ทุนการศึกษา/call for papers (southeast asia studies)

1. RESEARCH ANALYST POSITION ON INDONESIA IN SINGAPORE

We are pleased to announce that the Indonesia Programme at S.
Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang
Technological University, Singapore, is opening applications for its
Research Analyst Award scholarship for this academic year beginning in
August 2009.

The award would basically fund the candidate to work here with the
programme as a full-time research analyst while completing his/her
masters degree part time at the school. In other words, the candidate
will receive a monthly salary for their work as a research analyst
while their tuition fee will be funded by the school.

The duration of the award is two (2) years, beginning in July 2009 to
July 2011. The Master of Science (MSc) degree offered by the school
include: Strategic Studies, International Relations, International
Political Economy, and Asian Studies.

The Indonesia Programme is a research unit under the school's
constituent center, the Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies
(IDSS), dealing with a variety of research, teaching, and networking
relating to Indonesian affairs. The programme's current interest
include national and local politics, political Islam in Java and
Sumatera, regional autonomy in Riau, democratization and political
parties, as well as issues dealing with the Indonesian military and
police sector. The programme is also responsible for the course "State
and Politics in Modern Indonesia" taught at the school. Its networking
activities have included a series of high-profile conferences and
seminars on a variety of Indonesian affairs as well as various
initiatives dealing with local and national politics.

The candidate should at least have the following qualifications:
(1) Good command of both English and Indonesian languages, oral and written.
(2) Good undergraduate degree in political science or any related
social-science fields.
(3) Have a general understanding and research interest dealing with
Indonesian affairs (e.g. politics, economy, or security sectors).

Interested candidates should send their CV, along with a reference
letter and a two-page letter of statement outlining the candidate's
intent on entering the masters course at RSIS, their research
interests dealing with Indonesia, and their strengths or potential
contribution for the Indonesia Programme. These documents should be
sent to Evan A. Laksmana at isevan@ntu.edu.sg no later than 20
February 2009.

For more details on RSIS and the MSc courses, please see www.rsis.edu.sg

Please don't hesitate to email me should you have any further
question, and thank you for you kind assistance.

With kind regards, Evan A. Laksmana (isevan@ntu.edu.sg)


2. CALLS FOR PAPERS AT CONFERENCES IN ESTONIA AND UK

2a. "HISTORICAL KNOWLEDGE IN/ON EAST AND SOUTH-EAST ASIA," TALINN UNIVERSITY, TALINN, ESTONIA, 13-15 SEPTEMBER 2009

It is well known that in the typically retrospective cultures of East and South-East Asia, history has throughout the ages played an extremely important role as a source of identity formation, often related to the legitimation of the social order. Already Confucius referred to the mythical emperors of old as his source for inspiration, and many a social reformer throughout the region has presented his project as a return to good, but forgotten ways rather than as an effort to transform the unsatisfactory present into an ideal future. Political discourses, such as the unbroken imperial line of Japan, have been invented and used for the legitimation of different kinds of agendas; local, regional and national identities have been constructed on the basis of interpreted history, and historical themes have always inspired cultural self-expression in literature, theatre, film and so on.

But history has been, in these cultures, even more than that: after Sima Qian established the pattern of how to write history, the logic of historical writing has greatly influenced the organisation of knowledge as such, as well as the ways of how to formulate problems, to present arguments and to draw conclusions. Even in the 20th century, the introduction of modern ways of reasoning has not done away with this tradition. On the contrary, the introduction of Western politico- philosophical discourses, terminology, and the organization of political space into modern states have only added to the proliferation of ways describing the tradition, identity and social outlook of East and South-East Asian cultures. Controversies remain actual concerning the nature of frequently used as well as misused concepts, such as "nation", "self-determination" and "sovereignty", "historical borders", "(human) rights" and so on. School textbooks present sometimes distorted and censored pictures of history to pupils, who grow up to perpetuate ideologically tinted visions of the past of their countries, supported by the representation of the past in popular culture. The calls for rewriting histories, although existing (e.g. in Thailand vis-à-vis the need for a more inclusive history due to the insurgency in the South), remain weak and usually outside the national agendas.

