The Social Pathologies of Contemporary Civilization – 7th Conference

SOCIAL PATHOLOGIES OF CONTEMPORARY CIVILIZATION

7^th CONFERENCE

CALL FOR PAPERS
Social Suffering in an Era of Resilience

October 19^th & 20^th 2017

Goethe-University Frankfurt, in co-operation with the Institute for Social Research
The seventh international conference on The Social Pathologies of Contemporary Civilization once again explores the nature of contemporary malaises, diseases, illnesses and syndromes in their relation to cultural pathologies of the social body. Usually these conditions are interpreted clinically in terms of individualized symptoms and framed in demographic and epidemiological profiles. They are represented and responded to discretely, as though for the most part unrelated to each other; each having their own professional discourses of etiology, diagnostics, therapeutics, as well as their task forces developing health strategy and policy recommendations and interventions. However, these diseases also have a social and cultural profile, one that transcends the particularity of their symptomology and their discrete etiologies. These pathologies are diseases related to cultural pathologies of the social body and disorders of the collective esprit de corps of contemporary society.
Multi-disciplinary in approach the conference addresses questions of how these conditions are manifest at the level of individual bodies and minds, as well as how the ‘bodies politic’ are related to the hegemony of reductive biomedical and psychologistic perspectives. Rejecting such a reductive diagnosis of contemporary problems of health and well-being, the central research hypothesis guiding the conference is that contemporary epidemics are to be analysed in the light of radical changes in our civilization and of the social hegemonization of the biomedical and psychiatric perspective. They arise from individual and collective experiences of profound and drastic social changes and cultural shifts.
More specifically – but not exclusively – this conference will focus on the social dynamics of suffering. In times where an increasing neglect of society is only asking for one’s resilience, we want to focus on the understanding how social and cultural conditions moderate the experience of suffering. Social Suffering as a concept comprises two things: first, collective suffering, for instance as a result of war or natural catastrophes; and second, individual suffering, insofar as it has primarily societal causes.

• The so called refugee crisis brings in also questions of morality: is the focus on resilience in light of collective suffering of any help? Could resonance as a concept on the other side help to a better understanding of the suffering?
• Psychic suffering and social inequality
• Due to the transformation of work and the psychosocial costs associated with these changes, as well as the increasing tendencies towards social exclusion, the issue of social suffering has entered the agenda of industrialized nations as well. The notion of social suffering highlights the fact, then, that the suffering in question is caused by structural conditions and remains embedded in them. It is suffering in society and because of it.
• Psychologization of Suffering. Is the notion of “social Pathologies” as well as the ongoing question for a diagnostic potential of the social sciences already part of an neglect of society itself and playing into the hands of psychology? What role plays therapy culture in this development?
• Common to all contributions to this field is both the interpretation of social suffering as an increasing effect of neoliberal capitalist socialization and its determination as a theoretical reference point for social critique. Whilst attending to the particular ways in which individuals struggle to make ‘the problem of suffering’ productive for thought and action, it also works to understand how, through to the level of collective experience, this contributes to wider dynamics of social change. Is the concept of resonance a starting point maybe?

The conference invites papers offering analyses, discussions and perspectives of the overall theme (and related themes) from faculty, students and researchers in fields such as psychiatry, philosophy, sociology, social theory, psychology, anthropology etc.

Abstracts (300 words) please, by Friday, December 23^rd 2016, to: socialpathologies2017@gmx.de

Web: http://socialpath.simplesite.com/

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PsychoPolitics in the Twenty First Century

PsychoPolitics

PSYCHO-POLITICS IN THE TWENTY FIRST CENTURY: PETER SEDGWICK AND RADICAL MOVEMENTS IN METAL HEALTH

Wednesday 10th June 2015 9.45am – 5.30pm

EDEN Building, Liverpool Hope University, Taggart Avenue, Liverpool L16 9JD

Speakers include: Professors Ann Davis and Peter Beresford, campaigners from Psychologists Against Austerity, reVision and Social Work Action Network

The work of Peter Sedgwick and in particular his classic text PsychoPolitics (1982) has a renewed relevance in the context of ‘austerity’, the privatisation of welfare provision and emergent forms of radical activism in mental health. This conference will provide an opportunity to explore Sedgwick’s ideas and assess his legacy in light of these contemporary developments.

The conference will include papers from academics, service users/survivors, mental health practitioners and activists on the following themes:

• The politics and sociology of mental health
• Reading Sedgwick in 2015
• Neoliberalism, austerity and alliances of resistance between service user/survivor movements, practitioners, trade unions and campaigners
• Links between mad studies and the work of Sedgwick
• Contemporary applications of PsychoPolitics in mental health movements and front line practice
• Marxism, materialism, alienation and mental health
• Representations of psychiatry and anti-psychiatry
• Basaglia and movements for psychiatric de-institutionalisation in Europe
• Revisiting the Sedgwick archive

Prices (including lunch and refreshments):

Waged/Practitioners/academics (institutional funding): £60

Waged/Practitioners/academics (self-funding): £35

Service users/survivors/carers/students/unwaged: £10

To book your place and download provisional programme go to: www.hope.ac.uk/psychopoliticsc21 (‘Registration’ tab to book, ‘Overview’ tab for programme).

