CFP: 14th Biennial Radical Philosophy Conference

Radical Philosophy Association 14th Biennial Conference

Facing Catastrophe: 

Environment, Technology, and Media

November 11-13, 2021 •  San Jose, California 

Host: San Jose State University

CONFERENCE THEME:

The possibilities of impending doom once reserved to the threat of global thermonuclear warfare have unfolded and multiplied in the present day. Today there are a wide variety of reasons to anticipate catastrophe and even the end of all life on Earth. From environmental destruction, automation and the AI singularity, the saturation of mass communication with propaganda, to the twilight of democracy, we seem to be balancing at the tipping point on a number of fronts simultaneously. This meeting is focused on ‘facing’ catastrophe in the senses of describing its features, owning up to it, and tackling it, though papers on any topic of radical philosophy are welcome.

CALL FOR CONTRIBUTORS:

This conference is planned to be in-person but will meet virtually if necessary. We invite 250-500 word abstracts for talks, papers, workshops, roundtable discussions, and other kinds of innovative conference contributions. We are interested to hear from activists, organizers, philosophers, and those in other related areas of scholarship and struggle. Graduate students should indicate their status to be eligible for the Iris Marion Young Prize and undergraduates should as well to be eligible for special sessions.

Deadline for Abstracts is Monday Match 15, 2021.Please send Word or PDF documents to Cory Wimberly at [email protected].

Submissions 

In the spirit of collaboration and in the recognition that radical philosophy often takes place outside traditional philosophical settings, we invite submissions not only from philosophers inside and outside the academy but also from activists, and those who engage in theoretical work in other academic disciplines – such as ethnic studies, women’s studies, social sciences, and literary studies – and from those engaged in theoretical work unconnected to the academy. We especially welcome contributions from those often excluded from or marginalized in philosophy, including people of color, LGBTQ people, people with disabilities, and poor and working-class people. 

In keeping with the spirit of radical thinking embodied by the RPA, we encourage submissions that employ formats and media that challenge the standard conference presentation. For instance, we urge presenters to use formats that allow for greater interaction between participants and audience (e.g. presenting an outline, rather than reading a paper) and that emphasize collective inquiry (e.g. organizing a workshop). Please note that participants will be selected for at most one presentation (talk, workshop, etc.) during the conference; submissions should be presented with this in mind. (This limit does not include chairing sessions.

Note: We will be honoring acceptances for the postponed 2020 meeting for the 2021 meeting as long as the paper topic remains the same.  Those wishing to present substantively different material should reapply.

NOTE: Please do NOT submit complete papers. 

Please submit paper, workshop, or other proposals related to the conference theme or general themes of the RPA as an email attachment (pdf, docx, doc, or txt) to 

[email protected]

Please provide all the information requested: 

1. INDIVIDUAL TALK/PAPER/WORKSHOP/OTHER PRESENTATION 

• Name 
• Address and email address 
• Affiliation or independent scholar, activist, educator, etc. 
• Title of proposal 
• Nature of proposal (talk, workshop, other) 
• Abstract of 250-500 words only 
• Equipment needs, if any

1. PAPERS BY GRADUATE STUDENTS
   If you want to be considered for the Iris Marion Young Award for the best paper submitted by a graduate student, please indicate this on your submission

1. PAPERS BY UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS
   We are planning to have a special session with undergraduate students who would like to present work related to RPA issues. Please clearly indicate whether you are an undergraduate student.

2. GROUP SESSION 

Note: Due to the length of sessions, we will consider only panels of no more than three people. 

• Name of the panel contact person and each panel member 
• Addresses and email addresses of all panel members 
• Affiliation or independent scholar, activist, educator, etc., for each member 
• Title of panel proposal 
• Titles of individual papers, if relevant 
• Nature of panel proposal (talks, workshop, other) 
• Abstract of 250-500 words only, if relevant 
• Equipment needs, if any

3. CHAIRING A SESSION
If you would be willing to serve as a session chair, please indicate this on your submission form. Session chairs are responsible for timing presentations and ensuring that each presenter gets their fair share of the available time. 

4. PANDEMIC NOTICE
This conference is planned to take place in-person. Should vaccination not have proceeded to a point where an in-person meeting is safe, we will host the meeting virtually. In either case, the conference will take place this fall either in-person (preferred) or virtually.

For further information, contact the conference Program Committee: 

Cory Wimberly, Program Committee Chair: [email protected]

Cory Aragon, Program Committee: [email protected]

Mlado Ivanovic, Program Committee:[email protected]

Brandon Absher, RPA Co-Chair and Program Committee:[email protected]

Carlos Sanchez, Conference Organizer: [email protected]