cfp.english.upenn.edu

1st Global Conference
Opportunity in Crisis: Finding Benefits in Difficult Life Events

Thursday 7th February – Saturday 9th February 2013
Sydney, Australia

Call for Presentations:

Difficulties mastered are opportunities won.
(Winston Churchill)

It may be surprising or unduly optimistic to link crisis with opportunity and yet it is not uncommon to hear extraordinary stories of how nations, communities, and individuals have triumphed over harrowing circumstances. Unwanted crises do challenge individuals and governments to make changes, re-evaluate priorities, and may lead to stimulating new experiences and directions in growth. In the last few decades there has been a growing interest in the management of crises and the use of predictive models that have influenced high level social, economic, and ecological policy change. When applied to therapeutic work this strategic thinking is transformed into interventions that enhance personal and psychological support for patients and clients. As difficult as crises might be there is a broad acceptance that there are some positive benefits to be found in even the most extreme of circumstances. Thus, we challenge you to share your stories and bring your experiences of how you, your communities, cultures and nations have managed to create positive opportunities and beneficial responses even in the face of crises.

What doesn’t kill me makes me stronger
(Fredrich Nietzsche: Twilight of the Gods)

Participants in this project are encouraged to explore the notion that crises can provide opportunities for significant growth in areas of organisational management and planning, professional development and education, as well as those situations that influence psychological and spiritual well-being. In addition, this project invites a critical examination of those approaches, roles, skills, and conditions of relationship that make agency possible, establish collaboration, and assist in mutually helpful outcomes. Consequently, we warmly invite professional practitioners, educators, planners, theoreticians, artists, and writers to present and reflect upon their work in this key area of emerging research and practice.

Presentations, performances, papers, art-pieces, workshops, and pre-formed panels are invited on any of the following themes:

● The roles of crisis and opportunity in human development and across the life-span
● The development of crisis theory
● Case studies in crisis management and organisational change – examining and balancing proactive and reactive strategies
● Critical issues in the management of crisis
● The relationship between crisis and opportunities – crises that create opportunities, and opportunities that precipitate crises
● Cultural perceptions of crisis and opportunity
● Representations of crisis and opportunity in literature, the arts and in the media
● Crisis, opportunity and psycho-spiritual development
● Philosophical, ethical, and legal issues in crisis and opportunity
● Learning from global crises and opportunities
Please note that presentations that deal with related themes will also be considered.

It is our hope that a number of these interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary dialogues will be ongoing and that ultimately a series of related cross context research projects will be developed. It is also anticipated that these will support and encourage the establishment of useful collaborative networks, and the development, presentation, and publication of research materials. Through such richness and diversity, it is expected that awareness for the work within and the links between crisis and opportunity will contribute to a body of knowledge that serves both individuals and organisations.

What to Send:
300 word abstracts or presentation proposals should be submitted simultaneously to both Organising Chairs by Friday 14th September 2012; abstracts may be in Word, WordPerfect, or RTF formats with the following information and in this order:

a) author(s), b) affiliation, c) email address, d) title of abstract, e) body of abstract.
E-mails should be entitled: CRISIS Abstract Submission.

Please use plain text (Times Roman 12) and abstain from using footnotes and any special formatting, characters or emphasis (such as bold, italics or underline). We acknowledge receipt and answer to all paper proposals submitted. If you do not receive a reply from us in a week you should assume we did not receive your proposal; it might be lost in cyberspace! We suggest, then, to look for an alternative electronic route or resend.

Organising Chairs

Peter Bray: PBray@eit.ac.nz
Rob Fisher: crisis1@inter-disciplinary.net

The conference is part of the Persons programme of research projects. It aims to bring together people from different areas and interests to share ideas and explore various discussions which are innovative and exciting.

For further details of the project, please visit:
http://www.inter-disciplinary.net/probing-the-boundaries/persons/crisis-...

For further details of the conference, please visit:
http://www.inter-disciplinary.net/probing-the-boundaries/persons/crisis-...

Please note: Inter-Disciplinary.Net is a not-for-profit network and we are not in a position to be able to assist with conference travel or subsistence.