For mailing list and other information contact: sedgwickconf2015@hope.ac.uk

This event has been organised by: British Sociological Association (BSA) Sociology of Mental Health Study Group and Department of Social Work, Care and Justice, Liverpool Hope University

First Published in http://www.historicalmaterialism.org/news/distributed/psychopolitics-in-the-21st-century-conference-details-announced

***END***

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Volumizer: http://glennrikowski.blogspot.com

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Heroes: Mass Murder and Suicide – Franco “Bifo” Berardi, Book Launch Events

Heroes

HEROES: MASS MURDER AND SUICIDE – FRANCO “BIFO” BERARDI, BOOK LAUNCH EVENTS

OUT NOW: Heroes: Mass Murder and Suicide

BY FRANCO “BIFO” BERARDI

What is the relationship between capitalism and mental health?

See: http://www.versobooks.com/books/1746-heroes

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LAUNCH EVENTS:

 

Wednesday February 25th 2015, 7.00pm – 8.30pm

At Foyles, 107 Charing Cross Road, London, WC2H 0DT

Franco Berardi in conversation with Paul Mason and Emma Dowling. For more information and to book: http://www.foyles.co.uk/event-bifo

 

Friday February 27th 2015, 1pm-2pm

At Institute of Contemporary Art, The Mall, London, SW1Y 5AH

Culture Now: Franco “Bifo” Berardi will discuss HEROES with Professor Benjamin Noys. For more information and to book: https://www.ica.org.uk/whats-on/culture-now-franco-bifo-berardi

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What is the relationship between capitalism and mental health? In his most unsettling book to date, Franco “Bifo” Berardi embarks on an exhilarating journey through philosophy, psychoanalysis and current events, searching for the social roots of the mental malaise of our age.

Spanning an array of horrors – the Aurora “Joker” killer; Anders Breivik; American school massacres; the suicide epidemic in Korea and Japan; and the recent spate of “austerity” suicides in Europe – Heroes dares to explore the darkest shadow cast by the contemporary obsession with relentless competition and hyper-connectivity. In a volume that crowns four decades of radical intellectual work, Berardi develops the psychoanalytical insights of his friend Felix Guattari and proposes dystopian irony as a strategy to disentangle ourselves from the deadly embrace of absolute capitalism.

————

HEROES: MASS MURDER AND SUICIDE is part of our new FUTURES series.

VERSO FUTURES is a brand-new series of essay-length philosophical and political interventions by both emerging and established writers and thinkers from around the world. Each title in the series addresses the outer limits of political and social possibility. Other books in the series include ISABELL LOREY, MARC AUGE and PAOLO VIRNO: http://www.versobooks.com/series_collections/113-futures

“The law of the innermost form of the essay is heresy”—Theodor Adorno

————

FRANCO “BIFO” BERARDI, founder of the famous Radio Alice in 1976 and one of the most prominent members of Autonomia, is a theorist and media activist. His recent books in English include The Soul at Work: From Alienation to Autonomy; The Uprising: On Poetry and Finance; and After the Future.

————

“As a diagnostician, Berardi is among the sharpest.” – Slate

“Bifo is a master of global activism in the age of depression. His mission is to understand real existing capitalism. Sense the despair of the revolt, enjoy this brilliant ‘labour of the negative’!” – Geert Lovink, Founding Director of the Institute of Network Cultures

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PAPERBACK: FEBRUARY 2015 / 240 pages / ISBN: 9781781685785 / £7.99 / $12.95 / $15.95 (Canada)

HARDBACK: FEBRAURY 2015 / 240 pages / ISBN: 9781781685778 / £55 / $95 / $108 (Canada)

HEROES is available at a 40% discount (30% hardback) on our website, with free shipping and bundled ebook. Purchasing details here: http://www.versobooks.com/books/1746-heroes

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Visit Verso’s website for information on our upcoming events, new reviews and publications and special offers: http://www.versobooks.com

Sign up for the Verso mailing list:

https://www.versobooks.com/users/sign_up

Follow us online:

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/VersoBks

Twitter: http://twitter.com/VersoBooks

**END**

‘Human Herbs’ – a song by Cold Hands & Quarter Moon: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Au-vyMtfDAs

Posted here by Glenn Rikowski

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Online Publications at The Flow of Ideas: http://www.flowideas.co.uk/?page=pub&sub=Online%20Publications%20Glenn%20Rikowski

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​

Capitalism is Bad for Your Mental Health

CAPITALISM IS BAD FOR YOUR MENTAL HEALTH

Wednesday 14^th January

At 19.00

Housmans Radical Booksellers

5 Caledonian Road, London N1 9DX, United Kingdom

 

The ASSOCIATION OF MUSICAL MARXISTS present an evening of free improvised music, and discussion of the left’s relation to the current state of “mental health” service provision, including the work of Psychopolitics author Peter Sedgwick, and critique of the hegemonic neo-liberal “Recovery Model.”

