An Interdisciplinary Research-Planning Conference of the 1HOPE Research Interest Group
In Cooperation with the University of Sassari
University of Sassari
Sassari, Italy, June 15-17, 2017
CALL FOR PAPERS
The 1HOPE Research Interest Group is seeking proposals by academicians from a wide spectrum of disciplines—ranging from the physical and biological sciences, the social and political sciences, and the arts and humanities on the theme of environment, social justice, and the media in the age of Anthropocene.
The acronym 1HOPE stands for “One Humanity—One Planet Endeavor.” The 1HOPE Research Interest Group finds its roots in a conference, “One Planet—One Humanity: Communications For and Against,” that took place at Benedictine University on May 29-31, 2014. An outcome of that conference was the publication of a book, Interdisciplinary Essays on Environment and Culture: One Planet, One Humanity and the Media, edited by Luigi Manca and Jean-Marie Kauth, and published by Lexington Books in 2016. We plan to hold a second conference in Sardinia in June 2017 at the University of Sassari, and to produce a second publication from this conference.
Through the discussion at the conference we plan to explore possible links among three phenomena that are observed globally as well as locally and that we judge to constitute a potential threat to humanity’s material and spiritual survival: the destruction of the environment, the erosion of social justice, and the failure of the media to provide the citizens with pictures of reality upon which they can act. How are these phenomena related? In the final analysis these attacks on the environment, social justice, and media intelligence are an outcome of a dysfunctional society driven by corporate and political interests that are in conflict with those of humanity as a whole. In the face of such threats to our future, could we develop a sense of real solidarity and address the destructive forces that are polluting both our biological and the spiritual world? We seek a variety of answers to these questions from different disciplinary perspectives.
The conference will run for three days and will consist of one on-going plenary session in which each participant presents his or her ideas, after which we all engage in general discussion. Between the sessions, there will be breaks long enough for people to gather in smaller groups to discuss ideas and strategies. To facilitate discussion and interaction, we intend to limit the total conference attendance to 30 people.
One intended outcome of the conference is the compilation of a book provisionally titled Perspectives on Environment and Social Justice in The Age of Anthropocene. The book will consist of a peer-reviewed selection of essays developed through the conference.
Please send resume and 600-word abstract to Luigi Manca, interim chair of the steering committee (lm****@be*.edu) by March 15, 2017.
