Call for Papers Internet Research 11.0 - Sustainability, Participation, Action

[Michel Bauwens]

The 11th Annual International and Interdisciplinary Conference of the
Association of Internet Researchers (AoIR)
October 21-23, 2010 University of Gothenburg/Chalmers University of
Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden

The challenge of this conference is to find multiple avenues for
participation and action towards a sustainable future. In a society
increasingly aware of social and ecological imbalance, many people now
see information and communication technologies as key technologies for
solving problems associated with an unsustainable future. However,
while information technology may solve some problems, it can magnify
others. As pointed out by world forums such as the United Nations and
the European Commission, use of ICTs contributes to the unsustainable
consumption of energy and resources. Similarly, unequal access and
exploitative practices remind us that IT is not a utopian answer to
complex social problems. A sustainable future is not only about
greening processes and products at any cost, but also entails social
responsibility, cultural protection and economic growth. Therefore the
conference has a multi-dimensional focus, where the Internet is seen
as a possible liberating, empowering and greening tool.

The conference will focus on how the Internet can function as a
conduit for the development of greater global equality and
understanding, a training ground for participation in debates and
cross-cultural projects and a tool for mutual action; in short a
technology of empowerment. The flip-side of the internet as a tool for
empowerment is the issue of exploitation. Exploitation of resources
and people is what has led to the current crisis, and issues of
exploitation are highly relevant online, from abuse of the commons to
censorship, fraud and loss of privacy and the protection of the rights
of the individual.

Sustainability, Participation, Action invites scholars to consider
issues concerning empowerment and/or exploitation in relation to the
Internet. We ask scholars to specifically consider issues concerning
integrity, knowledge production, and ethics in relation to the
Internet and sustainable development. How do we, as Internet
researchers, regard our work in relation to the unsustainable current
situation and the possibilities of a sustainable future? How far can
we take the Internet, and with it, people, individuals, groups and
societies in order to create an arena for participation and action,
all key elements in imagining a sustainable future? How can we apply
previous knowledge to serve future solutions?

To this end, we call for papers, panel proposals, and presentations
from any discipline, methodology, and community, and from conjunctions
of multiple disciplines, methodologies and academic communities that
address the conference themes, including papers that intersect and/or
interconnect the following:

Internet and an equal and balanced society
Internet as an arena for participation
Internet as a tool and arena for action
Internet and an informed knowledge society
Internet and a green society
Internet and e‐commerce, dematerialization and transportation
Internet and security, integrity and surveillance
Internet and a healthy society
Internet as an arena for cultural expressions, and source of a culture
of its own.

Sessions at the conference will be established that specifically
address the conference themes, and we welcome innovative, exciting,
and unexpected takes on those themes. We also welcome submissions on
topics that address social, cultural, political, legal, aesthetic,
economic, and/or philosophical aspects of the Internet beyond the
conference themes. In all cases, we welcome disciplinary and
interdisciplinary submissions as well as international collaborations
from both AoIR and non‐AoIR members.

SUBMISSIONS
We seek proposals for several different kinds of contributions. We
welcome proposals for traditional academic conference PAPERS and we
also welcome proposals for ROUNDTABLE SESSIONS that will focus on
discussion and interaction among conference delegates, as well as
organized PANEL PROPOSALS that present a coherent group of papers on a
single theme.

DEADLINES
Call for Papers Released: 24 November 2009
Submissions Due: 21 February 2010 (Details here)
Notification: 21 April 2010
Full papers due: 21 August 2010

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
All papers and presentations in this session will be evaluated in a
standard blind peer review.

Format
PAPERS (individual or multi-author) - submit abstract of 600-800 words
FULL PAPERS (OPTIONAL): For submitters requiring peer review of full
papers, manuscripts of up to 8,000 words will be accepted for review.
These will be reviewed and judged separately from abstract submissions
PANEL PROPOSALS - submit a 600-800 word description of the panel
theme, plus 250-500 word abstract for each paper or presentation
ROUNDTABLE PROPOSALS - submit a statement indicating the nature of the
roundtable discussion and interaction
Papers, presentations and panels will be selected from the submitted
proposals on the basis of multiple blind peer review, coordinated and
overseen by the Program Chair. Each individual is invited to submit a
proposal for 1 paper or 1 presentation. A person may also propose a
panel session, which may include a second paper that they are
presenting. An individual may also submit a roundtable proposal. You
may be listed as co-author on additional papers as long as you are not
presenting them.

PUBLICATION OF PAPERS
Selected papers from the conference will be published in a special
issue of the journal Information, Communication & Society, edited by
Caroline Haythornthwaite and Lori Kendall. Authors selected for
consideration for submission to this issue will be contacted prior to
the conference.

All papers submitted to the conference system will be available to
AoIR members after the conference.

PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOPS
On October 20, 2010, there will be a limited number of pre-conference
workshops which will provide participants with in-depth, hands-on and/
or creative opportunities. We invite proposals for these pre-
conference workshops. Local presenters are encouraged to propose
workshops that will invite visiting researchers into their labs or
studios or locales. Proposals should be no more than 1000 words, and
should clearly outline the purpose, methodology, structure, costs,
equipment and minimal attendance required, as well as explaining
relevance to the conference as a whole. Proposals will be accepted if
they demonstrate that the workshop will add significantly to the
overall program in terms of thematic depth, hands on experience, or
local opportunities for scholarly or artistic connections. These
proposals and all inquiries regarding pre-conference proposals should
be submitted as soon as possible to both the Conference Chair and
Program Chair and no later than March 31, 2010.

FEE WAIVER
In order to increase the diversity of participation in the AoIR annual
Internet Research (IR) conferences, the Association of Internet
Researchers will make available up to three conference fee waivers per
year. The number of fee waivers will depend first of all upon the
ability of the conference budget to sustain such waivers (a judgment
to be made by the AoIR Executive Committee upon the advice of the AoIR
Treasurer and the local organizing committee) as well as upon the
quality of the applications for fee waivers.

Applications for fee waivers are invited from student or faculty
authors whose paper or panel proposals have already been accepted via
the AoIR IR conference reviewing process. All applications should be
directed to the Vice-President of AoIR, and must be received by June
30 of the conference year. Late applications cannot be considered.
More information and submission guidelines will be published in a
separate announcement.

CONTACT INFORMATION
Program Chair: Torill Elvira Mortensen, Volda University College,
Norway. [e-mail]
Conference Co-Chairs and Coordinators: Ann-Sofie Axelsson, Chalmers
University of Technology and Ylva Hård af Segerstad, University of
Gothenburg, Sweden.


Important Dates

Submissions Due 21 February 2010

Notifications of Acceptance 21 Apr 2010

Abstract Revisions Due7 May 2010

Full Papers Due 21 August 2010

Pre-Conference Workshops 20 Oct 2010

Main Conference 21-23 Oct 2010






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Assoc. Prof. Marcus Foth
Principal Research Fellow

Institute for Creative Industries and Innovation
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