 

Speakers:

Robert Dellar (author, Splitting in Two: Mad Pride & Punk Rock Oblivion);

Alastair Kemp (editor, Newhaven Journal).

 

Entry: £3 redeemable against purchases of books or t-shirts.

 

**END**

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Posted here by Glenn Rikowski

Glenn Rikowski @ Academia: http://independent.academia.edu/GlennRikowski

Glenn Rikowski @ ResearchGate: http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Glenn_Rikowski?ev=hdr_xprf

Online Publications at The Flow of Ideas: http://www.flowideas.co.uk/?page=pub&sub=Online%20Publications%20Glenn%20Rikowski

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Differences, Inequalities and the Sociological Imagination

DIFFERENCES, INEQUALITIES AND THE SOCIOLGICAL IMAGINATION

Call for Papers:

‘Differences, Inequalities and the Sociological Imagination’

12th Conference of the European Sociological Association, Prague, Czech Republic, 25–28 August 2015

Critical Political Economy Research Network (RN06)

Re-Imagining Class – Materialities of Resistance, State Power and the Commons

In a context of increasingly authoritarian processes of austerity measures in response to the crisis in Europe and beyond, various groups and social movements have articulated quests for more democracy and reclaiming the Commons. Categories of public goods and the commons include amongst others education, health, environment, food, water, air, energy, land, housing, transport, cities, or waste management. These notions generally engender new forms of horizontal participatory and inclusive bottom up democratic decision-making and communal ownership structures not considered for profit. Democratic imaginaries are however only seldom spelled out, as if such wished-for democratic structures were without a teleology. This raises the question of which concrete conceptions the (radical) Left has to offer with respect to the political economy of democracy and the commons? Which lessons can be drawn from prefigurative politics and existing/real life examples in the organisation of the economy and public goods? Which implications would such imaginaries have for rethinking class, and the materialities within social movements? At the same time, in order to contextualise these processes in the concrete materiality of crisis and resistance, we need to understand the changes and continuities in the imaginaries of state power and authoritarian governance, and the relations between social forces struggling over the prerogatives of resistance and contestation.

As the overall conference theme suggests, it is through sociological imagination that we can begin to understand the current conjuncture and formulate alternatives. Re-imagining class should be a core focus in this process. We are interested in hosting a wide range of topics in sessions that are linked to the above themes. This could include a focus on various social movements on the Commons; contestation and resistance to austerity measures; new forms of democratic participation and citizenship; conceptual reflection and critique on the use of class concepts; authoritarian dimensions of the ongoing capitalist restructuring; new manifestations of the capital-labour conflict; or the social/human geography of contestation and resistance. Of particular importance here are critical feminist political economy perspectives that challenge underlying patriarchal structures and social relations.

We are interested in all of the above plus more. We invite contributions (papers and/or panel proposals) from those with an interest in critical political economy research, regardless of their disciplinary affiliation and whether they are in academia or not. We also hope to attract a diverse range of participants, from a number of countries and backgrounds.

Notes for Authors

Abstracts should not exceed 250 words. Abstracts must be submitted online to the submission platform, see below. Abstracts sent by email cannot be accepted. Abstracts will be peer-reviewed and selected for presentation by the Research Network; the letter of notification will be sent by the conference software system in early April 2015.

Abstract submission deadline: 1 February 2015. Conference website and abstract submission platform: www.esa12thconference.eu

If you have further questions regarding this call, or the Critical Political Economy research network, please contact us at cpern@criticalpoliticaleconomy.net.

First Published in http://www.historicalmaterialism.org/news/distributed/call-for-papers-2018differences-inequalities-and-the-sociological-imagination2019

 

**END**

‘Human Herbs’ – a song by Cold Hands & Quarter Moon: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Au-vyMtfDAs

Posted here by Glenn Rikowski

Glenn Rikowski @ Academia: http://independent.academia.edu/GlennRikowski

Glenn Rikowski @ ResearchGate: http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Glenn_Rikowski?ev=hdr_xprf

Online Publications at The Flow of Ideas: http://www.flowideas.co.uk/?page=pub&sub=Online%20Publications%20Glenn%20Rikowski

Volumizer: http://glennrikowski.blogspot.com

PsychoPolitics in the Twenty First Century

Posthuman

PsychoPolitics in the Twenty First Century

Please see below for call for papers for a conference at in Liverpool on Wednesday 10th June 2015 organised in conjunction with the British Sociological Association Sociology of Mental Health Study Group. The conference title is PsychoPolitics in the Twenty First Century: Peter Sedgwick and radical movements in mental health

Background to the conference:

The work of Peter Sedgwick and in particular his classic text PsychoPolitics (1982) has a renewed relevance in the context of ‘austerity’, the privatisation of welfare provision and emergent forms of radical activism in mental health. This conference will provide an opportunity to explore Sedgwick’s ideas and assess his legacy in light of these contemporary developments.

