The Colonial and Settler Studies Network at the University of Wollongong, of which I’m a member, is holding its first conference in November 2016. The call for papers has just gone out, with proposals due 10 June 2016. Details below, or in this pdf call for papers.

For conference updates see: http://www.uowblogs.com/cass/63-2/2016-conference-colonial-formations/

CALL FOR PAPERS Colonial Formations: Connections and Collisions

University of Wollongong
24–25 November 2016

Keynote speakers:
Professor Clare Anderson, University of Leicester
Professor Jane Lydon, University of Western Australia
Dr Alice Te Punga Somerville, Macquarie University
Dr Virginia Marshall, University of Wollongong

This conference will explore colonial formations from a range of historical, contemporary and interdisciplinary perspectives. In particular it seeks to foreground the local and regional particularities of colonial dynamics alongside those of the more studied arena of ‘imperial formations’. We seek to continue the work of decentring the metropole, as well as to shed light on its enduring power and purchase. The conference’s framing themes of ‘connections’ and ‘collisions’ encourages enquiry into processes of borrowing, negotiation and collaboration, as well as contestation, conflict and Indigenous resurgence and mobilisation.

The conference also serves to mark the recent formation of the Colonial and Settler Studies Network (CASS) at the University of Wollongong. CASS promotes critical inquiry into the history, theoretical framing, and contemporary manifestations of colonialism on a global scale. We particularly foster work that places colonial and settler colonial formations in comparative and connected frames, and promote collaboration between scholars of diverse colonialisms.

Paper proposals might consider the following themes:

• Indigenous and subaltern networks and exchanges
• Settler colonialism and its relation to other colonial formations past and present
• Colonial mobilities and movements across different colonial spaces
• Collaborations/resistance/resurgence/cultural activism
• Violence and violations
• Citizenship and the production of difference
• Biopolitics and colonialism/settler colonialism
• Gender and sexualities
• The politics of memory

We are calling for proposals for both individual papers (20 mins) and panels of up to 3 speakers (90 mins). Proposals should include a 250-word abstract and a 50-word biographical statement for each speaker. For panels, please also include a title and brief rationale for the panel as a whole. Please send proposals to cass-admin@uow.edu.au by 10 June 2016.

The conference will be preceded on 23 November 2016 by an interdisciplinary one-day masterclass for postgraduates and early career researchers — ‘Confronting Colonialism’. This will be led by Professors Clare Anderson and Jane Lydon, along with CASS members. Participants will be mentored to develop their conference papers for submission as journal articles. Some travel bursaries will be available. Places are limited. Interested postgraduates and early career researchers who are submitting a paper for the conference can request a masterclass application form by emailing cass-admin@uow.edu.au.

We anticipate that one or more journal special issues will develop from the conference proceedings.

Conference Convenors: Jane Carey and Frances Steel
Conference Administrator: Helen Bones
Hosted by the Colonial and Settler Studies Network, Faculty of Law, Humanities and the Arts, University of Wollongong