Between June 1 – 7 UBC will host the 2019 Congress of the Humanities and Social Science, the largest academic conference in Canada, and among the largest in the world. Congress 2019 brings together over 70 scholarly associations, each holding their annual conference under one umbrella. Congress also brings together scholars, students, policy makers, artists, and the wider community to discuss topics like censorship, the environment, and migration.
UBC’s theme for Congress 2019 is “Circles of Conversation.” This theme reflects the need for conversations within and across communities, disciplines, and industries. Congress 2019 aims to foster and encourage circles of conversation among scholars, educators, students, political leaders, activists, and the public at large, so that people can speak with one another, listen and learn together. Many of the events at Congress 2019 will include programming that covers a series of public lectures, critical and creative programming that will highlight the research and projects in the humanities and social sciences at UBC.
The Academic Convenor for Congress 2019 is Laura Moss, Professor in the Department of English Language & Literatures, recipient of a UBC Killam Teaching Prize and Editor of the journal Canadian Literature. Over the past 16 months, Dr Moss has played a crucial role in the academic planning, multidisciplinary programming, and hosting of the conference. She has been building support across the institution and amongst faculty, students, and the campus community.
Included in the wide array of programming are a pedagogy hub, panels, workshops, and an exciting series of open events (such as an outdoor staged reading of a 16th-century play and a rare books exhibit) in which our departmental faculty and graduate students are involved.
English Language & Literatures at Congress 2019
- Patricia Badir with Katrina Dunn (University of Alberta) have collaborated with Vancouver’s Bard on the Beach to present an outdoor staged reading of Galatea, by Shakespeare’s contemporary, John Lyly. This includes a public-facing roundtable, in collaboration with the Canadian Society for Renaissance Studies, the Canadian Association for Theatre Research and Oecologies, featuring scholars from UBC (including undergraduate and graduate students), SFU and the University of Manitoba. This project is the joint effort of UBC, Simon Fraser University, University of Manitoba, Oecologies, and Bard on the Beach. Details.
- Gisele Baxter, Sarika Bose, Brett Grubisic, and Mary Ann Saunders will be presenting at “Invisible to Visible: A Symposium of Contract Faculty Work” The Symposium will provide an opportunity for Contract Faculty at UBC to give research-based papers on specific disciplines and on pedagogical practices, offer a teaching workshop, and showcase their research in an accompanying special exhibition of publications. Details.
- Glenn Deer will be moderating “Encountering Asian Canadian Archives,” a panel which centres on Asian Canadian materials at UBC’s Rare Books and Special Collections on June 4. Details
- Siân Echard and Kevin McNeilly are among the faculty from our department that will be presenting at the Annual Association of Canadian College and University Teachers of English (ACCUTE) Conference. Many of our MA and PhD students are also presenting papers.
- Sherrill Grace, OC, FRSC – The Plenary Talk at the Association for Canadian and Quebec Literatures (ACQL) Conference: “Lost and Found: Conversations Within and About Archives” will be presented by Sherrill Grace.
- Gregory Mackie is co-curator with Kyle Frackman (Department of Central, Eastern, and Northern European Studies) of “A Queer Century, 1869–1969: A Rare Books Exhibition” at Rare Books and Special Collections. It also features a public keynote lecture given by Prof. Heike Bauer, founding director of Birkbeck Interdisciplinary Gender and Sexuality Studies, University of London. Details.
- Tiffany Potter – Pedagogy Hub Convenor. Unique to Congress 2019, this will create a physical and intellectual space for a Circle of Conversation around teaching and learning. See Talking Teaching at the Pedagogy Hub. Details.
- Judy Segal – Roundtable: “The Medicalization of Sex: A Feminist Issue,” featuring Lori Brotto (CRC in Women’s Sexual Health, Obstetrics and Gynecology, UBC), Thea Cacchioni (Women’s Studies, UVic), Judy Segal (English and Science & Technology Studies, UBC) and Leonore Tiefer (Psychologist, Independent Scholar). This is an open event which is a part of “Intersecting Circles: Technoscientific Language and the Conversations of Life.” Details.
These and more! Further details to be posted or see the Congress 2019 Program.
Visit the Congress 2019 website for more events and opportunities.
