IAMCR 2015: Environment, Science and Risk Communication Working Group- Deadline 9 February

The Environment, Science and Risk Communication Working Group invites submissions of abstracts for papers for the 2015 IAMCR conference to be held from 12-16 July, 2015 at Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), Montreal, Canada.

Conference theme: “Hegemony or Resistance? The Ambiguous Power of Communication”

See the conference key dates and deadlines: http://iamcr.org/congress/montreal2015-keydates

See all Calls for Papers for IAMCR 2015: http://iamcr.org/congress/montreal2015-cfp

Visit the conference website: http://congresiamcr.uqam.ca

The conference will be held under the general theme, ‘Hegemony or Resistance? The Ambiguous Power of Communication’. The general conference theme is thus highly relevant to the Environment, Science and Risk Communication Working Group. Science and environmental communication is often interpreted from an advocacy perspective, when the willingness to change or improve actual socio-environmental problems serves as its underlying motivation. However, it can also be interpreted from a political perspective, as a space and means to challenge the hegemonic neoliberal order and the role of capitalist production and consumption practices in the creation and deepening of socio-environmental problems. Therefore, we hope that this conference theme will encourage the submission of papers which provide a forum for discussion on how environmental communication research could contribute to the politicization of environmental issues, in terms of creating a discursive space for the articulation and shaping of alternative sustainable futures.

Papers from the full range of environment-science-risk-communication topics and perspectives will be considered, and those relating to the conference theme will be particularly welcome.

Key themes for the Montreal sessions of the Working Group will include:

Media and democratic debate and citizenship in risk politics
Media, advocacy and environmental pressure groups
Environmental activism and new media
Depoliticized and politicized uses/constructions of science, nature and the environment
Media and global environmental change and controversy
Uneven access to technological, political and social capital in the context of science/environment/risk communication
Media-communication roles in environmental crises and disasters
Visual media constructions of the environment
Global news and information flows in environmental communication
Environmental crises, corporate spin and news management
Science and health-related media panics
Science/environmental journalism
Media and public understanding of science/environment issues

Guidelines for Abstracts

Abstracts should be between 250 and 500 words and will generally be evaluated on the basis of: 1) theoretical contribution, 2) methods, 3) quality of writing, 4) literature review, 5) relevance of the submission to the work of the working group, and 6) originality and/or significance of the work. Each proposal must include a clear title, name(s), affiliation, institutional address and email address of the author(s). Bibliographies and author profiles are not required.

Individual papers and panels are possible, but all proposals must be submitted through the online Open Conference System at http://iamcr-ocs.org from 1 December 2014 – 9 February 2015. Early submission is strongly encouraged. There are to be no email submissions of abstracts addressed to any Section or Working Group Head.

It is expected that for the most part, only one (1) abstract will be submitted per person for consideration by the Conference. However, under no circumstances should there be more than two (2) abstracts bearing the name of the same applicant either individually or as part of any group of authors. Please note also that the same abstract or another version with minor variations in title or content must not be submitted to other Sections or Working Groups of the Association for consideration, after an initial submission. Such submissions will be deemed to be in breach of the conference guidelines and will be automatically rejected by the Open Conference System, by the relevant Head or by the Conference Programme Reviewer. Such applicants risk being removed entirely from the conference programme.

Upon submission of an abstract, you will be asked to confirm that your submission is original and that it has not been previously published in the form presented. You will also be given an opportunity to declare if your submission is currently before another conference for consideration.

Presenters are expected to bring fully developed work to the conference. Prior to the conference, it is expected that a completed paper will be submitted to Section, Working Group, Session Chairs, and/or Discussants.

This working group will accept abstracts in English, French or Spanish, but English is preferred to facilitate the international peer review process. We will arrange for presentations in English, French or Spanish. However, sessions in languages other than English are possible only if the number of qualified proposals warrants it and complete sessions can be put together in the same language. Please indicate if you would be willing to make your presentation in English if we are unable to accommodate your first choice.

The deadline for submission of abstracts is 9 February 2015.

Environment, Science and Risk Communication Working Group:

WG webpage: http://iamcr.org/s-wg/mcpc/env

Chair:

Pieter Maeseele
University of Antwerp, Belgium
pieter.maeseele[at]uantwerpen.be

Vice-Chairs:

Dorothee Arlt
University of Bern, Switzerland
dorothee.arlt[at]ikmb.unibe.ch

Anders Hansen
University of Leicester, UK
ash[at]le.ac.uk