For the 2016 Cultural Studies Association Conference (June 2-5 2016, Villanova University, Philadelphia, PA), the ESP Working Group seeks proposals for the "Whither Ecocriticism?" cluster:

In the humanities, the intersection of cultural analysis and environmental concern irrupted in the U.S. through the discourse of ecocriticism, which has, for three decades, largely intervened by explicating a selected canon of nature writing, mining texts for ecological insights and plumbing their bioregional sensitivity, or offering "green readings" of given cultural formations—most typically but not exclusively literary ones. Ecocriticism has been challenged by scholars for being inadequately theorized, diffuse in purpose, and contradicting its environmental-activist aspirations with its adherence to the disciplinary imperative to literary analysis. Alternative discourses, such as the environmental humanities, have emerged, challenging and arguably displacing ecocriticism's centrality as a means to articulate the intersection of culture and environment to inform a transformational politics.

This panel invites papers that assess aspects of this conjuncture broadly defined: How can the point of contact between ecological discourse and critical theory best be articulated now, with the objective of imagining an alternative to capitalist social and ecological relations, and given the bodies of thought already at hand?

Proposals should be submitted by February 1, 2016, to include:

a. Your name, email address, department, and institutional affiliation.

b. A 300-word (or less) abstract for your 15-20 minute project presentation, including a title.

c. Audio-visual equipment needs (no requests for AV equipment can be honored later).

Please send all required information to Daniel Gustav Anderson (danielgustavanderson@yahoo.com) and Daniel Lanza Rivers (daniellanzarivers@gmail.com).