The organisers welcome proposals for papers/workshops from academics, service users /survivors and mental health practitioners on the following topics (though this is not an exhaustive list):

• The politics of mental health
• Social movements in mental health; social movements and sociological knowledge on mental health
• Alliances between service user/survivor movements and trade unions/anti-austerity campaigns
• Alliances between disabled people’s and mental health service user/survivor movements
• Mental health practice and resistance under neoliberalism
• Contemporary applications of Sedgwick’s ideas
• Links between mad studies, disability studies and the work of Sedgwick

The conference webpages are at www.hope.ac.uk/psychopoliticsc21. The email for mailing list and further info is: sedgwickconf2015@hope.ac.uk

First Published in http://www.historicalmaterialism.org/news/distributed/call-for-papers-psychopolitics-in-the-21st-century-conference-june-2015

 

**END**

‘Human Herbs’ – a song by Cold Hands & Quarter Moon: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Au-vyMtfDAs

Posted here by Glenn Rikowski

Glenn Rikowski @ Academia: http://independent.academia.edu/GlennRikowski

Glenn Rikowski @ ResearchGate: http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Glenn_Rikowski?ev=hdr_xprf

Online Publications at The Flow of Ideas: http://www.flowideas.co.uk/?page=pub&sub=Online%20Publications%20Glenn%20Rikowski

Volumizer: http://glennrikowski.blogspot.com

4th Annual Primary Care Ethics Conference: Ethics Education and Lifelong Learning

Medical Sociology

4th ANNUAL PRIMARY CARE ETHICS CONFERENCE: ETHICS EDUCATION AND LIFELING LEARNING

The Royal Society of Medicine

http://www.rsm.ac.uk/academ/gpe06.php

Wednesday 30 April 2014

Venue: Royal Society of Medicine, 1 Wimpole Street, LONDON, W1G 0AE

LAST CALL FOR ABSTRACTS

The meeting aims to be 4th annual event which has as its main aim the creation and maintenance of a body of knowledge and a community of scholars and practitioners engaged in the ethics of primary healthcare.
This meeting will bring together academics, educators, practitioners, ethicists and managers and others involved in the planning and delivery of primary care in an interdisciplinary event which will explore the ethical choices that clinicians make every day in commonplace situations.
The objectives for the meeting are:
– To define what ethical issues arise in primary care
– To seek to make explicit some of the implicit assumptions, choices and values expressed by clinicians
– To look specifically at current professional and public concerns concerning ethics education in the primary healthcare workforce
– To discuss existing and future research in this area, including how such research may be supported
– To provide a forum where delegates who are involved in research education and/or practice can share experience and expertise

**END**

‘Human Herbs’ – a song by Cold Hands & Quarter Moon: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Au-vyMtfDAs

Posted here by Glenn Rikowski

Glenn Rikowski at Academia: http://independent.academic.edu/GlennRikowski

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RaPAL Conference 2014

ICCE IV

RaPAL CONFERENCE 2014

Research and Practice in Adult Literacies (RaPAL)

Love Literacies, Love Lifelong Learning: Health, Well-being, Partnerships and Workplaces

Website: http://rapal.org.uk/events/conferences/conference-2014/

RaPAL Annual Conference

Saturday, 5^th April 2014

Birmingham City Hospital, UK

RaPAL (Research and Practice in Adult Literacies) represents practitioners, learners and researchers in the field of adult literacies in the UK, Ireland and beyond. We have strong international links in the field of adult literacies and with 78 other organisations across Europe, we recently joined the ‘European Literacy Network’, ELiNET. We enjoy engaging in debates that touch on English language and literacy, numeracy and digital skills across homes, communities and workplaces.

Our conference is being held on Saturday 5th April at City Hospital, Birmingham in England. This venue provides a fantastic opportunity to focus on our broad themes of adult literacies in work and life, and which include a wide variety of partnerships and in the contexts of health and well-being. We will be joined by key note speakers from the University of Wolverhampton and, via link-up, Washington State University. We have a wonderful range of workshops, including from the; Community Health and Learning Foundation, the Reading Agency, specialists in writing, digital literacies, online and workplace learning. We are excited to have peers beaming in from Australia to talk about award-winning community health and literacy projects.

 

Key Speakers:

Dr Linda Lang

Professor Lang is Dean of the School of Health and Wellbeing at the University of Wolverhampton. She will talk about the work of the faculty and the concept of Life Long Learning, focussing on a recent development for a University Technical College (UTC) in the Midlands. The UTC ‘Health Futures’ aims to support and develop 14-19 year olds to be able to achieve their goals and aspirations through HE and employment in careers in the Health Sector.

