UNIGR-CBS JUBILEE CONFERENCE: 10 YEARS OF BORDER STUDIES IN THE GREATER REGION
17-18 October 2024 – Innovation Centre, Saarland University
Border struggles” encapsulates a spectrum of struggles, troubles, conflicts, and contestations surrounding the demarcation, management, and particularly the crossing of borders. These struggles manifest in various forms, ranging from the physical act of traversing borders to the ideological and political disputes over their legitimacy and control. In the context of migration, border struggles include the perilous journeys of individuals and groups seeking refuge or better opportunities, often in the face of stringent border controls and restrictive immigration policies.
These struggles are not merely physical but also symbolic, as they challenge notions of sovereignty, identity, and belonging. And they are represented in cultural texts, literature, films, and media. In war and conflict, border struggles involve the contentious processes of territorial reconfiguration, where borders are not only contested lines on a map but also sites of violent clashes and geopolitical maneuvering.
These conflicts underscore the fluid and often arbitrary nature of borders, reflecting broader historical and cultural tensions. Furthermore, border struggles can also be understood through the lens of social and economic disparities, where marginalized communities grapple with exclusionary practices that reinforce boundaries of inequality. Thus, border struggles are multifaceted, encompassing the geopolitical, socio-economic, and cultural dimensions of human mobility and territoriality, reflecting broader dynamics of power, resistance, and negotiation.
We invite panel (up to 3 papers) and paper (20 minutes max.) submissions focusing on “Border Struggles and (Cross-)Border Alliances” in their complexity, zooming in on:
- Migration and Mobility
- Social and Economic Inequalities
- Culture and Language, particularly in relation to Questions of Identity and Heritage
- Environmental and Resource Management
- Legal and Human Rights Issues
- Historical Developments of Border Regions
- Theoretical and Methodological Contributions
We welcome panel and paper submissions from the UniGR-CBS scholars and equally from senior and junior border studies scholars from across the globe.
Panels should be designed for 90 minutes; individual papers for 20 minutes plus Q&A. The conference languages are English, French, and German (no translation). Abstracts can be handed in in either language.
Please send your abstract (300 words max. per paper) and a short bio-bibliographical blurb to borderstudies@uni-saarland.de by 4 August 2024.
Contact: Eva Nossem borderstudies@uni-saarland.de