The Waterloo Centre for German Studies at the University of Waterloo invites expressions of interest and, subsequently, proposals for papers of thirty minutes length to be given in English (preferred) or German at an international interdisciplinary conference on the diaspora experiences of German-speaking immigrants and their descendants.

The Kitchener-Waterloo region, home to the Waterloo Centre for German Studies and University of Waterloo, is Canada’s most prominent area of German settlement.

The conference will explore commonalities and differences experienced by German-speaking immigrants and their descendants when living in geographical and linguistic settings other than those of their own ethnic origin. These can include individuals and groups in all continents of the world. Sessions will be planned with a focus on history, linguistics, literature and film. Topics within these may include, among others:
-acculturation strategies of German-speaking people (assimilation, integration, separation);
-bilingualism, loss and maintenance of the German language among immigrants and their descendants;
-emigration/immigration history;
-emigration/immigration of German-speaking people as a subject of literature and film;
-gender issues;
-impact of WW I, WW II and the experience of Germany under National Socialist rule on German-speaking people in the diaspora;
-interactions between German-speaking immigrants and their descendants, with others in their adopted countries, and among members of different waves of German-speaking immigrants;
-relations between the German language and identity development.

Potential participants are invited to address these issues within specific geographical contexts and/or as part of international and cross-cultural comparisons.

To be considered, please send an initial brief (a sentence or two) expression of interest, with your rough topic by September 30, 2005. This will assist us in planning and budgeting. Follow this with a proposal of up to five hundred words without your name, and on separate sheets your name, address, professional affiliation and brief curriculum vitae. You may submit by e-mail attachment (preferred), fax or mail, to arrive in the organizers’ hands not later than November 30, 2005. We will acknowledge receipt of expressions of interest and proposals quickly and inform you of the result by February 28, 2006. All proposals will be assessed anonymously by an international panel of expert scholars in the respective fields. Presenters will be required to submit the full text of their presentation to the conference committee by July 15, 2006. These will be posted on the conference website and be made available to conference registrants through the use of a password. Subsequently, selected papers will be included in the published conference volume. These contributions will need to fit the thematic framework described by the volume’s editor. The volume will be in English. Contributions written in German and accepted will be translated in co-operation with their authors.

All presenters will receive travel subsidies and will be expected to attend and participate actively in the full conference. The conference program is planned to include three keynote speakers of international reputation in the field and will offer opportunities to become acquainted with the region of Waterloo. It will be open to the public.

Reply to:
Diaspora Experiences Conference Committee
Waterloo Centre for German Studies
University of Waterloo
200 University Ave. West
Waterloo ON N2L 3G1
Canada
E-mail: wcgs@uwaterloo.ca
Fax: 519 746 5243
Phone: 519 888 4567, ext. 7547
www.wcgs.ca