Dr Sondra Cuban

Sondra Cuban will speak from Washington State USA about her ESRC research project profiled in her 2013 book Deskilling Migrant Women in the Global Care Industry. The study focused on a group of migrant women who were care assistants in England’s care sector. Sondra will discuss their digital strategies to connect and care for their families abroad amid tensions they experienced with their paid care for older persons in England.

 

Website: http://rapal.org.uk/events/conferences/conference-2014/

 

**END**

‘Human Herbs’ – a song by Cold Hands & Quarter Moon: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Au-vyMtfDAs

Posted here by Glenn Rikowski

Glenn Rikowski at Academia: https://independent.academia.edu/GlennRikowski

Glenn Rikowski on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/glenn.rikowski

Volumizer: http://glennrikowski.blogspot.com

Rikowski Point: http://rikowskpoint.blogspot.com

British Sociological Association Medical Sociology Group Annual Conference 2014

Medical Sociology

BRITISH SOCIOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION MEDICAL SOCIOLOGY GROUP ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2014

CALL FOR PAPERS

BSA MEDICAL SOCIOLOGY GROUP ANNUAL CONFERENCE

Wednesday 10th – Friday 12th September 2014

Aston University, Birmingham

We look forward to welcoming you to our 46th Annual Conference.

We are pleased to announce Professor Arthur Frank University of Calgary and Dr.Tiago Moreira, Durham University have agreed to be our plenary speakers at the 2014 conference.

We welcome abstract submissions for oral presentation, poster presentations and symposia / special events structured around the stream which are listed below, however to accommodate increasing numbers of abstracts and to ensure more people have the opportunity to present and share their work with the medical sociology community, we will be trialling some new formats for oral papers during the 2014 conference.  This may include traditional formats such as round table discussions as well as more creative approaches, so presenters have the opportunity to discuss ideas ranging from initial thoughts through to completed studies. We would particularly encourage presenters wishing to present ‘work in progress’ to indicate this on their abstract submission. We look forward to providing you with more details about this in the coming months.

Strands:

1. Citizenship and health

2. Complementary and alternative medicines

3. Critical public health

4. Embodiment and emotion

5. Ethics

6. Ethnicity

7. Experiences of health and illness

8. Gender

9. Health policy

10. Health care organisation

11. Health service delivery

12. Inequalities

13. Lifecourse – reproductive health; chronic conditions; ageing; death and dying

14. Mental Health

15. Methods

16. Open

17. Patient – professional interaction

18. Pharmaceuticals

19. Politics of health

20. Professions

21. Risk

22. Screening and diagnosis

23. STS and medicine

24. Teaching medical sociology

25. Theory

Further details and abstract submission forms are available from: http://www.britsoc.co.uk/events/medsoc-annual-conference.aspx and events@britsoc.org.uk

The abstract submission deadline is 17th April 2014.

Abstracts received after this date will not be considered.

**END**

‘Cheerful Sin’ – a song by Victor Rikowski: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIbX5aKUjO8

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Glenn Rikowski at Academia: https://independent.academia.edu/GlennRikowski

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The New Left Book Club – Call for Papers

Books

THE NEW LEFT BOOK CLUB

CALL FOR PAPERS

The New Left Book Club invites unpublished essays that address aspects of leftism, internationally and interpersonally. We welcome all submissions from undergraduates and postgraduates, and are particularly interested in the following themes:

* Leftism and Islam

* Socialism in Practice (housing cooperatives, etc)

* Gender and the Left

* Post-capitalist policy

* The Economics of Austerity

* Leftism in the Eurozone

* Critical theory and the UK general election 2015

* Health politics

SUBMISSION OF PAPERS

We are accepting long form essays of up to 5000 words. Prospective authors are invited to submit an abstract or outline of ideas to newleftbookclub@gmail.com

Authors will be invited to discuss their work and ideas at New Left Book Club events following publication.

WHAT WAS THE LEFT BOOK CLUB?

The Left Book Club was founded in 1936 by Cripps, Strachey, and Gollancz with the aim of creating a well informed and dynamic left in Britain. The Club grew explosively, and within a few years had some 57000 members and 1500 monthly discussion groups. The Club was hugely influential in the Labour victory of 1945 and the great socialist efforts that followed.

WHAT IS THE NEW LEFT BOOK CLUB?

We aim to recreate this phenomenon, publishing volumes of essays covering the entire spectrum of leftist thought. It’s not 1945 but we believe there is still a role for a print book club to play in generating progressive discussion, particularly amongst those who feel marginalised or voiceless with respect to the current state of leftist publications.

WHY WE EXIST

1. We want to replicate the achievements of the original Left Book Club, namely a unified group of people reading and discussing leftist ideology in preparation for a period of social change.

2. We want to provide a platform for leftist thought and discussion outside of the mainstream publications.

3. We want to create an editorially transparent publication, exposing readers to ideology and perspectives they might not otherwise encounter.

4. We welcome radical and experimental thought from anyone – not only those with formal academic training

5. We want to create a culture antithetical to the immediate response / counter-response whirlwind of Twitter and other online channels.

6. We want to provide a place for discussion of pure ideology and analysis, free from the potentially off-putting nature of leftist political action groups.

7. We want to hold events where leftists can meet up and share their thoughts. To this end we will be holding bi-monthly events in Manchester and London (initially).

**END**

Cold Hands & Quarter Moon, ‘Stagnant’ at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkP_Mi5ideo

‘Cheerful Sin’ – a song by Victor Rikowski: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIbX5aKUjO8

Posted here by Glenn Rikowski

The Flow of Ideas: http://www.flowideas.co.uk

Rikowski Point: http://rikowskipoint.blogspot.com

Volumizer: http://glennrikowski.blogspot.com

Glenn Rikowski on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/glenn.rikowski

Online Publications at: http://www.flowideas.co.uk/?page=pub&sub=Online%20Publications%20Glenn%20Rikowski

Centre for the Study of Education and Work: Update 26th August 2013

Education Crisis

CENTRE FOR THE STUDY OF EDUCATION AND WORK: UPDATE 26th AUGUST 2013

EVENTS

THINK BIG AND LET’S GET GOING: APPLYING THE SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH TO OUR DAILY WORK

26th Annual Health Promotion Ontario Conference

Thursday September 26, 2013
Oakham House, Ryerson University
63 Gould Street, Toronto

Speakers:
Keynote Address:  Dr Ryan Meili, MD – Upstream – Reviving Politics through a Focus on Health
Code Red Panel Discussion:
– Neil Johnston, Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, McMaster University
– Suzanne Brown, MSW, Manager of Neighbourhood Development Strategies, City of Hamilton
– Steve Buist, Investigations Editor, The Hamilton Spectator
– Tom Cooper, Director, Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction
Closing Keynote: Paul Berton, Editor-in-Chief, The Hamilton Spectator – The Role of Media in Addressing the SDOH

Register now:  http://www.hpontario.com

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FREE PUBLIC CONCERT TO CELEBRATE CANADA’S NEWEST UNION – UNIFOR

Sunday, September 1
6:30pm until 11:30pm
Nathan Phillips Square
100 Queen St. West, Toronto

This year, Labour Day marks the formation of a new union – Unifor – with the coming together of the Communications Energy and Paperworkers’ union and the Canadian Auto Workers.

To celebrate we are hosting a free public concert at Nathan Phillips Square with diverse acts from all across Canada. Come see some of Canada’s greatest bands: Stars, Blackie and the Rodeo Kings, Les Colocs, Sister Says

19+ drink tent with beer, wine and food available for purchase. All-age food vendors in square.

For more information on Unifor visit:  http://www.newunionconvention.ca

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WORLD FESTIVAL OF YOUTH & STUDENTS TORONTO INFO MEETING

Tuesday, August 27
6pm
OISE, 252 Bloor St. West, Room 8-170
St. George Subway station, Toronto

The WFYS is the largest gathering of progressive and anti-imperialist youth and students in the world, taking place this December in Quito, Ecuador. Over 15,000 young people will unite for a week-long experience of culture, music, conferences, workshops, discussions and other meetings about peace, environmentalism, anti-imperialism, and the struggle for social progress.

This year from December 7-13th, the youth festival will be held in Quito, Ecuador with the support of the PAIX alliance as well as student, environmental, indigenous and other leftist youth, under the banner of “Youth unite against imperialism, for a world of peace, solidarity and social transformation!

You can find out more at http://www.18wfys.tumblr.com

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WORKSHOP SERIES: PENSION FUNDS, UNIONS, AND WORKING CLASS STRATEGIES

September 27-December 13
3:30pm – 6:00pm
Centre for Social Innovation, ING Room, ground level
720 Bathurst Street (one block south of Bloor), Toronto

One of the key features of the continuing deep economic crisis facing Canadian workers is the attack on long established pension and retirement benefits, which are now dismissed as a costly frill that only benefits a shrinking minority of the workforce. The defence of these benefits by trade unions is becoming more difficult and divisive – it risks appearing self-serving in a context where the older notion that private, employer-based plans might serve as a positive step toward a universal system of full coverage for all workers is no longer credible.

Workshop Coordinators:
• Convenor: Kevin Skerrett (Canadian Union of Public Employees), kevin.skerrett@gmail.com
• Greg Albo (Centre for Social Justice), albo@yorku.ca

Each of the six workshops will be held on Friday afternoons from 3:30pm – 6:00pm, every other week. (We will skip November 8th, and use November 15^th in its place)

*** We ask that those interested in attending please register and RSVP their interest to Kevin Skerrett, at kevin.skerrett@gmail.com ***

For more info: http://www.socialjustice.org/community/Pensions.pdf

This workshop is co-sponsored by the Centre for Social Justice, Global Labour Research Centre (York University), Canada Research Chair in Political Economy (York University) and Socialist Project

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EXHIBITION – THE RIGHT TO LIVE IN PEACE: 40 YEAR COMMEMORATION OF CHILE’S LOST DEMOCRACY

Friday, Sep 6 to Wednesday, Sep 11
Closing reception: Wednesday, Sep 11 @ 7 pm
Beit Zatoun, 612 Markham St., Toronto
(Bloor & Bathurst)

A multimedia exhibition to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the CIA-sponsored military coup in Chile which deposed the democratic government of Salvador Allende.  The exhibition is an opportunity to reflect on this period in history which for many marked the beginning of the slide to neoliberal economy and politics and to hear voices calling for equity and justice.

