idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
In recent years the question of how to relate disciplinary and area-based knowledge in mutually beneficial ways has preoccupied scholars as well as academic administrators in many countries. Area specialists have contested the universalist assumptions prevalent in the social sciences; at the same time, globalization has challenged scholarly approaches practiced in area studies. In Germany, academia has also undergone substantial processes of reform and internationalization which have affected the humanities, social sciences and area studies in particular ways. As a result of those processes, concepts such as transregional studies, comparative area studies, global studies and postcolonial perspectives have become more prominent in the humanities and social sciences. Although some of these notions are often used interchangeably, the terminological plurality indicates divergent views of how to conceptualize research and teaching perspectives beyond static national or cultural frames. It is by convening this conference that the Max Weber Stiftung and the Forum Transregionale Studien seek to readdress the status of the humanities and social sciences in an increasingly globalized academic landscape.
Abetting these transformations in Germany are incentives such as the Exzellenzinitiative (Excellence Initiative, since 2005) or the special funding opportunities for area studies announced by the Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (German Ministry of Education and Research) in 2008 and 2011, along with funds for international cooperation available at the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Foundation) or other important entities in the field such as the VolkswagenStiftung or the Fritz Thyssen Stiftung. The Wissenschaftsrat (Council of Sciences and Humanities) has guided the process with extensive reports, such as its recommendations for the humanities and for area studies (both 2006). These documents, nonetheless, clearly indicate that internationalization is not meant to level out methodological or linguistic diversity or specificity; nor are the humanities and social sciences to be understood as generators of “ready to use” and applied knowledge about remote areas of the world; rather, globalizing the humanities and social sciences should result in a sustainable pluralization of epistemic cultures and communities across and within disciplinary and political-territorial boundaries.
In 2009, the Forum Transregionale Studien was founded as a platform to accompany the process of disciplinary globalization and to mediate progress in the debate. Prior to its foundation, a preceding project (Forschungsverbund Wege des Wissens: Transregionale Studien) had already hosted two conferences on the future of area studies in Germany (2005 and 2009). With this year’s conference the conveners hope to revitalize the debate that has become even more relevant in light of accelerating global mobility. The meeting will critically appraise the aforementioned changes in the humanities and social sciences as well as in area-studies departments. It aims at making an interim assessment of inter-nationalization efforts in universities and research institutes, and at examining the lessons which can be learned from past and ongoing experiences. It will also be the starting point for an annual conference series by the Forum and the Max Weber Stiftung which shall establish a forum for experts from Germany and other countries to enter into regular dialogue on internationalization strategies in research and teaching. This year a special emphasis will be placed on debating the sustainability of previous and present efforts – for example by scrutinizing their impact on institutional politics and on university curricula in particular.
The conference is funded by the Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung. It is arranged in cooperation with the Musikinstrumenten-Museum Berlin. The conference will be preceded by the annual lecture of the Forum Transregionale Studien on 17 October 2013 to be held by
Prof. Sheldon Pollock (Columbia University) as a keynote address.
Information on participating / attending:
Date:
10/18/2013 10:00 - 10/19/2013 14:00
Registration deadline:
10/16/2013
Event venue:
Musikinstrumenten-Museum Berlin
Curt-Sachs-Saal
Tiergartenstr. 1
10785 Berlin
Nordrhein-Westfalen
Germany
Target group:
Scientists and scholars, Students
Email address:
Relevance:
international
Subject areas:
Art / design, Cultural sciences, History / archaeology, Law, Social studies
Types of events:
Conference / symposium / (annual) conference
Entry:
10/02/2013
Sender/author:
Gesche Schifferdecker
Department:
Presse- und Öffentlichkeitsarbeit
Event is free:
yes
Language of the text:
English
URL of this event: http://idw-online.de/en/event44961
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