Missing Conferences? Academic gatherings in a time of limited mobility

The Graduate Research School's Research Education and Development (RED) team supports and assists La Trobe graduate researchers and academic staff in:quality research practicesstrategies for success in research publication and fundinginsight into researcher career paths and industry sectorspractising excellent research communication skills.

Research Education and Development (RED)

This online symposium brings the words ‘conferences’ and ‘missing’ together, inviting us to reflect on conferences now.

This online symposium brings the words ‘conferences’ and ‘missing’ together with an invitation to think about what is happening when conferences are ‘missing’. 2020 has seen the unprecedented cancellation and postponement of academic conferences. Conferences were some of the first activities to be cancelled as COVID-19 spread across international borders. Identified as risky events because they involve large numbers of people and often facilitate long-distance connections, some conferences have already been identified as nodes of transmission.Other discourses have circulated about the readiness of conference providers to shift their conferences to virtual formats when association members (e.g. those who are disabled, have caring responsibilities) have clamoured for years for more virtual provision. Uncertainties have also abounded, particularly for precarious and early career academics, who are unable to get refunds on travel arrangements, or who have missed out on crucial job seeking opportunities. Given this scene of uncertainty, there has never been such an important moment to think about conferences.About the symposiumThis 2 hour online symposium is being convened by the AARE Professional and Higher Education SIG. The symposium brings the words ‘conferences’ and ‘missing’ together with an invitation to think about what is happening when conferences as we know them are missing from the higher education scene. The first question that we consider is whether conferences have gone missing at all? Is it possible that the routine work of face-to-face conferences has been distributed across new platforms for gathering academics and disseminating knowledge? What affordances do these new forms of gathering promise? What are their limits? The second question we consider is this: conferences may be missing, but are we missing conferences? How do we feel as we erase plans from the calendar, cancel tickets and ask for refunds? When conferences go missing do we miss our geographically distant friends and colleagues? And when face-to-face conferences are missing what else are scholars missing out on? The absence of conferences is an important opportunity to ask what they do for advancing ideas, fields of knowledge and scholars.Our speakers include: <ul><li>Judith Mair - Conferences: you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone</li><li>Agnes Bosanquet and Catherine Manathunga – Missing Conference Embodiment</li><li>Tai Peseta and Catherine Manathunga – Missing Conference Keynotes</li><li>Omolabake Fakunle – The Impacts of Doctoral Students Missing Conferences</li><li>Emily Henderson – Care and Missing Conferences </li></ul><h3>About the presenters</h3><a href="https://scholars.latrobe.edu.au/display/jburford" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">James Burford</a> is a Lecturer in Research Education and Development at La Trobe University.<a href="https://business.uq.edu.au/profile/1811/judith-mair" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Judith Mair</a> is an Associate Professor and Discipline Leader of the Tourism Discipline Group in the UQ Business School.<a href="https://researchers.mq.edu.au/en/persons/agnes-bosanquet" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Agnes Bosanquet</a> is an Associate Professor and PVC of Learning and Teaching at Macquarie University. <a href="https://www.usc.edu.au/staff/professor-catherine-manathunga" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Catherine Manathunga</a> is a Professor of Education Research at the University of the Sunshine Coast. <a href="https://www.westernsydney.edu.au/staff_profiles/WSU/doctor_tai_peseta" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Tai Peseta</a> is a Senior Lecturer in Learning Transformations at Western Sydney University.<a href="https://www.ed.ac.uk/profile/omolabake-fakunle" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Omolabake Fakunle</a> is a Teaching Fellow in Education at the University of Edinburgh. <a href="https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/ces/staff/emilyhenderson/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Emily Henderson</a> is an Associate Professor in the Centre for Education Studies at Warwick University. <h3>Who should attend?</h3>THIS EVENT IS INTENDED FOR RESEARCHERS WHO ARE INTERESTED IN HIGHER EDUCATION, THE ACADEMIC PROFESSION, DOCTORAL EDUCATION AND CRITICAL EVENTS STUDIES. All queries should be directed to j.burford@latrobe.edu.au Zoom link - Link will be provided by calendar invite<a href="https://latrobe.zoom.us/j/5552311255" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer"></a>Getting started with Zoom - <a href="http://www.latrobe.edu.au/students/it/software/zoom" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">http://www.latrobe.edu.au/students/it/software/zoom</a>
This is an online symposium coordinated by the AARE Professional and Higher Education SIG. This event has been supported by 2020-2021 AARE Competitive SIG Grant Funding.

Missing Conferences? Academic gatherings in a time of limited mobility

More events from Research Education and Development (RED)

Follow organisers to get events picked for you

Missing Conferences? Academic gatherings in a time of limited mobility

More events from Research Education and Development (RED)

Follow organisers to get events picked for you

You might also like...

Browse more events with different dates, prices, and formats to find your next great experience.