CFP: The Social Practice of Human Rights: 
Charting the Frontiers of Research and Advocacy (Deadline 2/27/15)

CFP: The Social Practice of Human Rights: 
Charting the Frontiers of Research and Advocacy
Second Bi-Annual Conference, University of Dayton, October 1-3, 2015
Deadline: February 27, 2015

Call for Papers

The Social Practice of Human Rights: 
Charting the Frontiers of Research and Advocacy
Second Bi-Annual Conference
University of Dayton
October 1-3, 2015

In 2013, the first Social Practice of Human Rights conference brought together a wide variety of actors from the human rights community to critically reflect on the movement from within. Experts from academia, human rights, humanitarian and development NGOs, as well as inter-governmental organizations like the United Nations, fruitfully and critically assessed the current state of human rights advocacy. They offered ways in which to translate the often abstract world of human rights into effective advocacy strategies and focused upon root causes of human rights violations. Throughout the conference, the charge of bringing about transformative change to systemic patterns of injustice was patently clear.

Our first Social Practice of Human Rights conference illustrated the need for new thinking about human rights advocacy and the importance of bringing together scholars and practitioners to create a global human rights research and advocacy community. The second Social Practice of Human Rights conference will continue the dialogue and constructive critique that we began as a human rights research and advocacy community in 2013. In that light, we seek papers from scholars across the disciplines, practitioners, policy-makers and advocates on a broad array of human rights topics. These may include, but are not limited to:

  • past, current and emerging human rights issues;
  • best practices in, and new ways of thinking about, the fulfillment of human rights;
  • constructive critiques of advocacy strategies, human rights conceptualizations and actors, as well as the human rights movement itself;
  • the nexus (or the divide) between theory and practice, or academia and the world of advocates and practitioners, when it comes to addressing systemic patterns of injustice;
  • theoretical deliberations that critically assess taken-for-granted notions, such as justice, injustice and human rights or that invite us to consider alternative meanings of the “social practice” of human rights;
  • social movements, organizations, and coalitions engaged in the struggle for rights and recognition;
  • the promotion, communication, and implementation of human rights ideas;
  • analyses that broaden our understanding of the who, where and how of human rights (consider the role of the media and the Arts, for example)

To Apply

Please submit a proposal to Kristy Belton (humanrights@udayton.edu) by February 27, 2015. Proposals must contain:

  • a paper title
  • a 300-word maximum abstract
  • 3-5 keywords
  • a short biography (no more than 200 words) that includes your institutional affiliation and contact information

We encourage the submission of individual papers, complete panels, roundtables, workshops and practitioner presentations, as well as interdisciplinary and scholar-practitioner collaboration. Applicants will be notified of the status of their proposal by May 8, 2015.

For More Information

For more information and/or to stay updated on Keynote Speakers and conference activities: