Our 2018 biennial conference is approaching rapidly. This year it will take place in Sweden, in the beautiful campus of the Stockholm University. Thanks to the spaces made available by the University, we were able to accept a large number of panels: this time 165. The work of the scientific committee, composed by colleagues coming from different intellectual traditions, has been improved by different approaches, research themes and sensitivities brought by each of them. Considering the large number of panels proposed this year, this diversity allowed us to make choices that we hope are relevant for our discipline. As it happens every time, we could not accept all the panel proposals despite the high quality of the proposals. We have promoted a wider range of formats: round tables, classic panels and sessions consisting of short presentations. We hope you have found good spaces of exchange and scientific discussion.

The three plenary sessions will punctuate our meetings around the theme Staying, Moving, Settling. A first one, organized by Martin Fotta, Ayse Caglar Miguel Vale de Almeida and Sarah Green, resulting from the collaboration between the scientific committee and the executive committee; it is about Anthropological knowledge production and the narratives, regimes and governance of mobility. The second one, under the responsibility of the local committee and organized by Ulf Hannerz will address the theme of Migrants, refugees and public anthropology. The third one, conceived by Georgeta Stoica and Sabine Strasser - members of the executive dealing with precarity in academia - and Gabriella Körling from the local committee, was set up through a call for papers; it is the early career scholars forum that continues the discussion of the GA Seminar organized in Bern last year, under the key words of im/mobility, uncertainty and hope.

Unfortunately, in this early summer, the Mediterranean which bathes the coasts of Marseilles, from where I’m writing these lines, is becoming the set of political battles playing with the lives of men, women and children who try to cross the sea in search of a better life. Frontiers are built where people should be able to move. Our long-term work aims at an understanding of social phenomena in depth; but we have also to mobilize our critical analysis on this kind of conflicting and difficult reality, which is changing the border of our common space, every day. The European governments still have to work before the right of citizenship, of circulation and of life will be really taken into account and respected. Anthropology can and must play a role. I am very pleased that our meeting is open by Shahram Khosravi, Professor of Social Anthropology at Stockholm University, whose life, career and work are a testimony and a valuable contribution to the understanding of migration phenomena and their effects on the lives of men and women who move, those who stay, those who welcome.

Nonetheless inequalities, power relations, exploitation and discrimination happen also in our places of research and teaching. In order to correct, at least in part, this presbyopia, our conference is a place open also to these debates. We invite you to browse all these spaces of debate that will spawn the conference. Among the various round tables I draw your attention on the following ones, organised by members of the executive committee: European Directory of Social Anthropologists (EDSA) Roundtable, related to the project that the EASA executive support with the Max Plank institute, and Anthropology After Data (Management): Access, Infrastructure, Ethics; or again the debate organized by the PrecAnthro group. The panels and the meetings of the networks members (28 networks organize panels, for about 45 panels), the laboratories and the film program will contribute to enrich the range of our tools of research and communication.

A conference of this size and scope could not be put in place without the day-to-day work that has accomplished a motivated team that for months enthusiastically dedicated itself to this event: Helena Wulff and Lotta Björklund Larsen and all the members from the local committee through which this meeting can take place. I would like also to thank NomadIT team for their professional work and their effective presence alongside the executive not only in the organization of the conference. By facing the many unforeseen events that take place during the organization of a conference, they allow us to meet every two years in a different city of Europe.

Last but not least, some lines on the work of the executive these last months: we continued the activities launched at the Bern AGM on precariousness. A survey on working conditions of anthropologists has just been launched in partnership with the collective PrecAnthro. https://ww2.unipark.de/uc/easa/

I hope you have taken the time to answer it or you will do it soon!

EASA is now a member of Scholars at Risk Network, in addition to EASSH (European Association of Social Sciences and Humanities), and we participate in ISE (Initiative for Science in Europe) activities. EASA will be represented by Georgeta Stoica at the next WCAA meeting which takes place in Florianopolis (Brazil) in mid July. All these connections allow us to be present in pressure groups at European and international level, not only to make anthropology more visible but also to enable us to be more effective in the battles we are waging or supporting, for anthropology or through anthropology.

Looking forward to meeting you in Stockholm!

Valeria Siniscalchi
EASA President

Chers membres d’EASA,

Notre conférence biennale approche à grands pas. Cette fois elle aura lieu en Suède, dans le magnifique campus de l’Université de Stockholm, autour du thème Staying, Moving, Settling. Grâce aux espaces mis à disposition par l’Université, nous avons pu accepter un nombre important de panels, 165 cette année. Le travail du comité scientifique, composé de collègues issus de traditions intellectuelles différentes, a pu bénéficier de l’apport précieux d’approches, de thématiques de recherche et de sensibilités différentes dont chacun a été porteur. Cette diversité nous a permis de faire des choix que nous espérons pertinents, compte tenu de la grande quantité de panels proposés cette année. Comme lors des précédentes conférences, nous n’avons pas pu accepter toutes les propositions de panels, mais nous espérons que vous avez pu trouver des espaces d’échange pertinents et riches. Nous avons souhaité promouvoir une plus grande variété de formats : des tables rondes, des panels classiques ou encore des séances constitués des courtes présentations.

Les trois séances plénières rythmeront nos rencontres : la première, organisée par Martin Fotta, Ayse Caglar Miguel Vale de Almeida et Sarah Green, est issue de la collaboration du comité scientifique et du comité exécutif ; elle porte sur thème Anthropological knowledge production and the narratives, regimes and governance of mobility. La deuxième, à la charge du comité local et organisée par Ulf Hannerz abordera le thème des Migrants, refugees and public anthropology. La troisième, conçue par Georgeta Stoica et Sabine Strasser – membres de l’exécutif en charge du dossier concernant la précarité – et Gabriella Körling du comité local, a été mise en place à travers un appel à communications ; elle constitue le forum des jeunes chercheurs et poursuit les analyses et les discussion engagées à Berne sur la précarité, sous l’angle de l’im/mobilité, de l’incertitude et de l’espoir.

Malheureusement, en ce début d’été, la Méditerranée qui baigne les côtes de Marseille d’où j’écris ces lignes, est le théâtre de batailles politiques qui jouent avec la vie des hommes, des femmes et des enfants qui tentent de la traverser pour chercher une vie meilleure. Des frontières s’érigent là où les individus devraient pouvoir circuler. Nos travaux, en se déployant sur la longue durée, visent à une compréhension en profondeur des phénomènes sociaux ; mais nous sommes également appelés à mettre en œuvre notre analyse critique pour l’appliquer à une actualité souvent conflictuelle et difficile. Les gouvernements des Etats européens ont encore du chemin à faire pour que les droits de citoyenneté, de circulation et de vie soient réellement pris en compte et respectés. L’anthropologie peut et doit jouer un rôle dans ce changement. Je suis très heureuse que nos rencontres soient ouvertes par Shahram Khosravi, Professeur d’Anthropologie sociale à l’Université de Stockholm, dont la vie, la carrière et les travaux constituent à la fois un témoignage et une contribution précieux pour la compréhension des phénomènes migratoires et de leurs effets sur la vie des hommes et des femmes (ceux qui se déplacent, ceux qui restent, ceux qui accueillent).

Mais les inégalités, les rapports de pouvoir, l’exploitation, les discriminations s’exercent aussi dans nos espaces de recherche et d’enseignement. Afin de corriger, au moins en partie, cette presbytie, notre conférence se veut aussi un lieu ouvert à cette question. Nous vous invitons à découvrir  les différents espaces de débat proposés. Parmi les diverses tables rondes, celles organisés par des membres de l’exécutif, European Directory of Social Anthropologists (EDSA), table ronde liée au projet que l’exécutif soutien avec le Max Plank institute, et Anthropology after data (management) : access, infrastructure, ethics ; ou encore le débat organisé par le collectif PrecAnthro. Les rencontres et les panels des networks (28 organisent des panels, pour environ 45 panels), les laboratoires et le programme filmique contribueront à enrichir l’éventail de nos outils de recherche et de communication.

