Political Geography – Past, Present, and Future
At a time of multiple political crises and profound geopolitical shifts, as well as the shifting landscape of higher education research and teaching, the PolGRG conference provides an opportunity for political geographers to reflect on the evolution of the sub-discipline. Political geography has the potential to make important – and radical – contributions and responses to these shifts and changes. But what can and will these contributions be?
As Eleonore Kofman, one of our keynote speakers, noted in 2003, “Concerns about the state of political geography seem to surface periodically”. In keeping with Kofman’s observation, this seems an opportune moment to think critically about the past, present and (hoped for) future of political geography in the UK and Ireland. These critical reflections require a diversity of perspectives and experiences, and we encourage contributions not only from political geographers based at HEIs in the UK and Ireland – regardless of the geographical focus of their work – but also from political geographers based elsewhere in the world.
We invite papers that critically engage with the history and present of the discipline in the UK, as well as offering thoughts as to its future – both in relation to research and teaching. Papers are welcome on themes or topics including, but not limited to:
- The ‘political’ in political geography
- Critically politicising political geography’s history and present
- Innovative and creative methods and fieldwork in political geography
- Engaging and creative pedagogy and teaching for political geography
- Directions in current and future research in political geography
- The role of scholar-activism in political geography
- Political geographers’ engagement with crises
We also welcome proposals from early-career academics (which may be in addition to a paper) to contribute to a roundtable discussion on “(Re)Imagining a hoped-for future of political geography in the UK”. These contributions should offer thoughts, provocations, ideals and challenges to what the future of political geography in the UK might look like – contributions might speak to ideas for emerging and future themes, theories, pedagogies, practices, praxis, ethics, methods or other imperatives.
The conference will include keynote talks from Professor Eleonore Kofman (Middlesex University London) and Dr Merav Amir (Queen’s University Belfast), with Professor Charles Pattie (University of Sheffield) providing a closing commentary for the event.
The conference will be held at the University of Sheffield on the 15th and 16th June 2023, with both in-person and online attendance possible. We invite proposals for papers and contributions for the early-career roundtable discussion to be submitted via this link by 28th February 2023: https://forms.gle/3dTqSeWKh19VQf9w9
Paper proposals should include presenter(s) name(s), affiliation(s) and email address(es), paper title, and 250 word abstract. We welcome work in progress – the conference is a place to share, test, and develop new ideas.
Roundtable contribution proposals should include contributor’s name, affiliation, email address and 2 or 3 sentences giving a broad sense of the focus of their proposed contribution to the discussion.
There will be an in-person conference registration fee of £25, and on-line registration fee of £5. A number of bursaries will be available for postgraduate researchers towards travel and other costs. Further details of how to register for the event will be circulated soon.
