• 01.10.2020 - 02.10.2020
  • 🇩🇪 Deutschland / Sønderborg, Flensburg
  • University of Southern Denmark and Europa-Universität Flensburg
  • zur Website
  • abgesagt / verschoben

Danish-German Borderlands – Organizing and Renegotiating Space

The German-Danish border will be a focal point of attention for many public institutions this year, which marks the 100-year anniversary of the referendum that redrew the border between Denmark and Germany, thereby settling a longstanding territorial dispute between them. In the referendum, which was held in the German region of Schleswig, people voted either to remain on German ground, or to join Danish territory. The current border between Germany and Denmark is the outcome of this momentous event.

To commemorate the centennial of this historic referendum, the University of Southern Denmark (SDU) and Europa-Universität Flensburg (EUF) are organizing a joint conference to share interdisciplinary perspectives on borderlands in general, and also on German-Danish borderlands, specifically. The organizing team invites researchers from both universities to submit proposal abstracts in either of these topical areas. In their contributions scholars are invited to explore historical and present-day processes of organization and (re)negotiation of space, with a special focus on the German-Danish borderlands.

Although this call especially emphasizes research on the border region, our interest extends beyond the regional to embrace the issues relating to borders and borderscapes in general. Colleagues are therefore invited to share insights of relevance to this broader context, as well.

Proposal topics may include, but are not limited to:

  • Theories of space (power, communication and negotiation)
  • Methodologies and methods for border-related research
  • Space and democracy
  • Overcoming Nation? Space, identities, belonging
  • Societal and organizational transformation and space
  • Representations, scenographies and borderscapes
  • Linguistic perspectives on the border region
  • Postcolonialism and the German-Danish borderland
  • Border regions and gender
  • Minorities and majorities
  • Borderland and inclusion/exclusion (e.g., with respect to health, work, education)
  • Borderland and sustainability
  • Transnational perspectives
  • Disruptive change and its representation in borderland regimes
  • Deconstructions of the German-Danish border
  • Communicating borders: discourse, narratives, media

Scholars from both universities are invited to submit proposals for poster presentations (10 minutes) and papers (20 minutes) by March 31, 2020. Presentations will be followed by a 5-10 minute discussion session. Please submit a (working) title, an abstract of maximum 300 words (excluding references), and your name, contact information, and institutional affiliation. Presentations will be held in English. The conference will start in Sønderborg on the afternoon of October 1 and will end in Flensburg at about 7 pm on October 2. We will provide transportation between Sønderborg and Flensburg.