Une conférence de cette taille et de cette ampleur n’a pas pu  être mise en place sans le travail accompli au quotidien par l’équipe motivée qui, depuis des mois, se consacre avec enthousiasme à son organisation : je pense à Helena Wulff et Lotta Björklund Larsen et à tous les membres du comité local grâce auxquels cette rencontre pourra avoir lieu. Mais je pense aussi au travail minutieux de l’équipe de NomadIT que je remercie chaleureusement pour sa présence efficace aux côtés de l’exécutif, en affrontant les imprévus liés à l’organisation d’une conférence, elle permet que nous nous retrouvions tous les deux ans dans une ville d’Europe différente.

Un mot sur le travail de l’exécutif ce dernier trimestre : nous avons poursuivi les activités lancées lors de l’AGM de Berne sur la précarité. Une enquête su les conditions de travail des anthropologues vient d’être lancée en partenariat avec le collectif PrecAnthro, https://ww2.unipark.de/uc/easa/

J’espère que vous avez pris le temps d’y répondre ou que vous allez le faire bientôt ! L’EASA est désormais membre, en plus de l’EASSH (European Association of Social Sciences and Humanities), du Scholar at Risk Network, et nous participons aux activités de l’ISE (Initiative for Science in Europe). L’EASA sera représentée par Georgeta Stoica à la prochaine rencontre du WCAA qui aura lieu à Florianopolis (Brésil) mi-juillet. Ces relations nous permettent d’être présents dans des groupes de pression à l’échelle européenne et internationale, non seulement pour rendre l’anthropologie plus visible mais aussi pour peser plus efficacement dans les batailles que nous menons ou que nous soutenons, en faveur de l’anthropologie ou à travers l’anthropologie.

Au plaisir de vous rencontrer à Stockholm !

Valeria Siniscalchi
Présidente de l’EASA

Recently, within the EASA Executive, a major consideration has been given to lobbying activities at the level of the European Commission in relation to the Funding Programmes. The main objective is that of making a bridge between the society and policy makers. Of course, this complex and long-lasting lobbying activity is not an easy one. We have to be proactive and join forces with other similar groups considering that unity is strength. Consequently EASA has decided to become a member and join forces with two major lobbying associations: the European Association of Social Sciences and Humanities (EASSH) and Initiative for Science in Europe (ISE).

Presently, we are working on a position paper that will be addressed to DG Research and DG Employment in the autumn 2018. This is a further step of EASA lobbying activities a result of the 2017 seminar in Bern that focused on precarity in the academia.

A list of major topics to be addressed in the future European call for proposals (2021-2027) has been established as follows: Anthropocene (topic already addressed by EASHH), Migration, Refugees, Activism, Food Security, Health, Heritage, Security and Terrorism, Education, Gender, Digital World etc. and presented at the General Assembly of EASSH.

Invitation to register as experts
As many of you already know, the new name of the European funding programme is Horizon Europe and will be launched on 1st January 2021. In order to have more chances, considering that our community of anthropologists had a great success of research projects that were funded, mainly within the ERC programme, we encourage EASA members to register as experts in order to evaluate research projects. This would give us the opportunity to be more present at the European level and within the so called “decisional committees”.

Register here.

Georgeta Stoica
Lobbying officer
stoicageorgiana(at)yahoo.com

Complete the survey: https://ww2.unipark.de/uc/easa/

This survey has been prepared by the European Association of Social Anthropologists (EASA) in collaboration with the PrecAnthro collective. The purpose of the survey is to get an overview of the employment situation among EASA members. Furthermore, this survey focuses on the production and effects of precarity among anthropologists and how this affects our members. Precarity is one of the major challenges within and outside of academia, different of course in different parts of the world and entangled with political conditions. EASA members discussed precarity during the Milano conference 2016 (PrecAnthro collective) and at the EASA AGM in Bern 2017 “On Politics and Precarity”. Similar debates have been started at the AAA and have been presented in Cultural Anthropology recently.

