
- Faculté des sciences politiques et des relations internationales - Kuzmányho 1
Banská Bystrica, Slovakia (97401)
Date(s)
- Tuesday, March 15, 2016
Attached files
Keywords
- identité, construction européenne, frontière, participation, mobilité, migration
Contact(s)
- gilles rouet
courriel : gilles [dot] rouet [at] uvsq [dot] fr
Reference Urls
Information source
- gilles rouet
courriel : gilles [dot] rouet [at] uvsq [dot] fr
License
This announcement is licensed under the terms of Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal.
To cite this announcement
« Identities, Democracy, Borders », Call for papers, Calenda, Published on Friday, January 08, 2016, https://calenda.org/352047