We invite to the conference scholars and PhD candidates from all involved fields and methodological background (history, history of ideas, anthropology, philosophy, cultural studies, literary studies, social geography, education, etc.) to submit papers related to the nature and role of historical discourses and historical knowledge in the cultures of China, Japan, Korea and mainland Southeast Asia, both in the past and in current affairs. Abstracts (no longer than 300 words) should be sent in electronic form to Ms.Katja Koort (gejia@tlu.ee) by 30 March 2009. Papers will be circulated in advance so that brief presentations can take place at the workshop, followed by extensive discussion. Notification will be sent to prospective presenters by 8 April 2009. Draft versions of papers are to be submitted in advance of the workshop, by 10 June 2009.

Geir Sigurdsson
Icelandic Centre of Asian Studies
University of Akureyri
Solborg v/Nordurslod
IS-600 Akureyri

2b. 25TH ASEASUK (ASS'N OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN STUDIES UK) CONFERENCE, SWANSEA UNIVERSITY, UK, 11-13 SEPTEMBER 2009

Please send abstracts (200-500 words) to the panel convenors or contact them directly if you have any enquiries about your proposed paper. The deadline for abstract submissions is 1 April 09. Conference organiser: Dr Felicia Hughes-Freeland. Email: < F.Hughes-Freeland@swansea.ac.uk>

(1) Environment, sustainability and livelihoods
Contacts: Chris J. Barrow (Swansea University) <c.j.barrow@swansea.ac.uk >; Becky Elmhirst (Brighton University) <R.J.Elmhirst@bton.ac.uk >

Across South East Asia, environments are facing mounting pressures from natural resource exploitation, climate change, urbanization and intensified geographical mobility. The aim of this panel is to explore some of the ecological, social and political dimensions of environment, sustainability and natural resource-based livelihoods in South East Asia, insofar as these are being played out against new geopolitical and global economic conditions. We welcome papers which cover any one of these broad areas and/or the inter-linkages between them, and we are open to submissions from any disciplinary perspective.

(2) Creating resilient tourism in Southeast Asia
Contact: Janet Cochrane (Leeds Met) J.Cochrane@leedsmet.ac.uk

Prominent in the economic landscape of Southeast Asia, tourism also impinges on social, cultural and environmental aspects. It is well known that the industry follows a clear life-cycle, with growth often leading to stagnation and then decline or rejuvenation. Less well understood are the factors which influence these stages, in particular rejuvenation. Papers using case studies and providing conceptual frameworks to explore the different stages and their underlying processes will be welcomed, especially those which apply resilience theory to tourism. It is hoped that an outcome of the panel will be insights into achieving resilient models of tourism.

(3) Theravada Buddhism and culture of the Tai of the Shan States and south-west China
Contact: Susan Conway (SOAS) <susanmconway@hotmail.com >, <sc66@soas.ac.uk>

The Southeast Asian inland region of the Shan States, Sipsong Pan Na (south-west China), Lan Na (north Thailand) and Lan Xang (western Laos) is inhabited by Tai people who have a distinctive culture expressed in secular and religious scripts, literature, architecture, and arts and crafts. The Tai in this region practice a form of Theravada Buddhism distinguished by monastic literary traditions and rituals. This panel focuses on the religious and cultural traditions of the Tai of the Shan States and south-west China that in recent history have been under pressure as a result of extensive cross-border migration, major changes in social structure and loss of traditional monastic sponsorship.

(4) Creativity and gender in Southeast Asia
Contact: F. Hughes-Freeland (Swansea University) < f.hughes-freeland@swansea.ac.uk>

Proposals for papers which address any aspect of gender and creativity in Southeast Asia are welcome. Topics include gendered styles of creativity in performance, patterns of gendered creativity in the literature, film, television or other media, the gendering of creativity in everyday life. You are encouraged to present examples from particular societies and to situate your cases against the changing dynamics of creative processes which arise from distinctive local patterns of gender relations and identities. Our discussions will be set against the proliferation of academic debates about gender relations and representations in Southeast Asia since the mid-1990s. I intend to develop a publication from these and other papers on the subject.

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