The European Centre for Minority Issues (Flensburg\, Germany)\, jointly \;with The School of Politics\, International Studies and Philosophy at \;Queen&rsquo\;s University Belfast\, and the Department of Central &\; Eastern \;European Studies\, University of Glasgow call upon interested scholars \;to participate in a multidisciplinary conference on the challenges of \;Non Territorial Autonomy (NTA) in a world of nation-states.
\nCultural diversity is the norm in a world of nation-states. A \;recurrent problem is how to organise what are in fact\, multi-ethnic \;and multi-nation states so that majorities and minorities are able to \;coexist and effectively participate in the life of the state\, \;bolstering allegiance without suffering cultural alienation and \;without resorting to territorial secession. Multicultural liberal \;democracies sincerely champion equality and individual human rights\, \;but often have considerable difficulties in accommodating culturally \;diverse minority communities. Territorial representation is only \;possible when minority communities inhabit a compact territorial \;space\, yet in the majority of cases\, minority communities do not \;reside compactly\, making any territorial representation impossible. \;This situation often causes intractable problems for the functioning \;of democratic polities\, and requiring modalities of non-territorial \;autonomy (NTA) as a solution.
The aim of this conference is to examine in theory\, empirically and \;through the work of legal practitioners\, the challenges\, and possible \;solutions offered by different models of NTA for the effective \;participation of minorities in public life. Non-Territorial autonomy \;takes variety of different forms\, such as Consociationalism and \;National Cultural Autonomy\, but also forms of representation that \;de-territorialises self-determination\, as in the case of indigenous \;communities\, the juridical autonomy as with religious communities\, or \;in the practice of some models of multiculturalism. \;
Please note that the conference will not \;organise accommodation.
Questions regarding research on non-territorial autonomy and the \;remit of the conference should be addressed to \;ntaconference@qub.ac.uk \;indicating in the heading of your email \;conference remit.
If you have any further questions\, please email the same address \;putting conference application \;and your name \;in the header. Emails \;not addressed in this way will be significantly delayed.
Conference website: