Keywords: Cursuri & Conferinte Solicitare eseu/articol

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Shaping Europe in a Globalized WorldProtest Movements and the Rise of a Transnational Civil Society.Conference at the University of Zurich, Departmentof Germanwith the support of the European Commission.

 Call for Papers / Travel Grants
 Conveners: Roland Axtmann (Centre for the Studyof Culture andPolitics, University of Swansea), KathrinFahlenbrach (University ofHalle), Martin Klimke (University of Heidelberg),Joachim Scharlot (University of Zurich)Location: Department of German, University of Zurich Date: June 23-26, 2009

  Recent research into the development andimplications of transnationalmodes of political organization has tended toconcentrate on the growthof institutions involved with internationalpolitical and economicgovernance. This has been counter-balanced bygrowing research intointernational protest movements that appears topaint a picture of anemerging transnational civil society; one thatincludes formalize Non-Governmental Organisations such as OXFAM  Amnesty International andinternational labour movements as well as the seemingly more spontaneous movements associated with anti-globalization and anti-capitalist activism. The study of transnational social movements is, then, centra  to the development of our understanding of the internationalization of politics as such and in particular to attempts to,conceptualize a global civil society. However, such research is problematic and in need of  expansion and realignment in both the conceptual and empirical dimensions. There are three central issues that need to be addressed:
Firstly, research into transnational social movements often presupposesa series of normative claims regarding thedesirability of particularforms of democratic activity. It then relies onthese norms to both
explain and justify research findings. But themovement from centralizedand state-led national politics to a global politics  of multiple actors in a multi-polar context precisely calls such normsinto question: they are a source of the conflictual dynamics of globalpolitics not its outcome and still less a governing explanatory principle. Research needsto conceptualize the way in which an irreducible tension between  demand for universal norms and the reality of aglobal pluriverse is constitutive of the terrain traversed by transnational movements.Secondly, research into social movements tendsoverwhelmingly toconcentrate on movements of the left. This leads notonly to theminimizing of the attention paid to social movementsof the right. Italso simply generalizes a particular dimension ofpoliticaldifferentiation while suppressing others. This mayhave been sufficientfor the study of the first wave of post-wartransnational movements in1960s Europe. It is not sufficient for today. Forinstance, anincreasingly significant political phenomenonconsists of transnationanationalisms: movementsorganized for national ‘liberation’ that operate across borders, connected to and sustained by networks of migrant co-nationals and other sympathizers. Movements organized to oppose trade liberalization may be motivated by nationalist and particularist sentiments as well as social democratic nostalgia. Religious movementscannot easily be contained within a left-rightspectrum. Research intotransnational social movements must undertakeempirical examination ofthe multiple dimensions along which groups aredispersed and also to> conceptualise this distribution.Thirdly, to date research has concentrated onEuropean-style socialmovements and has identified similar variants inother regions. But thismight mean that religious movements such as Falu Gong in China are notproperly attended to.The goal of this conference is to address these issues; to consolidate present research and to begin developing new empirical findings and new conceptual frameworks
We especially encourage applications referring to the following topics • Globalization of Politics – Globalization of Protest?• Transnationalism within Right Wing Protest Movements
• Filling the Gap: European Protest Movements as aResult of a Lack ofDemocracy within the E• EU Polity and Europeanization of Protest• Applying the Concepts of “Civil Society” and “Social Movements” iEastern Europe and non-European Countries –Potential and Limits
• Even Newer Social Movements – Creating newPublic Spheres?• Building Transnational Protest Identities â€Languages, Images and Actions • European Anti-Corporate Campaigns in Globalized Economy• Migration and Ethnicity as a Source of Protest• Professionalizing Protest• The Future of Political Participation: Social  Movements, Lobbying orParty Politics• Taming Protest: The Rituals of ViolenceApplications from postgraduate students, early stage researchers (PhD-students), postdocs and young scholars from al ldisciplinary and national backgrounds are strongly encouraged and form the main target group for this event.
  All travel and accommodation costs within reasonable mboundaries will be covered by the European Union.
Although the conference language will mainly beEnglish, we also inviteproposals in French, Spanish, Dutch, German andPolish, if a short summary (2 pages) in English is provided.

-abstracts no longer than 500 words

  SELECTIONS WILL BE MADE BY: October 1, 2008. PLEASE USE ONLINE APPLICATION AT:
  www.protest-research.eu
 
  FURTHER QUESTIONS: mail@protest-research.eu

Deadline: 2008/08/15