The results of this survey will allow EASA and the PrecAnthro Collective to better inform about conditions and consequences of employment schemes and work security. Furthermore, it will allow us to develop policy recommendation and engage in lobbying. Since uncertainties are affecting all (though differently of course), members within and outside of academia at all levels of employment and education are invited to participate in this survey.

We thank the PrecAnthro collective and particularly Martin Fotta for the initiative for this survey and their committed collaboration. We also thank the sociologist Janine Widmer for her invaluable support and the University of Bern for providing funding for the professional preparation of this survey. We thank the Executive Committee for their unanimous support of the whole procedure.

Thank you very much for taking the time and answering the questions. The survey should take no more than 15-25 minutes. You find all information necessary online and can also comment on the procedure.
In case of questions, comments, or concerns, please contact Georgeta Stoica and Sabine Strasser for EASA or Martin Fotta on politicsandprecarities(at)gmail.com for the PrecAnthro collective.

As of June 1st 2018, EASA members are entitled to a 25% discount off any Berghahn title when ordering via the Berghahn website. Simply insert the code EASA at checkout. See below a selection of newly-published titles in the Series this Spring.

New in Paperback in EASA Series:

 

The EASA book series has been showcasing the work of the Association’s members since 1992. The series has been published by Berghahn Books since 2003 and includes both edited collections and monographs. With 34 volumes published so far, and as we are all getting ready for the Stockholm conference, it is my hope that more EASA members will submit proposals for consideration. One of the important aspects of the Series is also showcasing work by anthropologists who do not belong to the “central” anthropological traditions, with highlighting areas of research that are both timely and topical.

As it stands now, 2018 will be a very productive year for the Series, with six volumes planned for publication. There are several other volumes (two edited collections and a monograph) in the reviewing process at the moment, and I hope that the outcome of the reviews for at least one of them will be complete by mid-August. Most recently, Experimental Collaborations: Ethnography through Fieldwork Devices (edited by Adolfo Estalella and Tomás Sánchez Criado, and with Foreword by George E. Marcus and Afterword by Sarah Pink) was published as Volume 34 in the Series. The contributions in this volume, with their emphasis on the ways of doing fieldwork in a rapidly changing world, exemplify both the theoretical breadth and the practical know-how of the contributions to the EASA Book Series. They also demonstrate, in a clear and precise way, how anthropology contributes to our understanding of the processes that shape the contemporary world, and, for that reason, why anthropology really matters.

I hope to see you all in Stockholm at the 15th Biennial EASA conference, and look forward to receiving more interesting proposals, for this exciting and very timely project.

Aleksandar Bošković,
Professor of Anthropology,
University of Belgrade

Valeria Siniscalchi (EASA President) and Marcus Banks (Networks liaison) invite the Networks convenors to a meeting on Wednesday 15th August (13:15-14:30). This will be the occasion for those who convene the different EASA networks to get together to discuss the future of networks and the possibilities related to the growing number of active networks.

NEW NETWORK FORMED

The Anthropology of Labour network.

NETWORK ACTIVITY DURING EASA2018

Networks are behind 58 of the 184 panels and labs.  A few too many to list here in the newsletter, but search the conference panel list where the networks are listed in square brackets after the panel titles.

ANTHROPOLOGY AND THE ARTS NETWORK (ANTART)

Upcoming events:

• Art and Nativism Panel (https://nomadit.co.uk/easa/easa2018/conferencesuite.php/panels/6521)

• Network meeting (16 August, 7pm)

• Drinks reception/party (16 August, place and exact time tbc)

AGENET

On behalf of the convenors of the Age and Generations Network (AGENET), I would like to thank everyone who has brought their interest and enthusiasm to our group and invite anyone who is interested in the anthropology of age, generations and the life course more broadly to join this new network.

