The Great Transition 2023
Fighting back in Times of Global Crisis: Repoliticizing, Imagining, Achieving
Call for Papers
We live in an era of global crisis – ecological, economic, social, and political – that requires a civilizational shift away from all dimensions of the capitalist system. For example, the resurgence of unabashed white supremacy and right-wing nationalist populism is a global phenomenon disproportionately affecting marginalized groups. The worsening of the ecological crisis, coupled with a climate of war, is also reviving a patriarchal culture emphasizing control over nature and over women’s bodies. This context highlights how racial and gendered subordinations are interlinked under capitalism; it is a racialized, colonial, and gendered system. We must therefore conceptualize ways to move beyond capitalism, namely through intersectional, liberation-oriented, ecological and democratic socialism.
It is crucial to map out the relationships between systems of power – colonialism, patriarchy, white supremacy, or cisheteronormativity – to determine the different ways in which capitalism organizes bodies and territories. Though different geographical and digital spaces are distinct, they remain interconnected through hierarchies that enable the exploitation of vulnerable groups. Conceptualizing capitalism should allow us to articulate the parallels and intersections between race, gender, sexuality, religion, patriarchy, ecology, and class and to see these as components of a multifaceted system of exploitation. We must reconnect at two levels: conceptually reconnect systems of oppression to understand their impact on the world, but also reconnect ourselves to the world to fight more effectively for its liberation, and transform it. To dismantle current systems, we must (re)build trust and ensure that dynamics of subordination are transcended.
To move from resistance to societal transformation, a social project of transition away from capitalism, based on knowledge from both university and community organizing perspectives, is necessary. Thus, the international event The Great Transition: Fighting Back in Times of Global Crisis invites citizens of various backgrounds (activists, trade unionists, members of political parties, students, or academics) to reflect on these questions along three axes: Repoliticizing, Imagining, and Achieving. This conference aims to reinforce ties between academics and activists, but also between francophone, anglophone and indigenous communities. It also seeks to promote post-capitalist ideas and introduce them to the lay public.
Panels and workshops of 3 to 5 speakers will be prioritized, but individual presentations will also be considered for integration into a panel. Exclusively male panels are discouraged and diversity is encouraged. In addition to the typical conference format, we invite you to submit practical workshops, technology-related sessions, artistic and cultural performances, political actions, or any other creative format. A mix of theory, practice, and art can produce the politicization needed to achieve our collective dreams.
New deadline: November 10, 2022
Submissions: https://edito.thegreattransition.net/
For more information: info@lagrandetransition.net
Read the entire call for papers here