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Call for Papers Theme: Statelessness and Inclusion Type: 2019 World Conference Institution: Institute on Statelessness and Inclusion (ISI) Location: The Hague (Netherlands) Date: 26.–28.6.2019 Deadline: 15.10.2018 __________________________________________________ In June 2019, the World Conference on Statelessness and Inclusion will be held in The Hague. For three days, 250 stateless activists, academics, NGOs, UN officials, artists, government officials and journalists from across the world will meet to critically assess and formulate responses to the state of statelessness in the world today. The Conference will provide a forum to explore and discuss statelessness related research, policy and advocacy; shape the strategic direction of the field; find creative ways respond and forge collaborations to achieve change. The event will feature a mixture of time-tested and innovative formats, including panel presentations, roundtables and skills-building workshops, film screenings, marketplace sessions and exhibitions. What is the issue? Over the past decade, the field of statelessness has blossomed as both a subject of scholarship and of local, regional and international engagement aimed at driving positive change. At the same time, citizenship and inclusion have come increasingly under threat from a multitude of forces. Globalisation, digitalisation, securitisation and rising populism and xenophobia, are placing a severe strain on cohesive, equal and fair societies. Realising and protecting the right to a nationality for all is a growing challenge. Most years, children who inherit statelessness from their parents and people who are stripped of their citizenship outnumber stateless persons who receive a nationality. Systems to provide "legal identity" - an explicit SDG target (Goal 16.9) - are being rolled out in contexts where questions of belonging are unsettled or affected by structural discrimination, aggravating statelessness and its impact. Stateless people who do receive citizenship continue to be excluded and discriminated against. Deprivation of nationality is increasingly used as a national security tool, with little apparent consideration given to its legitimacy or effectiveness, and there is a growing incidence of the instrumentalisation of withdrawal of nationality to target political opponents and human rights defenders. The Rohingya crisis is a stark reminder that exclusion and statelessness can escalate to persecution, displacement and crimes against humanity. Conference themes To offer a flexible space in which to explore progress and unpack the diverse challenges that persist or are emerging today in the field of statelessness, five broad themes have been selected to help shape the programme of the 2019 Conference. Each theme implicates a distinct set of issues, norms, actors and initiatives, but they are also interrelated and inter-linked. The conference programme will offer both opportunities for an in-depth discussion of a particular theme, as well as for cross-cutting conversations that draw in multiple perspectives. The themes are listed below, along with examples of the type of question that will help to shape the agenda, although we also welcome other topics that fit within or cut across these broad thematic areas. - Statelessness & discrimination: Exploring questions such as: How can the inclusive nature of citizenship be strengthened, without engendering exclusion? How do we break down the stigma and prejudice that feeds and excuses statelessness? How do we change the narrative of the stateless as "outsiders"? - Statelessness & security: Exploring questions such as: How is citizenship used as an instrument of security policy? How is the practice of citizenship stripping being used to target political opponents, human rights defenders and minorities? How does statelessness affect (in)security and how does it relate to persecution? - Statelessness & migration: Exploring questions such as: How does statelessness relate to global migration patterns and phenomena? What does statelessness mean for refugee response? How do we assure the dignity, rights and inclusion of stateless migrants? - Statelessness & development: Exploring questions such as: How does statelessness impact development? How do we use "legal identity" as a tool for inclusion, without creating new fault lines of exclusion? How do we ensure the consultation and participation of stateless communities in development work? - Statelessness & children: Exploring questions such as: How are children affected by statelessness? How do we assert and fulfil the child's right to acquire a nationality as a right of every child? How can we break the cycle of intergenerational statelessness? Call for proposals Researchers, activists, policy makers, artists and others with knowledge and ideas to share on the issue of statelessness are invited to submit proposals for individual presentations, full panels or other session formats. We particularly encourage inter-disciplinary and inter-sectoral collaborations, which draw on experiences and learning from around the world. Click here to access the online submission form with further instructions: https://goo.gl/forms/ZxWLsndeUnqPUzSO2 The deadline for proposals is 15 October 2018 and applicants will be informed of all decisions by 15 November 2018. If you have questions about the submission process or would like advice on session types, etc, please email us at: [email protected] Please note that the language of the conference is English and there will not be translation facilities. Conference registration An 'early bird' reduction applies for the first 50 participants to register in both the General Registration and Discount Rate categories (offer expires 31 December 2018). All tickets to the event are offered on a first-come, first-served basis, so early registration is encouraged to avoid missing out. The early bird registration fee is EUR 350; the regular fee is EUR 450 (excl. processing fees). A special Discount Rate is available for staff of national NGOs, bachelor/masters students and grassroots activists. Registration entitles the participant to attend all sessions of the three-day Conference as well as any social activities included within the programme of the Conference. It is not possible to register only for part of the programme. Lunch and coffee breaks are included within the Conference fee, as is a conference pack. Participants must make and pay for their own arrangements for travel to and from the Conference venue and for accommodation, as needed, and obtaining an appropriate visa to attend the event in the Netherlands is the participant's personal responsibility. Conference website: http://www.institutesi.org/forum/conference.php __________________________________________________ InterPhil List Administration: https://interphil.polylog.org InterPhil List Archive: https://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ __________________________________________________