Collective Alas rescues and salvages artifacts that at one point were designated subversive, and as a consequence dangerous to the military regime of Agusto Pinochet (1973-1990). Alas gathers magazines, film, newspaper articles, books, audio cassettes, vinyl, and posters that were destroyed by the military. During this period, people risked their lives to preserve these items. Poetry, music and articles were considered subversive because they denounced a dictatorial regime.  Alas’ mission is to reflect on our collective memory and work towards greater understanding, justice and human rights for all. The closing reception on September 11 will feature live musical performances.

To learn more: http://beitzatoun.org/event/exhibition-the-right-to-live-in-peace/

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NEWS & VIEWS

CANADIAN GOVERNMENT: HELP FREE TAREK AND JOHN

On Friday August 16th, Tarek Loubani, a Canadian emergency physician and John Greyson, a Canadian filmmaker and professor were arrested by Egyptian authorities. Tarek and John were on their way to Gaza — where Tarek was to work at Al Shifa Hospital, and John to explore the possibility of making a film about the work.

Days later, Tarek and John are still being held in Cairo’s Tora prison. Egyptian officials have given no clear reason for their arrest.  In fact, a recent press release by a Cairo district prosecution states that 9 foreigners, including John and Tarek, will be detained for 15 days, pending investigations.  Egypt is going through a turbulent time, and after hundreds were killed in violent clashes last week, foreigners, particularly journalists are being targeted. We need to get our friends out of there.

Family and friends are worried sick about their safety. Pressure from the Canadian government is our best hope. We must pressure our government to demand their freedom and pressure the Egyptian authorities to let them go. Thank you for your action on this urgent matter!

To find out how to help: http://www.change.org/en-CA/petitions/canadian-government-help-free-tarek-and-john

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ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY SUPPORT: ONLINE INFO

The Ottawa Network for Education (ONE) has created an excellent online resource relating to assistive technology support to enhance academic access. The website includes a number of captioned videos which are excellent. The English and French ONE Assistive Technology Support websites are highlighted below:
http://www.onfe-rope.ca/programs/assistive-technology-support
http://www.onfe-rope.ca/fr/programs/l%E2%80%99initiative-d%E2%80%99appui-aux-technologies-d%E2%80%99aide

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RANK AND FILE PODCAST WITH KYLE BUOTT

Dave Bush speaks with Kyle Buott, President of the Halifax-Dartmouth & District Labour Council, about trade unionism and worker activism. Kyle addresses the political importance of local labour councils in regional labour movement struggles and building solidarity between workplace issues and social movements.
http://rankandfile.ca/2013/08/21/rank-and-file-podcast-with-kyle-buott/

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DECENT JOBS, HOUSING, AND EDUCATION: MLK’S STILL ELUSIVE DREAM

By Michael K. Honey, History News Network

A quarter of a million people rallied “For Jobs and Freedom” at the Lincoln Monument in Washington, D.C., on August 28, 1963, and tens if not hundreds of thousands will do so again at this year’s fifty-year commemorations of the event.

See: http://hnn.us/articles/decent-jobs-housing-and-education-mlks-still-elusive-dream

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CLC ENDORSES CONSUMER BOYCOTT OF LABATT IMPORTS: ST. JOHN’S BREWERY WORKERS ON STRIKE SINCE APRIL

OTTAWA ― The Canadian Labour Congress has endorsed a national consumer boycott against a number of imported brands of Labatt beer and is calling on the company to return to the bargaining table.

“This is a David and Goliath struggle between about 50 local workers and the world’s largest multi-national brewing corporation trying to force its employees into a race to the bottom,” says CLC President Ken Georgetti. “Canadian workers and their unions are not going to stand idly by and allow
this to happen.”

The workers in St. John’s have been on strike since April 10. They are members of the Newfoundland and Labrador Association of Public Employees (NAPE/NUPGE). Their employer is the Canadian division of the Anheuser-Busch InBev brewing corporation, which has after-tax profits of more than $9 billion.

The Labatt imports being targeted for boycott include Stella Artois, Becks, and Lowenbrau. The focus is on imported products in order to prevent other unionized Labatt employees in Canada from experiencing a loss of work.

In Newfoundland and Labrador people are also being urged to boycott a number of other Labatt beers, including Budweiser, Labatt Blue, Alexander Keith’s and Kokanee.