AGENET is the first European network of anthropologists concerned with aging and its relationship to culture and society. While AGENET recognizes the substantial work of anthropologists focused specifically on later life, our vision for this network is to bring those researchers together with others who focus on other moments in the life course or on inter-generational relationships.

As lives become longer and fertility declines in most of the world, anthropologists ought to be poised to address questions about the impact of new mobilities, technologies, climate change, and political-economic conditions on the ways generations interact. We can shed light on how these very globally interconnected processes are felt and navigated in the everyday worlds of families and communities, be it grandparents caring for orphans in Uganda or Indian families caring for aging parents using ICTs.

This network gives us the opportunity to build collaborative links and to build a common base of knowledge, methods, and theories that strengthen age as a critical opening to central questions of anthropology.

At this year's EASA Conference at the University of Stockholm, AGENET is proud to sponsor the session "Staying, moving, (re)settling: transitioning practices, actors and places of care in later life" organised by Matthew Lariviere and Denise de Waal. Other AGENET members Megha Amrith and Helena Patzer have organised a panel on "Ageing, care and transnational mobilities".

At our inaugural Network meeting we'll discuss organizing panels for the next EASA and for other conferences, as well as the possibility of organizing our own conference to keep our momentum going. Given the overlaps with MAN. Anthropology of Children and Youth Network, Applied Anthropology, and other networks, we also hope to discuss possibilities for joint activities.

Whether you can make it to Stockholm or not, we look forward to hearing about your research, publications and projects as AGENET grows.

Jason Danely, co-convenor, AGENET, jdanely(at)brookes.ac.uk

TAN

Conference on "Teaching and learning anthropology in Eastern and Southeastern Europe"
May 12-13, 2018, Thessaloniki, Greece

The EASA Teaching Anthropology Network has been among the co-organizing institutions of a conference that was held in May 12-13, 2018, in Thessaloniki, Greece under the title "Teaching and learning anthropology and ethnography in eastern and southeastern Europe: making sense of cultural difference in familiar and unfamiliar contexts".

The event was organized by the Culture, Borders, Gender LAB and the ΜΑ Program in "History, Anthropology and Culture in Eastern and South-Eastern Europe" of the Department of Balkan, Slavic and Oriental Studies, University of Macedonia, Thessaloniki, Greece in collaboration with the EASA Teaching Anthropology Network, Teaching Anthropology (TA) - A Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, and the Border Crossings Network.

The conference hosted papers and other interactive and experimental multi-media presentations which reflected on various aspects of teaching and learning anthropology and/or ethnography in SE Europe and discussed key questions related to the production and dissemination of anthropological knowledge, in both discipline-related and interdisciplinary, academic and non-academic contexts.

Ioannis Manos, Co-convenor of the EASA Teaching Anthropology Network, imanos(at)uom.edu.gr

ANTHROMOB

Worlds in Motion Berghahn book series

We are proud to announce the latest titles in AnthroMob's "Worlds in Motion" book series:

Vol. 3 - Intimate Mobilities: Sexual Economies, Marriage and Migration in a Disparate World (eds Christian Groes and Nadine T. Fernandez)

Vol. 4 - Momentous Mobilities: Anthropological Musings on the Meanings of Travel (Noel B. Salazar)

Vol. 5 - Healthcare in Motion: Immobilities in Health Service Delivery and Access (eds Cecilia Vindrola-Padros, Ginger A. Johnson, and Anne E. Pfister)

All titles will be on sale during EASA2018 in Stockholm. If you have ideas for a new volume, please get in touch with us!

EASA 2018

We would like to draw your attention to the 7 AnthroMob-endorsed panels and 1 lab at EASA2018 in Stockholm. Our network business meeting will take place on Wednesday 15 August, from 17.00-18.45. We are also planning a social event directly after the meeting, and will let you know the details in due course! Please keep this in mind when planning your trip.

