[lg policy] Linguist List Issue: Troms=?utf-8?Q?=C3=B8_?=International Conference on Language Diversity

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Message1: Tromsø International Conference on Language Diversity
Date:06-May-2013
From:Øystein A. Vangsnes oystein.vangsnes at uit.no
LINGUIST List issue http://linguistlist.org/issues/24/24-1940.html 

Full Title: Troms� International Conference on Language Diversity 
Short Title: TromSlang 

Date: 06-Nov-2013 - 08-Nov-2013
Location: Troms�, Norway 
Contact Person: �ystein A. Vangsnes
Meeting Email: tromslang2013 at hsl.uit.no
Web Site: http://uit.no/languagediversity 

Linguistic Field(s): Anthropological Linguistics; Applied Linguistics; Language Documentation; Sociolinguistics 

Call Deadline: 01-Jun-2013 

Meeting Description:

The Troms� International Conference on Language Diversity will be organized by the University of Troms� from 6-8 November 2013 in Troms�, Norway. 

A central objective of the conference is to bring together research and policy making in the area of language diversity. Keynote speakers will include academics, politicians and public administrators. 

Confirmed Keynote Speakers:

Kenneth R. Beesley, SAP Labs, Salt Lake City, USA
Raphael Berthele, University of Fribourg, Switzerland
Ellen Bialystok, York University, Canada
Mikel Forcada, University of Alicante
Kendall King, University of Minnesota, USA 
Elana Shohamy, Tel Aviv University, Israel 

Invited Thematic Workshops:

'Bilingualism, Biliteracy, and Cognition' - organized by Antonella Sorace and Yulia Rodina
'Standardising Minority Languages - Policy and Practice' - organized by Pia Lane
'The Impact of Language Technology on Society' - organized by Giellatekno - Center for Saami Language Technology

Background:

The Troms� International Conference on Language Diversity will be one of the seven main events during Spr�k�ret 2013, the Norwegian national Language Year 2013, which marks both the 200th anniversary of the Norwegian linguist and poet Ivar Aasen and the 100th anniversary of Det Norske Teatret ('The Norwegian Theater'). Spr�k�ret 2013 aims to be a generous and inclusive celebration of language diversity.

Language is the most important defining characteristic of human beings. Yet, language comes in a multitude of forms, and differences across languages and variation within them affect society and the lives of individuals in a number of ways. Why don't we all speak the same? Why do some societies manage well with several languages whereas others do not? Why are regional languages promoted in some areas and why are minority languages suppressed in others? How is cognitive development in children affected by growing up with two rather than just one language - or with two dialects rather than just one? Do language issues affect the health of a population? Does language diversity constitute a security challenge in certain circumstances? Is the ability to understand closely related linguistic varieties desirable, and if so, should it be promoted through political measures? 

The questions are numerous and the central purpose of the conference is to highlight them and bring together research and policy making in discussing the assets and challenges regarding language diversity. Thematically the conference will focus on three main areas: cognitive and developmental aspects of language diversity, its impact on society in general, and language technology. There will be a combination of parallel sessions/workshops, plenary talks and panel debates, and we envisage discussions on issues such as the economic and societal benefits of language diversity, language diversity in education, language diversity as cultural heritage, the future of language diversity in language technology, etc. 

2nd Call for Papers:

Extended Deadline for Submissions:

Abstracts for general session papers and proposals for workshops are invited by 1 June 2013.

Submission Guidelines:

Session papers: Abstracts are invited for 30-minute presentations (including discussion) on any topic concerning language diversity. We strongly encourage papers that highlight issues that bear on the societal and political relevance of language diversity. 

Abstracts should not exceed 500 words and 1 page in length (excluding references). 

Workshops: We are also soliciting organizers for workshops on various topics that highlight societal implications and aspects of language diversity, and the following non-exhaustive list gives an impression of relevant topics.

- Language diversity and universal design
- Language, discrimination and mental health
- Machine translation and minority languages
- Bilingualism and education
- Bilingualism versus bidialectalism
- Language revitalization
- Historical minority languages in Europe
- Minority language as an asset in tourism
- Minority languages and language technology
- Language diversity and economy

Workshop proposals may be of two kinds:

1. Thematic workshops with a series of at most six 30-minute paper presentations. One or two of the slots may be used for general discussion. Upon submission of the proposal, the workshop organizers should provide a description of the workshop and include a list of speakers with paper titles. The workshop should be open to all participants at the conference, and the time slots must follow the time slots for the general sessions. The proposal should be no more than two A4 pages in length.

2. General discussion/panel sessions lasting one and a half hours. Proposals for such short workshops should include a description of the topic and a list of at least four participants and their area of expertise relevant to the topic. The proposed session must be open to all conference participants. The proposal should be no more than one A4 page in length. 

Proposals that include participation from both research and politics/public administration are most welcome. 

Submission:

The (extended) deadline for submission is 1st June 2013 at midnight Central European Time. All submissions should be made through the EasyChair system by following this link https://www.easychair.org/conferences/?conf=tromslang2013. 

Contributors will be notified by late June 2013 about the outcome of the review process, and a program for the conference will be launched as soon as possible thereafter. 

Important Dates:

1 June - (Extended) deadline for submission of abstracts (papers and workshops)
Late June - Notification of acceptance
Early July - Program launch and registration opens
1 October - Registration deadline
6-8 November - Conference takes place

Further information about practical matters, side events and so forth will be added to the conference web site in due time. Updates and info will be posted on Twitter by @TromSlang. The organizers of the conference can be contacted at tromslang2013 at hsl.uit.no.

Also you can take a look at it by visiting 
http://linguistlist.org/issues/24/24-1940.html

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