For more info: http://www.canadianlabour.ca/national/news/clc-endorses-consumer-boycott-labatt-imports-st-john-s-brewery-workers-strike-april

For a list of union-made beers: http://www.alternet.org/labor/union-beer-you-are-drinking?page=0%2C0

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TORONTO PLAZA HOTEL WORKERS’ STRIKE INTO ITS 14TH WEEK

On strike for 14 long weeks, the USW members at the Toronto Plaza Hotel know exactly what their employer thinks of them.  They know because he tells the world he thinks they are “animals”.  And apparently “animals” shouldn’t receive any benefits and aren’t entitled to union representation in the workplace.  Tell him and his financial backers he’s wrong and tell the workers you’re standing with them HERE: http://www.labourstartcampaigns.net/show_campaign.cgi?c=1938&src=canadamail

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ABOUT CSEW (CENTRE FOR THE STUDY OF EDUCATION & WORK, OISE/UT):

Head: Peter Sawchuk
Co-ordinator: D’Arcy Martin

The Centre for the Study of Education and Work (CSEW) brings together educators from university, union, and community settings to understand and enrich the often-undervalued informal and formal learning of working people. We develop research and teaching programs at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (UofT) that strengthen feminist, anti-racist, labour movement, and working-class perspectives on learning and work.

Our major project is APCOL: Anti-Poverty Community Organizing and Learning. This five-year project (2009-2013), funded by SSHRC-CURA, brings academics and activists together in a collaborative effort to evaluate how organizations approach issues and campaigns and use popular education. For more information about this project, visit http://www.apcol.ca

For more information about CSEW, visit: http://www.csew.ca

 

**END**

 

Cold Hands & Quarter Moon, ‘Stagnant’ at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkP_Mi5ideo (new remix, and new video, 2012)  

‘Cheerful Sin’ – a song by Victor Rikowski: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIbX5aKUjO8

 

Posted here by Glenn Rikowski

The Flow of Ideas: http://www.flowideas.co.uk

Rikowski Point: http://rikowskipoint.blogspot.com

Volumizer: http://glennrikowski.blogspot.com

Glenn Rikowski on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/glenn.rikowski

Online Publications at: http://www.flowideas.co.uk/?page=pub&sub=Online%20Publications%20Glenn%20Rikowski

Education, Environmental Health, and Social Justice

Education is Not for Sale

EDUCATION, ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH, AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

CALL FOR PAPERS

Education, Environmental Health, and Social Justice

Guest Editors: David Hursh & Camille Anne Martina

 

This special issue of Policy Futures in Education (www.wwwords.co.uk/PFIE) will focus on the relationship between environmental health, social justice, and education.

The relationship between the built and natural environment and human health is often misunderstood and under-appreciated. Improving our health requires that we examine how our everyday activities such as product and energy use (biomass and fossil fuels), agricultural and industrial practices, and transportation methods increase our exposure to toxic substances and contribute to climate and other environmental changes. In addition, environmental health is an issue of social justice. Sadly, individuals who live in poverty or are from a racial, ethnic or religious minority are more likely to live in unhealthy environments and carry a greater body burden of toxic exposures (Agyeman, 2013; Agyeman, Bullard & Evans, 2003).

Responding to environmental health issues and inequalities requires more than individual solutions, it requires community and governmental responses. Therefore, we need to explore what reforms and policies could be implemented to mediate and resolve these health inequalities.

Lastly, this requires informing all citizens through popular media and formal and informal education about the relationship between the environment and human health. What questions need to be posed and how do we respond to them?

We invite submissions from a wide range of fields, including but not limited to public and environmental health, anthropology, sociology, environmental sustainability, education, political science, health policy, and philosophy, connecting environmental health, social justice, and education.

 

DAVID HURSH (PhD) is a professor of education at the Warner Graduate School of Education at the University of Rochester, USA
CAMILLE ANNE MARTINA (PhD) is a research assistant professor in the Departments of Public Health Science and Environmental Medicine at the University of Rochester Medical School, USA

 

Submissions are due March 1, 2014,
and should be sent to the Guest Editors:
dhursh@warner.rochester.edu and camille_martina@urmc.rochester.edu

 

References

Agyeman, J. (2013) Introducing Just Sustainabilities: policy, planning, and practice. London: Zed Books.
Agyeman, J., Bullard, R. & Evans, B. (Eds) (2003) Just Sustainabilities: development in an unequal world. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

 

**END**

 

Cold Hands & Quarter Moon, ‘Stagnant’ at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkP_Mi5ideo (new remix, and new video, 2012)  

‘Cheerful Sin’ – a song by Victor Rikowski: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIbX5aKUjO8

 

Posted here by Glenn Rikowski

The Flow of Ideas: http://www.flowideas.co.uk

Rikowski Point: http://rikowskipoint.blogspot.com

Volumizer: http://glennrikowski.blogspot.com

Glenn Rikowski on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/glenn.rikowski

Online Publications at: http://www.flowideas.co.uk/?page=pub&sub=Online%20Publications%20Glenn%20Rikowski