Conference on the economic crisis

 CALL FOR PAPERS: After the Gold Rush: Economic Crisis and Consequences

Keynote speakers: Stefán Ólafsson, Professor of Sociology, University of Iceland and Fantu Cheru, Professor Emeritus and Research Director, the Nordic Africa Institute in Uppsala, Sweden. Additional keynote speakers will be announced later.

The aim of the conference After the Gold Rush: Economic Crisis and Consequences is to explore various aspects of the current global economic crisis from a broad social science perspective. Iceland is an ideal location to host a social science conference addressing these historic events, which are still unfolding. Many observers point to Iceland as the first victim of this world wide crisis and the nation worst hit. In 2008 the country experienced a bank system collapse in the wake of the global crisis unprecedented since the Great Depression in the 1930s, and is likely to be suffering the consequences of this for many years.

Among the relevant questions that will be addressed at the conference are the following:

• How is the image of easy money and supra naturally gifted money makers created and how do societies deal with the aftermath of a gold rush? Is the present crisis an inevitable part of world capitalism? Or is it the result of faulty policies, a lack of regulation, or simply the mistakes of certain reckless individuals?
• How will the crisis effect poverty levels, unemployment rates, and welfare state policies? How are young people, immigrant communities, race relations, the gendered division of labour, and ethnic minorities influenced? How do we enhance people’s skills at adapting and managing their careers and career shifts in such a time of uncertainty?
• What are the effects of the crisis on national identities and the stories different nation states and groups like to tell about themselves? How is the crisis reflected in the media, literature, music, fashion, art, and entertainment?
• In what way will the crisis influence international relations? Has the crisis relevance for areas in conflict or those in the process of being rebuilt? How has the crisis affected conceptions of "the international community" and global institutions?
• How has the social science community responded to this sudden challenge to the field of social sciences? How can we contribute to the prevention of such crisis happening again, to the prediction of future problems, and/or constructive ways of dealing with a crisis now and in the future?

The conference will emphasize both global and local aspects of the crisis, as well as their intersection. Furthermore, we will be asking how the current crisis compares historically with other such events, and how different crises connect to each other. We are asking scholars to explore these and other related questions in their papers, or intersections of these diverse themes. We also welcome empirical descriptions, comparative studies, theoretical analysis and case studies addressing issues and problems related to the world crisis and its impact, locally or on a global scale.

Deadline for submission of abstracts is December 5th, 2009.
All abstracts will be peer-reviewed and authors of accepted abstracts notified no later than December 20th, 2009.
Please find further information about the conference and submit abstract proposals by following the procedure outlined at:
http://www.hi.is/en/after_the_gold_rush

Time: May 27th-28th, 2010
Place: Faculty of Social and Human Sciences, University of Iceland, Reykjavík

For further information, please contact Jónína Einarsdóttir (je@hi.is)