Calls: New Challenges for Multilingualism in Europe

[Harold Schiffman]

New Challenges for Multilingualism in Europe
Short Title: LINEE

Date: 11-Apr-2010 - 15-Apr-2010
Location: Dubrovnik, Croatia
Contact Person: Lana Peternel
Meeting Email: lanainantro.hr
Web Site: http://www.amiando.com/lineeconference


Call Deadline: 01-Oct-2009

Meeting Description:

This international outreach conference is organized jointly by LINEE:
Languages in a Network of European Excellence and the integrated project DYLAN
of the European Commission's 6th Framework Programme for Research and
Development. With an increased awareness of international globalisation and
European integration, the existing mainstream conceptualizations of
multilingualism and linguistic diversity have been increasingly questioned, in
particular within the humanities and the social sciences. In a EU context of
socio-political transition it is therefore a challenge to take stock of the
existing disciplinary knowledge, and to reassess it against the background of
the ongoing integration process which goes along with the transformation of
traditional linguistic and cultural patterns.

Conference Scientific Board:
Senka Bozic (Zadar), Rita Franceschini (Bozen), François Grin (Geneva), Clare
Mar-Molinero (Southampton), Jiri Nekvapil (Prague), Patrick Stevenson
(Southampton), Anita Sujoldzic (Zagreb), Rosita Schjerve-Rindler (Vienna), Iwar
Werlen (Bern).

Organizing Institution: Institute for Anthropological Research, Zagreb, Croatia

Call for Papers

Venue: Dubrovnik, Croatia
The conference is intended to bring together academics representing a range of
disciplines in humanities and social sciences, practitioners and EU/national
policy makers, concerned with multilingualism and linguistic diversity in
Europe. Proposals are invited for original and previously unpublished research
papers that broadly fall within the following themes and topics:

A. Language, Culture and Identity:
Within the context of ongoing glocalisation, the emergence of multiple
identities compels to redefine the role of languages and lingua francas as
identity markers, and as factors contributing to the distinctiveness
of culture-
specific environments. The overall objective of this thematic block is to
clarify the saliency of language as an identity marker in the EU. This
points to
the role of language in identity formation processes, the existence of
language-based multiple identities, and the significance of language as part of
well-being of their speakers, and primary symbol of possible secondary
cultural,
economical, political and other non-linguistic motives.

B. Language Policy and Planning:
This thematic bloc is addressed to researchers interested not only on the
institutional, intrinsic and professional process-oriented dimension, but also
to those concerned with an often unnoticed, implicit or unintended language
policy and language planning processes. A consensus on the demarcation between
such concepts as "language policy", "language planning" and related concepts
("aménagement linguistique", "language politics") will be discussed. The issues
to examine concern the adequacy of the existing language policy and language
planning efforts in the EU countries, identifying possible
discrepancies between
theory and practice.

C. Multilingualism and Education:
The main issue to be tackled concerns the challenge of becoming not only
multilingual, but multicompetent in a multilingual environment and the ways of
developing the capacity to behave in a flexible and adequate manner in concrete
multilingual contexts. The two main fields in which these questions can be
answered, are in general a) Second Language Acquisition, including all forms of
language acquisition apart from first language acquisition, from contact
languages present in the territory to school learning of truly foreign
languages) and b) bilingual Education (including concurrent learning of several
languages).

D. Language and Economy:
This topic is focused on the interplay between and economy and their impact on
the building of a knowledge-based society. The focus will be on the
relationship
between language, geographical mobility and New Economy growth patterns. If we
conceive of the economic order as a determining force in society, and
if we take
into account that economy cannot do without language, then it follows that
economy has profound implications for language (its use and status, the
emergence of lingua francas) in society. This is all the more true as economy
itself has shifted from industrial age to a knowledge economy.

The abstract submission deadline for individual papers is October 1, 2009.
Further details regarding abstract submission and registration are available on
the conference website: http://www.amiando.com/lineeconference

Location of the conference:
Dubrovnik is one of the most attractive places on the Mediterranean. It is a
city with a unique political and cultural history, and a world famous
monumental heritage and beauty inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List
(http://www.tzdubrovnik.hr).

For additional information please contact or call:
Lana Peternel
Institute for Anthropological Research, Lj. Gaja 32, P.O. Box 290, 10000
Zagreb, Croatia
E-mail: lanainantro.hr
Phone: +385-1-5535104; Fax: +385-1-5535105

http://linguistlist.org/issues/20/20-1428.html

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