International conference “Territorialities of Multilocality”

CALL FOR PAPERS

“TERRITORIALITIES OF MULTILOCALITY”

5 TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON MULTILOCALITY

25TH -26TH NOVEMBER 2021, SOFIA (BULGARIA)

The Institute of Ethnology and Folklore Studies with Ethnographic Museum – Bulgarian Academy of Sciences is hosting the forthcoming international conference “TERRITORIALITIES OF MULTILOCALITY”, to be held on 25th and 26th of November 2021 in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Living in more than one residential place is what is understood as multi living. As such it involves dealing with different contexts, different authorities, and different cultures. The distance and absence of a constant place are among the main issues the multi living people need to face. Space and territory in their interrelation are important components of everyday life for all social actors. The territory is in itself a multidimensional notion that needs to be considered in all its meanings: an existential one (life cycles and living experiences), a physical one (frame: it gives the boundary, the definition) and an organizational one (society, public policies etc.). Therefore, it includes different elements: a) political and administrative b) economic c) social (social capital, networking between actors, etc.), d) geographical e) cognitive aspects (symbolic/identity/imagined community).

In its social scope, as far as human society is concerned, territoriality is a concept mainly used in planning, architecture and urbanism, in geography, anthropology and sociology as well as in law and in political science. It is to a lesser extent applied in other social sciences, such as economics or history. Linked with the territory, its meanings range in each of these disciplines and in each different language. We can therefore think of territorialities of national territories, of local authorities or consider the appropriation of space and places. At our conference, we will try to analyse multilocal-multi territorial practices, the differences in their regional and local concreteness as well as the differences and an “unusual situation of two or more residences instead of one.

We suggest six-session topics:

1. Theoretical discussion on the concept of Territoriality in the Multilocality studies;
2. Territoriality as a regime:
a. => for instance, the multilocal living as a political and bureaucratic challenge.
3. Territorialisation as a process;
a. multilocality in (and between) urban, metropolitan, peri-urban and rural context: spatial dynamics and social arrangements
4. Territoriality as an appropriation/a sense of place:
a. => for instance, multilocal living as an experience and a knowledge to circulate, a routinization of the unusual, etc.
5. Territoriality as a social place:
a. =>  individuals; societies; groups; communities; minorities; multicultural spaces and multilocality.
6. Territoriality as a cultural place:
a. => for instance, multilocal living as an experience of common living ways or dissonances.

The impact of the measures to prevent COVID-19 spread could be part of the discussions in each topic – e.g. How is the definition/notion of territory applied/present in the proposed lockdown measures? How the notion/definition of territory in the concrete lockdown measures determines? mobility within and between the territories? How the interaction between the territory and individuals / social groups have changed both in material and symbolic terms during the pandemic/ was influenced by COVID-19 measures?

We are planning to host a hybrid event that will combine live, in-person participation with online presentations.

The Working language of the conference is English.

An abstract (200 – 250 words) along with a proposed title, author’s full name, e-mail, institutional and disciplinary affiliation and a short biography should be sent by 20th May 2021 to the following e-mail address: multilocalityconference2021@gmail.com

Participants will be informed about the outcome of the Organizing Committee selection process no later than 20 June 2021.

Please note that while there is no participation fee, the Organizing Committee does not cover travel and accommodation. We advise future participants to search for potential financial support from their respective institutions, academic exchange programs, etc. The Organizing Committee carefully follows the local and international restrictions on travel, public gatherings, and workplace closures, of possible limited interactions in the coming months and year. The participants will be notified about any changes in the above-stated plans, to minimise the risks around the COVID–19 pandemic.

The academic event is organized in the frameworks of the European Network of Multilocality Studies. The conference is under the auspices of Cultural Heritage, National Memory and Social Development National Research Program, supported by the Bulgarian Ministry of Education and Science approved by DCM No 577 of 17 August 2018.

We are looking forward to receiving your proposals!

Mila Maeva