[H-verkko] CFP: The Third International Conference on Nordic and Baltic Studies of the Romanian Association for Baltic and Nordic Studies and Balkanalysis.com

[agricola at utu.fi]

Agricolan Artikkelipyyntötietokantaan
( http://agricola.utu.fi/nyt/pyynnot/ )
on tullut seuraava ilmoitus:

The Third International Conference on Nordic and Baltic Studies of
the Romanian Association for Baltic and Nordic Studies and
Balkanalysis.com

The Third International Conference on Nordic and Baltic Studies of
the Romanian Association for Baltic and Nordic Studies and
Balkanalysis.com

will be held from May 25-27, 2012 in Targoviste, Romania

European networks: the Balkans, Scandinavia and the Baltic world in a
time of economic and ideological crisis

Conference general topic description:
 
The current global economic crisis has generated debate in Europe
regarding not only the future expansion of the EU, but the very
viability of the European project itself. The discussion regarding
the integration of the Balkans in the EU or NATO has been accompanied
or even replaced by the question of whether the European project will
in fact survive the general economic and social crisis that Europe
faces today. While the Balkans still look towards Western European
models and standards, Europe itself is suffering a crisis of
political deadlock, economic decline, and an increasingly sharp
ideological divide. Similarly, while Estonia has just entered the
Euro club and Latvian, Lithuanian, Bulgarian and Romanian leaders
talk about joining into the Euro zone, top world economists are at
the same time predicting the end of the Euro as a currency sometime
in the near future.

The economic crisis in Europe seems to be partially responsible for
the adoption over the past few years of anti-immigrant policies,
something also being fed by fears of the future role of Islam in
Europe. But these policies have also targeted citizens of European
Union countries in Central and Eastern Europe (such as the Roma
minority in Romania), as well as those of non-EU Balkan states.

A common reason stated for exclusionary policies is to safeguard the
jobs of domestic workers. However, this crisis has also fostered the
development of a new far right bloc around Europe, having as one of
its features the exaltation of xenophobia, fear of immigrants and
foreigners in general. The debate regarding the Roma has been
particularly fierce, with even the Finns and the Swedes opposed to
the formers’ presence in their countries. A transformative moment in
the evolution of this phenomenon occurred in July of 2011, with the
Oslo attacks carried out by Anders Behring Breivik, allegedly done to
save Norwegian society from the government’s liberal policies on
immigration and multi-culturalism. Disturbingly, this event proved
that even advanced and well-organized European states such as Norway
are unable to prevent large-scale extremist violence.

The aims of the conference:

The conference has two major goals. The first is to foster debate and
academic discussion regarding contemporary problems facing the Balkan
and Baltic regions during a period of severe global economic
instability. These include the rise of extremist political groups
with violent aims in the Baltics, the continued activity of
Balkan-origin organized crime groups in Scandinavia, and the role
that Baltic states may play in helping Western Balkan countries
integrate politically and institutionally with the EU. The second aim
of the conference is to foster cooperation and the creation of
research networks between scholars from two geographical peripheries
of Europe.

In this respect, the conference will address themes such as:

The accession of Balkan states to the EU and/or NATO, with particular
reference to the experiences of the relatively new EU and/or NATO

Member States from South-Eastern Europe and the Eastern Baltic
region. What lessons or information-sharing experiences or networks
do the latter states have for the Balkan ones?

Perceived threats to Western Europe (in economic, security or
cultural terms) posed by Balkan and/or Eastern European
states/non-state actors. Are these threats real or exaggerated? What
measures can and are being taken to deal with them?

The development of the far right in the Balkans and in Northern
Europe, past, present and future. What linkages can be observed, and
what conclusions can be made?

Strategies for integrating minorities in the Baltic Sea rim countries
and in the Black Sea areas. What is being done, and how can it be done
better?
 
Past and present networks of cooperation at state or NGO level
between the Baltic and Black seas regions. Do these present a useful
model for results-oriented cooperation (i.e., in sharing experiences
for EU membership goals), or otherwise how should they be modified?

Current economic relations between Baltic and/or Nordic states, on
the one hand, and the Balkan countries, on the other: trends and
directions of trade between the two regions, labor costs and
competitiveness, business perceptions, economic integration etc.

Current political, cultural and diplomatic relations between Baltic
and/or Nordic states, on the one hand, and the Balkan countries;
Balkan organized crime in the Scandinavian countries

The Balkan Roma people as threat for Western Europe

The second aim of the conference is to foster cooperation and the
creation of research networks between scholars from two geographical
peripheries of Europe, the Balkans and the Baltic World. This
conference aims at putting this people together, at facilitating the
contacts among them, at offering them the framework for developing
new projects, for finding in cooperation new solutions to old
dilemmas.

Creating specialized networks is indeed an implicit aim of every
international conference, but this would be the first organized event
specifically designed to bring together scholars, academics, PhD
students from the Balkans and Baltic world or interested in the
problems of these two specific areas.

ARSBN welcomes papers, panels and roundtable proposals. Contributions
are encouraged from disciplines but not limited to: history, cultural
studies, economics, ethnic relations, international relations,
political science.

Paper, panel or roundtable proposals shall be sent to the organizers
of the conference at conference2012 at arsbn.ro and must include an
abstract (motivation, problem statement, approach, results,
conclusion) of no more than 300 words and a curriculum vitae.
 
All participants whose papers are accepted for presentation will be
offered free conference attendance, accommodation and an excursion.
Please be aware that the travel expenses are not covered except for a
few possible travel grants offered by the Nordic and Baltic embassies
in Romania (the confirmation of which is still pending). However, the
participants arriving from abroad will be commuted from and to
Bucharest International Airport “Henri Coanda” (some 75 km east to
Targoviste).

Selected papers presented at the conference will be published in the
journals: 
• Revista Româna de Studii Baltice si Nordice / The Romanian Journal
for Baltic and Nordic Studies: http://www.arsbn.ro/RRSBN.htm -
deadline June  15, 2011
• Valahian Journal of Historical Studies:
http://www.valahianjournal.info – deadline September 15, 2012;

In addition, the possibility of publishing a thematic volume at
Cambridge Scholars Publishing is also envisaged.
 
Conference Schedule and Deadlines:
• Proposals for panels and roundtables (approx. 500 words): December
31, 2011
• Abstracts for individual papers (approx. 300 words): February 1,
2012
• Notification of Acceptance: March 1, 2012
• Publication of the Conference program: March 31, 2012 
• Conference: May 25-27, 2012


------------------------------------------------------
Ilmoituksen lähetti: Kari Alenius <kari.alenius at oulu.fi>
Ilmoitus vanhentuu: 02.02.2012
Lisätietoja WWW-osoitteesta: http://www.arsbn.ro/conference-2012.htm