The Caribbean: Aesthetics, Ecology, Politics
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A conference at the Keynote speakers: Elizabeth DeLoughrey, Oonya Kempadoo, Lizabeth Paravisini-Gebert, Janette Bulkan, Paloma Mohamed, Vonnie Roudette. Registration is now open for the following event: This conference will explore the relationships between Caribbean environments, literature and the arts, and issues of political and socio-economic justice. Today, the twin spectres of economic and ecological crisis haunt the globe. While the world-system has been convulsed by the fallout from financial meltdown, the logic of capital continues to drive relentlessly towards the degradation of human and extra-human nature. Despite the planetary scope of many ecological problems, the intensity of their impact tends to be registered unevenly, with the poor—especially those in peripheral nation-states—suffering most. In the Caribbean, natural disasters such as hurricanes and the devastating earthquake that hit Haiti in January 2010 already pose enormous challenges for the region. The intensification of, for example, extreme weather conditions with global warming will only exacerbate these difficulties. Their effects, moreover, cannot be disentangled from the long history of ecological and social exploitation imposed on the region by capitalist imperialism—from the environmental transformations brought about by early colonization to the contemporary problems wrought by tourism and penetration by multinationals. Examining how these and a range of related issues have impacted upon cultural production in the Caribbean, this conference will feature talks and performances by writers, artists, scholars, and social activists from across the world. Keynote addresses and/or readings will be given by Elizabeth DeLoughrey (UCLA), novelist Oonya Kempadoo (winner of the Casa de las Americas Prize, 2001), Lizabeth Paravisini-Gebert (Vassar), Janette Bulkan (ECCo Field Museum, Chicago), playwright Paloma Mohamed (winner of the Cacique Caribbean Award, 2005), and Vonnie Roudette (activist and artist from St. Vincent). Delegates from the Caribbean, Europe, North America, India, and Australia will present papers covering topics such as: the intersection of aesthetics, imperialism, and ecologies; the role of cultural production in mapping and responding to environmental crises and natural catastrophes; the intersection of social justice with environmental justice; and the role the writer or artist might play in addressing such issues. Further information on the conference, as well as options for registration, can be found at: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/ccs/conference/ A provisional programme and timetable will be placed on the website in due course. Any enquiries, please contact Michael Niblett at eapconference@gmail.com or M.Niblett@warwick.ac.uk. For further information regarding conference registration, accommodation, travel etc, please contact Kerry Drakeley at K.J.Drakeley@warwick.ac.uk. The conference is part of a Leverhulme Trust-funded research project currently being undertaken at the Yesu Persaud Centre for Caribbean Studies, University of Warwick.
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