Pacing Mobilities: a consideration of shifts in the timing, intensity, tempo and duration of mobility [ANTHROMOB]
https://nomadit.co.uk/easa/easa2018/conferencesuite.php/panels/6321
Convenors: Noel B. Salazar (University of Leuven), Vered Amit (Concordia University) 
Discussant Karen Fog Olwig (University of Copenhagen), Karsten Paerregaard (University of Gothenburg)

In this panel, we want to extend the temporal interrogation of particular forms and experiences of mobility to consider more fully the dimensions involved in the 'pacing' of movement, including aspects such as timing, duration, frequency, intensity and scope.

Mobilising policies: indolence, zealousness, discretionality and beyond [ANTHROMOB]
https://nomadit.co.uk/easa/easa2018/conferencesuite.php/panels/6438
Convenors: Jérémie Voirol (Graduate Institute ), Diego Valdivieso (The University of Manchester), Juan del Nido (University of Manchester) 

Drawing on mobility beyond its spatial connotations and thinking broadly of policy, authority and governance, this panel studies how policies organising flows of people, information or resources are themselves mobilised, created, invoked or subverted by those responsible for their application.

Moving the goods: maritime mobility and logistics labour [ANTHROMOB]
https://nomadit.co.uk/easa/easa2018/conferencesuite.php/panels/6467
Convenors: Hege Leivestad (Stockholm University), Johanna Markkula (Stanford University)
Chair Hege Leivestad
Discussant Gustav Peebles (The New School)

Through complex systems of logistics, commodities are moved overseas following a "just-in-time" logic. This panel extends the anthropological research on mobility by asking how a focus on maritime logistics, infrastructures and labour can contribute to our understandings of the global economy.

Creating locality in mobile times: intimacy, friendship and belonging between digital and physical co-presence [ANTHROMOB]
https://nomadit.co.uk/easa/easa2018/conferencesuite.php/panels/6487
Convenors: Fabiola Mancinelli (Universitat de Barcelona), Chima Michael Anyadike-Danes (University of Warwick)

Building on the notion of locality as a socially produced, relational process, this panel explores how those leading mobile lives practice both place-making and community-making, examining the role played by digital technologies and social media.

Migration and the imaginaries of 'good life' [ANTHROMOB]
https://nomadit.co.uk/easa/easa2018/conferencesuite.php/panels/6446
Convenors: Anna Horolets (University of Warsaw), Unnur Dís Skaptadóttir (University of Iceland) 
Discussant Valerio Simoni (The Graduate Institute, Geneva)

We invite paper proposals that consider migration as a moral practice, focus on the relation between mobility and migrants' imaginaries of 'good life' in any stage, context or type of migratory situation, and discuss how the ideas of what is 'good' are informed by mobility in contemporary societies.

Engineering Mobilities: Exploring the infrastructures mediating transnational highly-skilled migration [ANTHROMOB] 
https://nomadit.co.uk/easa/easa2018/conferencesuite.php/panels/6551
Convenors: Sazana Jayadeva (GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies), Yassmin Ahmed (The American University in Cairo)

This panel investigates the infrastructures which mediate the movement of highly-skilled migrants across international borders, and how they operate.

(Un)Moving, Becoming and 'Kinning': The Times of Migration and the Nexus with Family [ANTHROMOB]
https://nomadit.co.uk/easa/easa2018/conferencesuite.php/panels/6436
Convenors: Flavia Cangia (University of Neuchatel NCCR - on the move), Brigitte Suter (Malmö University)

This panel explores the nexus between time and family in the context of migration and mobility. In particular, it is interested in how the complex times and temporalities of migration interplay with kin practices, feelings and meanings of family and intimate relationships.

