International conference, June 2-3 : Walled borders, violent borders
May 30, 2016 – Donald Trump has made a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border his battle cry. Barely a week goes by without the announcement of a new border wall somewhere in the world. In the wake of 9/11, the Arab Spring and the Syrian conflict, new barriers are springing up between countries, ostensibly to stem illegal immigration, terrorist infiltration and trafficking. Montreal has become a centre of advanced research in this field.
At the invitation of the Raoul Dandurand Chair of Strategic and Diplomatic Studies at the University of Québec at Montreal (UQAM), more than 50 Canadian and foreign experts on borders (geographers, economists, political scientists, sociologists, practitioners) will gather for the Borders, Walls and Violence: Costs and Alternatives to Border Fencing conference.
The conference at UQAM will address the following issues: What purpose do border walls serve? How much do they cost and who benefits? Do they really make countries safer? How do they affect the environment, migratory routes, the social organization of border areas, artistic expression? Are there alternatives to the fortification of borders? Concrete cases of walled borders in India, the Middle East, the US, Europe and North Africa will be examined.
Date: Thursday, June 2 and Friday, June 3, 2016
Venue: UQAM – Pavillon Sherbrooke (Room SH-4800)
200 Sherbrooke St. West, Montreal
Simultaneous translation available
Attendees must register online
The speakers will be available for interviews.
Speakers will include:
- Élisabeth Vallet, Associate Professor, University of Québec at Montreal, director of the Walls Project at the Raoul Dandurand Chair, UQAM
- Anne-Laure Amilhat Szary, Professor of Geography, University of Grenoble II, member of the Institut Universitaire de France, author of Qu’est-ce qu’une frontière aujourd’hui
- David Newman, Professor, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and a pioneer of critical border studies
- Emmanuel Brunet Jailly, Professor, University of Victoria, director of the pan-Canadian research project Borders in Globalization
- Cristina Del Biaggio, Geographer, University of Geneva, expert on migration in Europe
- Leila Whitley, University of London, expert on migrant women and Calais
- Said Saddiki, Professor, Al Ain University, Abu Dhabi, expert on North African borders
- Christine Leuenberger, Professor, Cornell University, expert on the Israeli-Palestinian question
- Jagrup Sign Sekhon, Professor of Political Science, Guru Nanak Dev University, India, expert on the Punjab
- Ian Howard, Dean, College of Fine Arts, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia, expert on performances in border spaces
- Daniel Meier, Professor, St Antony’s College, Oxford University, expert on Middle Eastern borders
A two-day art exhibition featuring Quebec and foreign artists and a school project will also be presented.
More info:
www.mur2016.uqam.ca
Twitter: @RDandurand
Hashtag: #BorderWalls
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ChaireRaoulDandurand
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Information and confirmation of attendance by members of the media:
Isabelle Mégré, Public Relations Officer
Raoul Dandurand Chair of Strategic and Diplomatic Studies, UQAM
Phone: 514 987-3000, x8720
Cell: 514 814-6782
Source : Anik Veilleux, conseillère en relations de presse
Division des relations avec la presse et événements spéciaux
Service des communications
Tél. : 514 987-3000, poste 5184
veilleux.anik@uqam.ca
twitter.com/AnikVeilleux