LGBT Institute Symposium Call for Papers

The LGBT Institute will host a symposium November 18-20, 2016 at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia. The symposium will focus on LGBT civil and human rights scholarship with an emphasis on intersectional research. It will also be a time for networking among academics and advocates, helping enhance coordination and communication to maximize impact.

Details:
Symposium presentations should focus on one of the Institute's three main areas: (1) Education & Employment, (2) Criminal Justice & Safety, or (3) Public Health & Wellness. In particular, we are looking for research and other presentations that help to explain the dynamics and systems operating in relation to these three focus areas; understand the individuals and communities least likely to have access to needed resources and most vulnerable to harm; and hear stories that have not been told. Identifying and filling the research gaps within the focus areas will help to build critical connections between academics and advocates in order to move from research to action and from action to research.

We are especially interested in proposals addressing LGBTQIA experiences and issues in relation to gender identity, racial and economic justice, class, immigration and citizenship, age and aging, ability and disability, incarceration, and other categories and social concerns.  

Each session will include at least one academic researcher and one advocate or grassroots leader who may or may not have a research background. We encourage proposals from teams that include academics and community advocates, from individuals or teams whose work straddles the academic/advocacy/activist divide, and from individuals or teams whose work falls more clearly into one or the other category. 

Once proposals are submitted, symposium organizers may group individual submissions into sessions that include academic researchers and advocacy/activist leaders in order to encourage conversation and collaboration.  Each session will have a moderator and will last approximately one hour and fifteen minutes.

This infrastructure will assist our efforts in developing resources for community intervention and empowerment. It will also amplify the experiences of LGBTQIA people and communities who may not immediately benefit from recent legal gains, and whose issues have not been at the forefront of advocacy work. 

Accommodations, Travel Expenses and Registration fees:
Individuals who are selected to present at the symposium will receive some level of travel and accommodation support. Everyone who submits a proposal will be able to register for the symposium at a reduced presenter rate (TBD).

Timeline/Deadlines:
August 15 - Papers/Proposal Due
August 16-29 - Programming Board Selects
August 30-31 - Presenters notified
September 12 - Registration Begins
November 18-20 - Symposium