Bodies-in-motion: experiencing the role of 'moving' in anthropological praxis [AnthroMob]
https://nomadit.co.uk/easa/easa2018/conferencesuite.php/panels/7044
Convenors: Patrick Laviolette (Tallinn Univ / UCL), Noel B. Salazar (University of Leuven), Paolo S. H. Favero (University of Antwerp), Shireen Walton (University College London)

This laboratory allows participants to acknowledge and challenge issues of pace, rhythm, tempo, velocity and flow surrounding their own movements as well as the people, 'things' and contexts circulating around them, be it during fieldwork or while teaching. This laboratory will take place outside.

Anthropology of Confinement Network

Invitation to submit proposals to the new book series Berghahn Studies in Confinement

Confinement is today exercised in a diversity of contexts, spaces, and institutions. Penal institutions, immigration detention centres, retirement homes, psychiatric wards, house arrest, electronic monitoring, and curfews are but a few examples of the variety of shapes that confinement may take. The aim of this interdisciplinary series is twofold: it seeks to advance knowledge on confinement as category of practice and category of analysis, and to provide a space that fosters ethical and methodological discussion on the study of confinement.

We invite submissions featuring critical perspectives on contemporary practices and experiences of confinement. We encourage proposals that are written for wider audiences, including practitioners and policy makers, but also submissions from practitioners and policy makers. We also encourage submissions of auto-ethnographies from researchers who have been prisoners or detainees themselves (in particular from the field of ´convict criminology´). 

For any queries regarding the series please feel free to contact the series editors: 
Ines Hasselberg: ines.hasselberg(at)ics.uminho.pt
Carolina Sanchez Boe: carolina(at)sagajazz.com. 

Formal submissions should be sent directly to Berghahn Books. For more information on Berghahn’s manuscript submission procedure, please look at the Info for Authors section at Berghahn Books web site. All submissions to this series, as well as any queries about the formal procedure, should be sent to Berghahn.

Mediterraneanist Network (MedNet)

APPLY

On 26th and 27th October 2018, EASA Applied Anthropology Network will organise in Lisbon, Portugal, the 6th edition of the Why the World Needs Anthropologists international symposium. This year’s edition, entitled Designing the Future, focuses on design anthropology, its methods, practical applications, and potentials for framing the future of humanity. The event brings together researchers, designers, and developers from various domains to ensure an enriched discussion, facilitate collaborations, create innovation momentum, and provide a networking platform for new job opportunities. Participants will enjoy an immersive experience at plenary sessions, meet people in the Design Hotspot area, improve their skills at thematic workshops and have an opportunity to share ideas with the audience at the Perspectives: Powered by PechaKucha. Plenary speeches will be given by Rosa Maria Perez and Miguel Vale de Almeida (both ISCTE – University Institute of Lisbon), José Manuel dos Santos (Philips Lighting), Sarah Pink (RMIT University), Jamer Hunt (The New School), Anna Kirah (Design Without Borders), Alisse Waterston (CUNY), and Dan Podjed (ZRC SAZU / EASA Applied Anthropology Network). Website: www.applied-anthropology.com

Anthropology and Social Movements

The EASA-Network “Anthropology and Social Movements”, in cooperation with the “Peasant Activism Project” (www.peasantproject.org) organized from 8th to 10th December 2017 an international conference, the second edition of the  “Political Imagination Laboratory”. The event brought together anthropologists, social scientists, film-makers and activists from around the world. Questions debated at the event included: Which visions animate contemporary activism? How to visualize or to contextualize the political imagination of contemporary social movements? How to uncover those utopian aspirations, strategic and/or ideological horizons that too often pass implicitly, silently, or invisibly? Inspired by both visual and ethnographic fieldwork, the Political Imagination Laboratory took up these questions in order to explore the shifting political imagination of contemporary social movements and forms of mobilization.

This second edition of the Political Imagination Laboratory took place at University of Perugia, Italy, as well as at local cinemas. The program alternated paper presentations with film screenings, roundtable discussions, and work-in-progress visual expositions. This format has been particularly appreciated by participants from all over Europe, the US and even South America.