Throughout the last decade or so the formerly rather "exotic" field of "Human-Animal Studies" (sometimes simply "Animal Studies") has grown immensely and produced an amount of exciting and innovative work that by now has gained some deserved recognition from the academic mainstream across a whole range of disciplines. Briefly put and among other things, Human-Animal Studies are interested in the manifold intersections of human and animal lives, the forms and modes of human-animal relations in different historical, social, literary, cultural and other contexts, and also inevitably touch upon the question of what it means to be a *human* animal.

This issue of Gender Forum intends to approach existing and potential interconnections between the study of gender and/or sexuality and what has emerged in recent years as the vibrant interdisciplinary field of Human-Animal Studies. How are questions of gender and sexuality related to the question of the animal? Can a perspective on animals and animality help us rethink hegemonic, marginalized or transgressive forms, modes and practices of gender relations or conceptions of the sexed/gendered body as well as its materiality and agency? How do gender and sexuality figure in the construction of the human-animal boundary – and vice versa? Can a perspective on animals and (human) animality offer new ways of addressing the traditionally fraught and problematic question of nature and culture in Gender and Queer Studies? These and many other possible questions may be discussed in the contributions to this issue.

Both specific (cultural, sociological, literary, historical etc.) analyses and theoretical or methodological contributions are welcome. We are also looking for possible book reviews that might be of specific relevance for this issue, so feel free to contact us should you be interested in writing a review.

Possible topics for papers include but are, as always, by no means limited to:

- Gender/sexuality and discourses, practices or materialities of human-animal relations
- Gender/sexuality and the question of human animality
- Queer animals and animalities
- Masculinities and animals/human-animal relations
- Human and animal bodies
- Gender/sexuality and (de)constructions of the human-animal boundary
- Gender, species and speciesism
- Gender and/in animal rights discourse
- Human-Animal Studies and feminist, queer or gender theories
- Animals, animality and intersectionality
- Human-animal intimacies and zoophilia/bestiality
- Animals in discourses and practices of family life
- ...

If you wish to contribute a paper, we kindly ask you to send a brief proposal of no more than 500 words outlining the topic of your paper by May 15th, 2015 latest. Please send all questions, proposals and finished papers/reviews to ohremd@gmail.com. The deadline for finished papers/reviews is September 1st, 2015. For further information about the journal, submission guidelines etc. please visit http://www.genderforum.org/