Call for Papers

For the 2nd PoSoCoMeS – MSA Working Group Conference

Deadline for proposals submissions: February 1, 2023

The Post-Socialist and Comparative Memory Studies (PoSoCoMeS) Working Group is inviting paper submissions for their 2nd Conference. The group is part of the Memory Studies Association and aims to bring together researchers, activists, and practitioners working in post-socialist countries. They call for trans-regional comparative studies that connect Eastern Europe and Africa, Latin America and Asia, and result in broad conceptualizations of post-socialist memories.

2nd PoSoCoMeS Conference:

The conference will be held between 20 – 23 September 2023 at Tallinn University, Estonia. 
The aim is to explore change in post-socialist memory cultures, with a particular focus on Eastern, Central and Southeastern European memory cultures that emerged/are emerging from the tensions and interactions between the transnational, the regional, the national, and the local and are further exasperated by the Russian destructive military invasion of Ukraine.
The keynote speakers are:
  • Erica Lehrer (Concordia University, Canada)
  • Maria Mälksoo (University of Copenhagen, Denmark)
  • Andrea Petö (Central European University, Austria)
  • Tatiana Zhurzhenko (Centre for East European and International Studies, Germany)
  • Joanna Wawrzyniak (University of Warsaw, Poland)
Possible topics include:
  • transnational memory in the post-socialist world: vernacularisation, encapsulation
  • tangled relationships between memory and human rights
  • politics of memory: key agents and institutions
  • the workings of memory in relation to (new) social challenges: climate crisis, migration, social inequality
  • regional regimes of memory: post-socialism as a regime of memory, continuities and/or re-formations, memory traffic within post-socialist spaces
  • reconfiguration of the borders between communities
  • memory and translation: movement of memories across national and regional borders, forms, and templates
  • media of memory (film, literature, memorial museums, commemorative practices), remediation
  • new forms of digital memorialisation in the post-pandemic era
  • post-socialist/post-communist memory culture in relation to the rest of the world: post-socialist comparisons with other parts of the world, which allow for trans-regional comparative studies that connect Eastern Europe and Africa, Latin America and Asia, and result in broad conceptualizations of post-socialist memories
  • uses and abuses of memory in contemporary and ongoing conflicts, weaponization of the past, especially in the context of the war in Ukraine
Important Information:
1. This is an in-person conference. Only a limited number of online panels can be accommodated.
2. In terms of costs and financial support, there is not a registration fee, but all participants have to be members of the Memory Studies Association. Exceptions for those in financial need are possible, but you must apply for this exception directly from the Memory Studies Association: https://www.memorystudiesassociation.org/membership…/ PoSoCoMeS is also working towards securing funds to cover the travel and accommodation costs for our Ukrainian scholars.

Timeline and Procedure:

  • Paper proposals should include abstracts (no longer than 250 words) and information about the presenter(s) (affiliation and short biography).
  • Panel and roundtable proposals should include an abstract (no longer than 250 words) and a complete list of max 4 participants, as well as their affiliations, short biographies, and the titles of their papers.
  • Please mention 1) if you would like to be part of one of the two streams; 2) if you need to present online.
Please send your proposals by 1 February 2023 to the following e-mail address: posocomesconference@tlu.ee. The notifications of acceptance will be sent on 15 March
Follow PoSoCoMeS on Facebook, and check out their news about the conference here.
For more information, click on the PDF below:
PDF